太子瑞應本起經 1.24

1.24

「太子曰：『夫死痛矣，精神劇矣！生當有此老病死苦，莫不熱中，迫而就之，不亦苦乎？吾見死者，形壞體化，而神不滅，隨行善惡，禍福自追，富貴無常，身為危城。是故聖人，常以身為患；而愚者保之，至死無厭。吾不能復以死受生，往來五道，勞我精神。』迴車而還，愍念天下有此三苦，憂不能食。王益不樂，曰：『國是汝有，當理人物，何為遠慮，以自疲苦？』復增五百妓女，以娛樂之。

"The prince said: 'Death is painful indeed; the spirit suffers intensely! In life, there is bound to be this suffering of old age, sickness, and death; who does not burn within as it presses in upon them—is it not painful? I see that with the dead, the form is broken and the body transformed, but the spirit is not extinguished; following the good and evil deeds performed, misfortune and fortune pursue them naturally. Wealth and nobility are impermanent, and the body is a perilous fortress. Therefore, the sage constantly regards the body as an affliction; yet the foolish cherish it, never tiring of it until death. I cannot again receive birth through death, coming and going in the five destinies, exhausting my spirit.' He turned his carriage back, pitying that the world has these three sufferings, and in his grief could not eat. The king became even more unhappy, saying: 'The kingdom belongs to you, and you should govern people and affairs; why take distant anxieties to wear yourself out with suffering?' He again added five hundred singing-girls to entertain him."