勸發菩提心集 3.157

3.157

All beneficial actions are, in brief, of two types: (1) beneficial actions able to mature immature sentient beings; (2) beneficial actions that cause matured sentient beings to attain liberation. Furthermore, through three gates: (1) beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in the present life; (2) beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in future lives; (3) beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in both present and future lives. Beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in the present life means exhorting them to gather, protect, and increase wealth and status through dharmic work and virtue, which enables them to obtain great renown and present-life joy, abiding in the embrace of the joy of requisites. Beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in future lives means correctly exhorting them to abandon wealth and status, purely go forth as renunciants, and sustain themselves by practicing begging, which enables them to definitely obtain future-life peace and joy, though not necessarily obtaining present-life peace and joy. Beneficial actions of exhortation toward benefit in both present and future lives means correctly exhorting householders or renunciants to gradually practice toward detachment from desires, which enables them to obtain pliancy in the present and be reborn in pure heavens or attain parinirvāṇa in the realm without remainder in the future.