慈悲道場懺法 3.5

3.5

今日道場同業大眾！各自覺悟起慚愧心。經言「作善得善，作惡得惡。」而五濁惡世不可作惡，善不失善報、為惡自招殃，莫言輕脫。立此懺法，經言「莫輕小善以為無福，水滴雖微漸盈大器，小善不積無以成聖。莫輕小惡以為無罪，小惡所積足以滅身」。大眾當知，吉凶禍福皆由心作，若不作因亦不得果。殃積罪大肉眼不見，諸佛所說，誰敢不信？我等相與生世強健，復不勤學自力行善，臨窮方悔亦何所及。今已共見一切過患，如經所說，自知其罪，豈得不思捨惡從善。今生若復不能用心，判捨此形必墮地獄。何以知之？今見為罪之時，未甞不以含毒猛烈懷恨深重，若瞋一人必欲令死，若嫉一人惡見其好，若毀一人必陷苦處，若鞭一人窮天楚毒。忿恚暴害不避尊卑，惡罵醜言無復高下，聲震若雷、眼中火現。至於為福之時，善心微劣，始欲為多末遂減少，初欲速營續後且住。心既不至，日月推遷，如是進退遂就忘失。是為作罪之時心氣剛強，為福之時志意劣弱。今以弱善之因，求離強惡之報，豈可妄得？經云「懺悔，無罪不滅。」每至懺悔之時，必須五體投地如大山崩，此云不惜身命，為滅罪因緣故，殷勤督勵。（某甲）等相與各省：今生已來已曾幾過作此忿責？不惜身命捍勞忍苦作此懺悔，暫時禮拜，已言氣力不堪。或暫端坐，復言應須消息。或言四體不可過勞，宜應將養，不可使困。一伸脚眠，差如不死，何處復憶我應禮佛、掃塔塗地，辦所難辦？且經教所明，未見一善從懶墮懈怠中生，亦未曾見有一善法從憍慢自恣中得。（某甲）等今日雖有其形，心多背道。何以知然？今試撿挍：從旦至中、從中至暮、從暮至夜、從夜至曉，乃至一時一刻一念一頃，無有片心念三寶四諦、無有片心報父母恩、無有片心報師長恩、無有片心欲布施持戒忍辱精進、無有片心欲學禪定修智慧業，清白之法無一可論，煩惱重障森然滿目。若不作此撿察，亦自言我功德不少有小片善。而生恃賴，言我能作他不能作，言我能行他不能行，意氣高傲傍若無人。追此而言實可羞恥。今於大眾前披誠發露懺悔眾罪，願布施歡喜，將來無障。大眾亦宜自浣身心，果報之徵具如向說，豈得自寬不求捨離。大眾莫言：我無是罪。我既無罪，何須懺悔？若有此念，願即除滅。且幾微小失已成大咎，瞥然之恨瞋恚便起，性與習成難可改革。心不可縱、意不可逞，若能抑忍則煩惱可除，如其怠惰未見濟度。（某甲）等今日仰承諸佛慈悲念力、諸大菩薩本誓願力，說罪業報應教化地獄經，宜各靜慮一心諦聽。

Today, assembly sharing this karmic endeavor in the bodhimaṇḍa! Let each of you awaken and arouse a sense of shame. The sūtra says: 'Practicing good brings good; practicing evil brings evil.' Yet in this evil age of the five turbidities, one must not commit evil. Good does not lose its good retribution, while committing evil naturally brings disaster; do not say that one can get off lightly. Establishing this repentance rite, the sūtra states: 'Do not slight a small good, thinking it brings no blessing; though a drop of water is tiny, it gradually fills a great vessel; without accumulating small goods, there is no way to become a sage. Do not slight a small evil, thinking it incurs no guilt; the accumulation of small evils suffices to destroy oneself.' The assembly should know that fortune and misfortune, disaster and blessing, are all produced by the mind. If one does not create the cause, one does not obtain the effect. When disasters accumulate and sins become great, the fleshy eye cannot see them; yet who would dare disbelieve what the Buddhas have spoken? We are together born into this world robust and healthy, yet we do not diligently study or exert ourselves to practice good; when we face extremity, of what use will regret be? Now that we have together seen all faults and perils, just as the sūtra has stated, knowing our own sins, how could we not resolve to abandon evil and follow good? If in this life we again fail to apply our minds, when we definitely relinquish this form we will surely fall into hell. How do we know this? Now we see that when committing sins, one never fails to harbor fierce venom and cherish deep grudges. If one resents a single person, one definitely wishes them dead; if one is jealous of a single person, one hates to see any good in them; if one slanders a single person, one definitely plunges them into misery; if one whips a single person, one inflicts the utmost pain and cruelty. Rage, fury, violence, and injury spare neither the venerable nor the lowly; vile curses and ugly words make no distinction between high and low; the voice shakes like thunder and fire flashes in the eyes. But when it comes to making merit, the wholesome mind is feeble and weak: what began with an intent to do much ends up reduced to little; what initially was intended to be done swiftly is later halted. Since the mind is not earnest, as days and months pass by, thus vacillating back and forth, it is finally forgotten and lost. Thus it is that when committing sins the mental resolve is hard and strong, but when cultivating merit the will and intent are feeble and weak. Now, using the cause of weak good to seek escape from the retribution of powerful evil—how could this be attained in vain? A sūtra says: 'With repentance, there is no sin that is not eradicated.' Whenever it comes time for repentance, one must cast the five limbs to the ground like the collapse of a great mountain. This means not begrudging body and life, earnestly urging oneself on for the sake of eliminating the causes and conditions of sin. Let us, such-and-such and the others, each examine ourselves: since the beginning of this life, how many times have we made such reproaches against ourselves? Not begrudging body and life, enduring toil and suffering, to perform this repentance—yet after prostrating for merely a short while, one already says one's energy cannot bear it. Or after sitting upright for a brief moment, one says one must rest. Or one says the four limbs must not be overexerted, that they should be nurtured and not allowed to become exhausted. Stretching out one's legs in sleep, scarcely different from being dead, where does one still remember: 'I should pay homage to the Buddha, sweep the stūpas and plaster the ground, and accomplish what is difficult to accomplish'? Furthermore, what is made clear in the teachings of the sūtras is that never has a single good been seen to arise from laziness and indolence, nor has a single wholesome dharma ever been seen to be obtained from arrogance and self-indulgence. Though we, such-and-such and the others, possess this human form today, our minds mostly turn their backs on the Way. How do we know this is so? Now let us examine: from dawn to noon, from noon to dusk, from dusk to night, from night to daybreak, even for a single hour, a single quarter-hour, a single thought-moment, or a single instant, there is not the slightest thought mindful of the Three Jewels and the Four Noble Truths; there is not the slightest thought of repaying the kindness of parents; there is not the slightest thought of repaying the kindness of teachers and elders; there is not the slightest thought of wishing to practice generosity, keep the precepts, cultivate forbearance, or exert vigor; there is not the slightest thought of wishing to learn dhyāna meditation or cultivate the karma of wisdom. Not a single pure and unblemished dharma can be spoken of, while the heavy obstructions of affliction densely crowd our vision. If one does not conduct such an examination, one also says of oneself: 'My merit is not small; I have a tiny bit of good.' Relying on this, one says: 'I can do what others cannot do; I can practice what others cannot practice,' with haughty pride, acting as if no one else exists. Looking back on this, it is truly shameful! Now, before the great assembly, we lay bare our sincerity, confessing and repenting all our sins, wishing to give rise to joy so that there may be no hindrances in the future. The great assembly should also wash their bodies and minds. The signs of karmic retribution are fully as described earlier; how could one be lenient with oneself and not seek to abandon and depart from them? Let the great assembly not say: 'I do not have such sins. Since I have no sins, why is repentance needed?' If such a thought exists, may it be eradicated immediately. Moreover, subtle, minute missteps have already become great faults; a fleeting resentment immediately gives rise to anger; nature and habit become set and are difficult to reform. The mind must not be indulged, and the will must not be given free rein. If one can restrain and endure, then afflictions can be eliminated; if one is indolent, no salvation has ever been seen. Today, reverently relying on the power of mindfulness of the Buddhas' compassion and loving-kindness, and on the power of the fundamental vows of the great bodhisattvas, we recite the *Sūtra on Karmic Retribution for Sins and the Instruction of Hell*. You should all calm your thoughts and listen attentively with single-minded devotion.