慈悲水懺法 3.7

3.7

Having paid homage to the Buddhas, next we repent once more. Having finished repenting the retributions of the hells, now we should next repent the retributions of the three evil destinies. In the sūtras the Buddha said: Because a person of many desires seeks much profit, his sufferings and afflictions are also many. Although a content person sleeps upon the bare ground, he still takes joy in it. One who is not content, though dwelling in heavenly halls, is still unsatisfied. Yet when people of the world suddenly face an emergency, they can abandon wealth without reckoning how much, not knowing that this very body teeters over the deep pit of the three paths, and if a single breath fails to return, one must plunge down. Should a spiritual friend suddenly urge them to perform meritorious deeds and cultivate provisions of good dharmas for the future, they cling to this stingy mind and are unwilling to do so. Such as these are utterly foolish and deluded. Why is this? In the sūtras the Buddha said: At birth one comes without bringing a single coin, and at death one also departs without holding a single coin. Tormenting one’s body to accumulate [wealth] brings only grief and distress; it is of no benefit to oneself and in vain becomes the possession of others. With no good to rely on and no virtue to depend upon, one is brought at the end of life to fall into the various evil destinies. Therefore today we take refuge in the Triratna and repent with utmost sincerity. / Next we repent the retributions of having no understanding or discernment in the realm of tiryagyonis; we repent the retributions of bearing heavy loads and pulling plows to repay past debts in the realm of tiryagyonis; we repent the retributions of lacking freedom, being hacked, pierced, slaughtered, and cut apart by others in the realm of tiryagyonis; we repent the retributions of having no feet, two feet, four feet, or many feet in the realm of tiryagyonis; we repent the retributions of having one’s body gnawed and devoured by various small vermin within feathers, hair, and scales in the realm of tiryagyonis. There are immeasurable retributions for sins such as these in the realm of tiryagyonis; today with utmost sincerity we repent them all. / Next we repent the retributions of enduring perpetual hunger and thirst for hundreds of thousands of years without ever hearing the name of water or broth in the realm of pretas; we repent the retributions of feeding upon pus, blood, feces, and filth as pretas; we repent the retributions of having all one’s limbs and joints burst into flames whenever moving the body as pretas; we repent the retributions of having a belly as large [as a mountain] and a throat as small [as a needle] as pretas. There are immeasurable bitter retributions such as these in the realm of pretas; today, knocking our heads on the ground and begging for mercy, we repent them all. / Next we repent the retributions of sycophancy, arrogance, and deceit in the realm of spirits and asuras; we repent the retributions of carrying sand and bearing stones to fill rivers and dam up oceans in the realm of spirits; we repent the retributions of devouring raw flesh and blood and receiving ugly forms as spirits, rākṣasas, kumbhāṇḍas, and other evil spirits. For all such immeasurable and boundless retributions for sins in the realm of spirits, today, knocking our heads on the ground before the Buddhas of the ten directions and the great bodhisattvas of the earth, we beg for mercy and repent, wishing that all may be extinguished. / May it be that by virtue of the merit generated through repenting the retributions of tiryagyonis and the like, in life after life we will eradicate the defilement of foolishness, recognize our own karmic conditions, illuminate with wisdom, and cut off the bodies of evil destinies. May it be that through the merit generated by repenting the retributions of pretas and the like, in life after life we will forever be separated from the suffering of stinginess, greed, hunger, and thirst, and ever feed upon the flavor of the ambrosia of liberation. May it be that through the merit generated by repenting the retributions of spirits, asuras, and the like, in life after life we will be upright and free of flattery, leave behind the causes of wrong livelihood, eliminate the fruits of ugliness, and bestow blessings and benefits upon humans and devas. May it be that from now until we reach the bodhimaṇḍa, we will definitely not undergo the retributions of the four evil destinies, except out of great compassion for the sake of sentient beings, dwelling among them untiringly through the power of our vows. / Having repented the retributions of the three paths and the like, now we should once more knock our heads and earnestly repent the remaining retributions among humans and devas. We have all received this lifespan in Jambudvīpa: though said to be one hundred years, few attain it in full; during that interval, those who die young and prematurely in their prime are countless, and there are only myriad sufferings tormenting and pursuing them, so that grief, anxiety, fear, and dread never leave mind or form for an instant. All of this is because good roots are weak and evil karma is rampant, so that in the present whatever one undertakes fails to satisfy one's wishes. One should know that these are all the remaining retributions of past evil karma. Therefore we now repent all the immeasurable remaining retributions among humans and devas in the present and the future from beginningless time down to the present day: we repent the retributions of inherited disasters, past retributions, crippling disabilities, the hundred illnesses, and incomplete sense faculties in the human world; we repent the retributions of borderlands, wrong views, the three evil destinies, and the eight difficulties in the human world; we repent the retributions of frequent illness, emaciation, short life, and premature death in the human world; we repent the retributions of being unable to preserve and stay together forever with the six kinds of relatives in the human world; we repent the retributions of relatives and friends perishing and the suffering of separation from loved ones in the human world; we repent the retributions of gathering together with enemies and bitter rivals with anxiety and terror in the human world; we repent the retributions of water, fire, robbers, weapons, peril, terror, and cowardice in the human world; we repent the retributions of loneliness, distress, wandering displaced, being scattered, and losing one’s homeland in the human world; we repent the retributions of being imprisoned in jails, bound in dark confinement, forced to stand sideways, flogged, and beaten under torture in the human world; we repent the retributions of public and private gossip and disputes, being entangled, implicated, and slandering one another in the human world; we repent the retributions of severe illnesses lasting for years and months without cure, lying confined to bed and unable to get up or move about in the human world; we repent the retributions of winter pestilences, summer epidemics, virulent contagions, and cold-damage disorders in the human world; we repent the retributions of pathogenic wind, swelling, abdominal fullness, and blockages in the human world; we repent the retributions of evil spirits lying in wait for an opportunity to cause misfortune and hauntings in the human world; we repent the retributions of birds crying out omens, a hundred monstrosities, flying corpses, and evil specters creating weird occurrences in the human world; we repent the retributions of being harmed by tigers, leopards, jackals, wolves, and all manner of fierce beasts and fowl on land and water in the human world; we repent the retributions of hanging oneself and committing suicide in the human world; we repent the retributions of throwing oneself into pits, leaping into fire, drowning, and throwing oneself down in the human world; we repent the retributions of having no majesty, virtue, or renown in the human world; we repent the retributions of clothing and material goods failing to meet one's desires in the human world; we repent the retributions of encountering bad companions who obstruct and hinder one's actions whenever coming, going, or conducting business in the human world. For all such immeasurable retributions of calamities, disasters, epidemics, misfortunes, decline, and distress among humans and devas in the present and future, we today with utmost sincerity beg for mercy and repent before the Buddhas of the ten directions, the venerable Dharma, and the holy Saṅgha, wishing that they may all be extinguished. / Previously we have repented all obstacles of afflictions of the three karmas and six sense faculties, all obstacles of karma, and all obstacles of retribution throughout the four modes of birth and six destinies. Now we should make vows and dedicate merit in proper sequence. We vow that all the merits generated by this repentance of the three obstacles will be dedicated and bestowed upon all sentient beings, repenting together with them. We pray that together with all sentient beings, within this present life, our bodies and minds may be peaceful and joyful; that the three disasters, eight difficulties, and inauspicious occurrences will all be eliminated; that clothing and food will be abundant; that we will have correct faith in the Triratna; and that upon casting off this retribution body, we may all be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, behold Amitābha in person, receive the prediction of enlightenment, see Maitreya Buddha in a future world, listen to the true Dharma, and cultivate according to the teachings. We further vow that in life after life, in every place, we will always encounter rulers who cause the Triratna to flourish, and never be born into households of non-Buddhist heterodox views. We further vow that in life after life, in every place, we will be born transformationally from lotuses into noble and eminent lineages, peaceful, happy, and naturally provided with clothing and food. We further vow that in life after life, in every place, we will be compassionate, benevolent, loyal, and filial, helping living beings with an equal mind, never conceiving a single thought of rebellion or harm. We further vow that in life after life, in every place, we will always be protected and kept in mind by all Buddhas, able to subdue the hordes of Māra and all non-Buddhists, assemble in one place together with all bodhisattvas, and have the mind directed toward the path of bodhi continue without interruption. We further vow that in life after life, in every place, we will cause the Buddha-Dharma to flourish, practice the Mahāyāna, divide our bodies into immeasurable forms to save sentient beings, and proceed straight to the bodhimaṇḍa without regression. Just as the vows made, the merit and wisdom cultivated, and the dedication of merit performed by all Buddhas and bodhisattvas, so too do I make vows, cultivate, accumulate, and dedicate: until the realm of empty space is exhausted, until the realm of sentient beings is exhausted, and until the karma and afflictions of sentient beings are exhausted, may this practice and dedication of mine never come to an end. Having made vows and dedicated merit, with the utmost heart we faithfully pay homage to the ever-abiding Triratna.