法界次第初門 1.202

1.202

The reason the ten wholesome actions are distinguished next after the ten unwholesome actions is that if a person can know that evil is conduct deviating from the principle, by which suffering is incurred in the present and the future, they must cease evil and practice good, whereby they may permanently attain the pleasant fruit of pure elevation in future lives; therefore, the ten wholesome actions are clarified next after the ten unwholesome actions. However, the ten wholesome actions are of two kinds: first, cessation; second, performance. In cessation, one merely puts an end to the previous evils and does not distress others; in performance, one cultivates superior virtues and benefits and brings peace to all. These two are collectively termed 'wholesome' because 'wholesome' has the meaning of according with the principle: putting an end to inversion and returning to truth is called according with the principle. Cessation puts an end to the evil of heavy inversion; performance gradually returns to the good of the superior path. Therefore, both kinds—cessation and performance—are called wholesome. Or the name 'course' (path) is added to them because they can lead to pleasant fruits.