龍舒增廣淨土文 10.18

10.18

天人禮枯骨偈云「汝是前生我，我今天眼開，寶衣隨念至，玉食自然來。謝汝昔勤苦，令吾今快哉。散華時再拜，人世莫驚猜。」又餓鬼鞭死屍偈云「因這臭皮囊，波波劫劫忙，只知貪快樂，不肯暫迴光。自業錙銖少，黃泉歲月長，真須痛棒打，此恨猝難忘。」此言化俗則可以，為誠然則不可。何則？人神託於形骸之中，所以用形骸者皆神也。譬如匠人用斧斤，用之而善則為善器械，用之而不善則為惡器械。故為天人者，前世善用形骸者也。為餓鬼者，前世不善用形骸者也。其得其失，皆在當時，及其受報而禮之鞭之亦何益？

The verse on a heavenly being paying homage to dry bones says:
'You were I in my previous life,
Now my divine eye has opened:
Jeweled garments arrive as thought dictates,
Jade foods come naturally.
I thank you for your past toil and hardship,
Which makes me so blissful today.
While scattering flowers, I bow again and again;
Let worldly people not wonder or suspect.'
Furthermore, the verse on a hungry ghost whipping a corpse says:
'Because of this stinking leather bag,
Tossed about and busy for eons,
Only knowing to crave pleasure,
Unwilling for a moment to turn the light inward.
My own karma fell short by ounces and drams,
In the Yellow Springs, the years and months are long.
I must truly beat you with a painful staff;
This resentment is hard to forget so suddenly.'
These words are acceptable for converting the worldly, but not for taking as literal truth. Why is this? A human spirit lodges within the bodily frame; that which employs the bodily frame is entirely the spirit. For example, a carpenter uses axes and adzes: if he uses them well, they produce fine implements; if he uses them poorly, they produce bad implements. Thus, one who becomes a heavenly being was someone who employed the bodily frame well in a previous life. One who becomes a hungry ghost was someone who did not employ the bodily frame well in a previous life. The gain or loss occurred entirely at that very time; once experiencing the retribution, what benefit is there in bowing to it or whipping it?