龍舒增廣淨土文 3.10

3.10

此世界中人生皆如水泡，生滅不常，或一歲二歲、或一十二十，幸而至四十五十亦難矣。雖有至七十者，古來猶稀。人只見眼前老者，不思不待老而去者多矣。況世間無非是苦，但不思省，故不覺知。不稱意時固為苦矣，如或稱意亦無多時，父母妻兒姻親眷屬，或疾病死、或殺傷離散、或自己大限忽然而至。平生罪惡豈得全無？且以目前言之，起一不正念、說一不正語、視一不正色、聽一不正聲、為一不正事，無非過惡。況所食者眾生之肉，所衣者亦殺眾生而得，又況所有過惡不止於食肉。人繇不思，則已思之誠可畏也。自少至老自生至死積累既多，纏綿堅固，無由解脫，閉眼之後不免隨業緣去，杳杳冥冥不知在何處。或墜地獄受諸苦極、或為畜生受人宰殺、或生餓鬼飢火燒身、或入修羅嗔恨所迫。雖有善業得生天上人間，受盡福報依舊輪迴，漂流汩沒無有出期。唯有西方淨土最為超脫輪迴之捷徑，色身難得，趁康健時辦此大事。當常作念云：吾曾自無始以來輪迴六道，不曾知此法門，故不得出離。今日知之，豈可不即時下手？年高者固當勉力，年少者亦不可因循。命終徑生極樂世界，迴視死入陰府見閻王受恐怖者，不可同年而語矣。

In this world, human lives are all like water bubbles, arising and perishing without permanence. Some last one or two years, some ten or twenty; to fortunately reach forty or fifty is already difficult. Though there are those who reach seventy, since ancient times they have been rare. People only see the elderly before their eyes, never considering that those who pass away before growing old are many. Moreover, the mundane world is nothing but suffering, yet because people do not reflect, they are not aware of it. Times of adversity are certainly suffering; even if things go as wished, it does not last long. Parents, wives, children, and kin either die of illness, are harmed and separated, or one's own end arrives suddenly. How could one's lifelong sins and transgressions be completely absent? Taking only the present as an example: giving rise to a single improper thought, speaking a single improper word, looking upon a single improper form, listening to a single improper sound, or doing a single improper deed—none of these are not faults and evils. Furthermore, what one eats is the flesh of sentient beings, and what one wears is also obtained by killing sentient beings; what is more, all one's faults and evils do not stop at eating meat. If one does not think on it, it passes; but once one reflects on it, it is truly terrifying! Accumulated in abundance from youth to old age and from birth to death, entangled and solid, there is no way to liberation. After closing one's eyes, one cannot avoid following karmic conditions, departing into obscurity and gloom, not knowing where one will be. One may fall into hell to suffer extreme torments, or become an animal to be slaughtered by humans, or be born as a hungry ghost with the fire of hunger burning one's body, or enter the asuras, oppressed by wrath and hatred. Though there may be good karma by which one is born in the heavens or the human realm, once that blessed reward is exhausted, one transmigrates as before, drifting and sinking with no time of release. Only the Western Pure Land is the utmost shortcut to transcend transmigration. A physical body is difficult to obtain; while healthy and strong, accomplish this great matter! One should constantly reflect: 'Since beginningless time I have transmigrated through the six destinies and never knew this Dharma door, hence I could not escape. Today, having learned of it, how could I not set to work immediately?' The aged should indeed exert themselves, and the young must not procrastinate either. When life ends, go directly to rebirth in Sukhāvatī; looking back at those who die, enter the underworld, see King Yama, and undergo terrors, the two cannot be spoken of in the same breath.