淨土或問 1.26

1.26

問曰：一生造惡，臨終念佛帶業得生，又無退轉，此彌陀願力誠乎不可思議矣。然則我於生前且做世間事業，直待臨終然後念佛，可乎？答曰：苦哉苦哉！何等愚謬之言也。砒霜酖酒毒中之毒，今汝此言毒於砒霜酖酒者也。非特誤賺自己，又且誤賺天下曰僧曰俗善男信女皆此言也。向所謂逆惡凡夫臨終念佛者，乃是宿有善根福德因緣，方遇知識、方得念佛。此等僥倖，萬萬人中無一箇半箇。汝將謂人人臨終有此僥倖哉！豈不見《群疑論》云「世間有十種人，臨終不得念佛。一者善友未必相遇故無勸念之理、二者業苦纏身不遑念佛、三者或偏風失語不能稱佛、四者狂亂失心注想難成、五者或遭水火不暇至誠、六者遭遇豺狼無復善友、七者臨終惡友壞彼信心、八者飽食過度昏迷致死、九者軍陣鬪戰奄忽而亡、十者忽墜高巖傷壞性命。」如此等十種之事，皆是尋常耳聞眼見，不論僧俗男女人皆有之。或宿業所招、現業所感，忽爾現前不容迴避。爾又不是神通聖人，有宿命通，能知臨終有業無業。又不是有他心、天眼，能知臨終好死惡死。如上十種惡緣忽然遭著一種，便休了也，便做手脚不得了也。便有知識活佛圍繞，救爾不得了也。便須隨業受報，向三途八難中受苦受罪。到那時，要聞佛名不聞了也。直饒爾無此惡緣，只是好病而死，亦不免風刀解體四大分離，如生龜脫筒、螃蟹落湯，痛苦逼迫怕怖慞惶，念佛不得了也。更饒爾無病而死，又或世緣未了、世念未休，貪生怖死、擾亂胸懷。若是俗人又兼家私未明、後事未辦，妻啼子哭、百種憂煎，念佛不得了也。更饒爾未死以前，只有些少病痛在身，忍疼忍苦、叫喚呻吟，問藥求醫、祈禱懺悔，雜念紛飛，念佛不得了也。更饒爾未病以前，只是年紀老大衰相現前，困頓龍鍾、愁嘆憂惱，只向箇衰老身上左安右排，念佛不得了也。更饒爾未老以前，正是少壯之日，正好念佛之時。稍或狂心未歇、俗務相關，東攀西緣、胡思亂相，業識茫茫，念佛不得了也。更饒爾閑自在有志修行，稍於世相之中照不破放不下、把不定坐不斷，忽遭些子境界現前，一箇主人隨他顛倒，念佛不得了也。爾看他老病之時、少壯清閑之日，稍有一事掛心，早是念佛不得，況待臨終時哉？何況爾更道且做世間事業。爾真癡人說此癡話，敢保爾錯用身心了也。且世間事業如夢如幻如影如響，那一件有實效、那一件替得生死？縱饒廣造伽藍、多增常住，攀求名位、交結官豪，爾將謂多做好事，殊不知犯了如來不體道本廣造伽藍等戒。豈不見道「有為之功，多諸過咎。天堂未就，地獄先成。生死未明，皆成苦本。眼光落地，受苦之時，方知平生所作盡是枷上添枷、鎖上添鎖，鑊湯下增柴炭、劍樹上助刀鎗。袈裟下失却人身，萬劫難復。鐵漢聞之，也須淚落。」祖師如此苦口勸人，曾許爾且做事業，待臨終方念佛乎？又不見，死心禪師道「世間之人財寶如山、妻妾滿前、日夜歡樂，他豈不要長生在世？爭奈前程有限、暗裏相催，符到奉行不容住滯。閻羅老子不順人情、無常鬼王有何面目，且據諸人眼裏親見、耳裏親聞，前街後巷，親情眷屬、朋友兄弟，強壯後生死却多少？世人多云待老來方念佛。好教爾知，黃泉路上無老少，能有幾人待得老？到少年夭，死者多矣。古人云『莫待老來方念佛，孤墳多是少年人。』」又云「自從早年索妻養兒、經營家計，受盡萬千辛苦。忽然三寸氣斷，未免一旦皆休。若是孝順兒孫，齋得幾僧、看得部經、燒得陌紙，春三秋九做得碗羹飯、哭得幾聲，猶是記憶爺娘。若是不肖之子，父母方死、骨頭未冷，作撻財產、出賣田園、恣意作樂。以此較之，著甚麼急？兒孫自有兒孫福，莫與兒孫作馬牛。」復引古德云「冷笑富家翁，營生忙似箭。囤內米生虫，庫中錢爛貫。日裏把秤稱，夜間點燈算。形骸如傀儡，莫教繩索斷。」死心如此苦口勸人，曾許爾且做事業，待臨終方念佛乎？當思人生在世能有幾時，石火電光眨眼便過。趁此未老未病之前，抖搜身心撥棄世事，得一日光景念一日佛名，得一時工夫修一時淨業。由他臨命終時好死惡死，我之盤纏預辦了也、我之前程穩穩當當了也。若不如此，後悔難追。思之思之。

Question: "A person creates evil throughout his entire life, but by practicing buddhānusmṛti on the brink of death, he is reborn carrying his karma and never regresses. The power of Amitābha's vows is truly inconceivable! If so, might I attend to worldly pursuits while alive, and only practice buddhānusmṛti when on the brink of death?"

Answer: "How painful! How painful! What foolish and erroneous words these are! Arsenic and poison-bird wine are poisons among poisons, but these words of yours are more poisonous than arsenic and poison-bird wine! They not only lead you astray, but also mislead everyone under heaven—monks and laypeople, good men and faithful women alike! The aforementioned ordinary beings who, though committing rebellious and evil deeds, practice buddhānusmṛti at the brink of death, only encounter a kalyāṇamitra and manage to practice buddhānusmṛti because they possessed wholesome roots and blessed karmic conditions from previous lives. Such fortunate occurrences do not happen to even one in a hundred million people. Do you suppose that everyone has such good fortune at the brink of death?

Do you not see that the Qunyi lun says: 'In the world there are ten kinds of people who cannot practice buddhānusmṛti at the brink of death: First, one may not encounter a good friend, so there is no one to urge mindful recitation; second, the pains of karma afflict the body, leaving no time to practice buddhānusmṛti; third, one may suffer paralysis and loss of speech, unable to pronounce the Buddha's name; fourth, one may become mad and lose one's mind, so that focused contemplation cannot be formed; fifth, one may encounter water or fire, lacking the leisure to be earnest; sixth, one may encounter jackals and wolves, having no good friend nearby; seventh, at the brink of death an evil friend destroys one's faith; eighth, excessive eating causes stupor leading to death; ninth, in military combat one is slain abruptly; tenth, one suddenly falls from a high cliff and loses one's life.'

These ten kinds of situations are commonly heard of and seen, occurring to all people alike, whether monks, laypeople, men, or women. They are brought about either by past karma or induced by present karma, suddenly appearing before you without any way to escape. You are not a holy person with supernormal powers, endowed with the knowledge of past lives so as to know whether you will have obstructing karma at the brink of death. Nor do you possess telepathy or the divine eye so as to know whether you will meet an easy death or a terrible death at the end. If you suddenly run into even one of the ten kinds of adverse conditions mentioned above, it is all over: your hands and feet will be rendered powerless. Even if you were surrounded by spiritual teachers and living buddhas, they could not rescue you. You will inevitably follow your karma and receive retribution, enduring torment and punishment in the three wretched realms and eight conditions of non-freedom. At that time, though you might wish to hear the Buddha's name, you will not hear it.

Even granting that you have no such adverse conditions and merely die of a normal illness, you still will not escape the wind-knives dismembering your body and the four elements falling apart. Like a live turtle having its shell wrenched off, or a crab dropped into boiling water, racked by intense pain, panic, and terror, you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Even granting that you die without illness, yet worldly ties may not be severed, worldly thoughts not yet stilled, craving life and fearing death, with your chest in turmoil. If you are a householder, your family property may remain unsettled, funeral arrangements unmade, wife weeping and children wailing, beset by a hundred kinds of distress—you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Even granting that before death you have only a minor ache or illness in your body, enduring pain and suffering, crying out and groaning, seeking medicines and doctors, praying and repenting, with stray thoughts flying in confusion—you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Even granting that before falling ill you have simply grown old, with signs of decay appearing before you, decrepit and frail, sorrowful, sighing, and troubled, managing this decayed body this way and that—you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Even granting that before growing old you are in your prime of youth, the very time suited for buddhānusmṛti, yet if your wild mind has not ceased, involved in worldly affairs, grasping here and clinging there, indulging in reckless thoughts and chaotic notions, your karmic consciousness vast and hazy—you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Even granting that you are at leisure and free, aspiring to cultivate the practice, yet if you cannot see through worldly phenomena, cannot let go, cannot hold firm, and cannot cut them off at the root, then as soon as a slight situation arises, the master within is swayed by its inversions—you will not be able to practice buddhānusmṛti.

Look at this: in old age, illness, youth, or times of leisure, if there is the slightest thing hanging on your mind, already you cannot practice buddhānusmṛti—how much less can you wait until the brink of death? How much worse that you say you will 'attend to worldly pursuits for now'! You are truly a foolish person uttering foolish words; I dare say you have misused both body and mind.

Moreover, worldly pursuits are like dreams, like illusions, like shadows, like echoes. Which one of them has real efficacy? Which one can stand in for birth and death? Even if you broadly construct monasteries, vastly increase monastic property, seek after status and titles, and consort with high officials, you might think you are doing much good, yet you do not realize you are violating the Tathāgata's precepts against constructing monasteries without comprehending the root of the Path. Have you not heard it said: 'Conditioned merit has many faults and offenses. Before heaven is attained, hell is already completed. If birth and death are not understood, all becomes the root of suffering. When the light of one's eyes falls to the ground and one undergoes suffering, only then will one know that all one's lifelong deeds were merely adding a cangue upon a cangue, a lock upon a lock, adding firewood to the cauldron of boiling water, adding blades and spears to the sword-tree. Losing human form from beneath the monastic robe, it cannot be regained in ten thousand kalpas. Even an iron man, upon hearing this, must shed tears.' When the patriarchs urged people so earnestly, did they ever permit you to attend to worldly pursuits for now and only practice buddhānusmṛti at the brink of death?

Have you not also seen what Chan Master Sixin said? 'People in the world have treasures like mountains, wives and concubines filling their sights, and make merry day and night. Would they not wish to live long in this world? Yet how can they help it that the path ahead is limited, secretly pressing on, and when the writ of summons arrives, it allows no lingering? Old King Yama does not cater to human feelings; what face does the ghost king of impermanence have? Moreover, based on what everyone has seen with their own eyes and heard with their own ears, in the front streets and back alleys, among relatives, family, friends, and brothers, how many robust and young people have died? People of the world often say: "Wait until old age, and only then practice buddhānusmṛti." Let it be known to you: on the road to the Yellow Springs there are neither old nor young; how many can wait until they are old? Those who die young in their youth are many indeed! An ancient said: "Do not wait until old age to practice buddhānusmṛti; the solitary graves are mostly those of young people."'

He also said: 'Ever since youth, taking a wife, raising children, and managing the household, one has endured tens of thousands of hardships. Suddenly the three-inch breath is severed, and inevitably all ceases in a single morning. If one has filial sons and grandsons, they may provide meals for a few monks, read a scroll of sūtras, burn some paper money, prepare a bowl of soup and rice in the third month of spring and the ninth month of autumn, and weep a few times, still remembering their parents. But if they are unfilial sons, then the moment the parents die, before the bones are even cold, they squander the wealth, sell off the fields and gardens, and indulge in pleasure. Comparing it with this, what is the rush? Sons and grandsons have their own fortunes; do not serve as beasts of burden for sons and grandsons!'

He further quoted an ancient worthy: 'With a cold smile I view the rich old man: / His business pursuits are swift as an arrow. / In the granary, the grain breeds worms; / In the storehouse, strings of coins rot away. / By day he holds the scales to weigh; / By night he lights the lamp to calculate. / His bodily frame is like a puppet— / Do not let the strings snap!'

When Sixin urged people so earnestly, did he ever permit you to attend to worldly pursuits for now and only practice buddhānusmṛti at the brink of death? You should consider how long a human life in this world can last: like flint-sparks or a flash of lightning, it passes in the blink of an eye. Take advantage of this time before you are old and before you fall ill; shake awake your body and mind, cast aside worldly affairs. If you get a day's time, practice buddhānusmṛti for a day; if you get an hour's effort, cultivate pure karma for an hour. Let it be whether one dies well or badly at the brink of death—my provisions for the journey are prepared in advance, and my future path is completely secure. If you do not do this, later regrets will be impossible to catch up with. Reflect upon this! Reflect upon this!"