萬善同歸集 2.44

2.44

答：「自行須離，約法即空；化他等觀，在人何別？是以初心自利，則損益兩陳；究竟利他，則善惡同化。如夜行險道，以惡人執燭，豈可以人惡故，而不隨其照？菩薩得般若之光，終不捨惡。《華嚴經》云：『捨惡性人，遠懈怠者；輕慢亂意，譏嫌惡慧，是為魔業。』台教云：『惡是善資；無惡亦無善。』《法華經》云：『惡鬼入其身，罵詈毀辱我；我等念佛故，皆當忍是事。』惡不來加，不得用念，用念由於惡加。又『威音王佛所，著法之眾，聞不輕言，罵詈捶打；由惡業故還值不輕，不輕教化，皆得不退。』又『提婆達多是善知識。』書云：『善者是惡人之師；惡者是善人之資。』故知惡能資善，非能通正；豈有一法，而可捨乎？」

Answer: "In one's own practice one must detach, and in terms of phenomena it is empty; in transforming others one views them equally, so regarding persons what difference is there? Thus, in the initial aspiration for self-benefit, loss and gain are both set forth; in the ultimate benefit of others, good and evil are equally transformed. It is like traveling a perilous road at night when an evil person holds a torch: how could one refuse to follow its light merely because the person is evil? Bodhisattvas attain the light of prajñā and ultimately never abandon the evil. The Avataṃsaka Sūtra says: 'Abandoning people of evil nature, keeping away from the indolent, despising distracted minds, and ridiculing evil wisdom—these are the deeds of Māra.' The Tiantai teachings state: 'Evil is the auxiliary of good; without evil, there is no good.' The Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra says: 'Evil ghosts enter their bodies to revile and insult me; because we are mindful of the Buddha, we will endure all such things.' If evil did not come to assail, one would not employ mindfulness; the employment of mindfulness is due to the affliction of evil. Furthermore, '[In the assembly of] the Buddha King of Imposing Voice, the assembly attached to phenomena heard the words of Sadāparibhūta and cursed and beat him; due to that evil karma they met Sadāparibhūta again, and through his instruction and transformation, all attained non-retrogression.' Furthermore, 'Devadatta is a kalyāṇamitra.' The classic says: 'The good person is the teacher of the evil person; the evil person is the resource of the good person.' Thus we know that evil can assist good, though it cannot penetrate uprightness; how could there be a single phenomenon that can be discarded?"