[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [弘明集](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102) › 6.6 # 弘明集 6.6 弘明集 6.6 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [6.6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.6) 有東京束教君子。誥於西鄙傲散野人曰。僕曾預聞佛法冲邃。非名教所議。道風玄遠非器像所擬。清虛簡勝非近識所關。妙絕群有非常情所測。故每為時君之所遵崇。貴達之所欽仰。於是眾庶朋契雷同奔向。咸共嗟詠稱述其善云。若染漬風流則精義入微。研究理味則妙契神用。澡塵垢於胸心。脫桎梏於形表。超俗累於籠樊。邈世務而高蹈。淪真素則夷齊無以踰其操。遺榮寵則巢許無以過其志。味玄旨則顏冉無以參其風。去紛穢則松喬無以比其潔。信如所談則義無間然矣。但今觀諸沙門通非其才。群居猥雜未見秀異。混若涇渭渾波。泯若薰蕕同篋。若源清則津流應鮮。根深則條頴必茂。考其言行而始終不倫。究其本末幾無有校。僕之所以致怪。良由於此。如皇帝之忘智。據梁之失力。皆在鑪錘之間陶鑄以成聖者。苟道不虛行。才必應器。然沙門既出家離俗高尚其志。違天屬之親。捨榮華之重。毀形好之飾。守清節之禁。研心唯理。屬己唯法。投足而安。蔬食而已。使德行卓然為時宗仰儀容。邕肅為物軌則。然觸事蔑然無一可採。何棲託之高遠。而業尚之鄙近。至於營求孜汲無暫寧息。或墾殖田圃與農夫齊流。或商旅博易與眾人競利。或矜恃醫道輕作寒暑。或機巧異端以濟生業。或占相孤虛妄論吉凶。或詭道假權要射時意。或聚畜委積頤養有餘。或指掌空談坐食百姓。斯皆德不稱服行多違法。雖暫有一善亦何足以標高勝之美哉。自可廢之以一風俗。此皆無益於時政。有損於治道。是執法者之所深疾。有國者之所大患。且世有五橫。而沙門處其一焉。何以明之。乃大設方便鼓動愚俗。一則誘喻。一則迫脅云。行惡必有累劫之殃。修善便有無窮之慶。論罪則有幽冥之伺。語福則有神明之祐。敦勵引導勸行人所不能行。強逼切勒勉為人所不能為。上減父母之養。下損妻拏之分。會同盡肴饍之甘。寺廟極壯麗之美。割生民之珍翫。崇無用之虛費。罄私家之年儲。闕軍國之資實。張空聲於將來。圖無像於未兆。聽其言則洋洋而盈耳。觀其容則落落而滿目。考現事以求徵。並未見其驗真。所謂繫影捕風莫知端緒。亮僕情之所未安。有識者之所巨惑若有嘉信請承下風。脫有暫悟永去其滯矣。主人答主人憮然有間慨爾長歎。咄異哉。子之所陳。何其陋也。夫鄙俗不可以語大道者。滯於形也。曲士不可以辯宗極者。局於名也。今將為子略舉一隅。自可思反其宗矣。蓋聖人設教應器。投法受量。有限故化之以漸。錄善心於毫端。忘鄙吝於丘壑。片行之善永為身資。一念之福終為神用。始覆一簣不可責以為山之功。方趣絕境不中窮以括囊之實。然海之所以稱大者。由無皦潔之清。道之所以稱晦跡者以無赫然之觀。夫慈親婉孌有心之所滯。而沙門遺之如脫屣。名位財色世情之所重。而沙門視之如粃糠。可謂忍人所不能去。斯乃標尚之雅趣。弘道之勝事。而云蔑然。豈非妙賞之謂乎。又且志業不同歸向塗乖。岐逕分轍不相領悟。未見秀異故其宜耳。古人每歎才之為難信矣。周號多士亂臣十人。唐虞之盛元凱二八。孔門三千。並海內翹秀。簡充四科數不盈十。於中伯牛廢疾。回也六極。商也慳悋。賜也貨殖。予也難彫。由也凶愎。求也聚斂任不稱職。仲弓雖騂出於犁色。而舉世推德。為人倫之宗。欽尚高軌為搢紳之表。百代詠其遺風。千載仰其景行。至於沙門。乃苦共剝節酷相瓦礫。斯豈君子弘通之道雅正之論哉。此由或人入斑輸之作坊。不稱指南之巧妙。但譏拙者之傷手。真可謂伏膺下流。志存鄙劣。昔承相問客。俗言鵄梟食。母寧有是。乎客。答但聞慈烏反哺。耳相乃悵。然自愧失。言今子處心將無似相之問也。君子遏惡揚善。反是謂何。又云。投足而安且林野蕭條。每有寇盜之患。城傍入出動嬰交遊之譏。處身非所則招風塵之累。婆娑田里則犯人間之論。二三無可進退惟谷。宇宙雖曠莫知所厝。 > A gentleman bound by the teachings of the Eastern Capital addressed an unrestrained, recluse countryman of the western border, saying: "I have formerly heard that the Buddha's Dharma is profound and vast, not something to be debated within the moral teachings; its Daoist-like ethos is mysterious and remote, not something to be likened to material forms; its purity and concise transcendence are not matters that ordinary knowledge can touch; and its subtle severance from all existences cannot be fathomed by common sentiments. Therefore, it is always honored by temporal rulers and admired by the noble and eminent. Thereupon, the common masses gather like thunder and rush toward it, all sighing in admiration and praising its goodness, saying: 'If one is steeped in its spirit, its refined principles penetrate the subtle; if one investigates the flavor of its truth, it subtly accords with the divine function. One washes away the dust and defilement in one's heart and mind, and casts off the shackles from one's outer form. One transcends mundane burdens beyond the cage, leaves worldly affairs far behind, and walks aloft. In living out genuine simplicity, Boyi and Shuqi cannot surpass their integrity; in relinquishing glory and favor, Chaofu and Xu You cannot outdo their resolve; in savoring the mysterious import, Yan Hui and Ran Boniu cannot share their style; in shedding confusion and filth, Wangzi Qiao and Red Pine cannot rival their purity.' If it were truly as spoken, then its principles would indeed be flawless. But observing the various śramaṇas nowadays, all are generally lacking in such talent. Flocking together in vulgar confusion, no preeminent excellence is seen among them. They are confounded like the turbulent waves of the Jing and Wei rivers; they are indistinguishable like fragrant and foul herbs stored in the same hamper. If the source were pure, the flowing waters should be clear; if the roots were deep, the branches and ears of grain would surely flourish. Examining their words and deeds, they are inconsistent from beginning to end; investigating their roots and branches, there is hardly anything to compare favorably. That I express wonder and doubt is truly due to this. Just as the Yellow Emperor's forgetting of his wisdom and Baoliang's loss of strength were both refined and cast into sages within the forge, if the Way does not operate in vain, talent must match the vessel. Yet, when śramaṇas have left household life and departed from secular customs to elevate their ideals, turned against the kinship of heaven-given relations, abandoned the gravity of glory and splendor, marred the adornments of their physical appearance, and observed the prohibitions of pure discipline, their inquiring minds dwell solely on principle, and their commitment belongs solely to the Dharma. They rest wherever they set foot, and eat only vegetarian food. They should make their virtuous conduct outstanding so that it becomes the veneration of the era, and make their demeanor harmonious and solemn so that it serves as a model for all things. Yet when touching upon actual affairs, they are negligible and have not a single merit worth taking up. Why are their aspirations so high and remote, yet their occupations and practices so vulgar and near? When it comes to seeking profit and toiling, they never pause for a moment's rest. Some cultivate fields and gardens, ranking alongside farmers; some engage in trade and exchange, competing for profit with the multitude; some rely arrogantly on the medical arts, rashly treating hot and cold ailments; some use mechanical cleverness and deviant skills to eke out a living; some divine solitary emptiness and falsely discuss good and ill fortunes; some use deceitful ways and assume false authority to shoot for temporal favor; some accumulate hoardings and reserves to nourish themselves in excess; some clap their hands in empty talk and sit by to feed off the common people. In all these cases, their virtue does not match their robes, and their actions mostly violate the Dharma. Even if they occasionally possess a single good, how could it suffice to mark the excellence of transcendence? They could simply be abolished to unify customs! All these are of no benefit to temporal governance and bring harm to the way of ordering the realm. They are what law enforcers deeply detess and what rulers of state find to be a grave peril. Furthermore, in the world there are five pests, and the śramaṇas constitute one of them! How is this known? They devise great expedient means to incite the foolish multitude. On one hand, they entice; on the other hand, they intimidate, saying: 'Doing evil will surely incur calamities for cumulative kalpas; cultivating good will immediately bring infinite blessings. Speaking of transgressions, there is the surveillance of the unseen realm; speaking of fortune, there is the protection of the divine spirits.' They urge and lead them, exhorting people to do what they cannot do; they compel and press them, forcing them to achieve what people cannot achieve. Above, it diminishes the care for parents; below, it harms the shares of wives and children. Gatherings exhaust the sweetness of fine delicacies; monasteries reach the extremity of grand and magnificent splendor. They strip the precious treasures of living people, exalting useless and empty expenses; they exhaust the yearly reserves of private families, and run short the real supplies of the military and the state. They proclaim empty fame into the future, and depict shapeless wonders before they manifest. Listening to their words, they flow abundantly and fill the ears; watching their appearance, they are lofty and fill the eyes. Yet examining current affairs to seek proof, none have seen their genuine verification. This is what is called tying a shadow or catching the wind, with no beginning or end to be known. This truly makes my feelings ill at ease, and poses a great doubt to those who have discernment. If you have fine explanations, I beg to receive your instructions. Should I perhaps attain a momentary awakening, I would forever discard these blockages." The host answered. The host was forlorn for a while and sighed deeply: "Alas, how strange! What you have set forth, how shallow it is! Indeed, one cannot speak of the Great Dao with the vulgar because they are stuck in external forms; one cannot debate the ultimate principle with the biased because they are confined to conventional designations. Now I shall briefly raise one corner for you, and you may reflect and return to its fundamental principle on your own. Now, when the Sage establishes teachings, he responds to the vessel; in presenting the Dharma, he receives the capacity. Because there are limits, he transforms them gradually, recording a good intention even at the tip of a fine hair, and forgetting vulgar stinginess in the hills and ravines. The goodness of a single deed becomes a resource for one's life forever; the blessing of a single thought ultimately serves as a spiritual function. When having just dumped a single basket of earth, one cannot demand the accomplishment of building a mountain; when newly heading toward a transcendent realm, one cannot exhaustively demand the fullness of wrapping up the sack. Indeed, that the sea is called great is because it does not maintain pristine purity; that the Dao is called hiding its traces is because it lacks a blazing display. Now, the love of affectionate parents is what clings to conscious minds, yet śramaṇas discard it like casting off a worn shoe. Name, status, wealth, and sensual pleasure are what worldly sentiment prizes, yet śramaṇas regard them as chaff. They can be said to endure what ordinary people cannot renounce. This is the elegant disposition of their exalted aspirations, the sublime enterprise of propagating the Dao. Yet you say it is negligible; how is this not a lack of wondrous appreciation? Moreover, their aspirations and professions are not the same, and the paths they pursue diverge; when forks in the road branch off, they do not understand one another. That you have not seen their preeminent excellence is only natural. The ancients always sighed that talent was difficult to find; this is truly so! The Zhou was renowned for its many officers, yet there were only ten capable ministers. In the height of Tang and Yu, there were only the eight Yuan and eight Kai. Confucius's disciples numbered three thousand, all eminent figures within the realm; yet when selecting those to fill the four subjects, the number did not reach ten. Among them, Boniu suffered an incurable illness; Yan Hui suffered the six extremes; Zixia was stingy; Zigong engaged in trade; Zai Yu was hard to carve; Zilu was rash and obstinate; and Ran Qiu amassed wealth, failing to act fittingly in his post. Although Ran Yong was like a red calf born of a plow-ox, the entire world praised his virtue, making him the paragon of human relations, and admiring his lofty standard as the exemplar for scholars and officials; for a hundred generations, people have sung of his remaining ethos, and for a thousand years they have revered his glorious conduct. Yet when it comes to the śramaṇas, people bitterly strip away their integrity and harshly treat them as rubble and broken tiles. How could this be the gentleman's way of broad understanding and elegant, upright discourse? This is like a man entering the workshop of Gongshu Ban, not praising the subtlety of the south-pointing chariot, but only mocking the clumsy worker for injuring his hand. It can truly be called submitting to the lowest currents and cherishing what is base and inferior. In the past, a chancellor asked a guest: 'Common sayings claim that the owl eats its mother. Can there really be such a thing?' The guest replied: 'I have only heard that the filial crow feeds its mother in return.' The chancellor was disheartened and felt ashamed of his slip of the tongue. In harbor of your thoughts today, are you not like that chancellor's question? A gentleman stops evil and praises good; what do you call doing the opposite? Furthermore, you say, 'They rest wherever they set foot.' Yet forests and fields are desolate, constantly having the menace of bandits; entering and leaving city gates, their movements are entangled in the criticism of socializing; dwelling where they should not brings the burdens of worldly dust; lingering in fields and hamlets offends the gossip of the human world. In these several options, there is neither advance nor retreat, like finding oneself in a dead-end ravine. Although the universe is vast, they know not where to place themselves. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 6.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.5) - [Next: 6.7](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.7) - [Up: 6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102~en-mt.6.6) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.6) · Pramāṇa