[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) › 6.9 # 弘明集 6.9 弘明集 6.9 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [6.9](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.9) 云罪則冥伺福則神祐。夫含德至淳則眾善歸焉。易曰。履信思順。自天祐之。吉無不利。又曰。為不善於幽昧之中。鬼得而誅之。豈非冥伺神明之祐哉。善惡之報經有成證。不復具列。云會盡肴膳寺極壯麗。此修福之家傾竭。以備將來之資殫盡。自為身之大計耳。殆非神明歆其壯麗。眾僧貪其滋味。猶農夫之播殖。匠者之構室將擇貞材以求堂宇之飾。精簡種子以規嘉苗之實。故稼穡必樹於沃壤之地。卜居要選於\[塽-(爻\*爻)+((人/人)\*(人/人))\]塏之處。是以知三尊為眾生福田。供養自修己之功德耳。云割生民之珍翫崇無用之虛費。夫博施兼愛仁者之厚德。崇飾宗廟孝敬之至心。世教若此道亦如之。物有損之而益為之必獲。且浮財猶糞土。施惠為神用譬朽木之為舟。乃濟渡之津要。何虛費之有哉。欲端坐而望自然拱默以悕安樂。猶無柯而求伐。不食而徇飽。焉可得乎。苟身之不修己為困矣。何必乃蔽百姓之耳目。擁天下之大善。既自飲毒復欲酖人。何酷如之。可謂亡我陷彼。相與俱禍。是以盲聾瘖瘂之對。幽處彌劫之殃。調達之報歷地獄無間之苦。云罄私家之年儲。闕軍國之資實。聖王御世純風遐被。振道綱以維六合。布德網以籠群俊。川無扣浪之夫。谷無含歎之士。四民咸安其業。百官各盡其分。海內融通九州同貫。戎車於是寢駕。甲士却走。以糞嘉穀委於中田。倉儲積而成朽。童稚進德日新。黃髮盡於眉壽。當共擊壤以頌太平。鼓腹以觀盛化。子何多慮之深橫。憂時之不足。不亦過乎。云悋太官而腫口。臨滄海而攝腹。真子之謂也。 > You say that for transgressions the unseen realm watches, while for blessings spirits bestow protection. Now, when one embodies the utmost purity of virtue, all good things gravitate toward him. The Book of Changes states: 'He treads in good faith and meditates on yielding compliance; from Heaven blessing is bestowed on him; there is good fortune and nothing that is not beneficial.' It also says: 'When one commits misdeeds in hidden obscurity, the ghosts and spirits are able to punish him.' Are these not the watchfulness of the unseen realm and the protection of the spirits? As for the retribution of good and evil, the scriptures contain verified proofs; they need not be enumerated here in full. You say that banquets exhaust fine delicacies and monasteries reach the height of magnificence. These are simply families cultivating blessings who exhaust their means to prepare provisions for the future, draining their wealth solely as a grand strategy for their own persons. It is hardly that the spirits savor the magnificence or that the assembly of monks covets the flavors! It is just like a farmer sowing crops or a craftsman building a house: they will select sound timber to seek the adornment of halls and chambers, and carefully screen seeds to anticipate the harvest of fine crops. Therefore, agriculture must be planted in fertile soil, and in choosing a dwelling one must select a high and dry location. Hence we know that the Three Jewels are the field of blessings for living beings; making offerings is simply cultivating one's own merit. You say that they carve away the precious items of the living people and exalt useless and empty expenses. Now, broadly bestowing and universally loving is the deep virtue of the benevolent; adorning the ancestral temple is the utmost mind of filial reverence. If secular teachings are like this, the Dao is also the same. Among things, there are those where losing brings gain, and doing it brings certain rewards. Furthermore, floating wealth is like dung and dirt, while bestowing generosity serves the spirit; it is like using rotten wood to make a boat, which nevertheless becomes a vital ford for crossing over. What empty expense is there? If one wishes to sit upright and wait for spontaneous ease, or fold one's hands in silence hoping for peace and joy, that is like seeking to fell trees without an axe, or seeking fullness without eating—how could it be attained? If failing to cultivate oneself already brings distress, why must you go further to obstruct the ears and eyes of the common people and block the great goodness of the realm? Having already drunk poison yourself, you further wish to administer aconite to others; what cruelty could match this? This can be called destroying oneself while entrapping others, bringing disaster upon both together. Thus, retribution as the blind, deaf, dumb, and mute, and calamities dwelling in darkness across kalpas, are the karmic retribution of Devadatta, who undergoes the uninterrupted suffering of the Avīci Hell. You say that this depletes the yearly stores of private households and leaves the resources of the military and the state deficient. When a sage king governs the world, pure customs spread afar; he shakes the guidelines of the Dao to maintain the six directions, and spreads the net of virtue to encompass all talents. In the rivers there are no men beating the waves in distress, and in the valleys there are no scholars harboring sighs. The four classes of people all rest secure in their vocations, and the hundred officials each fulfill their duties. Within the seas all is harmonious and open, and the nine provinces are bound together as one. Thereupon the war chariots are stowed away, and the armored soldiers turn back to spread manure on the fine grains left across the fields; the granaries are stacked until the grain decays; the young advance in virtue renewed day by day, and the aged live out their full longevity. They should together beat the earth singing praises of the Great Peace, and drum their bellies to behold this flourishing transformation! Why do you harbor such deep and unwarranted worries, fretting that the times are deficient? Is this not excessive? You say: 'Begrudging the Court Provisioner, one's mouth swells; facing the vast ocean, one draws in one's belly.' This truly applies to you, sir! > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 6.8](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.8) - [Next: 6.10](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.10) - [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.6.9) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.9](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2102.6.9) · Pramāṇa