廣弘明集 14.20

14.20

傅又云。帝王無佛則國治年長。有佛則政虐祚短。此又未思之言也。則謂能仁設教。皆闡淫虐之風。菩薩立言。專弘桀紂之事。以實論之。殊不然矣。夫殷喪大寶。災興妲己之言。周失諸侯。禍由褒姒之笑。三代之亡。皆此物也。三乘之教。豈斯尚乎。佛之為道慈悲喜護。齊物我而等怨親。與安樂而救危苦。古之所以得其民者。佛既弘之矣。民之所以逃其上者。經甚戒之矣。羲軒舜禹之德。在六度而苞籠。羿浞癸辛之咎。總十惡以防禁。向使桀弘少欲之教。紂順大慈之道。伊呂無所用其謀。湯武焉得行其討。可使嗚條免去國之禍。牧野息倒戈之亂。夏后從洛汭之歌。楚子違乾溪之難。然則釋氏之化為益非小。延福祚於無窮。遏危亡於未兆。傅謂有之為損無之為益。是何言歟。是何言歟。與佛何讎而誣之至此。佛何所負而疾之若讎乎。

Fu also says: 'When sovereigns had no Buddha, the state was well-governed and their reign long; when they had the Buddha, governance was cruel and their dynastic fortune short.' These, too, are unconsidered words. This would imply that the teachings instituted by the Capable Benevolent One all promulgate the ways of licentiousness and tyranny, and the words established by the Bodhisattva exclusively promote the deeds of Jie and Zhou. To discuss it in truth, it is completely not so. When the Yin lost the great treasure, the calamity arose from the words of Daji; when the Zhou lost the feudal lords, the disaster was caused by Baosi's smile. The downfall of the Three Dynasties was brought about by these things; how could the teachings of the Three Vehicles esteem them? The Buddha's Way consists of benevolence, compassion, joy, and protection, equalizing self and others, viewing enemies and kin alike, bestowing peace and joy, and delivering from danger and suffering. What enabled the ancients to win their people, the Buddha had already promoted; that by which people fled their superiors, the scriptures have strictly cautioned against. The virtues of Fuxi, Xuan[yuan], Shun, and Yu are encompassed within the six pāramitās; the faults of Yi, Zhuo, Gui, and Xin are comprehensively restrained by the ten unwholesome deeds. Had Jie formerly promoted the teaching of having few desires, and Zhou followed the way of great compassion, Yi Yin and Lü Shang would have had no need to employ their strategies, and Tang and Wu—how could they have carried out their punitive expeditions? It would have allowed Mingtiao to escape the calamity of losing the state, and Muye to quell the chaos of turning spears; the Xia ruler would have listened to the song of the Luo's confluence, and the Prince of Chu would have avoided the disaster of Ganxi. Thus, the benefit of the Śākya conversion is not small: it extends blessings and fortune endlessly, and halts peril and ruin before they manifest. When Fu claims that possessing it is a loss and lacking it is a benefit, what kind of words are these? What kind of words are these? What grudge does he bear against the Buddha that he slanders him to this degree? How has the Buddha wronged him that he hates him like an enemy?