[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) › [廣弘明集](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103) › 14.9 # 廣弘明集 14.9 廣弘明集 14.9 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [14.9](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14.9) 有辯聰書生。謂忠正君子曰蓋聞釋迦生於天竺。修多。出自西。胡名號無傳於周孔。功德靡稱於典謨。寔遠夷所尊敬。非中夏之師儒。逮攝摩騰之入漢。及康僧會之遊吳。顯舍利於南國。起招提於東都。自茲厥後乃尚浮圖。沙門盛洙泗之眾。精舍麗王侯之居。既營之于爽塏。又資之以膏腴。擢修幢而曜日。擬甲第而當衢。王公大人助之以金帛。農商富族施之以田廬。其福利之焉在。何尊崇之有餘也。未若銷像而絕鐫鑄。貨泉可以無費。毀經以禁繕寫。筆紙不為之貴。廢僧以從編戶。益黍稷之餘稅。壞塔以補不足。廣賑恤之仁惠。欲詣闕而効愚忠上書而獻斯計。竊謂可以益國而利民矣。吾子以為何如乎。忠正君子曰。是何言之過歟。非忠孝之道也。夫忠臣奉國。願受福之無疆。孝子安親。務防災於未兆。聞多福之因緣。求之如不及。覩速禍之萌柢。避之若探湯。國重天地之祈。祈於福也。家避陰陽之忌。忌於禍也福疑從取禍疑從去。人之情也。忠之道焉。子乃去人之所謂福。取人之所謂殃。豈忠臣奉國之計。非孝子安親之方也。觀匹夫之自愛。尚不反醫而違卜。況忠臣之愛君。如何勸殃而阻福乎。何異採藥物以薦君而取農岐之所忌。求醫術以奉親而反和鵲之深致。彼勸取忌而用毒。良非重慎之至意。施諸己而猶懼矣。矧敢安於所天乎。若夫廢宗廟之粢盛。供子孫之魚肉。毀蒸甞之黻冕。充僕妾之衣服。苟求惠下之恩。不崇安上之福。恨養親之費饍。思廢養以潤屋。如此者可謂忠乎。可謂孝乎。且夫周棄弘播殖之教。遂配稷以長尊。勾龍立水土之功。亦為社而恒敬。坊墉小益。尚參八蜡之祭。林澤微靈。猶行一獻之祀。況夫三達無閡之智。百神無以儔。十力無等之尊。千聖莫之匹。萬惑盡矣。萬德備矣。梵天仰焉。帝釋師焉。道濟四生化通三界。拔生死於輪迴。示涅槃之常樂。身光赫奕。奪朗日之流暉。形相端嚴。具聖人之奇表。微妙玄通。周孔未足擬議。博施兼濟。堯舜其猶病諸。等慈而無棄物。可不謂之仁乎。具智而有妙覺。可不謂之聖乎。夫體仁聖之德者。豈為譎誑之說哉。靜而思之蔑不信矣。至如立寺功深於巨海。度僧福重於高嶽。法王之所明言。開士之所篤信。若興之者增慶益國。不亦大乎。敬之者生善利民。不亦廣乎。或小損而大益。豈非國之所宜崇乎。或小益而大損。豈非民之所當避乎。法眼明了。覩福報之無量。金口信實。說咎因之不朽。凡百士民皆非目見。縱未能信其必爾。亦何以知其不然哉。冥昧不可以意決。深遠唯當以聖證。豈不冀崇之福資於君父。畏毀之累及於家國乎。臣無斯慎於其君。非忠臣也。子無此慮於其親。非孝子也。子欲苟遂娼嫉之褊心。不弘忠慎之深慮。阻祈福之大緣。毀安上之善業。乃取咎之道也。豈盡忠之義哉。余昔篤志於儒林。又措心于文苑。頗同吾子之言論。良由聞法之遲晚。賴指南以去惑。幸失途之未遠。每省過而責躬則臨餐而忘飯。子若博考而深計。亦將悔迷而知返矣。竊聞有太史令傅君者。又甚余曩日之惑焉。內自省於昔迷。則十同其五矣。請辯傅君之惑言。以釋吾子之邪執。 > There was an eloquent scholar who said to a loyal and upright gentleman: "I have heard that Śākya was born in India and that the sūtras came from the Western Barbarians. His name and title were not transmitted by the Duke of Zhou and Confucius; his merit and virtue were not praised in the ancient Canons and Counsels. He is truly someone revered by distant barbarians, not a master or scholar of the Central Lands. It was only when Kāśyapa Mātaṅga entered the Han, and when Kang Senghui traveled to Wu, that relics were manifested in the southern realms, and monasteries were erected in the eastern capital. From that time onward, the Buddha came to be venerated. The monks outnumber the gatherings at the Zhu and Si rivers; the vihāras are more magnificent than the residences of princes and marquises. They are constructed on high and dry ground, and endowed with rich, fertile estates. Tall banners are raised to eclipse the sun; their compounds rival first-rate mansions fronting the thoroughfares. Kings, dukes, and high ministers support them with gold and silk; wealthy agricultural and mercantile clans donate fields and estates. Where does the benefit and fortune lie in this? Why is there such lavish reverence? It would be far better to melt down the statues and halt casting and carving; thus money would not be wasted. Destroy the scriptures and forbid their copying; then brush and paper would not be dear. Disband the monks and return them to the tax registers; then the surplus taxes on grain would increase. Demolish the stūpas to supply what is deficient; then the benevolent kindness of relief and aid would be expanded. I wish to proceed to the imperial palace to offer my humble loyalty and present this plan in a memorial. I privately think it would benefit the state and profit the people. What do you, sir, think of it?" > > The loyal and upright gentleman replied: "What an error this talk is! This is not the way of loyalty and filial piety. When a loyal minister serves the state, he wishes for it to receive boundless fortune; when a filial son brings peace to his parents, he strives to prevent disaster before its signs emerge. Hearing of the causes and conditions of abundant fortune, one seeks them as though unable to catch up; beholding the sprouts and roots of swift calamity, one avoids them as though testing boiling water. The state values prayers to Heaven and Earth, praying for good fortune; households avoid the taboos of yin and yang, fearing disaster. When fortune is in doubt, one pursues it; when disaster is in doubt, one avoids it. This is human nature; this is the way of loyalty. You, however, would abandon what people call fortune and pursue what people call disaster. How could this be a loyal minister's plan to serve the state, or a filial son's way to bring peace to his parents? Looking at the self-care of an ordinary man, he still does not turn against physicians or defy divinations; how much less should a loyal minister, who loves his lord, encourage disaster and obstruct fortune? How does this differ from gathering medicinal herbs to present to the lord while choosing what Shennong and Qibo forbade, or seeking medical arts to serve one's parents while contradicting the deep insights of Bian Que and He? Urging the adoption of what is taboo and the use of poisons is truly contrary to the ultimate intention of prudent care. If applied to oneself, one would still be terrified; how then could one dare impose it upon the one who is one's Heaven? > > If one were to abolish the grain offerings of the ancestral temple to feed fish and meat to one's descendants, or tear up the sacrificial robes and caps to supply clothing for servants and concubines, merely seeking the kindness of benevolence toward inferiors without honoring the fortune of securing superiors, or resenting the expense of nourishing parents and wishing to discontinue their support to enrich one's own house—could such a person be called loyal? Could he be called filial? > > Furthermore, Ji of Zhou widely promulgated the teaching of sowing and planting, and was subsequently paired with the god of agriculture to be eternally revered; Goulong established achievements in waters and lands, and was likewise made the god of the soil to be perpetually honored. The minor benefits of dikes and ramparts were still included in the sacrifices of the Eight La; the slight spirits of forests and marshes still received the offering of a single cup of wine. How much more so the unimpeded wisdom of the three masteries, to which the hundred spirits cannot compare; the unexcelled reverence of the ten powers, to which a thousand sages cannot be equaled! The ten thousand delusions are exhausted; the ten thousand virtues are complete. Brahmā looks up to him; Śakra takes him as master. His path aids the four forms of birth; his transformation reaches throughout the three realms. He pulls beings out of the wheel of birth and death; he reveals the eternal bliss of nirvāṇa. His bodily light is blazing, eclipsing the radiant rays of the bright sun; his physical marks are dignified and solemn, possessing the extraordinary features of a sage. Subtle, profound, and universally penetrating, the Duke of Zhou and Confucius are not sufficient to be compared with him; widely giving and universally delivering, Yao and Shun still found this difficult. Loving all equally without abandoning any creature—can this not be called benevolence? Endowed with wisdom and possessing wondrous awakening—can this not be called sageliness? Would one who embodies the virtues of benevolence and sageliness make deceptive and false claims? If one reflects quietly on this, there is none who would not believe. > > As for the merit of founding a monastery being deeper than the vast ocean, and the fortune of ordaining monks being weightier than the high peaks—these are the clear words of the Dharma King, firmly believed by the bodhisattvas. If establishing them increases blessings and benefits the state, is that not immense? If revering them generates goodness and profits the people, is that not broad? If there is a small loss but a great gain, is that not something the state ought to venerate? If there is a small gain but a great loss, is that not something the people ought to avoid? The Dharma-eye is clear, beholding the immeasurable karmic rewards of fortune; the golden mouth is trustworthy, speaking of the imperishable causes of fault. Ordinary scholars and commoners have not seen this with their own eyes; even if they cannot believe it must be so, how do they know it is not so? The obscure and dark cannot be determined by personal opinion; the deep and far can only be verified by the sages. Would one not hope that the fortune of veneration assists lord and father, or fear that the burden of denigration reaches family and state? A minister who lacks this prudence toward his lord is not a loyal minister; a son who lacks this concern toward his parents is not a filial son. > > You merely wish to indulge the narrow mind of jealousy, failing to expand the deep thought of loyalty and prudence. To obstruct the great conditions for praying for fortune and to destroy the good karma of securing superiors is the path to incurring blame; how could it be the meaning of complete loyalty? Formerly, I devoted my mind to the Confucian grove and set my thoughts upon the garden of letters; my views were quite similar to yours, truly because I heard the Dharma late. Relying on the compass to dispel delusions, fortunately I had not strayed far from the path. Whenever I examined my errors and reproached myself, I would sit before my meal and forget to eat. If you examine broadly and deliberate deeply, you too will regret your confusion and know to return. > > I have heard of the Grand Astrologer, Lord Fu, whose confusion was even greater than mine was in former days. When I inwardly examined my past confusion, five out of ten were the same as his. Allow me to refute the confused words of Lord Fu, in order to resolve your perverse attachments. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 14.8](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14.8) - [Next: 14.10](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14.10) - [Up: 14](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103~en-mt.14.9) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14.9](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2103.14.9) · Pramāṇa