廣弘明集 18.10

18.10

Master Anchu asked Mister Xuanming, saying: "I have heard that 'A family that accumulates goodness will surely have an excess of blessings, while a family that accumulates non-goodness will surely have an excess of calamity.' It is also said: 'The Way of Heaven shows no favoritism; it constantly aids good persons.' These are standard maxims of the holy and penetrating, and magnificent standards for ten thousand generations. According to this, practice is achieved in one's own person, and blessings flow to later generations; evil is manifested in one's deeds, and guilt is incurred in the unseen realm. Yet when sages do good, in principle there is nothing left undone; when principle is exhausted and goodness accumulated, it ought to remain unchanged through successive generations. When not a single good act is performed and evil succeeds evil, they too ought to remain dark for a hundred generations. Thus goodness would have a constant gate, and evil a fixed lineage—so what benefit would there be in later generations engaging in cultivation? Furthermore, there are those who discipline themselves and walk the path, whose words and deeds do no harm, yet heavenly punishment and human suffering encompass them in every net; while those who indulge their nature, give free rein to their passions, and unrestrainedly practice violence and cruelty, enjoy honor and nobility throughout their lives, and their descendants flourish abundantly. Considering this, where after all is the retribution for accumulating goodness? Now, the five emotions and six desires are common to the human mind; cultivating restraint and erecting barriers are the most painful of external matters. If neither humans nor spirits blame one for what one takes or leaves, why not follow what is sweet rather than force oneself into what is bitter? I beg you to resolve my doubts and dispel this confusion." Mister [Xuanming] said: "Splendid is your question! Sima Qian said: 'How does Heaven repay good persons?' Xun Yue also said: 'Those who put on deceit and engage in treachery are self-sufficient in their single generation; those who preserve the Way and follow principle cannot avoid the distress of hunger and cold.' Those two gentlemen doubted it before us yet were unable to discern it; is it not fitting that you, my friend, should be confused by it now? Allow me to attempt an explanation. Humans are born endowed with the nature of the Two Modes (yin and yang), and are nurtured by receiving the qi of the Five Constants. Nature has spans of long and short, hence there is the difference between Pengzu's longevity and early death; qi has variations of fine and coarse, hence there is the distinction between the worthy and the foolish. These are fixed principles of nature that cannot be altered. For this reason, Yao and Shun were great sages, yet Zhu and Jun were born to them; the Blind Old Man was utter folly, yet he gave birth to Shun; Yan Hui was a great worthy, yet he died young without heirs; Shangchen was exceedingly evil, yet his descendants prospered; Boyi and Shuqi possessed supreme benevolence, yet they starved to death on a barren mountain; Robber Zhi indulged in cruelty, yet lived in wealth and joy to the end of his days; Bi Gan was loyal and upright, yet met death in an instant; Zhang Tang was a harsh official, yet his lineage wore the sable tails of nobility for seven generations. Instances like these cannot be fully recounted. If we examine them in the sages and worthies, it was thus; if we seek them among common people, it is likewise. Therefore we know that worthiness and foolishness, goodness and evil, long life and early death, adversity and success, each have their allotted destiny; they are not brought about by the accumulation of actions. With the profound vastness of Heaven and Earth and the immensity of yin and yang, how is a human within them any more than a grain of rice in the Great Granary, or the tip of a fine hair on a horse's body? Yet [people believe that] the trivial deeds of an ordinary man and the immediate habits of human affairs, each single good and each single evil, will bring about an unseen response, attempting to alter natural longevity or switch the sagacity of Zhu and Shun. That this is not so is readily understood! Therefore, the talk of accumulating good and accumulating evil was merely set forth for moral exhortation and instruction. Why do I say this? Human nature at birth is tranquil—this is the nature endowed by Heaven. Moving upon contact with things is the desire of this nature. Once nature's desires are awakened, they drift without restraint. Sages, to remedy this failing, establish teachings based on the divine way; thus the principle is subtle and the transformation is spread abroad. Following natural changes, they check and guide; thus the efficacy is mysterious and affairs are fitting. Therefore, within the six directions of the cosmos, they speak of it but do not debate it; people delve into it without knowing where it comes from, and use it daily without seeing its limits. They establish the study of ritual to enlighten profound ignorance, and nominal laws to bind external conduct. The worthy rely upon them to fulfill their aspirations; the unworthy strive toward them to avoid transgressions. They cause the affection of filial piety and fraternal love to run deep, the righteousness between ruler and minister to be staunch, the propriety between elders and youth to be ordered, and the amity between friends to be manifest. If one turns one's back on them, one becomes a person who has lost the Way, and criticism arises; if one turns toward them, one becomes a scholar of the teachings of names, and reputation becomes illustrious. Thus, in conducting oneself and harboring thoughts, how could a gentleman forget goodness even for a moment? Why must one cultivate the teaching and demand actual results in anticipation of retribution? If one can comprehend the profound purpose of the holy teachings and clearly examine where one's allotted destiny resides, one may dispel stagnation from the heart and no longer pray for verification in the unseen realm." Master Anchu then rose from his mat and said: "The principle has been obscured for a thousand years, and this thought has entangled me for a lifetime. Now hearing your comprehensively penetrating discourse, it is enough to resolve my stagnant doubts and dispel my obscure perplexities. Incompetent though I am, I beg to take these words to heart."