經律異相 47.95

47.95

獵者重聞鹿言。心益悚然。乃却歎曰。惟我處世得生為人。愚惑癡冥背恩薄義。殘害眾生殺獵為業。詐偽苟得貪求無厭。不知非常識別三尊。鹿之所言有殊於人。信誓叩至情見盡忠。便前解弶放之令去。於是鹿還至其子所。低頭鳴吟舐子身體。一悲一喜。並說偈言。

When the hunter heard the deer's words again, his heart was struck with even greater awe. Stepping back, he sighed, saying, "Here am I, living in the world, having gained birth as a human, yet I am foolish, deluded, dark, and blind, turning my back on kindness and slighting righteousness, harming living beings and taking killing and hunting as my occupation. Through deceit I grab whatever I can get, greedy without satiety, neither knowing impermanence nor recognizing the Three Honoured Ones. What this deer has spoken surpasses humans; its sworn vow is utterly sincere, its true feeling showing complete loyalty." He thereupon went forward, untied the snare, and let it go. Thereupon the deer returned to where its fawns were. Lowering its head, it cried out softly and licked its fawns' bodies, feeling both sorrow and joy, and spoke this verse: