法苑珠林 45.39

45.39

如舊雜譬喻經云。昔有二人從師學道。俱到他國路見象跡。一人言。此是母象懷雌子。象一目盲。象上有一婦人懷女兒。一人言。爾何以知之。答曰。以意思知。汝若不信前到見之。二人俱及象。悉如所言。一人自念我與汝俱從師學。我獨不見。而汝獨知。後還白師。師為重開。乃呼一人問曰。何因知此。答曰。是師常所導者。我見象小便地知是雌象。見其右足踐地深知懷雌也。見道邊右面草不動知右目盲。見象所止有小便知是女人。見右足蹈地深知懷女。我以纖密意思惟之耳。師曰。夫學當以意思穩審乃達也。

As the Old Sūtra of Miscellaneous Parables says: In the past, two men studied the Way under a master. Together they went to another country, and on the road they saw elephant tracks. One man said, 'This is a female elephant carrying a female fetus. The elephant is blind in one eye. On the elephant is a woman pregnant with a female child.' The other man said, 'How do you know this?' He replied, 'I know it through thoughtful reflection. If you do not believe it, go forward and see.' Both caught up with the elephant, and it was entirely as he had said. The other man thought to himself, 'I studied under the master together with you; how is it that I alone did not see it, while you alone knew it?' Later they returned and reported to the master. The master expounded on it again, and summoned the one man, asking, 'By what reason did you know this?' He replied, 'It is what the master always taught us: I saw where the elephant urinated on the ground and knew it was a female elephant; I saw that its right foot stamped deeper into the ground and knew it was carrying a female fetus; I saw that the grass on the right side of the road was undisturbed and knew its right eye was blind; I saw where the elephant stopped there was [human] urine and knew it was a woman; I saw her right foot trod deeper into the ground and knew she was carrying a female child. I merely deliberated upon it with subtle and meticulous thought.' The master said, 'In learning, one must attain thoroughness through steady and careful reflection.'