法苑珠林 54.21

54.21

如舊雜譬喻經云。昔有婦人。富有金銀。與男子交通。盡取金銀衣物相逐俱去。到一急水河邊男子語言。汝持財物來。我先度之當還迎汝。男子度已便走不還。婦人獨住水邊憂苦無人可救。唯見一野狐捕得一鷹。復見河魚捨鷹拾魚。魚既不得復失本鷹。婦語狐曰。汝何太癡貪捕其兩不得其一。狐言。我癡尚可。汝癡劇我也。

As the Old Saṃyuktāvadāna-sūtra says: In the past, there was a woman rich in gold and silver. She had an affair with a man and took all her gold, silver, clothes, and goods, following him as they went off together. When they reached the bank of a swift river, the man said to her, 'Bring the wealth here. I will carry it across first and then come back to welcome you.' Once the man had crossed over, he ran away and did not return. The woman stood alone by the water's edge, grieving in misery with no one to save her. She saw only a wild fox that had caught a hawk. It then saw a fish in the river, dropped the hawk, and went to catch the fish. Failing to catch the fish, it also lost its original hawk. The woman said to the fox, 'Why are you so foolish? In your greed to catch both, you have failed to get even one.' The fox said, 'My foolishness is still bearable; your foolishness is worse than mine.'