法苑珠林 19.47

19.47

At that time, the lord of the Sahā world, the Great Brahmā King, addressed the Buddha: 'If someone shaves their hair and beard and wears the kāṣāya for the Buddha, yet does not receive the precepts, or having received them, violates them, and a kṣatriya king harasses, reviles, beats, or binds them, how much sin does he incur?' The Buddha said: 'Great Brahmā, I shall now briefly explain it for you. If someone were to cause the body of a Buddha to bleed at the places of tens of thousands of koṭis of Buddhas, what do you think? Would the sin incurred by that person be great or not?' The Great Brahmā King said: 'If a person sheds the blood of only one Buddha's body, he incurs the retribution of the Avīci torment, which is already immeasurably countless, causing him to fall into the great Avīci hell; how much more so shed the blood of tens of thousands of koṭis of Buddhas? There is no one who can fully describe the retribution for that person's sinful karma, except for the Tathāgata.' The Buddha said: 'Great Brahmā, if someone harasses, reviles, beats, or binds one who has shaved their hair and worn a piece of kāṣāya for My sake, whether not receiving the precepts or having received them and violated them, the sin incurred is greater than that. Why is this? Because this person can still show the path to nirvāṇa to devas and humans. This person has already generated reverent faith in their heart toward the Three Jewels, surpassing all ninety-five [non-Buddhist] paths. That person will surely be able to quickly enter nirvāṇa, surpassing all householders and laypeople, except for householders who have attained patience (kṣānti). Therefore, devas and humans should make offerings to them, how much more so to those who can fully uphold the precepts and whose three activities (karma) are in mutual harmony! If any kings and all their ministers and judges see one who has gone forth in My Dharma commit major sinful karma—great killing, great stealing, great defilement of celibacy, great false speech, and other unwholesome deeds—they should only expel them from the country, not permitting them to stay in the monastery or share in the communal affairs of the Saṃgha. They must not whip or beat them, nor should they use verbal karma to scold or revile them, or inflict physical punishment upon their bodies. If they deliberately violate the Dharma and punish them, those people will fall back from liberation, receive inferior rebirths, be estranged from all good destinies of humans and devas, and will definitely head for the Avīci hell. How much more so if they whip and beat those who maintain the precepts fully for the Buddha's household!'