法苑珠林 55.26

55.26

Furthermore, the Baiyu jing (Sūtra of a Hundred Parables) says: In the past, there was a fool who was boiling dark molasses. A wealthy man came to his house. Then this fool took the molasses syrup to boil for the wealthy man, and right over the fire fanned it with a fan, hoping to make it cool. A bystander said to him: "You do not put out the fire below, yet keep fanning it incessantly; how can it cool?" At that time, all the people ridiculed him. This is just like non-Buddhists who do not extinguish the blazing fire of defilements, but undertake a few austerities such as lying on thorns, washing chaff and drinking the liquid, fasting to starve themselves, or scorching their bodies with five fires, hoping to attain the cool and tranquil Way—in the end, this is impossible. It merely brings the wonder and mockery of the wise; they suffer pain in the present, and disaster flows into future kalpas.