法苑珠林 55.61

55.61

The Beyond-the-Worldly One replied: "This again is an unconsidered assertion, reckless and insolent to utter such words. It is foolish to think that the Sākyamuni’s teachings set forth the ways of licentiousness and cruelty, or that the words established by the Bodhisattvas exclusively propagate the deeds of Jie and Zhou. Examined in reality, it is completely otherwise. When the Yin lost the Great Treasure, the disaster arose from the words of Daji; when the Zhou lost the feudal lords, the catastrophe came from the smile of Baosi. The downfall of the Three Dynasties all stemmed from such things; how could the teachings of the Three Vehicles esteem them? The Buddha's Way consists in loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity, protecting enemies and kin alike, regarding self and others as equal. Since His grace and virtue are vast, both the wise and the simple admire what is superior. Even the virtues of Fu Xi, the Yellow Emperor, Shun, and Yu are encompassed within the six pāramitās; the faults of Houyi, Han Zhuo, Jie, and Zhou are altogether prohibited by the ten non-virtuous actions (daśākuśala). If Jie had propagated the teaching of having few desires and Zhou had complied with the path of great compassion, Yi Yin and Lü Shang would have had nowhere to employ their strategies, and how could Tang and Wu have carried out their punitive expeditions? Mingtiao could have been spared the disaster of losing the realm, and Muye could have quelled the turmoil of turned weapons; the Xia sovereign would have enjoyed the songs of the Luo riverbanks, and the King of Chu would not have uttered the lament of Ganxi. Thus, the transformative teaching of the Śākyan clan brings no small benefit: it prolongs blessings and fortune without end, and arrests danger and ruin before their first signs appear."