法苑珠林 6.53

6.53

Furthermore, the *Fenbie gongde lun* states: There were śramaṇas practicing various meditations, some in charnel grounds, some beneath trees. Once, when one was in a charnel ground observing dead bodies, at night he saw a hungry ghost beating a dead body. The śramaṇa asked, 'Why do you beat this dead body?' It answered, 'This body brought me to such misery as this, and that is why I beat it.' The man of the Way said, 'Why do you not beat your own mind instead of beating this dead body? What benefit can there be in doing so?' In a short while, a deva came and scattered heavenly māndārava flowers over this foul corpse. The śramaṇa asked, 'Why do you scatter flowers over this foul corpse?' It answered, 'Because of this body of mine, I attained rebirth in heaven. This corpse is my good friend, and so I have come to scatter flowers to repay its past kindness.' The man of the Way replied, 'Why do you not scatter flowers in your own mind, rather than over a foul corpse? The root of both good and evil is entirely created by the mind; why forsake the root to seek the branches?'