法苑珠林 66.22

66.22

As the Nirvāṇa-sūtra says: For example, there was a king who kept four venomous snakes, placed them in a single chest, and entrusted them to a man, ordering him to look after and nurture them: "If you cause even one snake to give rise to anger, I shall execute you in the public market according to the law." At that time, hearing the king's stern command, the man was terrified in his heart, abandoned the chest, and fled. The king then dispatched five caṇḍālas, who drew their swords and pursued behind him. Looking back, the man saw the five men behind him, and thereupon fled further away. At that time, the five men used an evil expedient, concealing the swords they held and secretly dispatching one man to feign friendly intimacy, saying to him, "You may return!" The man did not believe him, and threw himself into a village wishing to conceal himself. Having entered the village, he peered into the houses and saw no people at all; the jars and vessels he held were all empty, without anything. Having seen no people and finding no provisions, he sat on the ground and heard a voice in the air: "Alas, O man! This village is desolate, without inhabitants. Tonight six great bandits will come; if you meet them, your life will end. How will you escape now?" At that time, the man's fear increased even more, and he abandoned it and fled again. On the road, he encountered a river whose waters were rushing swiftly, with no boat or raft. Out of fear, he immediately gathered various grasses and trees to make a raft. He reflected again: "If I stay here, I shall be harmed by the venomous snakes, the five caṇḍālas, the one who feigned friendship, and the six great bandits. If I cross this river, the raft cannot be relied upon, and I shall drown in the water and die. Yet I would rather drown in the water and die than be harmed by those snakes and bandits!" He then pushed the grass raft into the water, leaned his body upon it, embraced it with his hands and paddled with his feet, cutting across the current and departing. He immediately reached the other shore, secure and free from adversity, his mind calm and his terror extinguished. The four venomous snakes are the four great elements. The five caṇḍālas are the five aggregates. The one who feigned friendship is craving. Throwing oneself into a village is the six internal sense-bases. The coming of the six great bandits is the external sense-objects. That these six great bandits can only be stopped by kings means that only Buddhas and bodhisattvas can stop them. Though kings cut off their hands and feet, these six great bandits still cannot be made to cease their intentions; the evil bandits of the six sense-objects are also like this: though one attains the four fruits of śramaṇahood and cuts off their hands and feet, they still cannot be prevented from robbing wholesome dharmas. Just as only a valiant man can subdue these six great bandits, so too can the Buddhas and bodhisattvas destroy the evil bandits of the six sense-objects.