法苑珠林 74.10

74.10

As the Caturvargika-vinaya states: 'Once, someone stole another person's sūtra scroll. The Buddha said: The words of the Buddha are priceless; the grave offense is determined according to the value of the paper and ink.' The Daśādhyāya-vinaya states: 'If one borrows another's sūtra and refuses to return it, causing the owner to harbor doubt, one incurs an offense of preparation (because the owner's intention is not yet severed; if it is completely severed, it is a grave offense).' The Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna-sūtra states: 'If one steals another's secret formulas, one incurs a grave offense.' The *Vijñapti-[mātratā]-viniścaya-śāstra states: 'Surreptitiously taking another's sūtras or treatises to read, even down to a single phrase, constitutes an offense of stealing phrases.' (This should be when the owner has a mind of secrecy and stinginess; generally, with other texts where the owner's feelings are open and generous, taking and reading them is without fault.) The Oral Decisions on the Five Hundred Inquiries states: 'One must not blow dust off a sūtra with one's mouth, because the breath from the mouth is foul (the same applies to dust on an image). If one burns an old sūtra, one incurs a grave offense equivalent to burning one's father and mother; one who does so without knowing it is an offense incurs a light one.' (Frequently there are evil people who steal bronze Buddha images and melt down the sacred forms to support their own lives. Among perverse acts, none surpasses this extremity. Or they steal banners and flowers to use as clothing, or to sell them for a livelihood. For such sins, they will receive retributions in the future with no date of release.)