法苑珠林 82.40

82.40

"From ancient times until now, / we have created many evil karmas: / sometimes obtaining birth in the human realm, / committing theft and adultery with others' wives, / and undergoing executions under the king's law / beyond all reckoning; / again, enduring the sufferings of hell, / which likewise are hard to calculate; / or receiving the body of a beast, / as cattle, sheep, chickens, dogs, / roe deer, deer, birds, and beasts, / being slaughtered by others, / losing life boundlessly / without ever having the least benefit. / We today, / for the sake of protecting the noble precepts, / readily give up this slight life; / we will surely obtain great benefit! / We are now in danger and peril, / and are certain to give up body and life; / if when our lives end, / we are born in heaven to enjoy bliss, / but if we violate the prohibitive precepts, / our evil reputation will be heard in the present, / we will be despised by others, / and upon the end of life will fall into the evil destinies. / Now let us establish an agreement together / to remain here until our lives end: / even if this sunlight / scorches our bodies and dries up our lives, / we must maintain the Buddha's precepts, / and never violate them midway; / even if we encounter ferocious beasts / that tear our bodies and limbs to pieces, / we will never dare to violate / the prohibitive precepts of the Lion of the Śākyas! / We would rather die maintaining the precepts / than wish to live violating the precepts!"