諸經要集 19.87

19.87

又未曾有經云有王白佛言。我父先王奉事外道。常行布施求梵天福。如斯功德生何天耶。佛告王曰。前王果報今在地獄。所以者何。不值善時。不遇善友。無善方便。雖修功德不得免罪。布施之功亦無失也。後罪畢時方當受福。當知修福不與罪合。先帝大王。有五種惡業生地獄中。一者慠慢姤弊。事無麁細便起鞭罰。不忍辱故。二者貪愛寶貨。斷事不平。致令天下懷怨恨故。三者遊獵嬉戲苦困人民。傷害眾生所愛命故。四者耽著女色。得新厭舊撫接不平。致怨恨故。五者破戒。以此文證故知。事邪修福善惡恒別。苦樂兩報不相雜亂。何況利根多聞正信三寶。而招苦報。又惟無三昧經云。佛告阿難。善男子人求道安禪。先當斷念。人生世間所以不得道者。但坐思想穢念多故。一念來一念去。一日一宿。有八億四千萬念。念念不息。一善念者亦得善果報。一惡念者亦得惡果報。如響應聲。如影隨形。是故善惡罪福各別。

Furthermore, the *Weicengyou jing* says: A king addressed the Buddha, saying: 'My father, the former king, served non-Buddhists and constantly practiced giving, seeking the merit of the Brahmā heaven. Into what heaven is he reborn from such merit?' The Buddha told the king: 'The retribution of the former king is that he is now in hell. Why? He did not encounter a good time, he did not meet good friends, and he had no good skillful means. Although he cultivated merit, he could not avoid sin; yet the merit of giving is not lost either. When his sins are later exhausted, only then will he receive the merit. You should know that the cultivation of merit does not merge with sin. The former great king had five kinds of evil karma for which he was born in hell: first, he was arrogant and jealous, administering whipping and punishment over matters whether coarse or fine, because he lacked forbearance (kṣānti); second, he was greedy for precious goods and judged matters unfairly, causing all under heaven to harbor resentment; third, he went hunting for sport, distressing the people and harming the lives cherished by living beings; fourth, he was obsessed with women, wearying of the old upon obtaining the new, and treating them unfairly, thus incurring resentment; fifth, he broke the precepts.' By this textual testimony, we know that when serving heterodoxy while cultivating merit, good and evil are always distinct, and the two retributions of suffering and happiness do not commingle. How much more so for one with sharp faculties, vast learning, and correct faith in the Triratna—how could he invite retributions of suffering? Furthermore, the *Weiwu sanmei jing* says: The Buddha told Ānanda: 'Good man, when a person seeks the Way and pacifies dhyāna, he must first cut off thoughts. The reason people born in the world do not attain the Way is solely because their thoughts and defiled contemplations are so numerous. One thought comes, one thought goes; in a single day and night, there are eight hundred and forty million thoughts, rising and ceasing without pause. A single good thought also obtains a good retribution; a single evil thought also obtains an evil retribution—just like an echo answering a sound, or a shadow following a form. Therefore, good and evil, sin and merit, are entirely distinct.'