The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters - 7佛說四十二章經 第7章後漢 西域沙門迦葉摩騰 竺法蘭 同譯
Translated jointly by Indian Sramana Kasyapa Matanga and Dharmaraksa in the Later Han Dynasty
△ 中文 | 梭罗木木英文 | 弘惠 00 : 44 开始
第7章 惡還本身
Reversion of Hostility 佛言。有人聞吾守道。行大仁慈。故致罵佛。佛默不對。 The Buddha said: "Once a man came unto me and denounced me on account of my observing the Way and practising great lovingkindness. But I kept silent and did not answer him.
罵止。問曰。子以禮從人。其人不納。禮歸子乎。The denunciation ceased. I then asked him, If you bring a present to your neighbor and he accepts it not, does the present come back to you?' 對曰。歸矣。佛言。今子罵我。我今不納。子自持禍歸子身矣。The man replied, 'It will.' I said, 'You denounce me now, but as I accept it not, you must take the wrong deed back on your own person. 猶響應聲。影之隨形。終無免離。It is like echo succeeding sound, it is like shadow following object; you never escape the effect of your own evil deeds. 慎勿為惡。Be therefore mindful, and cease from doing evil.'" 英文版经文转载自 菩提字幕屋，英译者 D.T. SuzukiEnglish version sourced from Bodhi Fansubs, translated by D.T. Suzuki △ 英文 | 释宏添 中文 | 梭罗木木 01 : 24 开始
法师讲解：惡還本身
Commentary: Reversion of hostility
In Samyuktagama-sutra there are quite a few stories about patience. In one of them, a Brahman hurled insults at the Buddha; he even grabbed a handful of dirt and cast it at the Buddha. However the Brahman didn’t realize that he was standing on the leeward side. As a result, the dirt was all over his body.
The Buddha then taught the Brahman that for a person who has overcome hatred, his mind will remain pure even if others swear at him. But for someone whose mind is impure, swearing at others is just like casting dirt leeward; the harm will rebound on oneself. Here a person who was overwhelmed by hatred wanted to harm someone, but ended up suffering the retribution immediately. This is an excellent example of instant karma.
The Buddha also said that if we return hatred for hatred in a confrontation, even the winner will gain only more resentment whereas the loser will endure sleepless nights as well. Only if we cast away gain and loss, can we sleep well.
