百喻經 37 殺群牛喻 Killing a Herd of Cattle

37 Killing a Herd of Cattle

37殺群牛喻

Once there was a man who owned two hundred and fifty head of cattle. He often took them out to the pasture to graze. One day a tiger ate one of the cows. The cattle owner said to himself, 「Now that I』ve lost one cow, the herd is no longer complete. What』s the point of keeping it at all?」 Thereupon he drove the cattle up to a high cliff and killed them all by pushing them down into the deep gorge below.

Foolish people in the world are like this too. Having taken the Thus Come One』s complete precepts, they may happen to violate one precept. Not only do they not give rise to shame and remorse and try to repent and reform in a pure way, instead they say to themselves, 「Since I have broken one of the precepts, they are no longer complete. What』s the use of holding any of the others? Then they go on to violate all of the precepts with none remaining. They are like the foolish man who killed all of his cattle so that not a single one remained.

譯文

從前有一個人，養著二百五十頭牛，常驅逐它們至水草豐美的地方，讓它們隨時可吃。這時一只老虎吃掉了一頭牛。牛主人便想：已經去掉了一頭，破了我的整數，還要這牛作什麼呢?就把牛驅趕至深坑的高岸邊，都推排到坑底去殺死了。

世上的愚人也是這樣，受持如來二百五十條具足圓滿的戒律，倘破了其中的一條，沒有產生慚愧之情，去脫掉惡行的垢染，去真誠地懺悔，反而這樣想：我已破了一戒，既已不具足完整了，還要受持下去嗎?就把一切戒都破掉了，無一存留。就像那個愚人，把牛群全殺盡了，無一存留。

原典

昔有一人，有二百五十頭牛，常驅逐水草，隨時餧①食。時有一虎，噉食一牛。爾時牛主即作念言：已失一牛，俱不全足，用是牛為?即便驅至深坑高岸，排著坑底，盡皆殺之。

凡夫愚人，亦復如是，受持如來具足之戒，若犯一戒，不生慚愧，清淨懺悔，便作念言：我已破一戎，既不具足，何用持為?一切都破，無一在者。如彼愚人，盡殺群牛，無一在者。

注釋

①餧：喂。

源流

《大莊嚴經論》卷六：如人恥白髮，並剃其黑者。剃之未久間，白髮尋還生。(《中華大藏經》第二十九冊第六六O頁)

《弘明集》卷六道恆法師：無異人苦頭蝨，因欲並首俱焚，患在足刺，遂欲通股全解，不亦濫乎!(《大正藏》第五十二冊第三十五頁)

解說

俗語所謂要麼流芳百世，要麼遺臭萬年，也是追求具足或全然毀壞的心理表現。