..續本文上一頁rings attached. You can borrow as much as you want. If you answer wrongly, however, I won”t lend the rice to you. I have to make that clear first."

　　子路說：「你這問題太容易了，很淺的嘛！這世界上，天地間，星星多，月亮少；娶媳婦歡喜，死人惱。」

　　Zi Lu said, "Your question is way too easy! In this world, there are many stars and few moons. Weddings are happy and deaths are sad."

　　範丹聽了就直擺手說：「不對！不對！」

　　When Fan Dan heard Zi Lu”s answer, he waved his hand and said, "Wrong!"

　　子路認爲他的答複是絕妙好辭，天衣無縫，再也沒有什麼答複比他的更好了，所以就以爲範丹根本就不想借米給他，而是借故刁難。子路仍不認輸，但範丹不借，子路也沒法子，所以就氣沖沖地跑回去見孔夫子了，說：「老師！老師！這個範丹真可惡，毫不講道理。」他一一把兩人的對答向孔夫子具實報告，孔夫子聽了之後，就說道：「你答錯了！」子路這時驚訝萬分，說：「範丹說我不對，是因爲他站在他的立場上，而老師您現在應該站在我的立場上，怎麼您也說我答錯了？」

　　Zi Lu felt that his answer was perfect, that none could be better. He was sure that Fan Dan hadn”t planned to lend him the rice to begin with and had just been teasing. So, he refused to admit defeat. But Fan Dan still wouldn”t lend him the rice. Since there was nothing he could do about it, he left in exasperation and went to see Confucius.

　　"Teacher! Teacher! That Fan Dan is truly abominable! He wasn”t reasonable at all." Zi Lu faithfully reported the entire conversation to Confucius. Confucius said, "You did give the wrong answer!"

　　Zi Lu was completely taken aback and protested, "Fan Dan said I was wrong, because he was arguing for himself. But Teacher, you should be on my side! Why do you say that I”m wrong as well

　　"

　　孔夫子說：「你聽聽我的答複：『世界上，天地間，小人多，君子少；借時歡喜，要時就惱。』你去向範丹這樣答複。」于是子路又回到範丹那裏，對他說孔夫子的答複。範丹認爲這回答對了，一點也沒錯，所以就借米給子路。他用一個竹筒子裝滿了米，給子路拿回去。但是這個竹筒子是個寶貝，米怎麼吃也吃不完，用多少就有多少，所以窮人也有窮寶貝。

　　Confucius said, "Listen to my answer: ”In this world, there are many petty people and few noble people. People are happy when they borrow things but sad when asked to return them.” Go give Fan Dan that answer." Zi Lu went back to Fan Dan and repeated Confucius” answer to him. Fan Dan considered this answer to be completely correct, so he lent the rice to Zi Lu. He filled a bamboo tube with rice and gave it to Zi Lu to take back. This bamboo tube was actually a magic treasure that provided an endless supply of rice. No matter how much rice one wanted to use, the tube could provide that amount. You see, poor men also have their poor men”s treasures.

　　秦始皇時代有個甘羅，十二歲就做了宰相，但是還晚了叁年，他在九歲時就應該做宰相的。姜太公八十歲才遇到文王，可是早了叁年。甘羅很年輕就做了宰相，而姜太公到了晚年才遇見文王。

　　During the reign of the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty, a boy named Gan Luo was made prime minister when he was only twelve. He should have become prime minister at the age of nine, but he was late by three years. Jiang Tai Gong [a sage who lived during the time of King Wen of the Zhou Dynasty] didn”t meet King Wen until he was eighty. Even so, he was early by three years. Gan Luo became the prime minister at a very young age, but Jiang Tai Gong didn”t meet King Wen until late in life.

　　彭祖活到八百多歲，所以叫壽高。顔淵是孔子的學生，活到叁十歲就死了，所以叫命短。顔淵雖然命短，但他在孔夫子的門徒裏，是最聰明，也是最好學的。他「聞一知十」；子貢是「聞一知二」。當顔淵死去時，孔夫子就悲歎地說：「天喪予！天喪予！」意思就是天令我這個道喪亡了！天令我這個道喪亡了！

　　Peng Zu lived for over eight hundred years, so he is considered to have been long-lived. Confucius” disciple, Yan Yuan, on the other hand, died at age thirty, so he”s said to have been short-lived. Even so, he was the most intelli-gent of Confucius” disciples, and the most avid learner. Upon learning one principle, he could deduce ten others. When Zi Gong (another disciple) heard one principle, he could only deduce two. At Yan Yuan”s death, Confucius lamented, "Heaven is destroying me! Heaven is destroying me!" What he meant was, "Heaven has doomed my teach-ing! Heaven has doomed my teaching!"

　　這六個人，有的最富，有的最窮；有的壽命最長，有的命短，但這六個人都沒有超出五行的命運，都在這裏頭轉來轉去，仍在輪回中跑。所以人生如夢幻泡影，如露亦如電，應作如是觀。不要有所執著，就沒有一切煩煩惱惱，能看破放下來修行，那是更好。若是不能完全放下，也應該一點一點放下，不要再留戀在六道輪回中了。

　　These six people include some of the richest, poorest, most noble, and most long-lived people, and also one whose life was rather short. However, none of them was able to transcend his fate, which was determined by the five elements. None of them could escape the endless cycle of transmigration. Life is just like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow, a dewdrop, or a lightning flash; that”s how we ought to contemplate. Be attached to nothing and you will have no affliction. If you can see through every-thing, put it all down, and come here to cultivate, that”s even better. If you can”t put everything down right away, then let go of things little by little. Don”t hanker after this transient existence in the six paths.

　　一九八二年六月六日開示于萬佛聖城

　　A talk given on June 6, 1982

　　at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas

《壽夭窮通皆不出輪回 Rich or Poor, Long-lived or Short-lived－None Can Escape Transmigration》全文閱讀結束。