..续本文上一页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."

　　子路说：「你这问题太容易了，很浅的嘛！这世界上，天地间，星星多，月亮少；娶媳妇欢喜，死人恼。」

　　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."

　　范丹听了就直摆手说：「不对！不对！」

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

　　子路认为他的答复是绝妙好辞，天衣无缝，再也没有什么答复比他的更好了，所以就以为范丹根本就不想借米给他，而是借故刁难。子路仍不认输，但范丹不借，子路也没法子，所以就气冲冲地跑回去见孔夫子了，说：「老师！老师！这个范丹真可恶，毫不讲道理。」他一一把两人的对答向孔夫子具实报告，孔夫子听了之后，就说道：「你答错了！」子路这时惊讶万分，说：「范丹说我不对，是因为他站在他的立场上，而老师您现在应该站在我的立场上，怎么您也说我答错了？」

　　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

　　"

　　孔夫子说：「你听听我的答复：『世界上，天地间，小人多，君子少；借时欢喜，要时就恼。』你去向范丹这样答复。」于是子路又回到范丹那里，对他说孔夫子的答复。范丹认为这回答对了，一点也没错，所以就借米给子路。他用一个竹筒子装满了米，给子路拿回去。但是这个竹筒子是个宝贝，米怎么吃也吃不完，用多少就有多少，所以穷人也有穷宝贝。

　　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.

　　秦始皇时代有个甘罗，十二岁就做了宰相，但是还晚了三年，他在九岁时就应该做宰相的。姜太公八十岁才遇到文王，可是早了三年。甘罗很年轻就做了宰相，而姜太公到了晚年才遇见文王。

　　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.

　　彭祖活到八百多岁，所以叫寿高。颜渊是孔子的学生，活到三十岁就死了，所以叫命短。颜渊虽然命短，但他在孔夫子的门徒里，是最聪明，也是最好学的。他「闻一知十」；子贡是「闻一知二」。当颜渊死去时，孔夫子就悲叹地说：「天丧予！天丧予！」意思就是天令我这个道丧亡了！天令我这个道丧亡了！

　　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!"

　　这六个人，有的最富，有的最穷；有的寿命最长，有的命短，但这六个人都没有超出五行的命运，都在这里头转来转去，仍在轮回中跑。所以人生如梦幻泡影，如露亦如电，应作如是观。不要有所执着，就没有一切烦烦恼恼，能看破放下来修行，那是更好。若是不能完全放下，也应该一点一点放下，不要再留恋在六道轮回中了。

　　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开示于万佛圣城

　　A talk given on June 6, 1982

　　at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas

《寿夭穷通皆不出轮回 Rich or Poor, Long-lived or Short-lived－None Can Escape Transmigration》全文阅读结束。