..续本文上一页ny people also think not stealing is the hardest. Actually, not lying is even more difficult! Why
Because while most people who live in this society are relatively careful about avoiding major evils such as killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct, and they are also pretty cautious about drugs and alcohol, they overlook the importance of not lying. Thinking that lying doesn”t endanger anyone or cause any harm, they carelessly blurt something out or crack a joke--and end up breaking the precept against lying. However, while we should generally tell the truth, sometimes the overall situation or the real meaning of honesty requires us to tell a white lie. Honesty is judged by one”s underlying motivation. If a doctor, to keep a patient from losing the will to live, tells him that what he has is not cancer, that is not considered a violation of the precepts.
古希腊有个大政治家撤士德塔儿。一天，他正在花园散步，忽然自外头跳进一个满身血污的青年。起先他还以为是小偷，可是那青年却「扑通」一声跪倒，急切地哀求他﹕「我因为和人打架，失手把对方打死，别人追着要我偿命；不得已，我才跳进墙来躲，请您务必救我的命。」青年一边说，一边哭着连连磕头。撤士德塔儿看他太可怜，就答应救他这一次，把他带到地窖藏起来。
One day, a great political leader in ancient Greece was strolling in the garden, when suddenly a lad covered with blood jumped in from outside. At first he thought it was a burglar , but the lad knelt down before him and beseeched him, "I accidentally killed someone in a fight. Now people are demanding my life. I jumped over the wall to hide from them. Please save me." Crying as he spoke, the lad bowed down to the ground. Seeing what a pitiful sight he was, the man promised to save him and hid him in the cellar.
不料，过了一会儿，许多人抬了具死尸来，死者正是撤士德塔儿的儿子，他救的青年正是凶手。撤士德塔儿想了一下，表示不知情，就叫人把儿子尸体抬出去料理。到了夜晚，撤士德塔儿把青年自地窖带出，交给他一匹黑马，说﹕「我本该把你交给那些人，因为你打死的正是我的儿子，但我已答应救你，不能不守信用。你赶快骑这匹马逃罢 ！」
A little later, some people carried in a corpse-it was the man”s son. He had saved his son” s murderer. After thinking about it, he indicated that he didn”t know where the killer was and told the people to take his son”s corpse to be buried. When night fell, he took the lad out of the cellar, gave him a black horse, and said, "I should have turned you over to those people, because the one you killed was my son. But because I”d promised to save you, I couldn”t break my promise. Mount this horse and flee quickly!"
各位善知识！撒士德塔儿为守信用，不惜说小谎，救了杀子凶手；您或许认为他是个傻瓜，一点也不值得这样做吧？但是，话说回来，死者既已无法复生，何必再赔上第二条命呢？能挽救一个悔过人的命，岂不等于是延续了自己儿子的生命？这样于私情难舍能舍，于公信难守能守，不是有非凡魄力的人，是做不到的。他之所以能成为一个非凡的政治家，不正因为他有这种不自私和坚守信用的非凡美德吗？真正有德之士，做任何事都发乎肺腑至诚，根本是连「值不值得」的那一念都没有的。
Good and wise advisors! In order to keep his word, that Greek leader lied to save the killer of his own son. You may consider him a fool for having acted that way. However, since his son could not have been brought back to life, what would have been the point of taking another life
Saving the life of a repentant lad-isn”t that equivalent to prolonging his own son”s life
Being able to relinquish personal affections and maintain trustworthiness with a stranger is not something an ordinary man would be able to do. He was such an extraordinary political leader precisely because of his unselfishness and firm integrity. A truly virtuous person acts out of wholehearted sincerity and never asks whether his deeds will bring him any advantage or not.
因此中国古圣人以「仁义礼智信」为五常──五种必须奉行于日常的不变真理。曾子每日都拿三事做自我的反省检讨﹕为人谋而忠，与人交而信，学而时习之。孔子也说﹕人而无信，就像两个车轮间没了锁住车辕的关键，车子还可以带得动吗？可见诚信对人的重要。
Therefore the ancient sages of China considered humaneness, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness to be five constants- five invariable truths that must be upheld in daily life. Zeng Zi examined himself on three points every day: whether he faithfully conducted his business with others, whether he was trustworthy in his friendships, and whether he reviewed what he had learned. Confucius also said that an untrustworthy person is like two wheels without the …
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