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　　A Shramana asked the Buddha, "What is the greatest strength

　　 What is the utmost brilliance

　　 "

　　The Buddha said, "Patience under insult is the greatest strength, because people who are patient do not harbor hatred, and they gradually grow more peaceful and strong. Patient people, since they are not evil, will surely gain the respect of others. Then the mind defilements are gone completely, so that it is pure and untainted, that is the utmost brilliance. When there is nothing, from before the formation of the heavens and the earth until now, in any of the ten directions that you do not see, know, or hear; when you have attained omniscience, that may be called brilliance. "

　　Section 16

　　Casting Aside Love and Attaining the Way

　　The Buddha said, "People who cherish love and desire do not see the Way. Just as when you stir clear water with your hand, those who stand beside it cannot see their reflections, so, too, people who are entangled in love and desire have turbidity in their minds, and therefore they cannot see the Way. You Shramanas should cast aside love and desire. When the stains of love and desire disappear, you will be able to see the Way. "

　　Section 17

　　When Light Arrives, Darkness Departs

　　The Buddha said, "Those who see the Way are like someone holding a torch who enters a dark room, dispelling the darkness so that only light remains. When you study the Way and see the truth, ignorance vanishes and light remains forever. "

　　Section 18

　　Thoughts and So Forth Are Basically Empty

　　The Buddha said, y Dharma is the mindfulness that is both mindfulness and non-mindfulness. It is the practice that is both practice and non-practice. It is words that are words and non-words, and cultivation that is cultivation and non-cultivation. Those who understand are near to it; those who are confused are far away, indeed. It is not accessible by the path of language. It is not hindered by physical objects. If you are off by a hairsbreadth, you will lose it in an instant. "

　　Section 19

　　Contemplating Both the False and the True

　　The Buddha said, "Contemplate heaven and earth, and be mindful of their impermanence. Contemplate the world, and be mindful of its impermanence. Contem-plate the efficacious, enlightened nature: it is the Bodhi nature. With this awareness, one quickly attains the Way. "

　　Section 20

　　Realize that the Self Is Truly Empty

　　The Buddha said, "You should be mindful of the four elements within the body. Though each has a name, none of them is the self. Since they are not the self, they are like an illusion. "

　　Section 21

　　Fame Destroys Life Roots

　　The Buddha said, "There are people who follow emotion and desire and seek to be famous. By the time their reputation is established, they are already dead. Those who are greedy for worldly fame and do not study the Way simply waste their effort and wear themselves out. By way of analogy, although burning incense gives off fragrance, when it has burned down, the remaining embers bring the danger of a fire that can burn one up. "

　　Section 22

　　Wealth and Sex Cause Suffering

　　The Buddha said, "People are unable to renounce wealth and sex. They are just like a child who cannot resist honey on the blade of a knife. Even though the amount is not even enough for a single meal serving , he will lick it and risk cutting his tongue in the process. "

　　Section 23

　　A Family Is Worse than a Prison

　　The Buddha said, "People are bound to their families and homes to such an extent that these are worse than a prison. Eventually one is released from prison, but people never think of leaving their families. DonỖt they fear the control that emotion, love, and sex have over them

　　 Although they are in a tiger jaws, their hearts are blissfully oblivi…

《四十二章经 Sutra in Forty-Two Sections translated by the Buddhist Text Translation》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…