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Hundred Parables Sutra 百喻經
71 - 80
(七一)為二婦故喪其兩目喻
Parable 71. Two Wives Caused the Man to Go Blind
昔有一人聘取二婦。若近其一，為一所瞋，不能裁斷；便在二婦中間，正身仰臥。
值天大雨，屋舍霖漏；水土俱下，墮其眼中。以先有要，不敢起避；遂令二目，
俱失其明。世間凡夫，亦復如是：親近邪友，習行非法，造作結業，墮三惡道，長處
生死，喪智慧眼，如彼愚夫，為其二婦故，二眼俱失。Once upon a time, a man married two wives. If he got closer to one, the other would become angry. Unable to come up with a good solution (to pacify the two), he laid down squarely in the middle of the two wives on his bed.
One night, heavy rainfall pounded the roof, causing it to leak badly — with the rainwater and dirt dripping and streaming down, which fell right into the eyes of the man. However, because of a previous oath that he swore to uphold, he did not dare move away to avoid it. Just like that, he lost sight in both eyes.
Worldly beings are also like this. They draw close to deviant friends and commit wrong deeds with them. Having committed karmic offenses, they fall into the three paths of misery, long undergoing the cycles of birth and death, due to their loss of wisdom eyes. They are just like the ignorant husband who lost eyesight because of his two wives.
(七二)唵米決口喻
Parable 72. Mouthing Rice Caused the Mouth to Be Cut Open
昔有一人至婦家舍，見其擣米，便往其所偷米唵之。婦來見夫，欲共其語。滿口中米，都不應和。羞其婦故，不肯棄之，是以不語。婦怪不語，以手摸看謂其口腫，語其
父言：「我夫始來，卒得口腫，都不能語。」其父即便喚醫治之。時醫言曰：「此病最重，以刀決之，可得差耳。」
即便以刀，決破其口，米從中出，其事彰露。世間之人，亦復如是：作諸惡行，犯於
淨戒 ；覆藏其過，不肯發露，墮於地獄、畜生、餓鬼，如彼愚人，以小羞故，不肯
吐米，以刀決口，乃顯其過。Once upon a time, a man went to his wife’s family and saw that his wife was pounding rice. He went to her working site and stole some rice, which he put into his mouth. His wife, upon seeing him coming, wanted to talk to him. Since his mouth was full of rice, the husband could not speak or answer. Ashamed of letting his wife know that he had stolen rice, he refused to reveal what he had in his mouth. Thus, he remained silent.
Perplexed, his wife approached him, touching his mouth with her hand to check it out; she thought that he had a swollen mouth and could not speak. She told her father, “My husband just came; he has a swollen mouth and cannot speak.”
Her father called for a doctor to treat his son-in-law. The doctor said, “This illness is most severe. The patient’s mouth has to be cut open using a knife. Only then can his illness be cured.”
The doctor then cut open this man’s mouth, and rice came out of it. The whole theft then became known to all.
Worldly people are also like this: They commit evil deeds, break the pure precepts, cover up their offenses, and are unwilling to confess. They thus fall into the paths of hell-beings, animals, or hungry ghosts. They are just like this stupid man, who refused to spit out the rice due to his desire to cover up his small offense. It was only after his mouth had to be cut open by a knife was his fault revealed.
(七三)詐言馬死喻
Parable 73. Telling a Lie That His Horse Had Died
昔有一人，騎一黑馬，入陣擊賊。以其怖故，不能戰鬪；便以血污，塗其面目，
詐現死相，臥死人中。其所乘馬，為他所奪。軍眾既去，便欲還家。即截他人白馬
尾來。既到舍已，有人問言：「汝所乘馬，今為所在？何以不乘？」答言：「我馬已死，遂持尾來。」
傍人語言：「汝馬本黑尾，何以白？」
默然無對，為人所笑。世間之人，亦復如是。自言善好修行，慈心不食酒肉。然殺害
眾生，加諸楚毒，妄自稱善，無惡不造，如彼愚人，詐言馬死。Once upon a time, a man rode a black horse to join a battle against robbers. Terrified of the situation on the battlefield, he feigned death by smearing some blood on his face and lying amid dead soldiers. His horse was taken by others. After the army retreated, he wanted to return home. He cut off the tail of a dead white horse and came home. When he arrived, someone asked him, “You rode a horse. Where is it? Why not ride on it?”
He answered, “My horse had died. Thus, I cut off a piece of its tail.”
Others then said, “Your horse is of black color; you are now holding the tail of a white horse.”
He was rendered speechless and became a laughingstock.
Worldly people are also like this: They claim goodness for themselves as being fond of cultivating, as having compassion, not eating meat, nor drinking alcohol.” The fact is that they kill, inflicting all kinds of harm or torture to others, while claiming that they have been doing good. There is no evil that they will stop at. They are just like the stupid man who lied about his horse’s death.
(七四)出家凡夫貪利養喻
Parable 74. Ordinary Monastics Being Greedy for Profit and Offerings
昔有國王設於教法：諸有婆羅門等，在我國內，制抑洗淨。不洗淨者，驅令策使，
種種苦役。有婆羅門，空捉澡灌，詐言洗淨；人為著水，即便瀉棄，便作是言：
「我不洗淨，王自洗之。」為王意故，用避王役，妄言洗淨，實不洗之。出家凡夫，亦復如是：剃頭染衣，內實毀禁 ，詐現持戒，望求利養，復避王役，外似沙門，內實虛欺，如捉空瓶，但有外相。
Once upon a time, there was a king who instituted a policy regarding religions, saying, “In my kingdom, brāhmans must take good showers to cleanse themselves. Those who do not cleanse will be ordered to a variety of hard labor."
Then there came a brāhman; he held an empty jar, claiming that he had done his own cleansing. When others tried to help him fill the jar with water, he immediately poured it out, saying, “There is no need for me to cleanse myself because I have done it; even if I don’t cleanse myself, the king will send someone to force me to cleanse.”
It is for the sake of having the appearance of following the king’s order so as to avoid the conscripted labor that this brāhman argued that he had cleansed himself. In fact he did not cleanse at all.
Ordinary monastics are just like this: Outside, they don the monastic attire, and have their heads shaved; but in fact, inside, they break the precepts, while putting on a false front of upholding the precepts, and seeking profit and offerings. They leave the home-life so as to avoid the king’s conscriptions; they have the semblance of leaving home, but inside they are being deceptive; they are just like this brāhman who held an empty jar of shower water — with a mere appearance of leaving home.
(七五)駝甕俱失喻
Parable 75. Both the Camel and the Urn Are Lost
昔有一人先甕中盛穀。駱駝入頭甕中食穀，又不得出。既不得出，以為憂惱。
有一老人，來語之言：「汝莫愁也，我教汝出。汝用我語，必得速出。汝當斬頭，
自得出之。」即用其語，以刀斬頭；既復殺駝，而復破甕。如此癡人，世間所笑，凡夫愚人，亦復如是：悕心菩提， 志求三乘，宜持禁戒，防護諸惡。然為五欲，毀破淨戒；既犯禁已，捨離三乘，縱心極意，無 惡不造。乘及淨戒，二俱捐捨，如彼愚人，駝甕俱失。
Once upon a time there was a man who put grains into an urn, and one of his camels reached its head into the urn to eat the grains, but was stuck inside. Unable to help his camel get its head out of the urn, the man was greatly distressed. There came an elder telling the man, “Don’t worry. I will teach you how to extract the camel. If you follow my instructions, in no time the camel will be out. Chop off the camel’s head, then it will come out.”
The man followed the elder’s advice, and chopped off the camel’s head. Thus, the camel was killed and the urn was broken too. It became a laughing stock for others.
Ordinary stupid people are just like this: If they resolve on Bodhi, seeking the Three Vehicles, they should uphold the precepts, preventing all evil doing. However, out of wanting to gratify their five desires, they break the pure precepts; having broken the precepts, they renounce the Three Vehicles; they then indulge in the pleasure hunting, and there is no evil they would not do. They have put behind all that of the Vehicles and the pure precepts. They are just like this stupid man who lost both his camel and urn.
(七六)田夫思王女喻
Parable 76. A Farmer Longing for the King’s Daughter
昔有田夫遊行城邑，見國王女，顏貌端正，世所希有；晝夜想念，情不能已；思與交
通，無由可遂；顏色瘀黃，即成重病。諸所親見，便問其人何故如是。答親里言：
「我昨見王女，顏貌端正，思與交通，不能得故，是以病耳。我若不得，必死無疑。」諸親語言：「我當為汝，作好方便，使汝得之；勿得愁也。」
後日見之，便語之言：「我等為汝，便為是得；唯王女不欲。」
田夫聞之，欣然而笑，謂呼：「必得。」
世間愚人，亦復如是：不別時節，春秋冬夏，便於冬時，擲種土中，望得果實；徒喪
其功，空無所獲，芽莖枝葉，一切都失。世間愚人，修習少福，謂為具足，便謂菩提，已可證得，如彼田夫，悕望王女。Once upon a time, there was a farmer who toured the city. There, he encountered the king’s daughter whose appearance was upright and peerlessly beautiful, rarely seen in the world. The farmer had a crush on her, becoming lovesick to such a point that he could not stop thinking about her. He thought of trying to communicate his feelings to her, but it was to no avail.
Thus, he fell sick, his countenance yellowish and emaciated, and soon it worsened into a grave sickness. His relatives came to see him, and asked about the reason for his illness. He answered, “Yesterday, I saw the princess; her appearance was upright and dignified; thus, I wanted to talk to her, but I wasn’t able to. That is why I am sick. If I cannot have her, I will surely die.”
His relatives told him, “We shall all help you achieve what you want with some expedients, so don’t worry.”
Several days later, they came to see him again and told him, “We tried to work it out as you wished. We were on the verge of success, but the princess just wouldn’t relent.” Upon hearing this, the farmer was delighted and said, “I shall definitely get her.”
Stupid people are also like this: They do not discern seasons — spring, summer, fall, and winter; and they sow seeds in the wintertime, hoping that what they plant will produce fruits. They have wasted their time and efforts, obtaining nothing in the end. All the sprouts, stalks, trunks, and branches are lost. The foolish ones in the world cultivate little blessings, thinking that they have enough. With the little blessings, they claim that they are ready to harvest the fruit of Bodhi. They are no different from the farmer craving the princess.
(七七)搆驢乳喻
Parable 77. Milking a Male Donkey for Milk
昔邊國人，不識於驢，聞他說言驢乳甚美，都無識者。爾時諸人，得一父驢，欲搆其
乳 ；諍共捉之。其中有捉頭者、有捉耳者、有捉尾者、有捉脚者，復有捉器者，各欲先得，於前飲之。中捉驢根，謂呼是乳；即便搆之，望得其乳。眾人疲厭，都無所得；徒自勞苦，空無所獲，為一切世人之所嗤笑。外道凡夫，亦復如是：聞說於道，不應求處，妄生想念，起種 種邪見，裸形自餓，投巖赴火，以是邪見，墮於惡道，如彼愚
人，妄求於乳。Once upon a time, there were folks in the border region of a kingdom who were ignorant about how donkeys look. When they heard that donkey milk tasted more delicious than any other types of milk, none of them could tell if it was true.
Then, these folks obtained a male donkey and they tried to milk it. They argued, vying to be the first person to milk the donkey: Some rushed to grab the head, some the ears, some the tail, some the feet, and some holding containers to catch the milk. Among them, someone grabbed the male organ of the donkey, thinking that it was the breast. They toiled in vain, and gained nothing at the end. They became a laughing stock for all the world.
Those adherents of the non-buddhist paths as well as ordinary people are also like this: Upon hearing that one should not have a seeking mind when cultivating the Way, they give rise to false thoughts, giving rise to all kinds of wrong views. They therefore practice naked asceticism; they starve themselves; they plunge themselves down a cliff; they walk into a fire. From harboring all these wrong views, they fall into the paths of misery. They are just like these stupid folks who sought milk from a male donkey.
(七八)與兒期早行喻
Parable 78. Expecting to Travel with His Son the Next Morning
昔有一人，夜語兒言：「明當共汝，至彼聚落；有所取索。」
兒聞語已，至明旦，竟不問父，獨往詣彼。既至彼已，身體疲極，空無所獲；又不得
食，飢渴欲死；尋復迴來，來見其父。父見子來，深責之言：「汝大愚癡，無有智慧；何不待我，空自往來？徒受其苦。」為一切世人之所嗤笑。凡夫之人亦復如是：設得出家，即剃鬚髮，服三法衣；不求明
師，諮受道法，失諸禪定道品功德，沙門妙果，一切都失，如彼愚人，虛作往返，徒自疲勞，形似沙門實無所得。Once upon a time, there was a man who talked to his son, “Tomorrow, I shall go with you to a gathering, as we have something to fetch there.”
His son heard his father’s words, and at dawn the next morning, he did not consult his father but just went alone on the journey to the gathering. Having arrived at the gathering, he was exhausted and yet obtained nothing he wanted; worse, he still had not eaten a single meal. He was so hungry and thirsty that he almost died.
He made his difficult way back home to see his father. Upon seeing his son, the father scolded him harshly, “How ignorant and foolish you are. You have no wisdom. Why didn’t you wait for me but go on your own instead? Your toil is futile; you deserve to suffer. “
They become a laughing stock for the world.
Ordinary people are also like this: Suppose they leave the home-life; they have their heads shaved; they don the three pieces of monastic attire. Yet they don’t go to seek wise spiritual mentors; nor do they seek counsel on the Way. They have lost Chan samadhi, as well as merit and virtue of the Thirty-seven Wings of Enlightenment; they have lost all the wondrous fruition of being a monk. They are just like those foolish ones who toiled, tiring themselves out in vain. They look like monastics but they actually realize nothing.
(七九)為王負机喻
Parable 79. Carrying the Chairs for the King With Shoulder Yokes
昔有一王，欲入無憂園中，歡娛受樂；勅一臣言：「汝捉一机，持至彼園，
我用坐息。」時 彼使人，羞不肯捉，而白王言：「我不能捉，我願擔之。」
時王便以三十六机置其背上，驅使擔之，至於園中，如是愚人，為世所笑。凡夫之人，亦復如是：若見女人，一髮在地；自言 持戒，不肯捉之。後為煩惱所惑，三十六物：髮毛爪齒、屎尿不淨，不以為醜。三十六物，一時都捉，不生慚愧，至死不捨，
如彼愚人，擔負於机。Once upon a time, there was a king who wished to visit a garden named ‘No Worries’ to seek fun and enjoy himself. He ordered a minister, “Bring a chair into that garden, I want to admire the flowers and watch the waters there.”
This minister thought that moving chairs around would be too embarrassing, so he replied, “I cannot move chairs around, but I can carry them using shoulder yokes.”
When the king heard this, he ordered someone to tie thirty-six chairs together into a bundle, and forced the minister to carry the bundle with a yoke into the garden, leaving this stupid person on display and open to mockery by everyone.
Ordinary people are also like this: When a man sees that a woman’s hair fell onto the ground, he claimed that he upheld the precepts so purely that he would not even touch the hair, much less pick it up, but later on, under the spell of his delusion and afflictions, he no longer thinks that the thirty-six parts of the human body are ugly: the hair, teeth, nails, urine, and excrements as being impure; instead, he clings to the human body of the thirty-six parts; even to his death, he would not let go of his clinging. He is just like this stupid minister who carried the chairs using a shoulder yoke.
(八○)倒灌腸喻
Parable 80. Enema Water
昔有一人，患下部病。醫言：「當須倒灌，乃可差耳。」
便集灌具，欲以灌之；醫未至頃，便取服之。腹脹欲死，不能自勝。醫既來至，怪其所以。即便問之：「何故如是？」
即答醫言：「向時灌藥，我取服之，是故欲死。」
醫聞是語，深責之言：「汝大愚人，不解方便。」
即便以餘藥服之，方得吐下，爾乃得差。如此愚人，為世所笑。凡夫之人，亦復如是：欲修學禪觀，種種方法，應効不淨，反効數息；應數息者，効觀六界；顛倒上下，無有根本，徒喪身命，為其所困。不諮zī良師，顛倒禪法，如彼愚人，飲服不淨。
Once upon a time, there was a person who had bowel problems; he went to see a doctor who said , “It can be treated with enema, and you will be cured.”
Then the doctor made preparations. Since he needed to get some necessary equipment, he stepped out. While the doctor was away , the patient, without waiting for the doctor’s return, drank the enema water; his stomach became so bloated that he felt like he was dying — it was beyond his ability to endure. On returning, the doctor asked, “What happened?”
The patient said, “I took the laxative, and I feel like I’m dying...”
After the doctor heard all this, he said, “You are really stupid; you don’t understand how to use this medication.”
Then the doctor gave him other medicines, which caused him to vomit up the one he had ingested, and he was cured. This foolish person became an object of ridicule for others.
Ordinary people in the world are also like this: Wanting to practice Chan contemplation, they see that there are various methods. Some should practice the contemplation of the impurities of the body, but instead practise the contemplation of Ānāpāna. Some should practice the contemplation of counting breaths, but they cultivate the contemplation of the six realms instead. They reverse the correct order of these contemplative practices, and lose their foundation in cultivation. As a result of that, they may lose their lives, or become trapped in the wrong kind of cultivation. Failing to seek counsel from good and wise teachers, they practice Chan in an upside-down way. They are just like this stupid person who took medication without his doctor’s approval.