43.5 （五）船筏

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was at Anāthapiṇḍada's Park in the Jeta Grove near Śrāvastī.

At that time, the World-Honored One told the bhikṣus, "I will now explain the analogy of a boat. You should all think about it carefully and keep it in your minds."

The bhikṣus replied, "Yes, World-Honored One!" The bhikṣus received the Buddha's instruction.

The World-Honored One said, "What is meant by the analogy of a boat? If you are captured by bandits on the road, you should hold your mind and not give rise to evil thoughts. You should give rise to a protective mind, pervading all directions, immeasurable, limitless, and incalculable. Hold your mind like the earth. Just as this earth can accept both purity and impurity, feces, urine, and filth, yet the earth does not give rise to a mind of increase or decrease, saying this is good or this is ugly. Your practice should also be like this. Even if you are captured by bandits, do not give rise to evil thoughts or a mind of increase or decrease. It is also like earth, water, fire, and wind, which can accept both evil and good, without any mind of increase or decrease. Give rise to a mind of loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity towards all sentient beings. The reason is that the practice of good can still be abandoned, let alone evil that should be indulged in. It is like someone who encounters a dangerous place and wants to cross the dangerous place to a place of peace and safety. They run around as they please, seeking a place of peace. They see a great river that is extremely deep and wide, with no boat or bridge to cross to the other shore. Yet the place they are standing is extremely dangerous, while the other shore is without any afflictions.

"At that time, the person thought of a plan: 'This river is extremely deep and wide. Now I can gather wood, grass, and leaves, tie them together to make a raft, and use it to cross. Relying on this raft, I can cross from this shore to the other shore.' At that time, the person gathered wood, grass, and leaves, tied them together to make a raft, and crossed. They crossed from this shore to the other shore. After crossing the shore, they thought: 'This raft has benefited me greatly. Because of this raft, I have been saved from danger and crossed from a place of fear to a place without afflictions. I will not abandon this raft now, but carry it with me.' What do you think, bhikṣus? Can that person carry the raft with them wherever they go? Or not?"

The bhikṣus replied, "No, World-Honored One! The person's wish has now been fulfilled. What use is the raft to them?"

The Buddha told the bhikṣus, "Even good dharmas can be abandoned, let alone bad dharmas."

At that time, a bhikṣu addressed the World-Honored One, saying, "How can one abandon the Dharma, let alone non-Dharma? Are we not studying the path through the Dharma?"

The World-Honored One said, "Based on the extinction of arrogance, one can extinguish arrogance, pride, conceit, self-conceit, wrong views, and the arrogance of being arrogant. Using non-arrogance to extinguish pride, extinguishing non-arrogance and right arrogance, extinguishing wrong arrogance and the arrogance of superiority, completely extinguishing the four kinds of arrogance. When I was not yet enlightened, sitting under the Bodhi tree, I had this thought: 'Who is the most powerful and noble in the desire realm? I shall subdue them.' All the gods and people in the desire realm were subdued. Then I had this thought again: 'I have heard of the evil Mara Pāpīyas. Now I shall fight with him.' In order to subdue Mara Pāpīyas, all the arrogant and noble gods were subdued. At that time, bhikṣus, I laughed on the seat, causing the realm of Mara Pāpīyas to shake."

In the sky, a verse was heard being spoken:

Abandoning the true and pure royal Dharma, he left home to study the sweet dew
If he fulfills his great vow, he will empty these three evil destinies. I will
now gather my troops to look at that śramaṇa's face. If he does not use
my plan, I will grab his feet and throw him to the edge of the ocean.

At that time, the evil Mara Pāpīyas was filled with intense anger and immediately told the great general Siṃha, 'Quickly assemble the four divisions of troops and go to attack the śramaṇa! Also, observe what kind of power and strength he has, capable of fighting with me.' I then further contemplated, 'Even if I were to fight with ordinary people, I would not remain silent, let alone those of noble status in the desire realm! I must compete with them, whether little or much.' At that time, bhikṣus, I donned the armor of kindness and compassion, held the bow of samādhi and the arrow of wisdom, and awaited their great assembly. At that time, the evil Mara Pāpīyas and his army of eighteen koṭis, with various appearances, such as monkeys and lions, came to me.

At that time, the rākṣasa hordes, some with several heads on one body, some with many tens of bodies sharing one head, some with three necks on both shoulders, a mouth on the chest, some with one hand; some with two hands; some with four hands; some holding heads in both hands, mouths biting dead snakes, some with fire burning on the head, mouth emitting firelight; some with both hands tearing open the mouth, wanting to eat it; some with open bellies facing each other, hands holding swords and spears; some holding pestles; some carrying mountains, carrying stones, and carrying large trees; some with both feet above and head below; some riding elephants, lions, tigers, wolves, and poisonous insects; some coming on foot; some flying in the air. At that time, the evil Mara Pāpīyas, with such a multitude, surrounded the Bodhi tree.

At that time, Mara Pāpīyas spoke to me on my left side, saying, 'Śramaṇa, quickly get up!' At that time, bhikṣus, I remained silent and did not respond. This happened three times. Mara said to me, 'Śramaṇa, are you afraid of me?' I told him, 'I now hold the mind without fear.' At that time, Pāpīyas said, 'Śramaṇa! Do you see my four divisions of troops? Yet you alone, without any weapons or armor, with a shaven head and naked, wearing these three robes, still say, "I am fearless."'

"At that time, I spoke this verse to Pāpīyas:"

The armor of kindness, the bow of samādhi, the arrow of wisdom in
hand, the army of meritorious deeds - now I shall destroy your army.

Then the demon Pāpīyas said to me again, 'I have benefited the śramaṇa greatly. If you do not heed my words, I will take you and reduce you to ashes. Moreover, śramaṇa! Your appearance is upright and handsome, and you are young and beautiful. You are of the kṣatriya caste, the lineage of a wheel-turning sage king. Quickly rise from here and enjoy the five pleasures. I will make you a wheel-turning sage king.' At that time, I replied to Pāpīyas, 'What you say is impermanent and changeable, and cannot last long. It will also be abandoned, and is not what I desire.' Then the evil demon Pāpīyas said to me again, 'Śramaṇa! What do you seek today? What do you aspire to?' I replied, 'What I aspire to is the place of no worries or fears, the peaceful and tranquil city of nirvāṇa; to guide those sentient beings who wander in saṃsāra, immersed in suffering and distress, along the right path.'

The demon replied to me, 'If the śramaṇa does not quickly rise from his seat, I will grab your feet and throw you to the other side of the ocean.' At that time, I replied to Pāpīyas, 'I observe that in heaven and among humans, among demons, or among gods, humans, or non-humans, or among your fourfold assembly, none can move a single hair of mine.' The demon said to me, 'Śramaṇa! Do you wish to fight with me today?' I replied, 'I wish to engage in battle.' The demon said to me, 'Who is your enemy?' I replied, 'Arrogance is. Arrogance, excessive arrogance, wrong arrogance, arrogance among the arrogant, and excessive arrogance.' The demon said to me, 'By what means do you destroy these arrogances?' At that time, I replied, 'Pāpīyas should know that there are the samādhis of kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity, the samādhis of emptiness, wishlessness, and signlessness. By the samādhi of kindness, one accomplishes the samādhi of compassion; by the samādhi of compassion, one attains the samādhi of joy; by the samādhi of joy, one attains the samādhi of equanimity. By the samādhi of emptiness, one attains the samādhi of wishlessness; by the samādhi of wishlessness, one attains the samādhi of signlessness. By the power of these three samādhis, I will fight with you. When action is exhausted, suffering is exhausted; when suffering is exhausted, afflictions are exhausted; when afflictions are exhausted, one attains nirvāṇa.'

The demon said to me, 'Śramaṇa! Can you destroy the Dharma with the Dharma?' At that time, I replied, 'One can destroy the Dharma with the Dharma.' The demon asked me, 'How can one destroy the Dharma with the Dharma?' At that time, I told him, 'One can destroy wrong views with right views, and right views with wrong views; wrong conduct with right conduct, and right conduct with wrong conduct; wrong speech with right speech, and right speech with wrong speech; wrong action with right action, and right action with wrong action; wrong livelihood with right livelihood, and right livelihood with wrong livelihood; wrong effort with right effort, and right effort with wrong effort; wrong mindfulness with right mindfulness, and right mindfulness with wrong mindfulness; wrong concentration with right concentration, and right concentration with wrong concentration.' The demon said to me, 'Śramaṇa! Although you have these words today, this place is difficult to conquer. You should quickly rise now, lest I throw you to the other side of the ocean.'

At that time, I further said to Pāpīyas, 'You have only one act of giving, and now you have become the demon king of the desire realm. The merits I have created in the past cannot be measured. What you say now is very difficult.' Pāpīyas replied, 'The merits you have created now, you can attest to yourself. You claim to have created countless merits, but who can attest to that?' At that time, bhikṣus, I extended my right hand and touched the ground with my finger, saying to Pāpīyas, 'The merits I have created, the earth attests to.' When I said these words, the earth deity emerged from the ground and said with joined palms, 'World-Honored One! I will attest to it.' As soon as the earth deity finished speaking, the demon Pāpīyas became distressed and miserable, and immediately retreated and disappeared.

"Bhikṣus, you should know this by this method. Even the Dharma is still extinguished, let alone the non-Dharma. For a long time, I have told you about the Sutra of the Simile of One Awakening, but I have not recorded its text, let alone explained its meaning. The reason is that this Dharma is profound. Those who cultivate this Dharma among the śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas attain great merits and attain the place of the deathless non-conditioned state. What is meant by the simile of the raft? It means relying on the extinction of pride, with pride completely extinguished, there are no more thoughts of disturbance. It is like a wild cat's skin that is extremely well-treated, when struck with a fist, it makes no sound and has no hard leather. It is the same for this. If a bhikṣu's pride is extinguished, there is no increase or decrease. Therefore, I now tell you: 'If you are captured by thieves, do not give rise to evil thoughts, but fill all directions with loving-kindness. It is like that extremely soft skin, and you will attain the place of the deathless non-conditioned state for a long time.' Thus, bhikṣus, you should think like this."

When this Dharma was being spoken, among those seated, the dust and defilements of three thousand gods were completely eliminated, and they attained the purity of the Dharma eye. More than sixty bhikṣus returned to lay life, and more than sixty bhikṣus eliminated their afflictions and attained the purity of the Dharma eye.

At that time, the bhikṣus heard what the Buddha said, and joyfully received and practiced it.