§73 诈言马死喻

(73) THE HORSE WAS DEAD

    昔有一人，骑一黑马，入阵击贼，以其怖故，不能战斗，便以血污涂其面目，诈现死相，卧死人中，其所乘马为他所夺。军众既去，便欲还家，即截他人白马尾来。既到舍已，有人问言：“汝所乘马今为所在？何以不乘？”

Once upon a time, there was a man who rode on a black horse to a battle. Out of fear, he was incapable to combat. He daubed his face and eyes with blood and dirt. Pretending to be dead, he laid down in the midst of corpses. The horse on which he had rode was taken away. After the battle was through, he went home bringing with him the cut-off tail of a white horse that belonged to another soldier. Back at home, he was asked, "Where is your old horse?"

    答言：“我马已死，遂持尾来。”

The man replied, "My horse is dead. I have brought back with me its tail."

    旁人语言：“汝马本黑，尾何以白？”默然无对，为人所笑。

People said, "But your old horse was black. How did its tail turn white?" Speechless, the man was laughed at.

    世间之人，亦复如是。自言善好，修行慈心，不食酒肉，然杀害众生，加诸楚毒，妄自称善，无恶不作。如彼愚人，诈言马死。

So are the people at large. Despite of their pretending to be good, pious, compassionate and restraining themselves to eat meat and drink wine, people indulge themselves in killing and injuring other sentient beings and thus raising to pain and cruelty. Furthermore, they boast that they do good deeds, but there is nothing they will not do to commit sins, just like the stupid man and his horse.

白话：

　　从前有一个人骑着一匹黑马入阵与敌作战，由于恐惧害怕，不敢战斗了；便用血污涂在面孔上，装出死的模样来，卧在死人中间。所骑的马便被别人夺走了，军队离去后，他便想回家，就截了人家的白马尾回来。到了家，有人问他：「你骑的那匹马如今在哪里? 为何不骑呢?」他答道：「我的马已死了，就拿了尾巴回来。」傍人说道：「你的马原本是黑的，尾巴怎么是白的呢?』他默然无答，遭到众人的嗤笑。

　　世上的人也是这样，说自己积善行好，修行慈心，不食酒肉，然而却杀害众生，鞭捶棒打，虚妄地自称行善，其实无恶不作，就像那个愚人，骗说马死了。