The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters - 5 (1)佛說四十二章經 第5章 (1)後漢 西域沙門迦葉摩騰 竺法蘭 同譯Translated jointly by Indian Sramana Kasyapa Matanga and Dharmaraksa in the Later Han Dynasty
△ 中文 | 德焱 英文 | 弘惠 00 : 22 开始
第5章 轉重令輕
Mitigation of Retribution佛言。人有眾過。而不自悔。頓息其心。罪來赴身。如水歸海。漸成深廣。 The Buddha said: "If a man who has committed many a misdemeanor does not repent and cleanse his heart of the evil, retribution will come upon his person as sure as the streams run into the ocean which becomes ever deeper and wider.
若人有過。自解知非。改惡行善。罪自消滅。如病得汗。漸有痊損耳。"If a man who has committed a misdemeanor come to the knowledge of it, reform himself, and practise goodness, the force of retribution will gradually exhaust itself as a disease gradually loses its baneful influence when the patient perspires." 英文版经文转载自 菩提字幕屋，英译者 D.T. SuzukiEnglish version sourced from Bodhi Fansubs, translated by D.T. Suzuki △ 英文 | 释宏添 中文 | 德焱 02 : 03 开始
法师讲解：轉重令輕 (1)
Commentary: Mitigation of retribution (1)
This is a chapter that talks about how to redeem one's sin. The laws of causation tell us that after the cause is created, we will take the consequences when the karma and conditions mature. We can understand from here that the fruition of karma is driven by both the cause and conditions. It is analogous to growing a tree; it requires a seed and nutrients.
The effect of karma is characterized by two features; the first one is whether retribution will be concluded for certain, and the second one is the timing of fruition. As these two factors can be fixed or not fixed, we categorize karma as fixed or indefinite. Generally speaking, severe karma will mature sooner than the mild ones. Actually people in general have much more indefinite karma than fixed one in their sea of karma.
Fixed karma, no matter wholesome or unwholesome, has strong severity. It is normally created under strong determination, or habitual repetitions over time. If deeds are related to the three jewels or one’s own parents, it may likely result in fixed karma. Besides, fixed karma means conclusion of either retribution or timing of fruition, or even both. Once fixed karma is established, it is very difficult to redeem.
On the other hand, indefinite karma does not have a fixed retribution or time to suffer. After the karma cause is created, conditions for fruition may vary in the result that retribution can be mitigated or avoided. As discussed in this chapter, repentance is one of the ways to achieve such redemption. (to be cont'd)
wholesome or unwholesome ([?h?uls?m] [??n?h?uls?m] ) 善或恶
severity [si?veriti] n. 严重
habitual [ h??b?t?u?l] adj. 串习的；习惯的
repentance [ri?pent?ns] n. 悔悟
redeem [r??di?m] v. 挽回；消除
redemption [r??demp?n] n. 挽救；拯救
The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters - 5 (2)佛說四十二章經 第5章 (2)後漢 西域沙門迦葉摩騰 竺法蘭 同譯
Translated jointly by Indian Sramana Kasyapa Matanga and Dharmaraksa in the Later Han Dynasty
△ 中文 | 德焱英文 | 弘惠 00 : 22 开始
第5章 轉重令輕
Mitigation of Retribution佛言。人有眾過。而不自悔。頓息其心。罪來赴身。如水歸海。漸成深廣。 The Buddha said: "If a man who has committed many a misdemeanor does not repent and cleanse his heart of the evil, retribution will come upon his person as sure as the streams run into the ocean which becomes ever deeper and wider.
若人有過。自解知非。改惡行善。罪自消滅。如病得汗。漸有痊損耳。"If a man who has committed a misdemeanor come to the knowledge of it, reform himself, and practise goodness, the force of retribution will gradually exhaust itself as a disease gradually loses its baneful influence when the patient perspires." 英文版经文转载自 菩提字幕屋，英译者 D.T. SuzukiEnglish version sourced from Bodhi Fansubs, translated by D.T. Suzuki △ 英文 | 释宏添 中文 | 梭罗木木 02 : 20 开始
法师讲解：轉重令輕 (2)
Commentary: Mitigation of retribution (2)
While karma can be mitigated, it can also grow. If a karma cause is not appropriately tackled with after it has been created, it will continue to grow and eventually affect our future lives. What kind of karma will grow or will not grow then? Let's first understand the ten situations below in which karma will not grow:
1. Dreams, on condition that we do not rejoice at what happened in the dreams after waking up;
一、梦中所作：梦里所发生的事情，但醒后不要随喜它；
2. Deeds committed unconsciously, such as dream walking;
二、无知所作：在没有知觉的情况下作业，例如梦游；
3. Deeds committed without one’s notice, such as stepping on an ant when you walk;
三、无故思所作：在不知情下作业，例如走路时踩死蚂蚁；
4. Deeds committed unwillingly without recurrence; it refers to deeds committed occasionally under desperate circumstances without recurrence, e.g., deeds committed in order to flee from a calamity;
四、不利不数所作：在环境的逼迫下，偶然做了，但之后不再做的业，例如因为逃难所作的业；
5. Deeds committed under mental disorder. By Discipline standard, taking hold of fire like gold is considered an acceptable sign of mental disorder;
7. Deeds committed against one’s will and pleasure; this occurs when someone is forced to do something against one’s will, and one derives no sense of pleasure from it, e.g., being raped;
The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters - 5 (3)佛說四十二章經 第5章 (3)後漢 西域沙門迦葉摩騰 竺法蘭 同譯
Translated jointly by Indian Sramana Kasyapa Matanga and Dharmaraksa in the Later Han Dynasty
△ 中文 | 德焱英文 | 弘惠 00 : 22 开始
第5章 轉重令輕
Mitigation of Retribution佛言。人有眾過。而不自悔。頓息其心。罪來赴身。如水歸海。漸成深廣。 The Buddha said: "If a man who has committed many a misdemeanor does not repent and cleanse his heart of the evil, retribution will come upon his person as sure as the streams run into the ocean which becomes ever deeper and wider.
若人有過。自解知非。改惡行善。罪自消滅。如病得汗。漸有痊損耳。"If a man who has committed a misdemeanor come to the knowledge of it, reform himself, and practise goodness, the force of retribution will gradually exhaust itself as a disease gradually loses its baneful influence when the patient perspires." 英文版经文转载自 菩提字幕屋，英译者 D.T. SuzukiEnglish version sourced from Bodhi Fansubs, translated by D.T. Suzuki △ 英文 | 释宏添 中文 | 梭罗木木 01 : 17 开始
法师讲解：轉重令輕 (3)
Commentary: Mitigation of retribution (3)
Let’s summarize the three conditions needed for the growth of karma:
我们总结一下增长业所须的三个条件：
1. The deed is committed with a clear mind rather than an unsound mind;
第一，心识要清楚明了，不是在昏昧状态，知道自己在做什么；
2. The deed is committed with deep recognition and aspiration from the heart;
第二，要深深好乐，做这件事是发自内心的愿望；
3. The deed is committed habitually.
第三，数数现行，要经常造作。
We can see that the impact of karma has a connection with our state of mind. When the mind of repentance arises,the force of bad karma will diminish. Similarly, if we regret a wholesome deed which we have committed, the force of our merits will be weakened accordingly too.
If we want to get the best result of repentance, firstly we need to make our repentance heartily, and promise not to repeat the wrong doing. We also have to confess in the presence of the three jewels. With the blessing from the three jewels and through various dharma methods or rituals, such as face-to-face confession, worshiping the Buddhas,etc, we can redeem our retribution effectively.
