紂王就問這個妲己，說：「你看那兩個人！那個老年人，泅在水裡走，他那麼樣子精神；那年輕的，小孩子應該不怕凍啊！那年輕的他怎麼這樣子怕凍呢？」
妲己就告訴他，說：「這個你可不知道了。這裡頭真有一個很妙的道理。因為那老年人——這老年人和那年輕人是兄弟——是他父親母親年輕的時候生的；這個年輕的人呢，是他父親母親已經老了，那骨髓精氣都不足了，所以生出這個小孩子他就怕凍了。你如果不信，你把那個老年的人拿來和那個年輕的人，把他骨頭給打碎，看一看。看那個老年的人那骨頭裡邊那骨髓是滿滿的；這個年輕的，他只有一半。他有一半，所以他怕凍，就是精氣不夠。」紂王說真的嗎？「你可以看嘛！可以試試看嘛！」
這個紂王說好，就叫人把這兩個人去拿來了；拿來就把腿給打碎了，看他的骨髓。啊！你看這兩個人，根本沒有罪，他拿來就把他骨頭就這麼給打碎，看他的骨髓。一看果然是這樣子，啊！紂王說坦己：「啊！妳是神仙啊！妳真是神人，妳真是神了。妳，看得一點都不錯。」這叫「斫朝涉之脛」。朝，早晨；涉，在水裡；早晨在水裡走的那個脛。脛就是腳上頭那個地方，叫脛——脛骨。
「剖孕婦之心」：這個紂王又和妲己在那摘星樓看見有一個大肚子的女人。很大的肚子，這個小孩就要生了。紂王說：「前次妳說那個朝涉那個脛，骨髓那個空一半的和滿的妳猜對了。妳知道這個女人，在她肚皮裡她是有個男孩子？是有女孩子？啊？」妲己說：「喔！他是個男孩子。」紂王說：「我不相信。」「你不信，可以把她肚皮給剖開來看看嘛！」於是乎，就把這個大肚子的女人給拿來，把肚子剖開來，看是男人是女人。這叫「剖孕婦之心」。你看！豈有此理！那孕婦也沒有罪，怎麼把她剖開。就是因為想要看一看，證明妲己說話是真是假，喔！就把一個人殺了，所以這叫「剖孕婦之心」。
「荒淫無道」：荒，就是他不管理朝政；無道，也不按著道理去做事情。「殘賤百姓」：他殘殺劫害老百姓。殘殺和劫害老百姓就「天人共棄」：天上也不要他了；老百姓也不要他了。「誠乃獨夫」：他就是一個孤獨的人了。
「吾誅此一夫」：我殺的這一個人，是一個獨夫！「拯民於水火之中」：我拯救老百姓在這水裡頭，火裡頭。「何禍亂之有」？這有什麼禍亂的？「遂滅紂」：就不聽伯夷叔齊兩個人講，就去把紂王給滅了。「而改國號曰周」：把這個國號也改了，叫周——周朝。
「伯夷叔齊」：他們兩個人聽見了。「恥食周粟」：啊！你得到天下了，我不吃你的米。因為什麼呢？因為他是以臣殺君了。這也是一個不對的人，所以這國家的米他也不吃。不吃以後就「採薇而食」：就吃那山上的野菜。吃山上的野菜，在那吃，吃到完了，就有個人告訴他，說這個野菜也是周朝的土地生出來的嘛！就這麼樣子告訴完了之後，他們這個薇也不吃了。
這個薇菜我不知道是一種什麼菜。大約在山上的一種的菜。採薇而食，有人這麼對他講，說這個薇也是周朝地上生出來的，吃這個薇，這樣也是等於吃這個周朝的米一樣啊！那麼他們從此這個薇也不吃了。「乃於首陽山忍餓而死」：就死了，餓死了。「民至今稱其義」：這老百姓到現在都說這兩個人很有義。「其知恥者焉」：這兩個人是知道羞恥的人。
學佛的人要節欲，要清心寡欲，不要重欲。這是要緊的，這是健康根本的問題。
上人法語 |
|
King Zhou asked Tan Ji, "Why is that old man so energetic, while the young man is freezing? He's still a boy; he shouldn't be afraid of the cold." Tan Ji told him, "There's a very mysterious principle to this, which you wouldn't know. The old man and the young man are brothers. The old man was born when his parents were still young, while the young man was born in his parents' old age, when their marrow was deficient and their energies were in decline. That's why their second child is afraid of the cold. If you don't believe it, why don't you bring those two men here and open up their bones? You' ll find that the old man's bones are full of marrow, while the young man's bones are only half-filled. He's cold because his vital energy is deficient."
"Really?" said King Zhou.
"Why don't you check it out for yourself?" said his wife. Thereupon King Zhou had the two men brought before him and ordered their shins to be opened so he could examine their marrow. And it was just as Tan Ji had said. "Tan Ji, you're really divine. You're a psychic. You weren't off in the least," exclaimed the King. That was the incident of slicing open the shins of those who were wading in the morning puddles.
And he also ripped open the wombs of pregnant women. When King Zhou and Tan Ji were standing in the Star-plucking Tower, they saw a woman with a big belly who was nearly about to give birth. King Zhou said to Tan Ji, "You were right in your prediction about the marrow of the old man and the young man that morning. Now, do you know whether this woman has a boy or a girl in her womb?"
"Oh, it's a boy," said Tan Ji.
"I don't believe it," said King Zhou. "Why don't you open up her womb and take a look?" suggested Tan Ji. Thereupon he had the woman brought to him and they cut her open to see if the baby was a boy or a girl. How could they do that? The woman had not done anything wrong; how could they cut her open and kill her just to see if Tan Ji's statement was true? His heart was such that he could rip open the womb of a pregnant woman.
His lust is unbridled. He neglects governmental affairs and does not handle things according to reason and principle. And he robs and abuses the people. He kills and harms the common people. He is rejected by gods and humans alike. The heavens don't want him, and people don't want him either. He is one man alone, just a single individual, and by riding against this one man, I can save the people who are as if drowning in water and burning in fire. How is this causing chaos? How can this bring on disaster and turmoil?"
After that, ignoring the advice of the two brothers, he went on to destroy King Zhou and change the name of the dynasty from Yin to Zhou. When Bai Yi and Shu Qi heard of this, they were ashamed to eat the grain of the state of Zhou. They thought, "Now that you've gained the country, we are not going to eat your grain." Why? Because he had, in the position of minister, subjugated his king, and that was wrong. And so they retired to Shouyang Mountain where they starved to death. They stopped eating rice and picked wild thorn-ferns and vegetables from the mountains to eat. But then someone told them that the wild vegetables were also grown on the land of the Zhou Dynasty. After that, they stopped eating wild vegetables as well. Thorn-ferns are a kind of vegetable that grows in the mountains. When they heard someone remark that eating the thorn-ferns which grew on the land was equivalent to eating the rice of the state of Zhou, they stopped eating the thorn-ferns as well and starved to death. To this day they are praised for their righteousness and sense of shame. The people still praise them for being righteous individuals with a sense of shame.
Those who study Buddhism should lessen their desires and purify their minds, instead of indulging in their desires. This is the key point. It is the basic foundation of good health.
-The Venerable Master
|
