百喻經(jīng)之四四: 欲食半餅喻

(44) EATING HALF A PANCAKE

譬如有人，因其饑故，食七枚煎餅。食六枚半已，便得飽滿。其人嗔恚，以手自打，而作是言：“我今飽足，由此半餅。然前六餅，唐自捐棄，設(shè)知半餅?zāi)艹渥阏?，?yīng)先食之。”

Once there was a man who felt hungry and longed to eat seven pancakes. He was already full when he had eaten six pancakes and a half. He was so sorry for having ordered seven of them that he slapped his own face and said, "Half a pancake has filled me up. The other six are wasted. If only I had known that, I should have ordered only half a cake."

世間之人，亦復(fù)如是。從本以來(lái)，無(wú)常有樂(lè)，然其癡倒，橫生樂(lè)想。如彼癡人，于半番餅，生于飽想。世人無(wú)知，以富貴為樂(lè)。夫富貴者，求時(shí)甚苦;既獲得已，守護(hù)亦苦;后還失之，憂念復(fù)苦;于三時(shí)中，都無(wú)有樂(lè)。

So are the people at large. There is actually no pleasure in life. There are only illusions, just like the stupid man getting full illusion with half a cake. Being ignorant, people view wealth and honor as pleasure. It is sometimes a painful process to get them. It is also sometimes hard to keep them. It is all the more painful when they have lost them. Therefore, they give no pleasure to people at all times.

猶如衣食，遮故名樂(lè);于辛苦中，橫生樂(lè)想。諸佛說(shuō)言：“三界無(wú)安，皆是大苦;凡夫倒惑，橫生樂(lè)想。”

It is just like people taken in by clothes and food as pleasure. They also bear illusions of the word "pleasure" when they are toiling and moiling. All Buddhas have it that the Three Worlds1 has no peace but great suffering. Ignorant man with wrong views still clings desperately to illusions.

白話：

譬如有人因?yàn)轲I了，一口氣吃了七枚煎餅。吃到六枚半的時(shí)候，便覺(jué)得飽了。這人懊惱后悔起來(lái)，抬手打著自己，說(shuō)：「我現(xiàn)在已飽足了，都賴這半枚餅的原因。前面那六枚餅，就這么空落落地浪費(fèi)掉了。倘若知道吃了這半個(gè)餅就能飽了，應(yīng)先吃它才是。」

世上的人也是這樣，自古以來(lái)，就永遠(yuǎn)沒(méi)有什么快樂(lè)的事情，然而世人癡愚顛倒，橫空生出快樂(lè)的念頭來(lái)，就像那個(gè)癡人，對(duì)半塊餅產(chǎn)生會(huì)飽的想法。世人實(shí)在無(wú)知，竟以富貴為樂(lè)。那富貴么，追求之際很苦，待到獲得了，守護(hù)住它也很苦，此后一旦又失去了，憂思念想又是苦，在早中晚三時(shí)中，都沒(méi)有什么快樂(lè)。就好比衣食可以遮寒祛饑，便在辛苦營(yíng)求中橫空生出快樂(lè)的念頭來(lái)。諸佛都說(shuō)：「欲界、色界、無(wú)色界這三界中都沒(méi)有什么安樂(lè)，只都是大苦而已?！故郎系娜祟嵉姑曰蟮木壒剩讲艡M空生出快樂(lè)的念頭來(lái)。

這故事比喻∶修行的人，勤苦修學(xué)經(jīng)歷多時(shí)，才有貫通言證的一旦，不經(jīng)多時(shí)的勤修，但羨一旦的悟證，正同那人吃餅的癡想，是不可能的。

相關(guān)閱讀：
伊索寓言：飛行的烏龜（一）
伊索寓言：飛行的烏龜（二）
伊索寓言：一只貪吃的狗