32 A Trader Steals Gold

32估客偷金喻

Once upon a time, two traders ran some business together. One was a seller of genuine gold, while the other, Tula cotton. A buyer of gold came along and asked for a fire test before buying it. The cotton trader stole the burnt gold and wrapped it with his Tula cotton, which got all burnt up by the red-hot gold.

Thus the stealing was revealed. Consequently, he lost both gold and Tula cotton.

Like them are the heretics, who steal from Buddhism and write in their own religion. They wrongfully claim Buddhism to be their own teaching and deny copying from it. For this reason, they burn and destroy their heretic scripture, which is disappeared from the world.

This is just like the story of the disclosure of the stealing of gold.

译文

从前有两个商人一起做买卖。一个是卖真金，另一个是卖兜罗绵。有位顾客来买真金，放在火上烧了，来试测金子的纯度。那另一个商人就立即偷了这块试烧的金子，拿兜罗绵裹着。当时金子炽热的缘故，绵都烧尽了。事情败露，两样东西都失却了

这就好像那些外道，偷取了佛教的学说，安装进自己的学说中，谎说是自己原本就有的，并不是佛教的学说。因为不相融合的缘故，反而毁灭烧坏了外道的典籍，使它湮没于世，没有流传下来。就如那个偷金的人，事情全败露了，金绵都失却一样。

原典

昔有二贾客，共行商贾。一卖真金，其第二者卖兜罗绵①。有他买真金者，烧而试之。第二估客即便偷他被烧之金，用兜罗绵裹。时金热故，烧绵都尽。情事既露，二事俱失。

如彼外道，偷取佛法，着己法中，妄称已有，非是佛法。由是之故，烧灭外典，不行于世。如彼偷金，事情都现，亦复如是。

注释

①兜罗绵：兜罗，梵文Tula，是树的名称，绵从树果中生出来，亦即木绵。另外野蚕茧也叫兜罗绵。

解说

外道的典籍，从现存情况来看，确是不流传于世，许多材料由于佛典对之作述评而留存着。如《长阿含经》的引述即为一例。