百喻經之四: 婦詐稱死喻
§4 婦詐稱死喻
(4) the wife pretends to be dead
時有愚人，其婦端正，情甚愛重。婦無直信，后于中間共他交往，邪淫心盛，欲逐旁夫，舍離己婿。於是密語一老母言：“我去之后，汝可赍一死婦女尸，安著屋中。語我夫言，云我已死。”
once upon a time there was a stupid man who loved very much his beautiful wife. however, she had no true love for him. in the meantime, she associated herself surreptitiously with another man. burning with lecherous passions, she wanted to leave her husband to be with her lover. she secretly told an old woman, "after my departure, i would like you to place a woman's corpse in my house. you then tell my husband that i'm dead."
老母于后伺其夫主不在之時，以一死尸置其家中。及其夫還，老母語言：“汝婦已死。” 夫即往視，信是己婦。哀哭懊惱。大積薪油，燒取其骨，以囊盛之，晝夜懷挾。
the old woman did what she was told. she told the husband shortly after his return that his wife passed away. he went to see the corpse and believed it was that of his own wife. he grieved and wept bitterly. he gathered a great deal of wood and oil together for the cremation. then he put the ashes into a bag and had it with him day and night.
婦于后時，心厭旁夫，便還婦家，語其夫言：“我是汝妻。”
shortly after, the wife got tired of her lover. she came back and told her husband, "i'm your wife."
夫答之言：“我婦已死，汝是阿誰？妄言我婦。”乃至二三，猶故不信。
the husband answered, "my wife died a long time ago. who are you to lie to me that you are my wife?" the husband refused to believe her, in spite of her repeated explanations.
如彼外道，聞他邪說，心生惑著，謂為真實，永不可改。雖聞正教，不信受持。
so are the heretics who, having learned the heretical doctrine, confusedly stick to it with all their soul and take the doctrine to be the right one without altering their mind forever. thus they will be unable to believe, accept or keep any other creed even it is an orthodox one.
注釋：
①直信：坦白誠實。
②欲逐傍夫：急欲追隨情夫。
③赍（jī）：送去，本文可當找來講。
④懷挾：放在懷里。
⑤受持：受，佛教名詞。指客體對主體即客觀對人在生理和心理等各方面的影響。持，把握、控制。
白話：
從前有一位愚蠢的人，他的妻子長得端莊大方，他很喜愛和敬重她。但妻子不坦白誠實，在以后和別的男子有來往，欲火中燒，急欲追隨情夫，拋棄自己的丈夫。在離家前，她偷偷地托付一位老太婆說：“我走后，你送去一具婦女的尸體放在我屋里，告訴我丈夫，說我已經死了。”老太婆后來趁她丈夫不在時，把一具女尸放在屋里。那丈夫回來后，老太婆就對他說：“你妻子已經死了。”他過去看了后，認為是自己的妻子，哀傷哭泣，十分痛苦。他堆起木材，澆上油，將尸體燒成骨灰，用袋子盛起來，日夜都揣在懷里。后來這個妻子厭倦了她的情夫，便回家對丈夫說：“我是你的妻子啊！”丈夫回答說：“我妻子已死去很久了，你是什么人，竟胡說是我妻子。”盡管她再三說明，她丈夫都不信。
這就像接受了其他教派一樣，聽到了異端邪說，心中產生了疑惑，并認為是真理，永遠也不改變。雖然以后聽到正確的東西，也不能相信并從內心把握和接受它。
源流：
《鴦崛摩羅經》卷二：譬如有愚夫，見雹生妄想，謂是琉璃珠，取已執持歸，置之瓶器中，守護如真寶。不久悉融消，空想默然住，于余真琉璃，亦復作空想。（《中華大藏經》第二十三冊第五十七頁）
解說：
假作真時真亦假。
辨析：
本文有深刻的社會生活內容，涉及到家庭、感情、人際關系，這三條線索貫穿始終，而且每一個線索都展現了一幅生活畫面。這些內容體現了佛教高僧潛移默化的教化方式和對社會生活的深刻認識。在這三條線索之后推出了一個用明喻修辭方法表現的寓意，寓意中又含有一層曲喻，使人讀來如海上行一小船，雖碧海藍天 風平浪靜，卻有水深莫測 險象潛行之感。
丈夫因妻子的“死”而情癡，情夫最終被拋棄，而妻子悔悟后回家被丈夫拒絕。由此用已經不辨真假的愚人比喻在思想上已經誤入歧途的人是很難判斷正確與錯誤的，從而又曲折地喻示出“外道”的力量是不容忽視的。
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