English
"I do not ask you, Venerable Nāgasena, with the intention of troubling you. Rather, I ask for the sake of removing doubt, for the sake of clarification. Many people in the world are misguided, blind. 'How might they not find an opening (for wrong views)?' It is for this reason that I ask you." "It is not possible, great king, to share an evil deed that has not been done by oneself, and not assented to by oneself. "Just as, great king, people can carry water from a water-drawing device even a great distance, but is it possible, great king, to carry a dense, great rock mountain from a mountain by a drawing device as one wishes?" "No, venerable sir." "Even so, great king, it is possible to share wholesome karma, it is not possible to share unwholesome karma. Or again, great king, it is possible to light a lamp with oil, but is it possible, great king, to light a lamp with water?" "No, venerable sir." "Even so, great king, it is possible to share wholesome karma, it is not possible to share unwholesome karma. Or again, great king, farmers draw water from a pond and ripen their grain, but is it possible, great king, to draw water from the great ocean and ripen grain?" "No, venerable sir." Even so, O great king, it is possible to share merit, it is not possible to share demerit. Venerable Nāgasena, for what reason is it possible to share merit, not possible to share demerit? Explain the reason to me, I am not blind, without light, that I should understand by hearing. Demerit, O great king, is little; merit is much. Because it is little, demerit consumes only the doer. Because it is much, merit overwhelms the world with its gods. Give an analogy. Just as, O great king, a small drop of water might fall on the earth, would that drop of water, O great king, overwhelm ten or twelve leagues? No, venerable sir, where that drop of water falls, there it is consumed. For what reason, O great king? Because of the smallness, venerable sir, of the drop of water. Even so, O great king, little demerit, because of its smallness, consumes only the doer; it is not possible to share it. Or again, O great king, a very great cloud might rain, saturating the surface of the earth, would that great cloud, O great king, overwhelm all around? Yes, venerable sir, that great cloud, having filled ravines, lakes, river branches, caves, crevices, ponds, reservoirs, wells, and lotus ponds, would overwhelm ten or twelve leagues. For what reason, O great king? Because of the greatness, venerable sir, of the cloud. Even so, O great king, merit is much; because of its muchness, it is possible to share it even with gods and humans. Venerable Nāgasena, for what reason is demerit little and merit much? Here, O great king, whoever gives a gift, undertakes precepts, performs the Uposatha observance, he is delighted, greatly delighted, joyful, cheerful, with a clear mind, full of rapture. To him, delight arises again and again; for one whose mind is delighted, more and more merit increases. Just as , great king, in a well full of much water, if water enters from one side, and exits from another, even as it exits, more and more arises, it cannot be brought to an end. Just so, great king, wholesome deeds grow more and more. Even if, great king, a person were to reflect on wholesome deeds done for a hundred years, with each reflection, the wholesome deeds would grow more and more. That wholesome deed can be shared with whomever one wishes. This, great king, is the reason why wholesome deeds are abundant. But unwholesome deeds, great king, when done, one later regrets. For one who regrets, the mind shrinks, shrivels, turns back, it does not expand, it grieves, it suffers, it diminishes, it wastes away, it does not grow, it is exhausted right there. Just as, great king, in a dry river, with a large sandbank, uneven and winding, a small amount of water coming from above diminishes, wastes away, does not grow, it is exhausted right there. Just so, great king, for one doing unwholesome deeds, the mind shrinks, shrivels, turns back, it does not expand, it grieves, it suffers, it diminishes, it wastes away, it does not grow, it is exhausted right there. This, great king, is the reason why unwholesome deeds are few.” “Excellent, venerable Nāgasena, I accept it as such.” The fourth question, on former relatives, is finished. 5. The Question on Dreams 5. “Venerable Nāgasena, in this world, men and women see dreams, both good and bad, both seen before and not seen before, both done before and not done before, both safe and fearful, both far and near, many kinds, thousands of different colors are seen. What is this thing called a dream? And who sees it?” “This, great king, is a sign, called a dream, which comes into the mind’s range. Six kinds of people, great king, see dreams: one with wind imbalance sees a dream, one with bile imbalance One dreams due to wind, One dreams due to phlegm, One dreams due to divine influence, One dreams due to habitual thoughts, One dreams due to a premonitory sign. Therein, O great king, That which one dreams due to a premonitory sign, That alone is true, The rest is false. "Venerable Nāgasena, When one dreams due to a premonitory sign, Does his mind itself go and seek that sign? Or does that sign come within the mind's range? Or does someone else come and report it to him?" "No, O great king, His mind does not itself go and seek that sign, Nor does anyone else come and report it to him; Rather, that very sign comes within the mind's range. Just as, O great king, A mirror does not itself go anywhere and seek a reflection, Nor does anyone else bring a reflection and place it on the mirror; Rather, from wherever it may be, A reflection comes and falls within the mirror's range. Even so, O great king, His mind does not itself go and seek that sign, Nor does anyone else come and report it to him; Rather, from wherever it may be, A sign comes and falls within the mind's range." "Venerable Nāgasena, Does that mind which dreams Know, 'Such will be the result, Whether safety or danger'?" "No, O great king, That mind does not know, 'Such will be the result, Whether safety or danger'; But when the sign has arisen, It tells others, Then they explain the meaning." "Please, Venerable Nāgasena, Show me the reason." "Just as, O great king, Moles, boils, or rashes Arise on the body For gain or for loss, For fame or for disrepute, For blame or for praise, For happiness or for suffering, Do those boils, O great king, Arise knowing, 'We shall bring about such and such a meaning'?" "No, venerable sir, In whatever places those boils appear, Seeing those boils there, The soothsayer... who declare, 'Such will be the result.' "Even so, great king, the mind that sees a dream, that mind does not know, 'Such will be the result, safety or danger.' But when signs arise, one tells others, then they declare the meaning." "Venerable Nāgasena, he who sees a dream, does he see it while sleeping, or while awake?" "He who, great king, sees a dream, he does not see it while sleeping, nor does he see it while awake. But when dullness has set in, when the life-continuum has not yet been reached, in that interval, he sees a dream. For one overcome by dullness, great king, the mind has gone to the life-continuum. A mind gone to the life-continuum does not function. A non-functioning mind does not perceive pleasure or pain. For one not perceiving, there is no dream. When the mind is functioning, one sees a dream. "Just as, great king, in darkness, in gloom, without light, even in a very clean mirror, no reflection is seen. Even so, great king, when the mind is overcome by dullness, gone to the life-continuum, even though the body remains, the mind is non-functioning. In a non-functioning mind, one does not see a dream. Just as, great king, the mirror, so is the body to be understood. Just as the darkness, so is dullness to be understood. Just as the light, so is the mind to be understood. "Or just as, great king, the light of the sun covered by mist is not seen; the sun's rays, though present, are non-functioning. With non-functioning sun's rays, there is no light. Even so, great king, for one overcome by dullness, the mind has gone to the life-continuum. A mind gone to the life-continuum does not function. In a non-functioning mind, one does not see a dream. Just as, great king, the sun, so is the body to be understood. Just as the covering of mist, so is dullness to be understood. Just as the sun's rays, so is the mind to be understood. "In two cases, great king, even though the body is present, the mind is non-functioning: for one overcome by dullness, gone to the life-continuum, and for one present, even when the body is present, the mind is not active. For one who has attained cessation, even when the body is present, the mind is not active. When awake, O great king, the mind is restless, open, manifest, unbound. To such a mind, a sign does not appear. Just as, O great king, people who desire secrets avoid a person who is open, manifest, inactive, without secrets, even so, O great king, a divine meaning does not appear to one who is awake. Therefore, one who is awake does not see a dream. Or just as, O great king, wholesome states conducive to enlightenment do not appear to a monk whose livelihood is broken, who is ill-behaved, a bad friend, immoral, lazy, of weak effort, even so, O great king, a divine meaning does not appear to one who is awake. Therefore, one who is awake does not see a dream.” “Venerable Nāgasena, does sloth and torpor have a beginning, middle, and end?” “Yes, O great king, sloth and torpor has a beginning, middle, and end.” “What is the beginning, what is the middle, what is the end?” “That, O great king, which is the binding, the enveloping, the weakness, the dullness, the unsuitability for work of the body— this is the beginning of sloth and torpor. That, O great king, when one, overcome by monkey-sleep,