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THE HEAD IS BROKEN WITH PEARS

Once upon a time there was a bald-headed man who was hit in his head by a few pears thrown at him. He forbore taking the blows without knowing that he should have tried to dodge them. A bystander asked the man, "Why didn't you dodge the blows that wounded your head?"

The man answered, "Proudly relying upon doing violence to others and being short of intelligence, he, the attacker, took my bald-head for a stone. That's why he struck me with pears and broke my head like that."

The bystander retorted, "It's you who are indeed short of intelligence. How can you call him stupid? Haven't you been stupid enough to get injured without the sense to run away?"

So is the monk who, unable to abide discipline, meditation and wisdom, keeps only a good appearance to expect support. He is just like that stupid man who got as far as wounded on the head without knowing to run away and called the attacker stupid into the bargain.

3以梨打头破喻

昔有愚人,头上无毛。时有一人,以梨打头,乃至二三,悉皆伤破。时此愚人,默然忍受,不知避去。傍人见已,而语之言:「何不避去,乃住受打,致使头破?」愚人答言:「如彼人者,憍慢恃力,痴无智慧,见我头上无有发毛,谓为是石,以梨打我,头破乃尔。」傍人语言:「汝自愚痴,云何名彼以为痴也?汝若不痴,为他所打,乃至头破,不知逃避。」

比丘亦尔,不能具修信戒闻慧,但整威仪,以招利养,如彼愚人,被他打头,不知避去,乃至伤破,反谓他痴。此比丘者,亦复如是。

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