A Presentation based on a Verse from the Dhammapada and the accompanying story. There are good Dhamma teachings to reflect on. The texts are in English and Chinese. For the Video with audio narration and explanation in Hokkien, please check out the Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VguDzu6YLYk

1. 1
忘恩负义
的儿子们
From
The
Dhammapada
Verse
324
从
法
经
第
324
句
老婆罗门的故事

2. 2
Once there lived in Sàvatthi an old bràhmin
who had eight lakhs in cash. (800,000 Rupees)
He had four sons; when each one of the sons
got married, he gave one lakh to each of the
sons. Thus, he gave away four lakhs.
Some time later the old man’s wife died.
His sons came to him and
looked after him very well;
in fact, they were very loving
and affectionate to him. In the course of time,
somehow they coaxed him to give them the
remaining four lakhs. Thus, he
was left practically penniless.
曾经有一位老婆罗门住在 Sàvatthi，他有 80 万
现金。 (800,000 卢比) 他有四个儿子； 当每个
儿子结婚时，他给每个儿子10万。 因此，他放
弃了四十万。 过了一段时间，老人的妻子去世
了。 他的儿子们来到他身边，很好地照顾他。
事实上，他们非常有爱并对他深情。 随着时间
的推移，他们以某种方式哄他把剩下的 40 万给
他们。 因此，他几乎身无分文。
Savatthi or Sravasti - The
Buddha preached many
Discourses here.
Savatthi 或 Sravasti - 佛陀在
这里宣讲了许多教法。

3. 3
First, he went to stay with his eldest son. After
a few days, the daughter-in-law said to him,
“Did you give any extra hundreds or thousands
of money to your eldest son? Don’t you know
the way to the houses of your other sons?
Hearing this, the old man got very angry and he
left the eldest son’s house for the house of his
second son. The same thing happened in the
houses of all his sons. Thus, the old man
became helpless; then, taking a staff and a
bowl he went to the Buddha for protection and
advice.
首先，他去和他的大儿子住在一起。 过了几
天，儿媳对他说：“你有没有多给你大儿子几
百几千块钱？ 你不知道去你其他儿子家的路
吗？ 老爷子闻言大怒，离开了大儿子的家，
去了二儿子家。 同样的事情也发生在他所有
儿子的家里。 于是，老人变得无助； 然后，
他拿着一根棍子和一个碗，去佛陀那里寻求保
护和建议。

4. 4
At the monastery, the bràhmin told the Buddha how
his sons had treated him and asked for His help.
Then the Buddha gave him some verses to
memorize and instructed him to recite them
wherever there was a large gathering of people.
The gist of the verses is this: “My four foolish sons
are like ogres. They call me ‘father, father’, but the
words come only out of their mouths and not from
their hearts. They are deceitful and scheming.
Taking the advice of their wives they have driven
me out of their houses. So, now I have to go round
begging.
Those sons of mine are worse than my walking
stick. My walking stick helps me more.
在寺院里，婆罗门告诉佛陀他的儿子们是如何对
待他的，并请求他的帮助。 然后佛陀给他一些偈
颂，让他在人多的地方念诵。经文的要点是：
“我的四个愚蠢的儿子就像食人魔一样。 他们称
我为“父亲，父亲”，但这些话只是从他们的嘴
里说出来，而不是从他们的心里说出来的。 他们
诡计多端。 他们听从了他们妻子的建议，把我赶
出了他们的家。 所以，现在我不得不四处乞讨。
我的那些儿子比我的拐杖还糟糕。我的手杖帮助
我更多。

5. 5
When the old bràhmin recited these verses,
many people in the crowd, hearing him, went wild
with rage at his sons and some even threatened to
kill them. At this, the sons became frightened and
knelt down at the feet of their father and asked for
pardon. They also promised that starting from that
day they would look after their father properly and
would respect, love and honor him. Then, they took
their father to their houses; they also warned their
wives to look after their father well or else they
would be beaten to death. Each of the sons gave
the father a length of cloth and sent every day a
food-tray to the father. The bràhmin old man
became healthier than before and soon gained
some weight.
当老婆罗门念诵这些偈颂时，人群中的许多人听
到他的话，对他的儿子们大发雷霆，有些人甚至
威胁要杀了他们。 这下，儿子们吓坏了，跪在父
亲脚下求饶。 他们还承诺，从那天开始，他们会
好好照顾他们的父亲，尊重、爱护和尊重他。 然
后，他们带着父亲回家； 他们还警告妻子要照顾
好父亲，否则会被打死。 每个儿子都给了父亲一
块布，每天送一个食物盘给父亲。 婆罗门老人比
以前更健康了，体重也很快增加了一些。

6. 6
The old man realized that he
had been showered with these
benefits on account of the
Buddha. So, he went to the
Buddha and humbly requested
Him to accept two food-trays
out of the four his sons gave
him everyday. Then he
instructed his sons to send two
food-trays to the Buddha.
老人意识到他是因为佛陀的缘故而得到了
这些好处。 于是，他来到佛陀面前，谦卑
地请求他接受他儿子每天给他的四个食物
盘中的两个。 然后他指示他的儿子们将两
个食物盘送给佛陀。

7. 7
One day, the eldest son invited the
Buddha to his house for alms-food. After
the meal, the Buddha gave a discourse
on the benefits to be gained by looking
after one’s parents. Then He related to
them the story of the elephant called
Dhanapàla, who looked after his parents.
Dhanapàla when captured pined for the
parents who were left in the forest.
At the end of the discourse, the old
Bràhmin as well as his four sons and
their wives attained the First Stage of
Sainthood.
一日，长子请佛到他家供养。 饭后，佛陀开
示了照顾父母的好处。 然后他向他们讲述了
一头名叫 Dhanapàla 的大象的故事，它照顾
他的父母。 Dhanapàla 被捕时为留在森林中
的父母而思念。开示结束时，老婆罗门和他
的四个儿子和他们的妻子都获得了圣人第一
阶段。。

8. 8
It is difficult to restrain the
elephant Dhanapala in deep rut,
even though he is chained. He
doesn't even eat a bite because
he longs for the elephant forest.
Dhammapada Verse 324
Explanation on Verse 324
The elephant, Dhanapàla, deep in rut
and uncontrollable, in captivity did not eat a
morsel as he yearned for his native forest (i.e.
longing to look after his parents).
第 324 节的解释
大象 Dhanapàla 陷入了深深的车辙，无法控制，被囚禁的他一口不吃，
因为他渴望他的家乡森林（他渴望照顾他的父母）。
很难将大象 Dhanapala 限制在
深深的车辙中，即使他被锁住
了。 他甚至没有吃一口，因为
他渴望大象森林。
法经 324 句

9. 9
佛法反思
“I tell you, monks, there are two people who are not easy to repay.
Which two?
Your mother & father. Even if you were to carry your mother on one shoulder & your
father on the other shoulder for 100 years, and were to look after them …
you would not still have repaid your parents.”
(Anguttara Nikaya 2.31)
“我告诉你们，比丘们，有两个人不容易报应。 哪两个？你的爸爸妈妈。 即使你把你的母亲和
你的父亲放在另一肩上100年，并且要照顾他们……你也不会以这种方式支付或回报
你的父母。”
“Monks, these two people are hard to find in the world. Which two? The one who is first
to do a kindness, and the one who is grateful for a kindness done and feels obligated to
repay it. These two people are hard to find in the world.”
( Dullabha Sutta AN 2:118 )
“比丘，这两个人，世间难求。 哪两个？ 第一个做善事的人，以及对所做的善事心存
感激并感到有义务回报的人。 这两个人在世界上很难找到。”
“Gratitude and Filial Piety must be practiced
to be free from all remorse, guilt and mental dis-ease.”
“感恩孝道一定要修炼摆脱所有的悔恨、内疚和不安的心。”
Do not forget the important teaching: “You Reap What You Sow.”
不要忘记重要的教导：“你种下什么，收获什么。”

10. 10
* I am grateful for the life I’m living.
* I am grateful for the blessings in my life, both big and
small.
* I am grateful to my family, my teachers and kind friends.
* I am grateful to be able to learn, understand and practice
the Dhamma.
* I am grateful to be able to seek refuge in the Triple Gem.
*我很感激我现在的生活。*我很感激我生命中的祝福，无
论大小。* 我感谢我的家人、老师和友善的朋友。
* 我很感激能够学习、理解和修行佛法。
* 我很庆幸能够皈依三宝。
With Metta,
Bro. Oh Teik Bin
The End 结束