The Parable of the Physician.
Project Gutenberg EPUB edition
Soothill, William Edward and Kumārajīva
“Suppose, for instance, a good physician, who is wise and perspicacious, conversant with the medical art, and skilful in healing all sorts of diseases. He has many sons, say ten, twenty, even up to a hundred. Because of some matter he goes abroad to a distant country. After his departure his sons drink his poisonous medicines, which send them into a delirium and they lie rolling on the ground. At this moment their father comes back to his home. Of the sons who drank the poison, some have lost their senses, others are still sensible and, on seeing their father approaching in the distance, they are greatly delighted, and kneeling greet him:
‘“How good it is that you are returned in safety! We, in our foolishness, have mistakenly dosed ourselves with poison. We beg that you will heal us and give us back our lives.’
“The father, seeing his sons in such distress, in accordance with his prescriptions, seeks for good herbs, perfect in colour, scent and fine flavour, and then pounds, sifts, and mixes them and gives them to his sons to take, saying thus:
“‘This excellent medicine with colour, scent and fine flavour all perfect, do you take, and it will at once rid you of your distress so that you will have no more suffering.’
“Those amongst the sons who are sensible, seeing this excellent medicine with colour and scent both good, take it immediately and are wholly delivered from their illness. The others who have lost their senses, seeing their father come, though they are also delighted, salute him and ask him to heal their illness, yet when he offers them the medicine, they are unwilling to take it. Wherefore? Because the poison has entered deeply, they have lost their senses, and even in regard to this medicine of excellent colour and scent they say that it is not good. The father reflects thus:
“‘Alas! for these sons, afflicted by this poison, and their minds all unbalanced! Though they are glad to see me and implore for healing, yet they are unwilling to take such excellent medicine as this. Now I must arrange an expedient plan so that they will take this medicine.’
“Then he says to them: ‘Know, all of you, that I am now worn out with old age and that the time of my death has arrived. This excellent medicine I now leave here. You may take it and have no fear of not being better.’ After thus admonishing them, he departs again for another country and sends a messenger back to inform them: ‘Your father is dead.’ And now, when these sons hear that their father is dead, their minds are greatly distressed and they thus reflect: ‘If our father were alive, he would have pity on us, and we should be saved and preserved. But now he has left us and died in a distant country.’
“Deeming themselves orphans with no one to rely on, continuous grief brings them to their senses; they recognize the colour, scent and excellent flavour of the medicine, and thereupon take it, when their poisoning is entirely relieved. Their father, hearing that the sons are recovered, seeks an opportunity and returns, showing himself to them all.
“‘Good sons! What is your opinion? Are there any who could say that this good physician has committed the sin of falsehood?’”
The verse portion is much briefer than the prose, and contains only a part of the teaching. The following is a selection from it.
“In order to save all creatures,
I expediently speak of Nirvana,
Yet truly I am not extinct,
But ever here preaching the Law.
I ever remain in this world,
In supernatural power,
So that all perverted creatures
Fail to see me, though near,
Looking on me as extinct,
Everywhere worshipping my relics,
Cherishing desire for goodness
And thirsting with aspiration.
When all creatures have submitted,
Are upright, and gentle in mind,
Whole-heartedly looking for Buddha,
Not caring for their own lives,
Then I with all the Samgha
On the Spirit Vulture-Peak appear,
And then I tell all creatures
That I exist here forever undying,
By means of expedients revealing
Myself as dead, yet not dead.
If in other regions there are beings,
Reverent and joying in faith,
Again I am in their midst
To preach the Supreme Law.
You, not hearing of this,
Only say I am extinct.
I, beholding all living creatures
Sunk in the sea of suffering,