Parable of the Burning House.
Project Gutenberg EPUB edition
Soothill, William Edward and Kumārajīva
He preaches the Truth with tact (saying):
‘The cause of all suffering
Is rooted in desire.’
If desire be extinguished,
Suffering has no foothold.
To annihilate suffering
Is called the Third Truth.
For the sake of the Truth of Extinction,
To cultivate oneself in the Way,
Forsaking all ties to suffering,
This is called Emancipation.
From what then have these people
Attained Emancipation?
Merely to depart from the false
They call Emancipation;
But in truth that is not yet
Complete Emancipation.
So Buddha declares: These people
Have not reached real extinction;
Because these people have not yet
Gained the Supreme Way,
I am unwilling to declare
That they have attained extinction.
I am the King of the Law,
Absolute in regard to the Law,
For comforting all creatures
I appear in the world.
Śariputra! This,
My final Seal of the Law,
Because of my desire to benefit
All the world, is now announced;
Wherever you may wander,
Do not carelessly proclaim it.
If there be hearers who joyfully
Receive it with deep obeisance.
You may know those people
Are Avinivartaniyah.
If there be any who receive
This Sutra-Law in faith,
These people must already