佛言 睹人施道 助之歡喜 得福甚大 沙門問曰 此福盡乎 佛言 譬如一炬之火 數千百人 各以炬來分取 熟食除冥 此炬如故 福亦如之
fó yán dǔ rén shī dào zhù zhī huān xǐ dé fú shèn dà shā mén wèn yuē cǐ fú jìn hū fó yán pì rú yī jù zhī huǒ shù qiān bǎi rén gè yǐ jù lái fēn qǔ shú shí chú míng cǐ jù rú gù fú yì rú zhī
Key Message
The merit of rejoicing in another's good deeds is like a torch: shared among thousands, it does not diminish but spreads endlessly.
▸Section ten contains one of the most beautiful analogies in the Sutra of Forty-Two Sections.
Section ten contains one of the most beautiful analogies in the Sutra of Forty-Two Sections. When one sees others giving the Dharma and rejoices with them, one gains great merit. A monk asks: will this merit eventually be exhausted? The Buddha answers: it is like a single torch from which hundreds and thousands of people each light their own torches, cook their food, and dispel darkness — yet the original torch is unchanged. So too with merit. This analogy reveals the inexhaustibility of merit: it does not diminish when shared, and rejoicing does not wear it out.