佛言 夫為道者 譬如持草炬 逆風而行 必有燒手之患 自知有火 應防身心 勿令生害 道人處世 亦復如是
fó yán fū wèi dào zhě pì rú chí cǎo jù nì fēng ér xíng bì yǒu shāo shǒu zhī huàn zì zhī yǒu huǒ yīng fáng shēn xīn wù lìng shēng hài dào rén chǔ shì yì fù rú shì
Key Message
Knowing the dangers of the world, one must protect body and mind through the precepts. Foreknowledge and preparation are wisdom.
▸The Way-practitioner is like someone carrying a grass torch against the wind — the hand will certainly be burned.
The Way-practitioner is like someone carrying a grass torch against the wind — the hand will certainly be burned. Knowing that fire exists, one must protect body and mind and not allow harm to arise. The practitioner living in the world is just the same. Unlike the similar analogy of section twenty-nine, this section explicitly states that knowing the danger, one must protect body and mind — pointing to the precepts (戒律) as the fundamental shield.