有一天，詩人白居易去拜訪鳥窠道林禪師，見禪師端坐在鵲巢邊，於是說：「禪師住在樹上，太危險了！」禪師 答：「太守！你的處境才非常危險！」白居易聽了不以為然：「下官是當朝重要官員，有什麼危險呢？」禪師：「薪火相交，縱性不停，怎能說不危險呢？」意思是說官場浮沉，勾心鬥角，危險就在眼前。
白居易似有所悟，轉個話題又問：「如何是佛法大意？」禪師答：「諸惡莫作，眾善奉行。」白居易以為禪師會開示深奧的道理，原來竟是如此平常的話，失望地說：「這是三歲小孩也知道的道理呀！」禪師：「三歲孩兒雖道得，八十老翁行不得。」
「諸惡莫作，眾善奉行」，看似稀鬆平常，可是又有幾人能做得到呢？如果人人能消極地不為惡，並且積極地去行善，人間哪裡還有邪惡？社會哪裡不充滿愛心和樂呢？

Bai Juyi paid a visit to Chan Master Niaoke Daolin, and found him sitting in a tree by magpie’s nest. He said, “Chan Master, what a dangerous place to build a house!” The master replied, “Magistrate, it is you who have built in a dangerous place.” Bai Juyi objected, “How can a high imperial court official be in danger?” The master replied, “The fire is jumping from one log to another, people scheme endlessly to topple their betters.”
Hastily changing the subject, Bai Juyi asked, “What is the essential teaching of Dharma?” “Do no evil. Do only good.” “What? Every child knows this!” “That is true,” said the master, “but tell me how many grown-ups know it!”
“Do no evil. Do only good.” This is not as commonplace as it seems. In practice, it is far from routine. Yet, if we would all abstain from doing evil, wouldn’t that put an end to evil in the human realm? Would not society, then, be filled with joy?

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