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  1. Buddha Teaches the Elderly Mother Sutra (佛說老母經)
  1. Buddha Speaks the Old Mother Sutra (佛說老母經)
  2. Buddha Teaches the Elderly Mother Sutra (佛說老母經)

Buddha Speaks the Old Mother Sutra (佛說老母經)

About 佛說老母經

772 · about 3 min

The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Old Mother is a Buddhist scripture, with an unknown translator, included in the Taishō Tripiṭaka. This sutra originated during the Northern and Southern Dynasties period in China, reflecting the spread and localization of Buddhism at that time. Using the metaphor of an old mother, the sutra explains how sentient beings cycle through birth and death due to ignorance and afflictions. Through the Buddha's teachings on realizing impermanence, suffering, and emptiness, they ultimately transcend suffering and attain happiness. The content emphasizes the importance of practice and wisdom, urging people to abandon evil and cultivate goodness. Although not a core scripture, it holds educational value in Chinese Buddhism, often cited to illustrate the impermanence of life and the path to liberation, helping believers understand the foundational teachings of the Dharma.


佛說老母經
僧祐錄云闕譯人名今附宋錄
聞如是:
一時佛在維耶羅國,所止處名曰樂音。時與八百比丘僧、菩薩萬人俱。
時有貧窮老母,來到佛所,以頭面著地,為佛作禮,白佛言:「願欲有所問。」
佛言:「善哉!善哉!當問。」
老母言:「人——生、老、病、死從何所來,去至何所?色、痛痒、思想、行、識從何所來,去至何所?眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、心從何所來,去至何所?地、水、火、風、空從何所來,去至何所?」
佛言:「人——生、老、病、死無所從來,去亦無所至;色、痛、想、行、識無所從來,去亦無所至;眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、心無所從來,去亦無所至;地、水、火、風、空無所從來,去亦無所至。」
佛言:「諸法亦如是。譬如兩木相鑽出火,火還燒木,木盡火便滅。」
佛問老母言:「是火本從何所來,滅去至何所?」
老母報佛言:「因緣合會便得火,因緣離散火即滅。」
佛言:「諸法亦如是,因緣合會乃成,因緣離散即滅。諸法亦無所從來,去亦無所至。眼見好色即是意,意即是色。是二者俱空,無所有成,滅亦如是。諸法譬如鼓,不用一事成。有人持桴捶鼓,鼓便有聲。是鼓聲亦空,當來聲亦空,過去聲亦空。是聲亦不從木、革、桴、人手出,合會諸物乃成鼓聲,聲從空盡空。諸所有萬物一切亦如是。我人壽命亦如是。本際皆淨,無所有從,無所有因作法,法亦無所有。譬如雲起陰冥便雨。雨亦不從龍身出,亦不從龍心出,皆龍因緣所作乃致是雨。諸法無所從來,去亦無所至。譬如畫師先治板素,却後調和眾彩,便在所作。是畫亦不從板素彩出,隨其意,所為悉成。生死亦如是,各各異類,地獄、禽獸、餓鬼、天上、世間亦爾。有解是慧者不著,著便有。」
老母聞佛言,大歡喜,即自說言:「蒙天中天恩得法眼。雖身老羸,今得安隱。」
阿難正衣服,前長跪,白佛言:「是老母聞佛言即解,何因緣智慧乃爾?」
佛言:「大德巍巍,以是故而即解。是老母者,是我前世發菩薩意時母。」
阿難白佛言:「佛前世時母,何因困苦、貧窮如是?」
佛言:「乃昔拘樓秦佛時我為菩薩道,意欲作沙門。母以恩愛故,不聽我作沙門。我憂愁,不食一日。以是故前、後來生世間,五百世遭厄如是。」
佛語阿難:「是老母壽終,當生阿彌陀佛國中供養諸佛。却後六十八億劫當得作佛,字扶波健,其國名化作。所有被服、飲食如忉利天上。其國中人民皆壽一劫。」
佛說經已,老母及阿難等菩薩、比丘僧,諸天、龍、鬼神、阿須倫,皆大歡喜,前以頭面著地,為佛作禮而去。
佛說老母經

CBETA Code: T0561

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AI translation for reference only — not authoritative, not a statement of final truth. Awakening of the Dharma requires personal practice.