---
title: "太虛大師全書．第二編　五乘共學 · 三世因果"
description: "太虚大师著《太虛大師全書·第二編 五乘共學》成书于民国时期，是近代佛教革新运动的重要文献。作者太虚为民国高僧，倡导人间佛教。本编以五乘（人、天、声闻、缘觉、菩萨）佛法为框架，系统阐述佛教基本教义，强调人乘正法为出世之基，融通世间与出世间法。该书为现代佛教教育及人间佛教实践提供核心理论依据，在近代佛教复兴中具有承前启后的重要地位，是研究中国佛教现代化转型的必读经典。"
url: "https://rushiwowen.co/en/r/cmpjj917800f1t1thhbtdkyml"
---

### 三世因果

> Three Lifetimes of Cause and Effect

——十二年正月在宜昌商會講——

> Given in the Yichang Chamber of Commerce, First Month of the 12th Year

佛出世的因緣，是為的甚麼？因為佛是覺的，人是迷的。人既是迷的，所以人就要受一切煩惱生死的苦。佛本大慈悲心，乘大願力降生於中印度為國王太子，享受人間尊榮富貴五欲的快樂，隨即拋棄人間富貴尊榮去修行，以至於證果成佛。佛在當時現身，因為要覺悟人的迷，所以現身作個模範，使人曉得了卻一切煩惱生死的苦。既是要覺悟人了卻一切煩惱生死的苦，所以隨順人的語言文字，依人類種種差別病而說種種方便救人的法。這佛說覺悟迷妄的法，就名佛法。依佛法推究，人不能夠了卻一切煩惱生死的苦，是由於不明白佛說三世因果的緣故；今天略將世人謬解因果的與佛所說的因果，兩相比較說明之。

> Why did the Buddha appear in this world? Because the Buddha is awakened, while ordinary people are lost in delusion. As long as people remain deluded, they inevitably experience all the suffering of afflictions and the cycle of birth and death. Out of great compassion, the Buddha came to this world with immense vows, born as a crown prince in ancient India, enjoying all the worldly pleasures of honor, wealth, and sensory delights. Yet he immediately renounced them all, embarking on the path of spiritual practice until he attained full enlightenment. The Buddha appeared in this world to awaken those lost in confusion. He set a perfect example, showing people how to end all suffering caused by afflictions and the cycle of rebirth. In order to guide people in this liberation, he adapted to their languages and cultures, using a variety of methods suited to their individual problems, like a skilled doctor prescribing remedies for different illnesses. These teachings, spoken by the Buddha to awaken us from delusion, are called the Dharma. According to the Dharma, the reason why people cannot escape all suffering is their failure to understand the Buddha's teachings on cause and effect across the three periods of time. Today, I will briefly compare the mistaken views of cause and effect held by ordinary people with the correct understanding taught by the Buddha, clarifying the difference.

世人因為是迷的，所以對於佛說的因果就茫昧不知：或者說沒有因果；或者憑著意識的理想去推測，謂大地山河是自然變化而有的，謂人是由祖傳父父傳子而來的；又或謂大地山河及人是有創造者的，所以人同萬物都是另有個主宰的。由上種種謬解妄見，發出種種言論，世人被這種種言論所惑，就有不信因果的：謂人在父母未生以前沒有甚麼，至於百年生死以後也沒有甚麼，這種斷見一生，就要任意妄為，不怕因果報應。也有迷信神教的：謂人作了善，神就默佑，使得享受愛的果；人作了惡，神就譴責，使得享受非愛的果。統觀以上種種說法，不是屬於無因果派，就是屬於謬解因果派，這兩派皆足以使人生一種僥倖心，以為作了惡可以倖免的。那曉得昧於佛說的因果，就要墮落因果報應，不能夠免卻生死的苦。若明白佛說三世因果的道理，曉得人生不是突然而生的，死也不是就可以了的。因為人身是地水火風四大假和合而成，人到死的時候，四大假和合身雖死，而業識實在沒有死。明白這個業識的道理，那佛說三世因果的道理，也就容易明白了。何以故？因為人生已前，有生不止前一世乃至於無始，死後也不是可以了的，乃至於盡未來際也沒有止息的時候。這無始終、無內外的業識，就是從無始以來自家所作善惡業力，積集而成業識。善的業強於惡的業，則善業先成熟而感受善果；惡業強於善業，則惡業先成熟而感受惡果。因為有善惡種種大小多少差別，所以就感受貧富、貴賤、賢愚種種的差別，所以古德云：『欲知前世因，今生受者是，欲知來世果，今生作者是』。平常人迷於佛說的三世因果，看見罪大惡極的人，偏偏的是富貴雙全兒孫滿堂；看見為善不倦的人，偏偏的是無兒無女，受那貧賤的苦：報應相左，遂謂沒有因果，這是由於不明白業識受生的緣故。這業識受生有因緣：業識為因，父母為緣，合緣與因而成人身。今假定有人作種種善業，這業因屬於善，當然要結善果；然必要假父母兩業緣，又須此父母有應得這個造善因受善果的兒子報應，然後纔能夠藉此父母兩業緣而受生。具這三種業的因緣，就謂之同業所感。業識猶如穀種，父母兩業緣猶如土水日光人工等，因緣具足而後可以發芽結穀。善惡果報，由善惡業因而成，猶如種豆得豆、種瓜得瓜，這種因果是毫釐不爽的。世人不明白佛說因果的道理，猶如不明白長江源流的人。今假定長江向東而流，中間被山所阻，折而由北向南，南岸是平原，平原上的人就說長江源頭從山而起，至平原而止。像這種斷見，人是知道錯的。而不明白業識相續不斷與業識受生的理，那因果的理就不能夠明白，也與平原之人觀察長江的錯謬一樣。

> Ordinary people, being confused and deluded, are ignorant of the cause-and-effect taught by the Buddha. Some deny cause and effect entirely; others speculate based on their own imagination, claiming that mountains, rivers, and the great earth arose through natural transformation, or that humans are merely the product of procreation from ancestors to descendants. Still others assert that the great earth, mountains, rivers, and humans have a creator, and thus both humans and all things are governed by a separate, supreme being. From these various erroneous views and misconceptions, countless theories arise. Ordinary people, deceived by these theories, fall into one of two camps: Some deny cause and effect altogether. They believe that before birth, there is nothing, and after death, there is nothing either. Adopting this nihilistic view, they act recklessly without fear of karmic retribution. Others are superstitious believers in a divine power. They think that when people do good, God protects them and grants them pleasant rewards; when they do evil, God punishes them and inflicts unpleasant consequences. Looking at these two kinds of views, we see that one belongs to the school that denies cause and effect, and the other belongs to the school that misunderstands it. Both foster a sense of complacency, leading people to believe that they can escape the consequences of their evil deeds without worry. Little do they realize that ignoring the Buddha's teaching on cause and effect means they will inevitably fall into the cycle of karma and retribution, and cannot escape the suffering of birth and death. When one understands the Buddha's teaching on cause and effect across the three times (past, present, and future), one realizes that life does not suddenly arise, nor does death simply end everything. The human body is a temporary combination of the four elements—earth, water, fire, and wind. At the time of death, though this composite body perishes, the karmic consciousness does not die. If one understands this principle of karmic consciousness, the Buddha's teaching on cause and effect across the three times becomes easy to grasp. Why is this? Because before birth, there is not just one previous life but an infinite beginningless past; after death, it is not the end, extending into a boundless future without cessation. This beginningless and endless, inner-and-outer-free karmic consciousness is the accumulation of our own good and evil actions from time immemorial, forming the karmic consciousness. If good karma is stronger than evil, the good ripens first, bringing a pleasant result. If evil is stronger, the evil ripens first, bringing an unpleasant result. Since there are countless distinctions of good and evil—large and small, many and few—so arise the differences in wealth, poverty, nobility, baseness, wisdom, and foolishness in life. Therefore, an ancient master said: \*"If you want to know the causes of the past, look at the results you experience now. If you want to know the results of the future, look at the actions you take now."\* Ordinary people, confused about the Buddha's teaching on cause and effect across three times, see a terribly evil person enjoying wealth, honor, children, and grandchildren; they see a tirelessly virtuous person suffering poverty and being childless. Seeing such apparent contradictions in retribution, they conclude there is no cause and effect. This is due to their failure to understand how karmic consciousness takes rebirth. Karmic consciousness takes rebirth through specific conditions: the karmic consciousness itself is the direct cause, and the parents provide the supporting conditions. Together, the cause and conditions form a human life. Suppose someone does many good deeds. This good cause will certainly produce a good result. But to be born, they need the karmic conditions of parents—specifically, parents who, by their own karma, deserve a child who will benefit from these good causes and enjoy good results. Only then can they be born through the combination of these two karmic conditions. The convergence of these three karmic factors is called the "confluence of shared karma." The karmic consciousness is like a seed; the parents' two karmic conditions are like soil, water, sunlight, and cultivation. When all causes and conditions are present, the seed can germinate and bear fruit. Good and evil outcomes arise from good and evil causes, just as planting beans yields beans and planting melons yields melons. This cause and effect is utterly precise, without the slightest error. Those who do not understand the Buddha's teaching on cause and effect are like people who do not understand the source of a long river. Imagine the Yangtze River flowing eastward, but when it meets a mountain, it turns north and then south. People on the southern plain might assume the river originates at the mountain and ends at the plain. This is obviously a mistaken, nihilistic view. But when people fail to grasp the principle that karmic consciousness continues without interruption and takes rebirth through conditions, they cannot understand the law of cause and effect. Their error is just the same as the people on the plain misjudging the river's source.

我們若能夠真實明白三世因果，試問有人欲受惡果報應否？所以種善因得善果，種淨因得淨果，乃至成佛，都是由於自己一念。依佛所說而行，世間惡人尚敢為惡否？故佛教昌行的時候，人人都是明白三世因果的道理，人人都是向善而行，小之可以成為自修之正人君子，大之自覺覺他化社會為良善，化世界為太平，轉五濁而為七寶，皆由於此。古德云：『諸惡莫作，眾善奉行，自淨其意，是諸佛教』。能夠止息諸惡，奉行眾善，就能夠自淨其意，這就是諸佛所說的教法。以上，不過將世人與佛說因果略為比較而已。

> If we could truly understand the law of cause and effect across the three times, would anyone still want to suffer the consequences of bad deeds? Thus, planting good causes yields good results, planting pure causes yields pure results, and even attaining Buddhahood all comes down to a single thought of our own mind. If people followed the Buddha’s teachings, would any wicked person in the world still dare to do evil? Therefore, when Buddhism flourishes, everyone clearly understands the principle of cause and effect across the three times, and everyone strives to do good. On a personal level, this allows one to become a self-cultivating person of integrity; on a broader level, it inspires one to awaken oneself and others, transforming society into a virtuous one, turning the world into a place of peace, and converting the Five Turbidities into the Seven Jewels—all of this is due to this understanding. An ancient virtuous master said: "Do no evil, practice all good, purify your own mind—this is the teaching of all Buddhas." Being able to stop all evil and practice all good allows one to purify one’s own mind—this is the teaching taught by all Buddhas. The above is merely a brief comparison of worldly views on causality with the Buddha’s teaching.

（陳妄清記）見海刊四卷三期

（附註）原題「太虛法師在宜昌商會之演講」，今改題。