Read, reflect, pray
Taishang Ganying Pian 21: Not sacrificing life for immediate gain
English rendering of the Japanese reader’s section 21. The 24 divisions are this site’s editorial divisions, not original chapters.
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English rendering
To kill the innocent is like exchanging weapons and killing one another. To take unjust wealth is like easing hunger with dried meat spoiled by leaking water, or quenching thirst with poisoned wine. One may be satisfied briefly, yet death follows.
Reading note from this site
The spoiled meat and poisoned wine are images for destroying what matters through short-term gain.
Chinese source passage
又枉殺人者，是易刀兵而相殺也。取非義之財者，譬如漏脯救飢，鴆酒止渴；非不暫飽，死亦及之。
Based on the classical text and this site’s independently prepared Japanese rendering. Classical source edition