One Who Sinks and Comes Up Again

"Oh good man! I say: 'The icchantika is someone who eternally sinks, but there are icchantikas who do not fall into the class of those who eternally sink '. Who are these? This is like in the case where, for the sake of 'is', one practices giving, sila [precepts of morality], and the good. This is one who is not eternally sunk.

Oh good man! There are four instances where good things call forth evil results. What are the four? They are: 1) reading and reciting the sutras in order to come above the others, 2) upholding the prohibitions and precepts for the sake of profit, 3) giving because (that) belongs to others, 4) instigate own mind and meditating towards achieving the mental state of thoughtlessness-non-thoughtlessness. These four (things) evoke evil results. This is why we speak of one who practices and amasses such (things), that it sinks and comes up again. Why do we say it sinks? Because he enjoys the three existences [i.e,, kamadhatu, rupadhatu, and arupadhatu - who are the worlds of desire, form, and non-form (spirit)]. Why do we say that it comes up? Because he sees the light. The light corresponds to his hearing [Dharma], upholding the silas, giving, and sitting in meditation.

Why do we say that a person sinks? Because it grows in evil views and acquires arrogance.

Hence, I say in the sutra:

'If beings seek all existences (of the three worlds)
and commit good and evil deeds for existence,
such persons will lose the way to Nirvana.
This is why we say that
the person temporarily comes up but sinks again.

It sails on the dark ocean of birth and death,
it may gain Emancipation
and do away with defilement.
But the person suffers again from evil returns.
This is temporarily coming up
only to sink again.’

Oh good man! This is like in the case of big fish that comes up on the water for a time, when it sees the light, but, as its body is heavy, sinks again. This is how things proceed with the second person mentioned above."

Read More on the Nirvana Sutra, Chapter 41 - On Bodhisattva Kasyapa 2.

one who sinks and comes up again.mp3