两则动物报恩的传奇故事
爱护物命，从点滴做起
To protect animals, start small
“圣雄”甘地说：“从对待动物的态度上，可以判断这个民族是否伟大、道德是否高尚。”
Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way in which its animals are treated.”
不管对什么样的众生，包括动物在内，我们都应该有一颗慈悲心。
We should always maintain a kind heart toward all sentient beings, including animals.
在生命的平等线上，动物和人类共同拥有生存的权利。
From the perspective that all lives are equal, animals and humans have the same right to live.
我们没有任何可靠的依据，证明自己有资格掠夺它们的生命，吃其血肉，穿其毛皮。
We humans do not have any good reason to claim that we are entitled to plunder animals’ lives, feast on their flesh and blood and wear their fur or skins.
有人认为，杀动物跟杀人是不同的，
Some people maintain that killing animals is different from killing humans,
因为它们不会说话，也没有人类这么高的心智。
as animals cannot talk, nor do they possess a higher intelligence as humans do.
关于这一点，18世纪的英国哲学家边沁驳斥道：
Jeremy Bentham, the English philosopher of the 18th century, refuted this notion,
“问题不在动物是否有心智，或是有没有说话的能力，而在于它们是否有感受苦乐的能力。”
“The question is not, ‘Can they reason?’ nor ‘Can they talk?’ but ‘Can they suffer?’”
这句话讲得非常到位！
Isn’t this statement straight to the point!
人与动物在避苦求乐方面，没有任何区别，完全一模一样。
In regard to seeking happiness and avoiding suffering, animals and humans are exactly alike; there is not a bit of difference.
一个人若能关爱动物，救护它们的生命，这种恩德也特别大，
By saving animals’ lives with a kind heart, great merit is generated.
有时候甚至能今生感果。
Sometimes the effect of that may manifest in this very life.
民国九年，曾发生过一则传奇故事：
An incredible incident took place in the 9th year of the Republic of China:
有一山居人家，在办完喜事的第六天，
A family living by the mountainside held a wedding celebration. Six days later,
全家正在祭祀祖先之际，忽然跑来一只受惊的山鹿，
as they were paying homage to ancestors, suddenly a frightened mountain deer,
因为被猎人追赶，躲到了祖先的供桌下。
apparently being chased by a hunter, dashed into their house and ran under the altar table.
新娘非常善良，赶紧把山鹿藏起来。
The bride, who had a very kind disposition, quickly hid the deer.
不一会儿，猎人追到，说鹿是他的，必须交出来。
Presently, a hunter approached the house and, claiming the deer belonged to him, demanded that the family hand it over.
新娘不忍心，就准备买下这只鹿。
The bride could not bear to do this and offered to ransom it.
猎人趁机敲诈，非要二十个银元不可。
The hunter seized the opportunity and demanded an exorbitant price of twenty silver coins.
双方讨价还价半天，最后降到了十五个银元。
After a long bargaining session, the price finally dropped to fifteen silver coins.
价钱谈定后，新娘的公公婆婆面现难色，
But the bride’s parents-in-law hesitated at this settlement,
因为这次娶媳妇就用去十五个银元，家里实在拿不出那么多钱。
as they had just spent fifteen silver coins for the wedding, and they simply could not afford this amount of money.
新娘说愿把自己的陪嫁十五个银元全部拿出来买鹿。
The bride said she had fifteen silver coins in her dowry and would offer them to rescue the deer.
家人只好同意，但觉得此举十分愚蠢。
The family reluctantly agreed, but grumbled that it was a very silly thing to do indeed.
猎人得银后离去，新娘便从桌下招出山鹿，安抚一番。
After the hunter left with the money, the bride called the deer out from under the table and comforted it gently.
鹿轻跳几下，跑回山林中去了。
The deer sprang around a little and then disappeared into the woods.
几年以后，新娘生了一个儿子，
A few years later, the bride gave birth to a baby boy.
刚满周岁那天，家人正值忙碌之际，便将婴儿放在院中椅子上。
On the occasion of the baby’s first birthday, everyone was busy and the baby was left on a chair in the front yard.
这时，山鹿又再次出现，
All of a sudden the mountain deer appeared again;
用鹿角挟起椅子及婴儿向外跑去。
this time it lifted the baby with its horns and ran away from the house with the baby.
家人见山鹿偷了孩子，便急忙追赶出来。
When the family saw the deer had snatched away their baby, they rushed out of the house and ran after the deer.
追到山外之后，忽听一声巨响，
As they were leaving the mountainside, they heard a loud crash.
回头一看，只见屋后的高山倒塌，整个村子瞬间夷为平地。
Looking back, they witnessed a huge landslide; the mountain had caved in, and the whole village was flattened underneath it.
这时，山鹿轻轻放下婴儿，跑回山中不见了。
Then the mountain deer gently put down the baby and vanished into the mountains.
家人这才醒悟到，原来是山鹿为了报答新娘救命之恩，
It dawned on the family, then and there, that the deer was returning its gratitude to the bride for having saved its life.
借着“偷孩子”引他们一家逃出。
By pretending to “steal” the baby, the deer had led them out of danger.
无独有偶，在唐山大地震中，也发生过一个类似的故事：
Coincidentally, another episode occurred during the great earthquake of Tangshan.
有个人在偶然的情况下，放过一只狐狸。
There was a man who had, on one occasion, released a captive fox and saved its life.
唐山地震前，1976年7月28日凌晨3时左右，那只狐狸突然来抓他的门。
Around 3:00 AM on July 28, 1976, only minutes before the Tangshan earthquake, this same man heard scratching sounds at his front door.
他起床来看，狐狸一下死死咬住他的鞋帮往外拖。
He got out of bed and found a fox at the door. Quickly, the fox fastened its teeth onto his shoes and dragged them outside.
他当时不解，但随狐狸来到院外平地时，
The man was puzzled and, while following the fox out into the open yard,
突然天崩地裂，大地震发生了……
the skies suddenly were falling and the earth was opening up—the great Tangshan earthquake had just happened.
震后多年，这个人一提到那只狐狸仍感恩不尽，
Years after the earthquake, this person still felt most grateful to the fox whenever he retold his story.
他常说：“地球是个大家庭，大多数的动物与人类息息相关。
He always said, “Our Earth is a big family; most of the animals and humans are intimately connected.
动物们尽管不会言语，却也有着同样的思维、灵性和良心。”
Even though animals do not talk, nevertheless, they also have thoughts, spirituality, and conscience.”
我们并不希求动物报恩，但是，善待动物是我们的一种责任。
To exercise kindness to animals is but one of our obligations as humans, and we do it without expecting repayment from them.
所以，如果有条件，我们每年都应该放一些生。
Every year, if your means allow, try to practice liberating living beings regularly.
其实，有时候放生也不需要钱。
Sometimes saving lives does not necessarily involve spending money.
比如下雨了，路上有几条蚯蚓，
For instance, on rainy days earthworms are exposed on the road,
或者天气燥热时，有些小虫马上要被晒死了，
or on dry, hot days worms are scorched to the brink of dying.
你把它们放到清凉、安全的地方，这也是一种放生。
Transporting these little creatures to a dry, cool place also constitutes an act of liberating living beings.
对有些人来讲，一个动物的生命，似乎微不足道、不值一提；但对动物自身而言，自己的生命比什么都珍贵。
Someone may regard an animal’s life to be too insignificant to bother with, but to that animal, nothing is more precious than its own life.
索达吉堪布《做，才是得到》
Khenpo Sodargye《Achieve by doing 》