Parable: Two Sons Share Their Inheritance
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Hundred Parables Sutra
Parable: Two Sons Share Their Inheritance
At one time, in the country of Malaya, there lived a Kshatriya. He fell gravely ill and knew his final hour was at hand. He ordered his two sons, “After my death, divide my wealth and possessions fairly between the two of you.”
After his death, the two sons complied with their father’s instructions and divided his wealth. But the elder brother complained that the younger brother had an unfair share of the inheritance.
A foolish old man said to him, “I will teach you how to divide evenly your father’s wealth. Break each item into two parts. For instance, cut the garments into two parts. You can also break everything else—plates, bottles, bowls, dishes, money, and so forth—into two parts, and divide them equally between the two of you.”
Others laughed at this method. This is like externalists who answer all questions with the one-sided approach of theories that split things into categories There are four ways to answer questions:
1)Giving an absolute answer. For instance, “All beings are subject to death.”
2)Answering by splitting things into categories. For instance, if asked whether those who die will be born again, the answer is split into categories, such as: “those who have ended love and desire will not be reborn; those who have love and desire will be reborn.”
3)Answering by turning the question around. For instance, if someone asks, “Are human beings the most supreme?” You should turn the question around and ask, “Are you referring to the three evil paths or the realm of the gods? If you are referring to the three evil paths, then I would say that human beings are supreme. If you are referring to the realm of the gods, then I would say that human beings are not up to them.”
4) Not answering the question. For instance, if someone asks one of the fourteen types of tricky questions, *such as whether the world has a limit of not, or whether human beings have a beginning and end or not.
Externalists are deluded but are convinced they are wise. They break down the four ways of answering questions by only using the approach of splitting things up into categories. This is just like the stupid man who advised the two brothers to divide their fortune by breaking everything into two.
* The fourteen tricky questions of the externalists to which the Buddha gave no answer.