Commentary on the Parent and Child Sutra (138)

The Perils of Delighting in Subtle Fragrances

Original Text:

The Buddha said: "Great King, it is so, it is indeed so. When foolish, ordinary beings first perceive a subtle fragrance, they immediately develop delight and affection. Their minds become tainted and attached, thus creating such karmas: physical actions (three kinds), verbal actions (four kinds), and mental actions (three kinds). Once these karmas are created, they immediately cease. After the karmas cease, they do not abide in the four directions, the four intermediate directions, above, below, or in between—they vanish without a trace. Yet, when the final consciousness ceases at the time of death, one’s own karmas manifest vividly before them. It is like awakening from a dream and recalling the events of the dream."

Explanation:

The Buddha said: "Great King, it is indeed so. When foolish, ordinary beings first smell a subtle fragrance, they immediately develop delight and affection. Their minds become tainted by the fragrance and cling to it, thereby creating karmas of greed, hatred, and delusion. After the unwholesome karmas are created, they vanish in an instant. Once vanished, these karmic actions do not abide in the east, south, west, north, the four intermediate directions, above, below, or in between—they disappear entirely. However, when the life force ceases at the moment of death, all the karmic retributions created in this lifetime manifest fully before them. It is just like awakening from a dream and still recollecting the events of the dream."

Upon smelling a fragrance, one may feel immense joy and ease, giving rise to a mind of delight and affection. The mind then becomes tainted and bound. If the mind does not crave the fragrance, it will not feel joy—it will merely remain indifferent. Once the mind gives rise to delight and affection, it becomes tainted, stuck, and bound. It loses its freedom and autonomy, imprisoned by the phenomena of the six realms. Thus, one cycles through birth and death, unable to attain liberation. A tainted mind, an attached mind, and a mind of delight and affection are like ropes that firmly bind the body of the five aggregates within the great prison of the three realms.