愚者が賢者になるということ
Transformation of a fool into a wise person
2025-10-19
Even if a person (a sentient being) becomes aware of the true nature of suffering, if he does not wish to bring to an end the root cause of that suffering, then it would be impossible for him to attain enlightenment (=liberation).
On the other hand, a wise person desires to extinguish this fundamental suffering, seeks the Path, hears the rightly taught Dharma, believes in it, performs virtuous deeds, gradually accumulates merit, gives rise to causal conditions, and finally attains enlightenment.
In this sense, it is said that the Buddha’s Path is the path of the wise.
Then, does this mean that a foolish person can never, for all eternity, attain enlightenment?
And further, does it mean that a foolish person can never become a wise person?
Concerning these matters, the following principle of the Dharma can be found in the original Buddhist scriptures preached by Shakyamuni Buddha:
3 Those who regard what is not true as true, and what is true as not true, are bound by false thoughts and never reach the truth (The Words of Inspiration — Udānavarga, Chapter 29: In Pairs, translated by Hajime Nakamura, Iwanami-Bunko).
136 However, a foolish person, having committed evil deeds, remains unaware of them. The shallow-minded fool is tormented by his own actions — like a man scorched by fire. (The Words of Truth — Dhammapada, Chapter 10: Violence, translated by Hajime Nakamura, Iwanami-Bunko)
66 The shallow-minded fools behave toward themselves as if they were their own enemies. They commit evil deeds and reap bitter fruits. (The Words of Truth — Dhammapada, Chapter 5: The Foolish, translated by Hajime Nakamura, Iwanami-Bunko)
63 If a fool recognizes himself as a fool, he is thereby a wise person. But one who is a fool and yet thinks himself wise — he alone is called a “fool.”
64 Even if a foolish person serves a wise one all his life, he never comes to know the Truth — just as a spoon cannot know the taste of soup.
65 But an intelligent person, even if he serves a wise one for only a moment, immediately understands the Truth — just as the tongue instantly knows the taste of soup. (The Words of Truth — Dhammapada, Chapter 5: The Foolish, translated by Hajime Nakamura, Iwanami-Bunko)
276 You (yourselves) must make the effort. The Tathāgatas (＝those who have completed their practice) (only) show the way. Those who discipline their minds and walk upon this path will be freed from the bonds of Māra. (The Words of Truth — Dhammapada, Chapter 20: The Path, translated by Hajime Nakamura, Iwanami-Bunko)
In short, even a fool, if he puts into practice the truth he has heard and understood, thereby accumulating merit, will gradually give rise to true insight and come to walk upon the right path. At that point, he can no longer be called a fool but has already entered the ranks of the wise.
At the foundation of such a person lies a fundamental trust in others.
This is because, in general, it is impossible for people (sentient beings) to recollect or conceive of the Dharma entirely by their own power; even the wise have come to know the truth through information received from others.
In other words, it is precisely because of faith in good and virtuous people that even a fool can become a wise person.
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