English Original
Long ago, in an age when people lived for thousands of years, the Enlightenment Being was born as Prince Makhadeva. He lived 84,000 years as a child and crown prince, and had been a young king for another 84,000 years.
One day, the king instructed his royal barber: "If you see any gray hair on my head, tell me at once." The barber agreed.
Years later, while cutting the king's hair, the barber spotted a single gray strand. "My lord, I see one gray hair," he said. The king ordered, "Then pull it out and place it in my hand." Using golden tweezers, the barber plucked the hair and handed it to the king.
Holding the hair, the king was seized by a profound fear of death. He felt as if trapped in a burning house, sweat rolling down his back as he shuddered. He reflected, "Oh foolish king, you have wasted this long life. You have done nothing to conquer greed, hatred, or ignorance."
Burning with this realization, he decided, "It is time to renounce the throne, be ordained as a monk, and practice meditation!" He rewarded the barber with the annual income of an entire town.
The king then summoned his eldest son. "My son, I have seen a gray hair. I have grown old after enjoying worldly pleasures. I wish to be reborn in a heavenly realm. Therefore, I will become a monk. You must now rule the kingdom."
When his ministers asked why he wished to be ordained, the king held up the gray hair. "This hair is a messenger from death," he declared. "It signals the end of life's stages. Gray hairs are like angels sent by the god of death. Today is the day for my ordination."
Amidst the people's tears, King Makhadeva relinquished his royal life, entered the forest, and was ordained. There, he diligently practiced the 'Four Heavenly States of Mind': loving-kindness for all; compassion for the suffering; sympathetic joy for the joyful; and equanimity in the face of difficulty.
After 84,000 years of humble meditation in the forest, the Bodhisatta passed away and was reborn in a high heaven, to live a life a million years long.
The moral is: Even the longest life is too short to waste.
中文翻译
很久以前，在一个人们能活数千年的时代，觉悟者转生为玛卡德瓦王子。他作为孩童和储君生活了84,000年，后又作为年轻国王统治了84,000年。
一天，国王吩咐他的御用理发师：“如果你在我头上看到任何白头发，必须立刻告诉我。”理发师答应了。
多年后，理发师在为国王理发时，发现了一根白发。“陛下，我看到一根白头发，”他说。国王命令道：“那就把它拔出来，放在我手里。”理发师用金镊子拔下那根头发，交给了国王。
握着这根头发，国王被对死亡的深深恐惧攫住了。他感觉自己如同困在燃烧的房屋中，汗流浃背，浑身战栗。他反省道：“愚蠢的国王啊，你虚度了如此漫长的生命。你未曾努力克服贪婪、憎恨与愚痴。”
被这番觉悟灼烧着，他下定决心：“是时候放弃王位，受戒为僧，修行禅定了！”他赏赐给理发师一整座城镇的年收入。
随后，国王召来他的长子。“我的儿子，我已见到一根白发。在享尽荣华富贵后，我老了。我渴望转生天界。因此，我将出家为僧。现在你必须承担起统治王国的责任。”
当大臣们问他为何突然要出家时，国王举起了那根白发。“这根头发是死亡的信使，”他宣告道。“它标志着人生阶段的终结。白发如同死神派来的天使。今天就是我出家的日子。”
在人民的泪水中，玛卡德瓦国王舍弃了王室生活，进入森林，受戒为僧。在那里，他精进修习‘四梵住’：对一切众生怀有慈爱；对受苦者怀有悲悯；对喜悦者怀有随喜；面对困难时保持平静与舍心。
在森林中谦卑地禅修了84,000年后，这位菩萨逝世，转生于高等天界，获得长达百万年的寿命。
寓意是： 即便最长的生命，也短暂到不容浪费。