It is empty and unreal, and thus they cannot be traced precisely. You can search but you cannot find their root. They arise falsely and just as falsely cease to be. You may be determined to find their source, but it doesn't exist. They are like a person's shadow. It's only a shadow, and you won't succeed in finding its source. You may say that its source is the body, but the appearance of the shadow is not the body itself. The shadow is merely an illusion.  

Sutra:
You should warn cultivators that they must get rid of these three delusions if they want to cultivate Bodhi. If they do not put an end to these three delusions, then even the spiritual penetrations they may attain are merely a worldly, conditioned function. If they do not extinguish these habits, they will fall into the path of demons.  

Commentary:
Shakyamuni Buddha calls to Ananda, "You should warn cultivators that they must get rid of these three delusions if they want to cultivate Bodhi." The "three delusions" here are the three karmas of killing, stealing, and lust. They are called "delusions" here because the karma arises from delusion. If one were not confused and deluded, the karma would not be created. If they do not put an end to these three delusions—that is, if there is even the tiniest bit of any of these three delusions in your makeup— a hair's breadth of killing, stealing, or lust that you don't get rid of—then even the spiritual penetrations they may attain are merely a worldly, conditioned function.

Perhaps they may get a bit of spiritual power or a small amount of wisdom, but even that cannot be considered to be unconditioned spiritual power. It resides in form and appearance and depends upon an intent in order to function. It is spiritual power that is attached to appearances. If they do not extinguish these habits, they will fall into the path of demons. If the habits of killing, stealing, and lust are not brought to a stop, you will sink into the demonic paths in the future.
Now you see why I say that such-and-such a cultivator is a demon king. He does not observe precepts regarding killing, stealing, or lust. If one is like that, how can one obtain genuine wisdom? It's impossible.  

Sutra:
Although they wish to cast out the false, they become doubly decep­- tive instead. The Thus Come One says that such beings are pitiful. You have created this falseness yourself; it is not the fault of Bodhi. An explanation such as this is proper speech. Any other explanation is the speech of demon kings.  

Commentary:
Although they wish to cast out the false, they become doubly deceptive instead. They add falseness to falseness, by speaking incorrectly. But afterwards they say that they didn't lie, and that's another lie. If you tell a lie, there's no use in arguing. Admit it and then it's just one lie. But someone who denies the lie he told ends up by telling two. In this way he increases his offenses. The Thus Come One says that such beings are pitiful. People who never do things properly are really pathetic. You have created this falseness yourself; it is not the fault of Bodhi. All this false delusion and karma is something that you brought into being. There's no fault on the part of Bodhi. Therefore, you can't say, "If we were all Buddhas, how come we gave rise to falseness?" You make a mistake if you talk like that.

An explanation such as this is proper speech. If you talk in this way, you are in accord with the Buddhadharma. Any other explanation is the speech of demon kings. If the explanation is not along these lines, you can know it's a demon king talking. You should make the distinction clearly. The dharma spoken by demon kings is based on falseness. For instance, he knows about a particular situation but says he doesn't know. That's lying. Cultivators should know that the straight mind is the Bodhimanda. Be straightforward in all situations. Don't be deceptive.

To be continued