如果人死如灯灭的话，那么人在世间几十年，死后都是一把骨灰。对这把骨灰来说，流芳千古还是遗臭万年，不过是个概念而已，对自身有什么区别？当然从社会来说，确实有短暂的意义。那些流芳千古的人都曾造福一方，而遗臭万年的人则给众生带来伤害，但所有这些，结果都是灰飞烟灭。

If death were truly like a lamp going out, then a few decades of life would leave nothing more than a handful of ashes. For those ashes, whether one’s name is praised for ages or condemned for eternity is only an idea—what difference could it make to oneself? From the standpoint of society, there may be some brief meaning: those remembered with honor once brought benefit to others, while those remembered with shame caused harm to sentient beings. Yet in the end, all alike turn to dust and vanish without a trace.