万佛圣城十六年

2022-11-23 20:15

万佛圣城十六年

◎颜亚日（培德中学义务老师）

二ＯＯ九年十二月二日‧讲于万佛圣城大殿

一九九三年八月卅一日，我来到了万佛圣城。第二天早上，我便匆匆到学校去教课，那是我在圣城当义务老师的第一天。时至今日，大约有十六年。在这之前，我在马来西亚也执了十七年的教鞭。说起来，我这一生，已当了三十三年的老师。I arrived at CTTB on August 31, 1993. On the second morning, I rushed to the school to teach the classes. That was the first day I became a volunteer teacher at CTTB. Time certainly flies. It has been 16 years since then. Before I came to CTTB, I had been teaching for 17 years in Malaysia. Thus in this life, I have been a school teacher for 33 years.如果问我，当了一辈子的老师有什么感想？我的回答是，只有「感恩」，因为当老师是一个很有意义的工作。如果是年轻时，或可能感想很多，现在年纪大了，知道人生是苦，感受到四大不调，无常迅速，感想就越来越少。简单的说，我这一辈子万分地感激　上人的恩赐。释迦牟尼佛降世，佛法住世三千年，我还在此娑婆世界流连忘返。因为遇到上人，才跟着上人回到万佛圣城来。If you ask me how do I feel as a school teacher all the way through this life? My answer is that I am thankful about it because it is most meaningful to be a school teacher. If it was back then when I was still young, I may have a lot of responses. Now that I am getting older, I knew that life is suffering and have experienced the 4 elements that generate life are disintegrating, and impermanency is coming really fast, my responses are getting less and less. In simple words, I am 100% thankful to the kindness of our Venerable Master. It has been 3,000 years since Sakyamuni Buddha came to the world and I am still hanging out there in this Svaha World. It was because I met our Venerable Master that I followed him back home to the CTTB.我感恩　上人如同再生父母赐我第二个生命，让我今生又遇到了佛法，来到了万佛圣城。并体会到佛法与人生的意义。回头看看我以前的那些同学与同事，他们很多都退休了，头发都苍白了，虽然都有汽车洋房，他们似乎对人生有点茫然，不敢谈起人生走到尽头是什么，因为「死」是可怕的事。而我却找到了真正的皈依处。I am thankful to Venerable Shi Fu who is like my second parent, instills a second life in me, leading me to meet the Buddha Dharma again, and return to the CTTB. He helps me to experience the Buddha Dharma and the meaning of life. When I look back at my old friends and colleagues, they are retired. They have beautiful houses and big cars, but their hairs are turning grey. They appear to be lost about what is life. They do not want to talk about what it will be at the end of this life because death is filled with fear. On the contrary, I have found the true refuge.常言道：「知足心常乐，无求品自高。」在万佛圣城十六年，我对这句话有了深入的体会。因为万佛圣城有很多的出家众，他们就是一面镜子。他们都过著简单、与世无争的日子。无形中，我们在家人都被他们所感染。如果在外边，要做到知足与无求，那是很难做到的事。就算修学佛法，人常常还是处在「前一念才起，而后一念又生」的恍恍惚惚之间。前一念告诉自己要知足、要无求；后一念又起了贪心，又想得到这个、得到那个的。前一念生起时，心中确实是知足与无求；后一念生起时，什么都完了。There is a saying in Chinese, "Contented, your heart is constantly joyful; Seek for nothing, your character is most lofty." Living in CTTB for 16 years, I gain a deep insight into that verse because the monks and nuns in CTTB are like a mirror reflecting its meaning. They are living a simple non-contending and non seeking life. Silently, their lofty way of life became contagious to the lay people. If you live in the world outside, it is very difficult not to seek and fight. Even one is cultivating the Buddha Dharma; one can easily be torn apart by the flip-flopping of first thought of satisfaction and the second thought of greed. The first thought just says okay, I am satisfied, I am not going for anything, but immediately a second greedy thought would arise telling him to seek for this or that. When the first thought appeared, he was truly lofty and contented, but when the second thought arises, everything is gone.十六年前，我才来到万佛圣城，心中有着无限的法喜，告诉自己，要好好地修行。当时我对佛法的体会还不深，这样子过了一些日子。在圣城工作，往往一个人被当成几个人用。说也奇怪，如果你在圣城真正地付出，又能随喜一切法事，你一定能得到佛法的滋润。贪心、瞋心、痴心也会在不知不觉中慢慢地减少，心也会渐渐地平静下来。慢慢地容易观察到自己内心的动静，在前一念与后一念的交替之间，知道自己执著了一个念头，或放下另一个念头。能照见心中心念在转的过程，从中改进自己，这是对佛法的另一种体会，如人饮水，冷暖自知。然后，爱争、好胜的心也减少了。Sixteen years ago when I first came to CTTB, I was filled with Dharma Joy. I told myself that I have to cultivate seriously. At that time my experience about the Buddha Dharma was still shallow. That continued for a period of time. In CTTB, it is a common thing that one person would do the jobs of many persons. The strangest thing is that if you sincerely offer your energy, yet you rejoice in all the Dharma activities in your heart, you will surely be blessed by the Dharma. Silently, your greed, anger and stupidity would gradually diminish day after day. Your heart would become more and more serene. Gradually it becomes easier for you to observe the moments in your thought. In between the arising thoughts, you notice when you became attached and when you let it go. When you gain this insight to reflect deeply what is going on in your mind and improve yourself in awareness, it is another way of experiencing the Dharma. It is like drinking a cup of water, you know it is cold or warm. And then, you realize that your seeking and contending mind also diminish.如果有人说，你的念头在恍恍惚惚之间，修也等于没修。开始时我也这么想，但是我的体验是，修与没修的想法只是一种执著。《心经》说，色受想行识，不生不灭，不垢不净，不增不减。可是凡夫心（意识）本来就有生有灭。只好在生生灭灭的过程中往内观，然后再去体会怎样才是不生不灭；去体会该用什么方法去观，才能体会到自在。所以在修与没修之间，不要起分别心，让生灭心有机会平静下来，从不起分别心中体会自在。从不执著自己的念头，与放下自己的意念过程中体会自在，从眼耳鼻舌身意用功。这样的用功，很有意思。If someone says, your thought is still flip-flopping, even you are cultivating, it is just the same as you are not. I was thinking in the same way at first. But in my experience, the thought of cultivating and not cultivating is just an attachment. The Heart Sutra says, forms, feeling, cognition, formation and consciousness are not produced nor destroyed, not defiled nor pure, and not increasing nor diminishing. But in actuality, the thought (or consciousness) of common people are constantly produced and destroyed, so one has to contemplate on the constantly produced and destroyed thoughts to realize what it meant by either produced nor destroyed. And investigate the process by which one can experience inner ease and serenity. Thus cultivating or not cultivating, one should not use the discriminating mind to evaluate, but give an opportunity for the producing and destroying mental processes to settle down. And you try to experience peace and serenity by not discriminating. You try to experience the tranquility through the process of neither having no attachment, nor letting go of thoughts. Apply effort diligently on the eyes, ears, nose, body and mind. It is really meaningful by applying efforts this way.佛法的奥妙，要用语言说明白，是很难的事。不只佛法如此，世间法也是如此。我们当老师的，常常就发现到，同样的东西，对学生说了几十遍，学生还有搞不清楚的。或现在搞清楚了，后来又糊涂了。我们自己也当过学生，也是一样，有时或现在搞清楚了，后来又糊涂了，这是很平常的事。The wonder of the Dharma is very difficult to explain with words. Not only that, even the worldly dharma is difficult to explain with words. As a teacher, it is common to notice that you may repeat the same thing for tens of hundreds times, yet there are students who are still not clear about what you say. Or may be he is clear now, but is confused again later. We ourselves were students once upon the time, and we experienced the same thing as well. At time, we were clear but later on we became confused again. This is so common.修学佛法的过程，最怕没事做。有事做，而且没完没了地做不完才是好。所以，上人在万佛圣城制造了很多的事让大家做。学校的建立，就是其中之一。让大家在做事的过程中，把自己忘了。忘记了外在的我，忘了我喜欢做什么，我不喜欢做什么；忘了我要比谁更好，忘了我要比谁更厉害；忘了我要去争第一，忘了去争这个长短。忘了外在的我，忘记了生生灭灭，从这过程中恍恍惚惚看到内在的我、不动的心。让自己在凡夫境界中，有机会在前一念真与后一念假之间，去找寻真我。In the process of cultivating the Dharma, it is not a good thing to have nothing to do. It is even better to be occupied endlessly. Thus Venerable Shi Fu generated many things in CTTB for people to do. The founding of the schools in CTTB is one example. With things to do, it helps you to forget about the self. It helps to forget the external I. Forget about what I like to do, or what I do not like to. Forget about I am better than someone, or he is more talented. Forget to contend to be number one. Forget about who is better or who is not as good. Forget about the external me. Forget about what is produced and what is destroyed in the mind. In the process of flip-flopping of mental states, one may see the inner self, the unmoving mind. In between the disappearing of first true thought and the arising of second false thought, give yourself a chance as a common person to investigate the true self.上人曾对老师勉励过：「你们要为教育而教育，好像教自己的孩子一样，尽自己的本分，教孩子读书写字做功课，乃至如何做人。只要尽心尽力就好，不要去想教出来的孩子会如何。」我体会到，尽自己的本分，为教育而教育，就是不执著，不起分别心。老师尽自己的本分教导学生「孝悌忠信礼义廉耻」，自己也孝悌忠信礼义廉耻；学生跟老师学习怎样做人，老师跟学生学习那份天真，从中寻找自己本来的面目。久而久之，学生的品德栽培起来，老师的品德也在教学中相长。上人发愿所有来过万佛圣城的人，将来一定成佛。所谓「人成即是佛成」，将来学生能修成佛时，老师也一样能修成佛。这就是上人的愿力。This is the encouragement Venerable Shi Fu said to volunteer teachers, "You educate the children for the sake of education. You educate every child like you are educating your own child. You must fulfill your natural duty in teaching them the academic as well as educate them to be good people. As long as you have done your very best, you do not have to think about how the children turn out to be." What does that mean? I realize that fulfilling one's natural duty to educate for the sake of education means doing the job without attachment and discrimination. A teacher naturally fulfills his duty to educate the children to be filial, humble, loyal, honest, respectful, righteous, creditable, and to understand shame for wrongful actions. A teacher would practice the same virtues and have the same character he educates. The students learn how to be good people from the teachers while the teachers learn to be truthful and naive like the young students, and thus through educating the students, a teacher could also explore his own "original true face" or his inner self. Over the time, good character is nurtured in students while virtue is also cultivated in teachers. Venerable Master vowed that whoever comes to CTTB, he will become Buddha in the future. There is saying that when one becomes a perfect person, he would become a Buddha. Thus in the future when the students cultivate and become Buddhas, the teachers would cultivate and become Buddhas as well. This is the strength of the vow made by Venerable Master.为了教育下一代，上人又要学校每年办敬老节与怀少节。谈到敬老与怀少，就想到上人常说的：「人要各尽本分。敬老与怀少是每个人应该做的本分内的事。本分内的事做好，就是修福与修德，应该要从内心做起，每天如是。」那我们为什么又要有这些节日？我们的学生的才艺表演，老人、客人、学生与四众共进午餐，跟内心敬老与怀少有什么关系？关系在有了这个节日，老师、学生还有四众每年就会努力地去办，敬老与怀少的观念就深深地印在老师、学生与万佛圣城四众的心中，乃至于所有的客人心中。For educating the next generation, Venerable Master also started a tradition of celebrations of Honoring Elders Day and Cherishing Youth Day in school. Talking about honoring the elders and cherishing the youths, I remember what Venerable Master use to say, "People have to fulfill their natural duty. Honoring the elders and cherishing the youths are the natural duties for everyone. When one fulfills his natural duties, one is cultivating his blessing and virtue. It has to come from one's inner heart and practice everyday." Why then do we need to have those specific days of celebration? How do we relate the students' talent shows, and the special lunches for the elders, the guests, the students and the four fold assembly with honoring the elders and cherishing the youths? The connection is that when teachers, students, and the four fold assembly are putting in the efforts in doing it, the concepts of honoring the elders and cherishing the youths became strongly rooted into their minds, including the guests.一方面学校要办好，从另一方面看，学校对学生、老师、家长、四众、社会、世界的影响是很深远的。再说，佛度有缘人。上人要度的众生为什么这样多？我们知道这是　上人过去以种种善巧方便与众生结下的法缘。上人这一生，还是一样的努力，建立道场、兴办学校、发扬敬老与怀少，与各宗教和谐联系等等。我们也可以学习上人，以种种善巧方便与众生结下法缘。菩萨要行菩萨六度万行，才能成就菩萨果。行菩萨道的人因地必须与众生结下法缘，建立行菩萨六度万行的缘分。如果与众生结下了逆缘，要行六度万行就很难了。如果不行菩萨六度万行，只是行小乘做自了汉也可以，但是结逆缘怕会有逆境，要小心谨慎才是。On one hand, we like to make the school a good school. On the other hand, the effects of the school on students, teachers, parents, four fold assembly, society and the world is deep and profound. Also, it is said that Buddha saves those with affinity. Why there are so many living beings that Venerable Ｍaster would cross over and save them? From what we know, those are the dharma affinity created in the past by him with expedient and good efforts. In this life time, Venerable Master continues that same effort; he erected the way places, founded the schools, promotes honoring the elders and cherishing the youths, harmoniously makes connection with all the religions, etc. We can also learn from Venerable Master, expediently use our good efforts to make dharma connection with living beings. It is known that bodhisattvas have to fulfill myriad practices of the six Paramitas in order to attain bodhisattva-hood. When a bodhisattva practitioner generates good dharma affinity with living beings in the cause ground, he generates the connection and the conditions for his myriad practices of the six Paramitas. If he makes bad affinities with living beings, it will be difficult for him to fulfill the practices of myriad virtues. Well, if one is not inspired to practice the bodhisattva ways, he can choose to practice the self delivered arhat ways. But, it is important to understand that creating bad affinities may easily end up with facing bad states of conditions. Thus one has to be very careful.最后，愿与大家共同勉励，上人引我们进佛门，努力修心靠个人，一切一切都是唯心造，各自要关心自己的前程。Finally, I like to share this inspiration. Venerable Master brings us through the gate of the Buddha Dharma. One will need to apply himself in cultivating his mind. Every thing is created by the mind. One has to take care of himself on walking his own path ahead.