有功夫的人，耳朵不听人的是非

傍晚，老和尚在大殿外乘凉，一位年轻人上山，向老和尚闲聊些他家庭的事，人去后，老和尚便藉机对身边的弟子说：“那些溺在父母身边的，终长不成人，而那些离开父母的宠溺，在外奔波的人，反却能炼成大人气魄。就像溺在母猴怀里的小猴，有时会被母猴抱得活活闷死，而那些独立跳跃在山林的小猴，反而活得很好。‪修行要在最困苦、‪最不好的环境，‪越是能修忍辱，‪‎越有境界折磨，‪才是修行最佳的环境。”

　　

香灯某某师，正为一些事情，与执事人大起烦恼，老和尚在客堂见此，便对某某师开示说：“俗家人分别善人恶人而起憎爱，而出家人对善人是如此，对恶人也是如此，一律平等慈心，于好不起贪着心，于恶不起憎恶心。那些刺激我们的，才是我们真正的指导者，入寺没刺激，便没修没行。”老和尚又说：“不可起憎恶心，来分别那是恶人是坏人，是我们自己不够那个道行来接纳对方，不够那个涵养来与人善处，错是错在自己的耳根眼根的分别业识，这便是我们与生俱来的习气，我们就是被这些习气障碍住。”

　　

传某师对一些人众是非，颇为在意，一大早，大众还在洒扫，便在大殿穿梭于人众之间，东讲西听的，老和尚坐在客堂，静静地看在眼里，便对传某师开示说：“‪有功夫的人，‪‎耳朵不听人的是非，‪‎眼睛不看人的善恶，‪人家毁谤我们，‪骂我们恶人善人，‪都当做没听到、‪没看到，‪收摄六根不外驰。只有那些没功夫的人，才整天窥伺他人的是非，斤斤计较。”

　　

洒扫毕，老和尚唤传某师过去，对传某师开示说：“我们修苦行是在藉各种事境，磨炼我们不起无明烦恼，洗除习气，锻炼做人做事的各种能耐，并不是要做什么劳力事，才叫做苦行，打破对一切顺逆境的分别，就是在修苦行。出家就是要吃苦受苦，只有在苦中才能开发智慧。”

“妄想多的人，须要做一些杂务事，将念头有个寄托，否则妄念纷飞，要他念佛也念不下去，只有善根利的人，可以静静地念佛念下去，一面工作，一面念佛，会渐渐地不觉得在工作，而且自然会生起平等心。”

　　

老和尚又说：“戒行清净，六根不染，是入禅的第一步基础，要如龟缩头，住于清净无染。六根不净，妄念尚存，无明未破，便无法开悟。禅堂打香板就是在打你的无明。”

原文 ： 陀佛的追随者

【「葷」不是肉】

中國字的「葷」是草字頭！很多人以為不吃葷就是不吃肉！

其實葷不是肉！葷是指五種蔬菜！

《蔥、蒜、韭菜、薤、興渠(洋蔥)》

為何出家人跟一些在家居士與學佛人士不吃「五葷」呢？

因為這五種植物「生吃容易動肝火。熟吃容易生起淫慾的心，就是性衝動」。

所以佛陀告誡四眾弟子(出家男女眾跟在家男女眾)這五種植物不要吃～對自身的「情緒與起心動念」容易受到很大的影響～希望在此讓大家了解！不要再以訛傳訛！誤會下去了！

The Prince Who Had a Plan [The Power of Superstition]

Once upon a time, King Brahmadatta was ruling in Benares, in northern India. The Enlightenment Being was born as his son the prince. Being quite intelligent, he completed his entire education by the age of sixteen. So, at this early age, his father made him second in command.

In those days, most people in Benares worshipped gods. They were very superstitious. They thought gods caused things to happen to them, rather than being results of their own actions. So they would pray to these gods and ask special favours. They would ask for a lucky marriage, or the birth of a child or riches or fame.

They would promise the gods that, if their prayers were answered, they would pay them by making offerings to them. In addition to flowers and perfumes, they imagined the gods desired the sacrifice of animals. So, when they thought the gods had helped them, they killed many animals — goats, lambs, chickens, pigs and others.

The prince saw all this and thought, "These helpless animals are also subjects of the king, so I must protect them. The people commit these unwholesome acts due to ignorance and superstition. This cannot be true religion. For true religion offers life as it really is, not killing. True religion offers peace of mind, not cruelty.

"I fear these people believe in their superstitions too strongly to give them up. This is very sad. But perhaps their beliefs can at least be put to good use. Some day I will become king. So I must begin to make a plan to let their superstitions help them. If they must offer sacrifices, let them kill their own greed and hatred, instead of these helpless animals! Then the whole kingdom will benefit."

So the prince devised a clever long term plan. Every so often, he rode in his grand chariot to a popular banyan tree just outside the city. This was a huge tree, where the people prayed and made offerings to a god they thought lived there. The prince came down from his chariot and made the same offerings as the others — incense, flowers, perfumes and water — but not animal sacrifices.

In this way he made a great show, and the news spread about his offerings. Pretty soon, all the people thought he was a true believer in the great god of the banyan tree.

In due time, King Brahmadatta died and his son became king. He ruled as a righteous king, and the people benefited. So all his subjects came to trust and respect him as a just and honourable king.

Then one day, he decided it was the right time to carry out the rest of his plan. So he called all the leading citizens of Benares to the royal assembly hall. He asked them, "Worthy ministers and loyal subjects, do you know how I was able to make sure that I would become king?" No one could answer.

He said, "Do you remember that I often gave wonderful sweet offerings to the great god of the banyan tree?" "Yes, our lord," they said.

The king continued, "At each of those times, I made a promise to the powerful god of the tree. I prayed, 'Oh mighty one, if you make me King of Benares, I will offer a special sacrifice to you, far greater than flowers and perfumes.'

"Since I am now the king, you all can see for yourselves that the god has answered my prayers. So now I must keep my promise and offer the special sacrifice."  All those in the assembly hall agreed. They said, "We must prepare this sacrifice at once. What animals do you wish to kill?"

The king said, "My dear subjects, I am glad you are so willing to cooperate. I promised the great god of the banyan tree that I would sacrifice anyone who fails to practice the Five Training Steps. That is, anyone who destroys life, takes what is not given, does wrong in sexual ways, speaks falsely, or loses his mind from alcohol. I promised that, if any do these things, I will offer their guts, and their flesh and blood on the great god's altar!"

Being so superstitious, all those in the hall agreed that this must be done, or the god would surely punish the king and the kingdom.

The king thought, "Ah, such is the power of superstition that these people have lost all common sense! They cannot see that, since the first training step is to give up killing, if I sacrificed one of my subjects, I would be next on the altar! And such is the power of superstition that I could make such a promise, and never have to carry it out!"

So, with full confidence in the power of superstition, the king said to the leading citizens, "Go into all the kingdom and announce the promise I made to the god. Then proclaim that the first one-thousand who break any of the training steps will have the honour of being sacrificed, to keep the king's promise."

Lo and behold, the people of Benares became famous for carefully practising the Five Training Steps. And the good king, who knew his subjects so well, sacrificed no one.

The moral is: Sacrifice your own wrong doing, not some helpless animal.

祝大家人日快乐

各位善友，讓我們一同發願：
願我們能斷一切惡，行一切善，
淨除一切煩惱習氣！
願我們能夠把佛法弘揚到人間的每一個角落！
祝大家人日快乐！新的一年吉祥如意！

The Ten Powers of Buddha

All Buddha's share the same special characteristics and qualities unique to a Buddha. The following are lists of some of the most well-known attributes and virtues of a Thus Come One.

The Ten Powers of a Buddha

1	The wisdom-power of being enlightened to what is possible or not possible.
2	The wisdom-power of knowing the karmic retributions in the past, present and future.
3	The wisdom-power of knowing all of the dhyanas', liberations, and Samadhi.
4	The wisdom-power of knowing the superiority or inferiority of the faculties of all living beings.
5	The wisdom-power of knowing all of the various understandings of living beings.
6	The wisdom-power of knowing all of the various realms of living beings.
7	The wisdom-power of knowing where all paths lead.
8	The wisdom-power of the knowledge derived from the  unobstructed Heavenly Eye.
9	The wisdom-p0wer free from outflows. of knowing former lives.
10	The wisdom power of having severed all habitual energies forever.

The Eighteen Exceptional Characteristics of a Buddha 

1	His body is flawless.
2	His speech is flawless.
3	His thought is flawless.
4	He has no perception of differences.
5	He has no un-concentrated thoughts.
6	There is nothing he does not know and has not already renounced.
7	His resolve never diminishes.
8	His vigor never diminishes.
9	His mindfulness never wanes.
10	His wisdom never wanes.
11	His liberation never diminishes.
12	His knowledge and vision of liberation never diminish
13	All of his bodily, karma is done with wisdom.
14	All of his speech karma is done with wisdom.
15	All of his thought karma is done with wisdom
16	His wisdom gives him unobstructed knowledge of the past.
17	His wisdom gives him unobstructed knowledge of the future.
18	His wisdom gives him unobstructed knowledge of the present.

The Thirty-two Physical Hallmarks of a Buddha

1	Level and full feet.
2	Thousand-spoke wheels on each of his feet.
3	Long, slender fingers.
4	Supple and soft hands and feet.
5	Fine webbing lacing his fingers and toes.
6	Well set and even heels.
7	Arched insteps.
8	Thighs like the royal stag Aineya (king of deer).
9	Long, graceful hands which reach below the knees.
10	Well-retracted male organ (like that of a horse).
11	Height and stretch of arms equal.
12	Every hair root imperial blue color.
13	Hair on his body curling upward.
14	Body the color of true gold.
15	Ten foot aura encircling him.
16	Soft, smooth skin.
17	The seven places (the convex places at the back of the four limbs, the two shoulders and the trunk of the body) distinctive and full.
18	Well filled area below the armpits.
19	Upper torso like that of a royal lion.
20	Body erect and upright.
21	Full and round shoulders like a Nyagrodha tree (perfectly Symmetrical like the Banyan tree).
22	Forty teeth.
23	Teeth white, even and close.
24	Four pure white canine teeth.
25	Jaws like a lion.
26	Saliva which improves the taste of all food.
27	Vast and long tongue.
28	Voice deep and resonant (emits Brahma-pure sounds).
29	Eyes violet blue.
30	Eyelashes like a royal bull.
31	White hair-tuft (urna) between the eyebrows which emits lights
32	Cowl on the summit of his crown Each of these attributes is a natural reward for a specific kind of good karma Buddha's create during many past lives.

The Ten Titles of a Buddha

1	Thus Come One.
2	One Worthy of Offerings.
3	One of Proper and Universal Knowledge
4	One Perfect in Understanding and Conduct.
5	Well Gone One Who Understands the World
6	Unsurpassed Lord.
7	Hero Who Tames and Regulates.
8	Teacher of Gods and Humans.
9	Buddha.
10	World Honored One.

Source :  By Madduma Bandara (Spirit of Buddhism)