今日教言

🌻大家要经常听闻佛法，这样自然会明白很多道理。通过闻法，可以了知诸法的实相，去除相续中的罪恶，闻法真的特别重要。佛菩萨、大德们具有加持的金刚语，通过听闻而研习，这就是真正的闻法，闻法的功德不可思议。——《入行论广解》

不要臨【死】才抱佛腳 ~ 索達吉堪布

假如從20歲就開始修行，到了80歲時，可能會直接進入來世的快樂生活。但這一生若迷迷糊糊就過了，臨死卻希望時光倒流、重新做人，那時已經沒有力氣了，也沒有這個機會了。

我曾看過一則小故事：

有兩兄弟，住在80層的高樓上。一次，他們半夜三更回家，發現電梯因為維修，已經停了。二人經過商量，覺得自己年輕力壯，幹脆爬樓梯回家。

他們先爬了20層，有點累了，哥哥說：“包太重了，把它先放在這里吧，明天再下來拿。”于是他們放下行李，輕裝上陣。

到了40層時，弟弟開始抱怨：“你之前明明看到了停電梯的通知，為什麼不早點說？咱們可以提前回來。”哥哥說：“我不是忘了嗎？那有什麼辦法。”他們開始互相爭吵、指責。

吵吵嚷嚷之下，兩人爬到了60層。盡管他們彼此不滿，但累得要命，爭斗的力氣也沒有了。

只休息了一會兒，他們又繼續往上爬。

終于到了80層，兄弟倆已是精疲力竭。他們緩了一口氣，正准備開門，一摸口袋才發現---鑰匙還留在20層樓的包里。無奈之下，兩人只好在門口睡下。

這故事看似是個笑話，但用佛法來解釋的話，正說明了我們人生的幾個階段：

20歲時，不管是生活也好、工作也好，基本上比較輕松，沒有太大壓力。

40歲時，工作中、家庭中的恩怨層出不窮，滿肚子都是各種牢騷。

60歲時，盡管內心有諸多不滿，但已經沒有力氣抱怨了。

到了80歲接近死亡時，回顧整個人生經歷，好像自己一無所得。尤其最關鍵的“來世”鑰匙，在20歲時就忘記帶上了。

當然，假如從20歲就開始修行，到了80歲時，可能會直接進入來世的快樂生活。但這一生若迷迷糊糊就過了，臨死卻希望時光倒流、重新做人，那時已經沒有力氣了，也沒有這個機會了。

所以，大家應當以此來勉勵自己。能從小行持善法是最好的，但若沒有這種緣分，什麼時候遇到佛法，就從那個時候開始，精進修行也不遲。這樣，臨死時才不會悔之晚矣！

淨空法師 : 學佛不是學別的，就是做個明白人

Metta Sutta

May everyone be happy and safe,
and may their hearts be filled with joy.
May all living beings live in security and in peace
beings who are frail or strong,
tall or short, big or small,
visible or not visible, near... or far away,
already born or yet to be born.
May all of them dwell in perfect tranquility.
Let no one do harm to anyone.
Let no one put the life of anyone in danger.
Let no one, out of anger or ill will, wish anyone any harm.

~ Metta Sutta (Stuttanipata)

《莲池大师戒杀文：生日和生子不宜杀生》

第一种情形是：

我们的父母在我们诞生之时很是辛劳，他们介乎生死之间，苦痛逼心，只望母子平安，一旦儿女顺利出世，一切惨痛都烟消云散，以为苦尽甘来，笑口顿开。当我们生日来临之时，就应该体察当年父母生养我们之辛劳，吃斋戒杀，多行善事，一则可使先亡父母早日脱离生死苦海，早登彼岸。假如双亲健在，也因为我们所积累的功德让他们积功累德，增福延寿。

第二种情形是：

世人没有子女都很悲伤，子女降世也都很欢喜。为什么我们不想想一切有情众生也都深爱自己的孩子呢？庆祝自己的孩子降生，却要其他物类的孩子惨死在刀下，将心比心，我们又于心何忍呢？当我们的孩子降生在我们的身边，不知道为他们积累福德，却要残害生灵早就恶业，也实在是太愚蠢了。

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《莲池大师戒杀放生文图说》 全集

http://www.rushiwowen.org/category-11-1-000.jsp

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我们是这样把福报吃完的

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYvYRZ6owrA

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修因才能得果

Who did you buried in your past lives?

Once upon a time, as two loved each other very much, they soon arranged to be married. However, when the day arrived, the girl changed her mind by accepting another man. Heartbroken, the original bridegroom-to-be became very sick and wasted away in bed. When he was almost dying, a Buddhist master came along. Hearing what happened, he decided to help.

The master asked him to look into a mysterious ‘magic’ mirror. In it, he saw was the body of a drowned girl washed upon shore. Three men came by. The first simply sighed and moved on. The second kindly covered her with his coat. The third even more kindly buried her. Next seen with his ex-bride-to-be now was a happy bridegroom, who surprisingly resembled the third man.

The master explained that his ex-bride-to-be was the drowned girl in a past life, whom he as the second man covered, while the bridegroom was the third man, who gave her a proper funeral. With significant karmic connection and indebtedness, his kindness was ‘repaid’ by love for a while. However, the kindness of the next more naturally compelled her to love him for a lifetime.

Hearing this, the heartbroken man awakened to the cause and effect of why things turned out they way they did and was instantly cured. He learnt to graciously accept reality, for not being the one best suited for her. Of course, it is not such that every marriage is based on the same causes and effects, but every relationship, being karmic in nature, does have some prior connections.

Perhaps the girl did create some negative karma by changing her mind at the last minute, but she was after all not married yet, with freedom to choose. Meanwhile, those closest to us are those we have the strongest karmic ties with now, or with whom we are forging stronger ties. Yet, this does not mean that all links are surely fortunate, while we have to work to improve all relationships!

The truth is, we are all interconnected by invisible ‘strings’ of affinity, due to having been reborn countless times in all kinds of inter-relationships. It is just a matter of how many degrees of ‘separation’ we are ‘apart’ from one another. If so, may we only create positive and pure links with one another, based on generosity, compassion and wisdom. And never be the apathetic first man!

9th June - the holy day of Saga Dawa Düchen

Friday, 9th of June is the full moon day of the sacred month of Saga Dawa, the fourth month of the Tibetan lunar calendar. 

For Buddhists this is the most sacred day of the year, commemorating the birth, enlightenment, and parinirvana of the Buddha, and it is believed that all positive and negative actions are multiplied by 100 million as a result.

Traditionally, the holy day of Saga Dawa Düchen is observed through practice, generosity, and the performance of meritorious deeds.

Five Mindfulness Trainings

The five mindfulness trainings are an expression of the five precepts, the core of Buddhist ethics, and offer a down-to-earth method of practicing mindfulness in daily life. As Thich Nhat Hanh wrote in his book Good Citizens, “The five mindfulness trainings are offered without dogma or religion. Everybody can use them as an ethics for their life without becoming Buddhist or becoming part of any tradition or faith. You are just yourself, but you try to make a beautiful life by following these guidelines.”

The Five Mindfulness Trainings represent the Buddhist vision for a global spirituality and ethic. They are a concrete expression of the Buddha’s teachings on the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, the path of right understanding and true love, leading to healing, transformation, and happiness for ourselves and for the world. To practice the Five Mindfulness Trainings is to cultivate the insight of interbeing, or Right View, which can remove all discrimination, intolerance, anger, fear, and despair. If we live according to the Five Mindfulness Trainings, we are already on the path of a bodhisattva. Knowing we are on that path, we are not lost in confusion about our life in the present or in fears about the future.

1. Reverence For Life

Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating the insight of interbeing and compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life. Seeing that harmful actions arise from anger, fear, greed, and intolerance, which in turn come from dualistic and discriminative thinking, I will cultivate openness, non-discrimination, and non-attachment to views in order to transform violence, fanaticism, and dogmatism in myself and in the world.

2. True Happiness

Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to practicing generosity in my thinking, speaking, and acting. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others; and I will share my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need. I will practice looking deeply to see that the happiness and suffering of others are not separate from my own happiness and suffering; that true happiness is not possible without understanding and compassion; and that running after wealth, fame, power and sensual pleasures can bring much suffering and despair. I am aware that happiness depends on my mental attitude and not on external conditions, and that I can live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that I already have more than enough conditions to be happy. I am committed to practicing Right Livelihood so that I can help reduce the suffering of living beings on Earth and reverse the process of global warming.

3. True Love

Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. Knowing that sexual desire is not love, and that sexual activity motivated by craving always harms myself as well as others, I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without true love and a deep, long-term commitment made known to my family and friends. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct. Seeing that body and mind are one, I am committed to learning appropriate ways to take care of my sexual energy and cultivating loving kindness, compassion, joy and inclusiveness – which are the four basic elements of true love – for my greater happiness and the greater happiness of others. Practicing true love, we know that we will continue beautifully into the future.

4. Loving Speech and Deep Listening

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and compassionate listening in order to relieve suffering and to promote reconciliation and peace in myself and among other people, ethnic and religious groups, and nations. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am committed to speaking truthfully using words that inspire confidence, joy, and hope. When anger is manifesting in me, I am determined not to speak. I will practice mindful breathing and walking in order to recognize and to look deeply into my anger. I know that the roots of anger can be found in my wrong perceptions and lack of understanding of the suffering in myself and in the other person. I will speak and listen in a way that can help myself and the other person to transform suffering and see the way out of difficult situations. I am determined not to spread news that I do not know to be certain and not to utter words that can cause division or discord. I will practice Right Diligence to nourish my capacity for understanding, love, joy, and inclusiveness, and gradually transform anger, violence, and fear that lie deep in my consciousness.

5. Nourishment and Healing

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming. I will practice looking deeply into how I consume the Four Kinds of Nutriments, namely edible foods, sense impressions, volition, and consciousness. I am determined not to gamble, or to use alcohol, drugs, or any other products which contain toxins, such as certain websites, electronic games, TV programs, films, magazines, books, and conversations. I will practice coming back to the present moment to be in touch with the refreshing, healing and nourishing elements in me and around me, not letting regrets and sorrow drag me back into the past nor letting anxieties, fear, or craving pull me out of the present moment. I am determined not to try to cover up loneliness, anxiety, or other suffering by losing myself in consumption. I will contemplate interbeing and consume in a way that preserves peace, joy, and well-being in my body and consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family, my society and the Earth.

Source : BY THICH NHAT HANH

How Are Vows & Precepts Related?

Question: What is the significance of taking vows in Buddhism?

Answer: There are several kinds of vows for Buddhists. Taking refuge in the Triple Gem is one kind. Committing to the Five Precepts is another, as is to the Eight Precepts, Bodhisattva Precepts and Monastic Precepts. And there are other independent vows. Vows express commitment to avoiding of evil, doing of good and purification of the mind. With strong commitment, there will be definite progress.

Question: How is taking of vows, for example to be vegan different from just abstaining from eating animal products?

Answer: With commitment, one is fully serious on that committed to, while without commitment, one is half-hearted. This further explains the major differences between commitment and non-commitment: http://thedailyenlightenment.com/2010/02/is-it-better-not-to-observe-any-precepts 

Question: When vows are taken, do they last for this lifetime or from life to life?

Answer: It depends on how the vows are committed to. For example, the Five Precepts are usually committed to for life, while the Eight Precepts for at least 24 hours.

Question: Are vows the same as precepts?

Answer: Precepts are moral guidelines adhered to as vows, but vows are not always precepts. For instance, the first precept of not killing is a vow, but Amituofo’s (Amitabha Buddha) 48 Great Vows are in terms of helping all beings to quickly attain Buddhahood; they are not precepts in terms of vowing not to do certain misdeeds.

Question: Is there any difference between taking a vow to not kill versus observing a precept to not kill?

Answer: Taking of precepts involve a ceremony to formally express commitment (i.e. vowing) for life (other than the Eight Precepts), while other vows might have no specific ceremony for expressing them, unless one chooses to vow formally. 

Source : thedailyenlightenment.com (Posted by Shen Shi'an on April 8, 2017)

達真堪布法语

※ 當你有看不起的人，自己應當懺悔，這說明自己不夠慈悲，不夠善良；當你有看不慣的事，自己也要反省，這說明自己沒有智慧，不夠圓融。

※ 總是站在自己的角度去看問題，肯定有很多看不慣的，肯定有很多不圓滿的，這是你自己的問題，這也叫我執。以自我為中心，要求一切圍著自己轉，這是不可能的。很多煩惱痛苦都是這樣招來的。

※ 真正的福報在自己的阿賴耶當中，無論去什麼地方，都是可以跟隨自己的，即使到臨終的時候也不會失散。留下的那些，都是不屬於你的，而是因緣和合的一種顯現，沒有什麼可執著的。

※ 種下一份善根，就能得一份福報；懺悔一份罪業，就能減輕一份痛苦。

Find your nature

金刚经说 "放下"

Parable of the Raft

Monks, I will teach you the parable of the raft—for getting across, not for retaining. It is like a man who going on a journey sees a great stretch of water, the near bank with dangers and fears, the farther bank secure and without fears, but there is neither a boat for crossing over, nor a bridge across. It occurs to him that to cross over from the perils of this bank to the security of the farther bank, he should fashion a raft and cross over to safety. When he has done this it occurs to him that the raft has been very useful, and he wonders if he ought to take it with him on his head and shoulders. What do you think, monks? That the man is doing what should be done with the raft? They answered, “No, Lord.” What should that man do, monks? When he has crossed over to the beyond, he must leave the raft and proceed on his journey. Monks, a man doing this would be doing what should be done with the raft. In this way, I have taught you Dharma, like the parable of the raft, for getting across, not for retaining. You, monks, by understanding the parable of the raft, must not cling to right states of mind and, all the more, to wrong states of mind.

Source : extracted from Parables of the Buddha (Jack Kornfield, Teachings of the Buddha, Boston: Shambhala, 1996 ISBN 1-57062-124-1)

今日教言

若想对自己真正有利，唯一就要勤修佛法。怎么修呢？首先要生起出离心和菩提心，然后在实际行动中，处处以善心摄持相续，对于外在的一切显现，受用、眷属、财产、名声，都不能太过耽著，而应视其如梦如幻。

—《四法宝鬘论》