Tag: Sutra of Forty-Two Sections

Namo Fundamental Teacher Shakyamuni Buddha !(three times) 南无本师释迦牟尼佛（三称）

Section  33 Wisdom and Clarity Defeat the Demons 智明破魔
The Buddha said, “People who cultivate the Way are like a soldier who goes into battle alone against ten thousand enemies. He dons his armor and goes out the gate. He may prove to be a coward; he may get halfway to the battlefield and retreat; he may be killed in combat; or he may return victorious.
“Shramanas who study the Way must make their minds resolute and be vigorous, courageous, and valiant. Not fearing what lies ahead, they should defeat the hordes of demons and obtain the fruition of the Way.” 佛言。夫为道者。譬如一人与万人战。挂铠出门。意或怯弱。或半路而退。或格斗而死。或得胜而还。沙门学道。应当坚持其心。精进勇锐。不畏前境。破灭众魔。而得道果。

This thirty-third section uses an analogy to show that people who cultivate the Way should follow the three non-outflow studies of precepts, samadhi, and wisdom and should study the Way with single-minded vigor. Consider the example of a person who has various kinds of pretensions, bad habits, and delusions–delusions in views, delusions in thoughts, and delusions like dust and sand–which have accumulated since time without beginning. If you can single-mindedly study the Way, you are like a single person.

If you have many pretensions, many delusions, and many bad habits, those things are like ten thousand enemies. If you can receive and uphold and cultivate the pure precepts, that is equivalent to donning your armor. If you strengthen your resolve, then you won’t be cowardly; that’s the decisive vigor that comes from your precept-power. If you can advance with courageous vigor, not turning back halfway, that is a kind of samadhi-power. If you have samadhi-power, you won’t quit halfway through. Furthermore, if you don’t fear any situation, no matter how many enemies are up ahead waiting to attack you, then you won’t be killed so easily when you go into battle. That is a kind of wisdom-power.

By uniting the threefold powers of precepts, samadhi, and wisdom, you can defeat your beginningless habits, your pretensions, and all your other faults. All these myriads of problems are analogous to the hordes of demons. If you can defeat the hordes of demons, you will be able to obtain the fruition of the Way. If you obtain the fruition of the Way, that means you will return from the battle in triumph.

这是第三十三章了，用譬喻说明修道的人应该有戒定慧这三无漏学，要一心来精进学道。就好像有一个人，有无始的虚妄，种种的习气，和一切的惑——见惑、思惑、尘沙惑这种种的惑。 这个修道的人。‘譬如一人与万人战’：你能专一其心来修行，就好像一个人和万人战，这就是说除去种种的习气、毛病、虚妄、贪嗔痴，就好像与万人作战似的。在这个时候，你‘挂铠出门’：就像披上盔甲和人作战，是不怕的。‘意或怯弱’：你要是心里不坚固，好像怕了似的，就是怯弱。‘或半路而退’：或者修行修行，不修行了，半路而退了。‘或格斗而死’：或者因为和这虚妄的习气、魔军来作战，就战败了，修行不成功，死了。‘或得胜而还’：或者是得胜回来了。

The thirty-fourth section explains how people should study the Way. We should regulate the body and the mind in a wholesome way. We should not be too tense or stressed in body and mind; nor should we be too lazy. This same truth is also discussed in Confucianism: If you advance too rapidly, you will also retreat rapidly. When you cultivate the Way, you shouldn’t forget about the Way, but you also shouldn’t try to force the Way along. Neither too fast nor too slow–this is a good method for our cultivation. If you don’t keep to a moderate pace, then you won’t be able to accomplish the Way. If you don’t know how to cultivate, then you will either be too hasty or too slow.

Section  35 When One Is Purified of Defilements, the Brilliance Remains 垢净明存
The Buddha said, “People smelt metal by burning the dross out of it in order to make high quality implements. It is the same with people who study the Way: first they must get rid of the defilements in their minds; then their practice becomes pure.” 佛言。如人锻铁。去滓成器。器即精好。学道之人。去心垢染，行即清净矣。

In forging metal, the dross is expelled before the metal is wrought into tools and implements. That way the tools are of extremely fine quality. Iin the same token, for people who study the way, if you cannot remove the impurities from your mind, a pure mind will not manifest. It’s just like the dross in metal.

“Defilements” here refer to the desires in your mind, most especially to the thoughts of sexual desire. If you don’t get rid of sexual desire, then the filth and defilements will remain. If you can get rid of your sexual desire, there won’t be any filth. Then their practice becomes pure. Without defilements, your practice–your method of cultivation–will become pure. But if your mental defilements are not eradicated, you will not attain purity in your cultivation. Although sexual desire is the greatest defilement, there are others. Greed, hatred, stupidity, pride, and doubt are all defilements in your mind. You should get rid of them, and then you will have a response in your cultivation of the Way. You will be able to return to the source, go back to the origin, and regain your inherent, pure mind.

我们人人都可以成道的，是一个道的器皿。可是你染污心如果不去，就不能载道，不能成道。所以你想要成就你的道果，先要去这染污的心，去这垢染。垢染就是心里的欲，尤其是淫欲心。你淫欲心若不去，这就是有垢染；你淫欲心若是去了，就没有垢染。没有垢染就是清净心，所以说‘行即清净矣’：行，就是修行的行门。你所修行的行门都会清净的。你心里的染污如果不去，修行就不能得到清净。淫欲心固然是染污，但这是最大的。其余的，你的贪心，你的嗔心，你的痴心，你的慢心，你的疑心，贪、嗔、痴、慢、疑，这都是垢染的心。都妥把这些去了，你修行就能与道相应，返本还原，返回你本有的清净心了。

When the Buddha was in the world, he once brought up a question for all the disciples to consider. The Buddha scooped up a handful of dirt and asked, “All of you tell me, is there more dirt in my hand or on the whole earth?” The Buddha’s disciples all answered, “Of course the dirt in the Buddha’s hand is less than the dirt on the whole earth!” Was there any need to ask about something as obvious as that?

The Buddha said, “Living beings who can leave the three evil destinies–the hells, the realm of hungry ghosts, and the realm of animals–and become humans are like the dirt in my hand. Those who remain in the three evil destinies and cannot obtain human bodies are like the dirt on the whole earth.” This shows that for beings to leave behind the evil destinies and become human is not easy. Thus it is said that becoming a human being is difficult.

佛住世的时候，曾经对所有的弟子，提出一个问题来研究。有一天佛在地下用手抓了一把土，就问所有的弟子：‘你们各位说，现在我手掌里的土多？还是大地上的土多？你们每一个人都要说。’ 所有的佛弟子答覆佛这个问题，就说：‘当然是佛手掌里的土少，大地的土多了！’，这还有什么可问的呢？ 佛就说：‘从地狱、饿鬼、畜生这三恶道里边，再能来做人的，就像我手掌上的土这么多；不能得到人身，在三恶道里的众生犹如大地土，就像大地土那么多。’由这证明，人能离开三恶道来做人，这是不容易的一件事，所以说得为人难。

Section  37 Staying Mindful of Moral Precepts Brings Us Close to the Way 念戒近道

The Buddha said, “My disciples may be several thousand miles away from me, but if they remember my moral precepts, they will certainly attain the fruition of the Way. “If those who are by my side do not follow my moral precepts, they may see me constantly, but in the end they will not attain the Way.” 佛言。佛子离吾数千里。忆念吾戒。必得道果。在吾左右。虽常见吾。不顺吾戒。终不得道。

Once there were two Bhikshus in Varanasi who wanted to make the long journey to Shravasti to see the Buddha. As they walked, they grew more and more thirsty, until they could barely walk any further. They were about to die of thirst. In front of them, they found a little water that had collected in a human skull.

One of the Bhikkhus took up the skull, drank some of the water, and then turned to give some to the other Bhikshu. The other Bhikshu, seeing that the water was in a skull, and that, moreover, there were many bugs in it, didn’t drink it.

The first Bhikshu said, “Why aren’t you drinking the water? We are nearly dead of thirst.”
The other one answered, “Because the Buddha’s precepts say that we can’t drink water if there are bugs in it. Although I may die of thirst, I’m not going to drink water with bugs in it. I want to stick to the Buddha’s precepts in my cultivation.”

The first Bhikshu said, “Oh, you’re really stupid. If you drink some of the water, you’ll be able to go and see the Buddha. If you don’t drink it, you’ll die of thirst. Don’t be so inflexible.” Even after such a rebuke, the other Bhikshu still wouldn’t take a drink. The first Bhikshu drank all of the water, and as he walked on he felt very strong. But the second Bhikshu, who hadn’t drunk any water, died of thirst along the way.

Because the second Bhikshu had single-mindedly held the precepts, he was reborn in the Trayastrimsa Heaven and was endowed with the blessed appearance of a god. From there he went to see the Buddha, and upon hearing the Buddha speak Dharma for him, he attained the pure Dharma-eye and realized the fruition of Arhatship. Meanwhile, the Bhikshu who had drunk the water from the skull arrived at Shravasti after three more days of travelling. The Bhikshu who had died of thirst saw the Buddha on the night of his death and then realized the fruition. Three days later, the other Bhikshu arrived and saw the Buddha.

The Buddha asked him, “Where did you come from? How many people came with you? Was the trip uneventful?” The Bhikshu told his story to the Buddha in detail: “We came from Varanasi, and the road was long. At one point on the way we were without water, but eventually we found some water that had collected in a skull. I drank some, but my fellow cultivator wouldn’t drink it when he saw that there were bugs in it, so he died of thirst. The fact is that he didn’t have affinities with the Buddha, and so he died instead of seeing the Buddha. His attachments were too strong.”

After the Buddha heard the story, he told the Bhikshu who had died of thirst to come forward. The Buddha said, “That very day he was reborn in the heavens and was endowed with the life span of a god, which is quite long. Then he came to my Dharma assembly, and I spoke Dharma for him. He has already realized the fruition of the Way. You say that he was stupid, but in truth you are the stupid one. You didn’t keep the Buddha’s precepts, and although you have come to see me, you might as well not have seen me, because your mind isn’t true. You aren’t sincere enough; you didn’t hold the precepts.”

So from this episode you can see that, whether or not you are beside the Buddha, what matters is holding to the Buddha’s precepts as you cultivate. Then you actually get to see the Buddha. If you don’t cultivate according to the precepts, although you may be at the Buddha’s side, it’s as if you never saw him in the first place.

在以前，波罗脂国有两个比丘，想到舍卫国来见佛，中间经过的路程是很遥远的。他们走路走得很渴很渴的，渴得就要没有法子走路了，就要渴死了。结果，在前边他们就遇著一点点水，这水是在一个死人的头骨里。

　　一个比丘拿起这水就喝了，然后给另外一个比丘喝。另外这比丘看那水里很多虫子，因这水既然在人的头骨里边，又有很多虫子，他就不喝了。

　　第一个比丘就问他：‘你为什么不喝这水呢？不喝就要渴死了！’

　　他说：‘因为佛制的戒律，水里若有虫是不可以喝的。我就宁可渴死，我都不喝这有虫子的水，我是要依照佛的戒律来修行。’

　　第一个比丘就说：‘你真是愚痴啊！现在已经要渴死，你喝了水，就可以见佛；你不喝水，就渴死了，你还这么固执。’就这样说他，这比丘也不喝，第一个比丘就把这水都喝了。喝水的比丘走起路来，就很健康的；没有喝水的这比丘果然就渴死在半路上了。

　　死了之后，因为他专持戒律，就生到忉利天上去了，具足天人的福相。他就去见佛，见了佛，佛为他说法，他当时就得到法眼净，证了果了。那喝水的比丘在第三天才到，渴死的比丘在渴死的当天晚间就来见佛了，就证果了。过了三天后，没渴死的比丘也来了，见了佛。

　　佛就问这一位比丘，说：‘你从什么地方来的？有几个人和你一起来呀？你在路上都很平安吗？’这么一讲的时候，这比丘就说了：‘我从波罗脂国来的，到这儿的路程很远，中间经过一个地方，根本就没有水喝。后来发现一点点水在头骨里，我就喝了一点。我有一个同参，他看见那水里边有虫子，他就不喝，所以他就渴死了。这是他和佛没有缘，所以渴死了也没有见著佛，这个人是太执著，执著心太厉害了。’

　　佛听他说完之后，就叫这渴死的比丘出来和他见面，说：‘他在当天就升天了，升天得到天人的这种寿命是很长的。他又到我这个法会来，我给他说法，他已经证果了。你说他是愚痴，其实你自己真正是愚痴。你不守佛的戒律，你虽然来见我，也等于没有见一样的，因为你心不真，没有诚心，你不持戒律。’

　　那么由这一件事看来，你就是在佛的面前，或不在佛的面前，只要你依照佛的戒律修行，那就是见佛；你不依照佛的戒律修行，你就在佛的旁边，也等于没有见佛是一样的。

In India there was once a king who believed in adherents of non-Buddhist religions that cultivated many kinds of ascetic practices. Some followed the precepts of cows and some the precepts of dogs; some smeared ashes on their bodies; and some slept on beds of nails. They cultivated all sorts of ascetic practices, such as those undertaken by yogis.

Meanwhile, the Bhikshus who cultivated the Buddhadharma had it comparatively easy, because they didn’t cultivate those kinds of ascetic practices. Now, the king of that country said to the Buddha’s disciples, “I believe that although these non-Buddhists cultivate all kinds of ascetic practices, they still cannot stop their thoughts of sexual desire. How much less are you Bhikshus, who are so casual, able to stop your afflictions and your thoughts of sexual desire. You surely cannot put a stop to them.”

One of the Dharma Masters answered the king this way, “Take a man from jail who has been sentenced to execution and say to him, take this bowl of oil and carry it in your hands as you walk down the street. If you spill a single drop of the oil, I’ll have you executed. If you don’t spill a single drop, I’ll release you when you return.’ Then, send some beautiful women musicians out on the street to sing and play their instruments where the sentenced man is walking with his bowl of oil. If he should spill any oil, of course you’ll execute him. If he comes back without spilling a single drop, ask him what he’s seen on the road, and see what he says!”

The king of the country did just that: He took a man who was sentenced to be executed and said to him, “Today you should be executed, but I’m going to give you an opportunity to save your life. I’ll give you a bowl of oil to carry in your hands as you take a walk on the street. If you can carry it without spilling a single drop, when you return you won’t be killed. But if you spill one drop, I’ll execute you on schedule. Go try it out.”

The sentenced man did as he was told. He went out on the street with the oil, and when he returned he hadn’t spilled one drop. Then the king asked him, “What did you see out on the street?” The sentenced man said, “I didn’t see a single thing. All I did was watch the oil to keep it from spilling. I didn’t see or hear anything else at all.”

The king asked the Dharma Master, “Well, what is the principle involved here?” The monk answered, “The Shramana who has left the home-life is in the same situation. He sees the problem of birth and death as too important, so he has no time for thoughts of sexual desire. Like the sentenced man, the Shramana wants to end birth and death. If the sentenced man were to spill one drop of oil or to become the least bit afflicted, he would die.

The Shramana who has left the home-life is also like this. Why is he able to end his sexual desire? It’s because he sees the matter of birth and death as very important. Why can’t the non-Buddhists end their sexual desire? They don’t understand birth and death. They don’t realize how important this matter is. Thus, they cannot end their sexual desire.” Why don’t people who cultivate put a stop to their sexual desire? They haven’t truly recognized the immediacy of the impermanence of birth and death. If you realized the immediacy of impermanence, you wouldn’t have time to give rise to false thoughts of lust. You wouldn’t have time for the affliction of sexual desire.

在以前印度有一个国王，他相信外道，外道修种种的苦行，好像：有的持牛戒的，有的持狗戒的，有的以灰涂身的，有的睡钉子床的，修种种的苦行，修种种瑜珈的苦行。相对地，佛法里，比丘修道是很容易的，不修这种种的苦行。所以这国王就问佛的弟子说：‘我相信外道他们所修的这种种苦行，他们还都不能断淫欲心，那么比丘这么随便，这淫欲心和烦恼，怎么能断呢？这根本就断不了的！’

　　有一个法师就答覆这国王说：‘你可以在监狱里提一个应该处死的人来，对这人讲：“我给你一碗油，你用两手拿著，在大街上游行。你游行市街时，如果洒了一滴油，就把你杀了；如果一滴油也不洒，回来就不杀你，把你放了。”那么这时候，你可以预备一些奏音乐的美女，在市街上奏音乐。等这个应该要死的人游完了街，你看看他这油洒了没洒？如果他的油洒了，当然就要被杀了。油，若一滴也没有洒，你问他在这街上都看到些什么？看他怎么样说！’

　　国王就照样办了，提出一个应该被杀的人，就对他说明白：‘今天应该把你杀了，但是现在我给你一个不死的机会，怎么样呢？你必须去游街。游街时，我给你一碗油，你用两手端著，这油若是一滴也不流出来，不洒出去，那么回来就不杀你。若是洒了一滴油，回来还是照常把你杀了，你去试一试！’

　　于是乎，就这么样做。市街都游完了，回来一看，碗里边的油果然一滴也没有洒。国王就问了：‘你在这市的大街上，你都见过什么东西啊？’这犯罪的人说：‘我什么也没有看见，就只看见这油，我时时刻刻都保护这油，不教它洒了。我除了看见这碗里的油，旁的什么也没看见，什么也没听见。’

　　国王说：‘这是什么道理呢？’这位法师就告诉他‘这就是譬如那出家的沙门，他因为看这生死的问题事大，所以他没有时间来生淫欲的念头。他想要了生死，就好像那要死的人，如果流出一滴油，有了一点烦恼，那他就死了。出家的沙门也就是这样子，为什么他能断淫欲呢？就因为他把这生死的问题看重了；外道为什么不能断淫欲呢？就因为他不明白生死，不懂得这个生死是一种大的事情，所以他不能断淫欲。’我们修道为什么那个淫欲心不断呢？也就因为你没有真正地认识生死无常就来了。你若知道生死无常就要来了，你就没有时间来打淫欲的妄想，没有时间生这种淫欲的烦恼了。

Section thirty-nine says that you should believe and accept all the Buddha’s sutras. You shouldn’t discriminate between the Maha-yana and the Theravada, the sudden and the gradual, deciding which sutras are important and which sutras are not important. Why make so many distinctions? All of the Buddha’s teachings, as a whole, do not go beyond two kinds: the provisional and the actual teachings. The provisional teaching is spoken for the sake of the actual teaching; and if you speak the provisional teaching in detail, it leads to the actual.

Provisional and actual are non-dual. Students of Buddhism should not discriminate between the Mahayana and the Theravada. When I was in Los Angeles, I [Master Hsuan Hua] said to the Bhikkhus from Thailand, “In the Buddhadharma there were originally no discriminations between Mahayana and Theravada. It’s just that certain disciples who were attached and who didn’t genuinely want to study the Buddhadharma strayed from it, made distinctions between great and small, and became unfilial disciples of the Buddha.” That is the principle discussed in this section.

第三十九章是教人明白这佛经，一切都应该信受，不应该有分别大乘、小乘、顿、渐，或哪部经要紧，哪部经不要紧，生出这么多的分别心来。佛所说的经典总起来说，不超出权实两种，这权教也就是为实所说的，为实才说权教，这权教要是再把它说详细了，就是为的显出那实教来，所以这权实是不二的。学佛法的人不应该分别什么大小乘，所以我 [宣化上人] 在洛杉矶对那个泰国的比丘说：‘本来佛法没有大乘、小乘这么多分别。因为佛教里出一些个执著的弟子，不想真正学佛法，所以就分大、分小，在佛教里做佛的一个不孝顺的弟子，也就是这个道理。’

The fortieth section explains that cultivation of the Way is actually done in our mind, not in external forms. If the mind isn’t absorbed in the Way and we merely pay attention to externals, then we are like an ox turning a millstone. The ox just goes around and around pulling the grinder all day and never getting away from it.

If the mind is concentrated on the Way, what further need is there to practice? If your mind can truly cultivate the Way, if you can cultivate single-mindedly without any false thinking, and if you can constantly be in samadhi, then what need is there to practice? Under those circumstances, it is all right for you not to practice.

That is to say, you have subdued your mind. If you have no more thoughts of sexual desire, then your mind is subdued. If you are continually having false thoughts of sexual desire, then you may put on an impressive front, as if you were an honest person, but inside you will be unreliable, because all that goes on in your mind is false-thinking about sexual matters. No matter how good you look on the outside, it’s of no use.

In cultivating, then, you must pay attention to the mind. If you can tame your mind, you’ll be able to attain the fruition very quickly. If you don’t tame your mind, if you continually think about sex, then you are just like the ox who grinds and grinds on its millstone. The work is very bitter, but the ox cannot escape and get out of the mill.

‘心道若行’：你心里若真能修道的话，你专一修道，在那儿不打妄想，你能常常在这定中，‘何用行道’：那你何用行道？你就是不修道也可以了。

　　这就言其你能把你的心降伏住。你心里若是不打这淫欲的妄想，那是降伏其心了。你若尽打淫欲的妄想，外边虽然装模作样的，好像很老实的一个人，但里边很不老实，心里头尽打这些淫欲的妄想，那就是外边怎么样好，也没有用的。

　　所以修行要注重在这个心，你降伏其心了，那你很快就会证果；你若不降伏其心，尽打这淫欲的妄想，那就像牛推磨似的，在那儿磨来磨去，很辛苦的，但是也跑不了，也出不去这磨坊。

Section  41 A Straight Mind Gets Rid of Desire 直心出欲

The Buddha said, “One who practices the Way is like an ox pulling a heavy load through deep mud. The ox is so extremely exhausted that it dares not glance to the left or right. Only when it gets out of the mud can it rest. The Shramana should regard emotion and desire as being worse than deep mud; and with an undeviating mind, he should be mindful of the Way. Then he can avoid suffering.” 佛言。夫为道者。如牛负重。行深泥中。疲极。不敢左右顾视。出离淤泥。乃可苏息。沙门当观。情欲甚于淤泥。直心念道。可免苦矣。

In the forty-first section, the Buddha tells us to use a straight-forward mind as we cultivate and contemplate the Way. In every thought, we should make it our goal to get out of the mud of emotion and desire. Emotion and desire are mud, and we need to pull ourselves out of it. 第四十一章是佛告诉人，要直心修道，直心思惟道，要以念念想要出离这情欲，作自己的目的。情欲也就是淤泥，要出这淤泥

The forty-second section, the final section, explains that the Buddha regards all dharmas equally, and he breaks through all the attachments of living beings. A hundred years in the human realm is just a day and a night in the Trayastrimsa Heaven. One great eon of this Saha World is just a day and a night in the Land of Ultimate Bliss. So there isn’t anything, ultimately, that is real. Everything is empty and false.

The principle here is to get rid of your attachments to things; you shouldn’t take things so seriously and become so attached to them. To be attached to something is to be unable to put it down; and if you can’t put it down, you won’t be able to accomplish your work in cultivation.

“I look upon the door of expedient means as upon a cluster of jewels created by transformation. I look upon the Unsurpassed Vehicle as upon a dream of gold and riches. I look upon the Buddha Way as upon flowers before my eyes. I look upon Dhyana samadhi as upon the pillar of Mount Sumeru. I look upon Nirvana as upon being awake day and night. I look upon inversion and uprightness as upon six dancing dragons. I look upon impartiality as upon the one true ground. I look upon the flourishing of the teaching as upon a tree blooming during four seasons.”

Everything is just a manifestation of your mind. Things come forth as a revelation of your true mind. So you shouldn’t be deluded by what is false and illusory. All outer appearances are false and illusory. Only your fundamental nature is true. Don’t be attached to the false and forget about the true.

“Expedient means” refers to the Three Vehicles that all Buddhas establish: the Vehicle of Sound-hearers, the Vehicle of Those Enlightened by Conditions, and the Vehicle of the Bodhisattvas. If living beings rely on these dharmas to cultivate, they can certify to the fruition and become Buddhas.These are expedient Dharma-doors; they are provisional and were designed by the Buddha to reveal the actual truth. The Buddha said that they are like a cluster of jewels created by transformation.

The Unsurpassed Vehicle is basically true and actual; and it is also a principle inherent in the self-nature of living beings. It is not outside of living beings’ minds, but is found only within their minds. Thus it is said that perfect Bodhi returns to nothing what-soever; when enlightenment is perfected, there isn’t anything at all. Thus, the Buddha sees the Unsurpassed Vehicle as being like gold and riches in a dream. The gold and riches in the dream are actually false.

All that is said about the Buddha Way is spoken for ordinary people, and if there weren’t any ordinary people, then the Buddha Way wouldn’t be of any use. Thus it is called unconditioned. Unconditioned dharmas neither arise nor are extinguished. They neither come into being nor disappear. They aren’t real and actual; they are unreal, like a vision of flowers in space. Thus the Buddha sees the Buddha Way as being like flowers in space.

这第四十二章，最后说明了佛他平等观察一切诸法，破一切众生的这种执著。我们人间一百年，在忉利天只是一昼夜；这娑婆世界的一个大劫，在极乐世界也只是一昼夜。所以我们一切一切没有什么是真的，都是虚妄的，所以佛看这国王和诸侯的地位，‘如过隙尘’：就好像空隙中的尘那样，它是没有什么价值的，没有什么可执著的，所以说就像过隙尘。

一切一切都是唯心所现，在你自己这个真心里所现出来的，所以你就不要被虚妄所迷住。什么是虚妄呢？这一切外相都是虚妄，唯有你自己的本性那才是真实的，所以人不要执妄迷真，执著这个妄，把真的都忘了。

　　佛说了方便门，这方便门是诸佛所设出来的三乘法门，有声闻、缘觉、菩萨这种的方便法。众生若依这种法修行，就能证果，能成佛。在佛来讲，这方便法就是为实施权，为实法来施这权教。所以佛说像化宝聚似的，是变化的一种宝聚。

　　在这无上乘而言，佛看这无上乘，无上乘本来是真实的，可是啊！也是众生自性里头本具的一种理。没有在众生的心外边，都是在众生的心里边，所以才说‘圆满菩提，归无所得’，菩提圆满了，就什么也没有了。所以说，佛看这无上乘就像梦里头的金帛似的，在梦里头的这些金银，本来都是虚妄的。

The End.

Dedicate Merits:

May the precious bodhicitta 
That has not yet arisen, arise and grow,
And may that which has already arisen not diminish,
But increase more and more.

回向偈：
愿以此功德，庄严佛净土。 
上报四重恩，下济三涂苦。 
若有见闻者，悉发菩提心。 
尽此一报身，同生极乐国。

Namo Fundamental Teacher Shakyamuni Buddha !(three times) 南无本师释迦牟尼佛（三称）

Section Twenty-one teaches that people who seek fame not only don’t benefit from it, but are actually harmed by it. 人顺著他自己的情和欲，就是去追求一个好名誉。等声名成功了，这时候，这身也就快死了。你声名成功了，也就老了；老了就快死了，所以啊，没有什么大意思！贪求世界上这一个普通的、寻常的名誉，也就是平常的名誉。你不去修习道果，这就枉用了功，劳苦了身形。譬如你点著一块香，虽然这人闻著有一股香气，可是那个香烧完了的时候，那火烬啊，或者就会著大了，把身就烧死了。所以说危身之火，很危险的事情在这后边就会发生的。

Section  22 Wealth and Sex Cause Suffering 财色招苦
The Buddha said, “People are unable to renounce wealth and sex. They are just like a child who cannot resist honey on the blade of a knife. Even though the amount is not even enough for a single meal’s serving, he will lick it and risk cutting his tongue in the process.” 佛言：财色于人，人之不舍。譬如刀刃有蜜，不足一餐之美。小儿舐之，则有割舌之患。

They are just like a child who cannot resist honey on the blade of a knife. Even though the amount is not even enough for a single meal’s serving, he will lick it and risk cutting his tongue in the process. There’s a little bit of honey on the sharp edge of the knife, not even enough for one meal’s serving. Seeing the honey on the blade of the knife, a child licks it. Ignorant people who crave wealth and sex are just like the child who craves the honey on the knife and who thus risks cutting his tongue. Therefore, we must certainly see through and put down wealth and sex. Only then can we obtain self-mastery. 财色于人，‘今之不舍’：人人都舍不了这个财和色。好像什么呢？这里举出一个譬喻来，就‘譬如刀刃有蜜’：那刀刃上有一点点的蜜糖。‘不足一餐之美’：不够吃饱一餐的这种美好味道。‘小儿舐之’：这个小儿看见那刀刃上有糖，这糖就是指这个财色。无知的人贪这财色，就好像贪刀刃上的蜜似的，‘则有割舌之患’：就有把舌头割断了这种的危险

Section  23 A Family Is Worse than a Prison 妻子甚狱
The Buddha said, “People are bound to their families and homes to such an extent that these are worse than a prison. Eventually one is released from prison, but people never think of leaving their families. Don’t they fear the control that emotion, love, and sex have over them? Although they are in a tiger’s jaws, their hearts are blissfully oblivious. Because they throw themselves into a swamp and drown, they are known as ordinary people. Pass through the gateway! Get out of the defilement and become an Arhat!” 佛言：人系于妻子舍宅，甚于牢狱。牢狱有散释之期，妻子无远离之念。情爱于色，岂惮驱驰。虽有虎口之患，心存甘伏。投泥自溺，故曰凡夫。透得此门，出尘罗汉。

Don’t they fear the control that emotion, love, and sex have over them? These people have no fear of being controlled by emotion, love, and sex. Although they are in a tiger’s jaws, their hearts are blissfully oblivious. Even though this situation is like being in the jaws of a tiger, you wouldn’t mind being eaten by the tiger.

Because they throw themselves into a swamp and drown, they are known as ordinary people. Because they cast themselves into a swamp and drown themselves, they are called ordinary people. Pass through the gateway! Get out of the defilement and become an Arhat! What gateway? The gateway of emotion and desire, of love and sex, and of attachments to families and homes. Pass through the gateway and you will get out of the defilement; you’ll become an Arhat who leaves the world of defilement. You will be a sage who is about to attain the fruition of Arhatship.

Section  24 Sexual Desire Obstructs the Way 色欲障道
The Buddha said, “Of all longings and desires, there is none as strong as sex. Sexual desire has no equal. Fortunately, it is one of a kind. If there were something else like it, no one in the entire world would be able to cultivate the Way.” 佛言：爱欲莫甚于色，色之为欲，其大无外。赖有一矣，若使二同，普天之人，无能为道者矣。

The Buddha said, “Of all longings and desires, there is none as strong as sex.” Here, “longings and desires” refer to sexual desire, that is, to the mind of lust. There is nothing more powerful than attraction to the opposite sex. Sexual desire has no equal. It is so strong that there is nothing more powerful than this kind of emotional desire.

Fortunately, it is one of a kind. If there were something else like it, no one in the entire world would be able to cultivate the Way. Luckily, sexual desire is unique. If there were something else equal to it, then none of the living beings in the entire world would be able to cultivate the Way. It is difficult enough with just one obstruction like this; two together would simply devour people, and no one would be able to cultivate. Another illustration of this is when women get confused by desire for women, and when men get confused by desire for men. Men and women both engage in homosexual conduct: men have homosexual relationships with men, and women have homosexual relationships with women. It all amounts to being confused by sexual desire.

Therefore, in such a situation it’s better to simply stay away from these things in the first place.

The Buddha said, “What have you skin-bags full of filth come here for?” Now, it makes no difference whether you are speaking of men or women, whether it is handsome men or beautiful women. The meaning is not that only women are so terrible, while men are not. The Buddha said the human body is a skin-bag full of filth. Our skin is compared to a leather bag. What’s stored in the bag? There is little other than excrement and urine inside it. What could possibly be attractive about that?

You may look just on the surface and say, “Oh, that man is extremely handsome.” No matter how handsome he is, he can’t be more handsome than Ananda, who was so good-looking that Matangi’s daughter fell in love with him at first sight. When Matangi’s daughter came before the Buddha, the Buddha asked her what she loved about Ananda. She said, “Oh, his nose is fine, his eyes are beautiful, his ears are well-shaped–all the features on his face are wonderful!”

The Buddha said to her, “All right, if you love his nose, I’ll cut off his nose and give it to you. If you love his ears, I’ll slice them off, and you can have them. If you love his eyes, then I’ll gouge them out, and they’re yours. You can take them back with you.”She said, “No! That would never do!”
Ultimately, what meaning is there in the love between men and women? No matter how perfect a person may be on the surface, inside there are all kinds of filth. Urine and excrement collect inside, and the nine apertures constantly flow with impurities. Matter comes out from the eyes, wax from the ears, mucus from the nose, and saliva from the mouth. Then there is urine and excrement. Which of these substances is pure and clean? So the Buddha called it a stinking skin-bag full of filth.

Section  27 One Attains the Way after Letting Go of Attachments 无著得道
The Buddha said, “A person who follows the Way is like a floating piece of wood that courses along with the current. If it does not touch either shore; if people do not pluck it out; if ghosts and spirits do not intercept it; if it is not trapped in whirlpools; and if it does not rot, I guarantee that the piece of wood will reach the sea. If students of the Way are not deluded by emotion and desire, and if they are not caught up in the many crooked views, but are vigorous in their cultivation of the unconditioned, I guarantee that they will certainly attain the Way.” 佛言：夫为道者，犹木在水，寻流而行。不触两岸，不为人取，不为鬼神所遮，不为洄流所住，亦不腐败，吾保此木决定入海。学道之人，不为情欲所惑，不为众邪所娆，精进无为，吾保此人必得道矣。

Emotion and desire further divide into two kinds:

• (1) the emotion and desire of views and thought and
• (2) the emotion and desire of ignorance.

With the first, you grow attached to birth and death, which is represented by this shore. With the second, you become attached to Nirvana, which is represented by the other shore. Wood that is plucked out by people is analogous to cultivators getting caught in the nets of crooked views. Wood that is intercepted by ghosts and spirits is analogous to cultivators who get covered by the nets of views and thoughts.

People in this situation are likened to rotting wood. They are bound to sink, and they will not reach the other shore of Nirvana. They won’t be able to end birth and death. That’s the result of being confused by emotional desire and caught up in the myriad crooked bypaths of love and views. If one is properly mindful of True Suchness and vigorously cultivates, understands that the fundamental nature of the Dharma is originally unconditioned, and can withstand being turned by emotions and love, then one will certainly attain the Way. That is the general meaning of this section of the text. 第二十七章是说一个譬喻，就是学道的人要远离一切的障碍。什么叫两岸呢？两岸就是情和欲，有见思的情欲，又有无明的情欲。见思的情欲就是执著生死，像此岸一样；无明的情欲就是执著涅槃，也就好像触到彼岸一样的。经文上说，人拿这木头和鬼神取这木头，这是譬喻所有一切邪见的网缠著人，就好像木被人取似的；见思这个网把人盖住了，就好像木被鬼神遮了一样。

The Buddha said, “A person who follows the Way is like a floating piece of wood that courses along with the current.” The Buddha compares a cultivator of the Way to a piece of wood that is carried downstream by the current. If it does not touch either shore. It doesn’t get caught in or obstructed by the rocks along either bank. If it made contact with the two shores, the wood could get stopped. Not touching the two shores, the wood does not get stopped.

Likewise, the cultivator doesn’t get hindered by emotion and desire. If people do not pluck it out–it is not grabbed by people; if ghosts and spirits do not intercept it–nor is it stopped by ghosts or spirits; if it is not trapped in whirlpools–it doesn’t spin around and get stopped; and if it does not rot–nor does it become spoiled or corrupted, I guarantee that the piece of wood will reach the sea. 佛说了，说这修道的人。就像一个木头在水里一样。顺流向下走。不被两岸的石头所触、所障碍。触两岸就是把这木头留下来。没有触两岸就是这木头不会被这两岸所留，不被情爱所留，这木头就好像一个修道人似的。也不会被人拿去。也没有被鬼神遮挡住。也不会被流过去又流回来的这种洄流所停止了。也不会腐烂、败坏。我保证这一个木头，一定会到大海里头去。学道的这个人，不被爱情、物欲圻迷惑。不被一切的无明，一切的懒惰所障碍。精进修这个无为法。我保证这个人，一定会得道的。

In the twenty-eighth section, the Buddha says that the mind is like a horse that is difficult to tame and subdue. Then there is sex. Whether you are male or female, you should stay clear of sex. If you don’t stay away from it, disasters will arise. From countless eons in the past until the present, however, we living beings have let our passions and desires run away with us, and thus we keep turning in the six destinies of samsara. We are unable to realize Arhatship because we are continually caught up in ignorance, views of emotional love, and pride. Therefore, we shouldn’t believe our own thoughts. We cannot be careless and inattentive. We must be careful not to get involved with sex. We must not believe our own minds.

The Buddha said, “Be careful not to believe your own mind.” Don’t listen to the thoughts in your mind; don’t believe the things you’re thinking. You should be extremely careful not to believe your own mind. Your mind is not to be believed. Your mind is unreliable, and cannot be trusted. 佛知道我们人这个‘意’，就好像一匹马似的，难调难伏。还有这个‘色’，无论男色、女色都应该离它远一点。你不离它远一点，就会有祸生。可是我们众生从无量劫以来，就是恣情纵欲，在六道轮回里打转转，不能证得阿罗汉果，就因为常常和无明、爱见，还有慢在一起。因为这样子，我们人就不可以信自己的意念，你不可不小心、不谨慎。你一定要小心、谨慎，不和色会，不要信自己的意。

Section  29
Proper Contemplation Counteracts Sexual Desire 正观敌色

The Buddha said, “Be careful not to look at women, and do not talk with them. If you must speak with them, be properly mindful and think, am a Shramana living in a turbid world. I should be like the lotus flower, which is not stained by the mud.’ Think of elderly women as your mothers, of those who are older than you as your elder sisters, of those who are younger as your younger sisters, and of very young girls as your daughters. Bring forth thoughts to rescue them, and put an end to bad thoughts.” 佛言：慎勿视女色，亦莫共言语。若与语者，正心思念：我为沙门，处于浊世，当如莲华，不为泥污。想其老者如母，长者如姊，少者如妹，稚者如子。生度脱心，息灭恶念。

The twenty-ninth section explains that men should stay far away from women, and that women should stay far away from men to prevent any mistakes from happening. This is using the method of “bringing forth the good and ending the bad” to combat love and desire. So one is said to be like a lotus flower. This analogy can apply to men as well as to women.

Section  30
Stay Far Away from the Fire of Desire 欲火远离

The Buddha said, “People who cultivate the Way are like dry grass: it is essential to keep it away from an oncoming fire. People who cultivate the Way look upon desire as something they must stay far away from.” 佛言：夫为道者，如被干草，火来须避。道人见欲，必当远之。

The thirtieth section tells people to keep at a distance from all thoughts of desire. Don’t be burned by the fire of desire. What’s meant by dry grass? The six emotions and their corresponding six sense organs are like dry grass. The six defiling objects are like a raging fire. Before you have reached the state where both the mind and external states are forgotten, you should cultivate the supreme conduct of keeping your distance.

What’s meant by the forgetting of the mind and external states? Inwardly one contemplates the mind, and there is no mind. There isn’t any mind at all; it’s truly empty. Outwardly one contemplates forms, and there are no forms; nor are there any external states. The mind is empty, the body is empty, and both the mind and external states are forgotten. The eyes see everything, but there is nothing. At that point, you are no longer turned by the six sense organs and the six defiling objects.

Section  31 When the Mind Is Still, Desire Is Dispelled 心寂欲除
The Buddha said, “There was once someone who was plagued by ceaseless sexual desire and wished to castrate himself. The Buddha said to him, ‘To cut off your sexual organ would not be as good as to cut off your mind. Your mind is like a supervisor: if the supervisor stops, his employees will also quit. If the deviant mind is not stopped, what good does it do to cut off the organ?'” The Buddha spoke a verse for him:
   Desire is born from your intentions.
   Intentions are born from thoughts.
   When both aspects of the mind are still,
   There is neither form nor activity. The Buddha said, “This verse was spoken by the  Buddha Kashyapa.” 佛言：有人患淫不止，欲自断阴。佛谓之曰：若断其阴，不如断心。心如功曹，功曹若止，从者都息。邪心不止，断阴何益？佛为说偈：欲生于汝意，意以思想生，二心各寂静，非色亦非行。佛言：此偈是迦叶佛说。

The thirty-first section explains that when people want to stop desire, they should stop it within the mind. If you want to know the method for stopping the mind, you should realize that desire arises from the mind’s intentions and that your intentions are produced from your thoughts.

Now, take a look at your thoughts. Are they produced of them-selves? Are they produced from something else? Are they produced from a combination of both? Or are they produced without any cause? You should also find out whether thoughts are internal, external, or in the middle–between the internal and external. Do they come from the past, the present, or from the future?

When you try to find thoughts in this way, your thoughts also become still and without any substance of their own. Once your thoughts are still, your intentions also become still. Since your intentions are still, your desires also become still. When your desires are still, you will see all forms and dharmas as images in a mirror. Like reflections in a mirror, they are not real. You will see that all activities are like bubbles: they are also false. All Buddhas successively contemplate and transmit these expedient Dharma-doors that enable one to subdue the mind.

Section  32 Emptying out the Self Quells Fear 我空怖灭
The Buddha said, “People worry because of love and desire. That worry then leads to fear. If you transcend love, what worries will there be? What will be left to fear?” 佛言：人从爱欲生忧，从忧生怖。若离于爱，何忧何怖？

From limitless eons in the past up to the present, we have mistaken the four elements for the character-istic features of our body. We have mistaken the conditioned perceptions of the six defiling objects for the characteristics of our mind. As a result, we have become attached to the body and its senses; we crave its pleasures, and we don’t want to let them go.

Because of this, every kind of difficulty arises. Once difficulties arise, then many worries and afflictions arise, and we fall prey to anxiety and fear. You should contemplate the four elements: know that the body is a combination of the four elements and that fundamentally there is no self. Next, contemplate the conditioned perceptions of the six defiling objects as empty and non-existent, and recognize that the mind is impermanent. Finally, if you can cut off thoughts of love and desire, then all your worries and fears will naturally disappear. 我们人从无始劫以来到现在，妄认这四大为自己的身相；妄认这六尘缘影为自己的心相。所以就执著贪恋，不愿意把它放下。因为这样，所以就有种种的麻烦生出来。这种种麻烦生出来了，就有很多的忧愁、烦恼，也就生了种种的恐怖。你若能观察这四大，你能知道这身是四大和合而成，本来没有一个我；你再观寂这六尘缘影也是空的，没有的；你知道这心是无常的；你能把爱欲心先要断了；你这忧怖也自然就都没有了。

To be continued ……..

Dedicate Merits:

May the precious bodhicitta 
That has not yet arisen, arise and grow,
And may that which has already arisen not diminish,
But increase more and more.

回向偈：
愿以此功德，庄严佛净土。 
上报四重恩，下济三涂苦。 
若有见闻者，悉发菩提心。 
尽此一报身，同生极乐国。