Master Yuanyin: Lecture Delivered in Hangzhou on March 27, 1995 | 1995-03-27 | Download | First Edition
| 学佛第一要知见正，我们学佛为的什么？先把目标订正，然后再计划怎样下手，学些什么，怎么来修行，庶几能证得个预期的结果。古德说：“因地不正，果招迂曲。 | The very first priority in Buddhist practice is to establish the right view. Why do we study Buddhism? We must first establish a correct goal, then plan how to begin, what to learn, and how to cultivate. Only then can we hope to realize the intended result. As the ancient masters said: "If the ground of the cause is not upright, the resulting fruit will be distorted." |
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| ”就是学佛初步的因——“为什么来学佛”先要搞清楚，不清楚，将来结果就不得圆满，非但修行时要走弯路，还有误入歧途的危险。所以知见正是学佛的第一要事。 | This means the initial "cause" of your practice—the "why" behind your decision to follow the Buddha—must be clarified first. If it is not clear, the final result will not be perfect. Not only will you take detours during your cultivation, but you also risk falling into dangerous, misled paths. Therefore, Right View is the most essential matter in practicing Buddhism. |
| 我们上次已经讲了很多，怎样修行能明心见性，见性之后怎样保护，进一步怎么放任。但是，大家对这点还是不甚理解，所以有人给不修正法的人说些相似神奇的话，一拉就拉过去了。 | Last time, we discussed at length how to practice in order to awaken to the mind and see one's true nature, how to protect and preserve the realization after seeing one's true nature, and how, at a further stage, to let it function freely. Yet many still do not fully understand this. Consequently, when people who do not practice the true Dharma speak of seemingly miraculous or supernatural things, others are easily drawn away. |
| 现在这个时代，魔法横行，不知道有多少邪恶的人使用种种花样来骗人，榨取钱财，引人入邪路。所以知见第一要正，免得上当受骗，非常重要。今天我们还是要再讲知见正的重要。 | In this modern age, "demonic" influences are rampant. Countless malevolent individuals use various tricks to deceive people, extort money, and lead them down wicked paths. Thus, it is critical that your view is first made upright to avoid being cheated or deceived. Today, we must once again emphasize the vital importance of Right View. |
| 就知见讲来，有很多不同的知见，今天我们就藉《禅》刊这篇文章——《禅和密的关系》，扼要地和大家讲一讲：禅宗与密宗的见地如何，修的方法是否相同，证的结果是不是一样。 | Speaking of views, there are many different types. Today, we will use this article from Chan magazine—"The Relationship Between Chan and Esoteric Buddhism"—to explain them to everyone in a brief and concise manner: what the views of Chan and Esoteric Buddhism are, whether their methods of practice are the same, and whether the results of their realization are identical. |
| 在佛法五种知见外有一种凡夫见，凡夫见就是着一切事物都是实有，一切东西都实实在在有。所以向外追取、求得、贪得无厌，因而造业受报，生死不了，这是凡夫知见。我们学佛就要把这个知见去掉。 | Beyond the five types of Buddhist views, there is another known as the 'ordinary person's view' (mundane view). The ordinary person's view clings to the idea that all phenomena are substantially real—that everything exists in a concrete, solid way. Consequently, people pursue and grasp at external things, driven by insatiable greed; because of this, they create karma, undergo its retributive effects, and remain trapped in the endless cycle of birth and death. This is the view of ordinary worldly people. In studying Buddhism, this is precisely the view we must eliminate. |
| 在佛法讲来，有五种知见： | According to the Buddhadharma, there are five types of views: |
| 第一种是人天见。知道有因果，要做好事，不做坏事，帮助别人，牺牲自己。但是不知道怎么学佛，不知道怎么修法。这个就是人天乘。它能够保持人身不失，还可以升天，在天道享福。 | The first is the Human and Deva Vehicle (the Human-Heavenly Vehicle). Practitioners of this vehicle understand the law of cause and effect (karma); they strive to do good deeds, avoid doing bad deeds, help others, and sacrifice themselves. However, they do not know how to practice the Buddha Dharma, nor do they know how to cultivate the path. This is precisely the Vehicle of Humans and Devas. It can enable one to maintain their human birth without losing it, or even to ascend to heaven to enjoy blessings in the heavenly realm. |
| 第二种是罗汉见。他们也知道因果，但是偏空了，不知道妙有。假如一切都空无所有，还成什么世界？还要修什么佛法？佛教讲的不是空无所有的空，而是无可取、不可得的空，是妙有真空，不是偏空。 | The second type is the Arhat view (the Arhat perspective). They also understand cause and effect, but they lean toward biased emptiness and fail to realize 'wondrous existence'. If everything were utterly blank and nonexistent, how could any world be established? Why would there be any need to practice Buddhadharma? The emptiness taught in Buddhism is not a vacuum of nothingness; rather, it means that phenomena are ungraspable and unobtainable. It istrue emptiness and wondrous existence, not a biased, dead emptiness. |
| 所谓空者，是指佛性无相可见，看不见，摸不着，所以是空。但是它不是空无所有，它有灵性在，一切作用都是它起的。我们能看见东西、听见声音、工作、走路等等，都是佛性所起的作用，一切色相都是佛性所显现的幻相。 | What we call 'empty' means that Buddha-nature has no physical form to be seen—it cannot be seen or touched, and thus it is empty. Yet, it is not completely nonexistent; its spiritual nature is present, and all activities are initiated by it. Our ability to see objects, hear sounds, work, walk, and so forth, are all functions arising from Buddha-nature. All phenomenal forms are illusory appearances manifested by Buddha-nature. |
| 我们的身体、眼睛、耳朵等失去佛性就不能起作用，同样宇宙万有离开佛性也无从显现。 | If our body, eyes, ears, and so forth were without the Buddha-nature, they could not function. Likewise, apart from the Buddha-nature, all phenomena in the universe could not manifest. |
| 譬如我们一口气不来了，这个身体就像木头一样没有知觉了，眼睛不能看，耳朵不能听，嘴巴不能讲，手足不能动，大脑不能思维，世界也就无从建设了。 | For instance, once our breath stops and this body becomes like a piece of wood, it loses all consciousness. The eyes can no longer see, the ears cannot hear, the mouth cannot speak, the limbs cannot move, and the brain cannot think—the construction of the world would be impossible. |
| 所以现在能讲、能看、能闻、能做都是佛性的功能，所以它是妙有真空，不是偏空。二乘不知此理，只空人我，即只知这个身体不可得，所以能了分段生死，反过来执法相，认为法我是有的。法我就是认佛性的地水火风四大种性为我，认为有法可修，有菩提可证，有生死可了。所以二乘是偏空而不知妙有，着在法上，这就是偏空智。 | Therefore, our current capacity to speak, see, hear, and act is entirely the functioning of Buddha-nature. Thus, this is true emptiness and wondrous existence, not a biased emptiness. Practitioners of the Two Vehicles do not understand this principle. They only empty the 'self of persons', meaning they only know that this physical body is unobtainable. While this allows them to end segmented birth and death, they turn around and cling to the reality of phenomena, believing that the 'self of phenomena' actually exists. Clinging to the 'self of phenomena' means misidentifying the four great elements (earth, water, fire, wind) within Buddha-nature as the self, believing that there is a concrete Dharma to practice, a Bodhi to attain, and a birth-and-death to end. Therefore, the Two Vehicles dwell in biased emptiness without knowing wondrous existence, becoming attached to the Dharma itself. This is what is known as 'biased empty wisdom'. |
| 第三种是外道见。是带异计而修者。所谓异计，就是执断执常。有的说，人死了之后一定是有的，有的是冥谛，像木头一样，不知道了，那不对；有的说没有，死了就完了。所以就争论。计常，就是常有；计断，就是没有。所以外道见就是心外取法带异计而修。 | The third type is the heterodox view. It refers to those who cultivate spiritual practice while carrying heterodox misconceptions. These so-called misconceptions primarily manifest as clinging to eternalism or clinging to nihilism. Some claim that after a person dies, something must concretely remain—such as a primal dark principle that becomes inert like wood, devoid of awareness. That is incorrect. Others claim that nothing remains—that once you die, it is completely over. Thus, they argue endlessly. Concluding that things are 'eternal' means believing they exist forever; concluding that things are 'nihilistic' means believing they become entirely nonexistent. Therefore, the heterodox view consists of seeking the Dharma outside the mind and practicing while holding onto these skewed misconceptions. |
| 第四种是菩萨知见。就是依深明因果和我法二空之理修行者，就是知道人我不可得，法我也不可得。如上所说，法我是我们佛性中最根本的元素，即地、水、火、风四大种性。 | The fourth type is the Bodhisattva view. This belongs to those who cultivate their spiritual practice based on a deep understanding of the law of cause and effect, as well as the principle of the 'twofold emptiness of self and phenomena'. This means recognizing that both the 'self of persons' and the 'self of phenomena' are unobtainable. As mentioned previously, the 'self of phenomena' refers to the most fundamental elements within our Buddha-nature—namely, the elemental seeds of earth, water, fire, and wind. |
| 种性就像稻种、麦种，种下去可以长出稻子、麦子来一样。我们的世界和一切东西都是由佛性四大种性地水火风生成的。假如执牢这个种性是真实的我，还是执着，法我不空，不能成道。 | These seeds are just like rice seeds or wheat seeds, which grow into rice or wheat once planted. Our world and all existing things are generated by these four elemental seeds of earth, water, fire, and wind within Buddha-nature. However, if you tightly cling to these elemental seeds as a concrete real self, you are still harbouring attachment; the self of phenomena is not yet emptied, and you cannot attain the Way. |
| 须进一步达我法二空，就是人们的身体及一切现象不可得，本性的地水火风四大种性也不可得。才能了两种生死而成道。一着相即有一个东西梗在你心中了，就遮蔽了心光，不能圆明朗照了。所以这个也要空掉，才能真正成佛，这就是菩萨知见。 | One must go a step further to realize the twofold emptiness of self and phenomena: knowing that not only are human bodies and all conventional phenomena unobtainable, but even the four elemental seeds of earth, water, fire, and wind within our Buddha-nature are entirely unobtainable. Only by doing so can one terminate both types of birth and death and attain the Way. The moment you attach to any form, a concrete thing becomes blocked in your mind, obscuring the light of your mind and preventing it from shining with perfect, radiant clarity. Therefore, even this must be completely emptied to truly attain Buddhahood. This is precisely the Bodhisattva view. |
| 第五种是佛知见。若能明白我们自己就是佛，一切众生都是佛，不仅我一个人是佛，大家都是佛，以这种知见来修法，就是佛知见。 | The fifth type is the Buddha view. If you can clearly understand that you yourself are a Buddha, and that all sentient beings are Buddhas—not just myself alone, but everyone is a Buddha—and you cultivate the Dharma with this understanding, that is the Buddha view. |
| 我们学佛、修法第一要树立这种佛知见，认清我们大家都和佛一样具有无漏智性，本来清净，原无烦恼。此心是佛，不是用个什么法修成佛。 | In our study of Buddhism and practice of the Dharma, the very first priority is to establish this Buddha view: to recognize clearly that we all possess undefiled wisdom-nature as the Buddhas, which is inherently pure and originally free from defilements. This very mind is the Buddha; Buddhahood is not attained through cultivating some external method. |
| 只因为我们不明白，看外面东西以为是真的，就像凡夫知见一样的，认为外面一切东西都是实实在在地有，贪得无厌地追求。如果我们明白大家都具有佛性，不迷于外相，一切放下，返本还原，就成佛了。 | The only reason we suffer is that we do not understand this. We look at external things and mistake them for real, just like those holding the ordinary person's view, believing that everything outside exists in a solid, concrete way, and chasing after them with insatiable greed. If we understand that we all possess Buddha-nature, refuse to be deluded by external appearances, lay everything down, and return to our original nature, we attain Buddhahood. |
| 佛不是修成的，是本来现成的，所以叫作本性天真佛，本来如此。只是我们迷于外相，走错了路，贪取无厌，造业受报，才落到六道轮回，生死不了。 | Buddha is not something attained through cultivation; Buddha is originally complete and ever-present. This is why it is called the innately pure Buddha of our original nature—it has always been so. It is merely because we are deluded by external appearances that we have taken the wrong path. Grasping and coveting without satiety, we create karma and undergo its retributive effects, thereby falling into the cyclic existence of the six realms, with no end to birth and death. |
| 佛看我们可怜，一切众生都有佛性却不知道，在这里浑浑噩噩造业受报，枉受生死轮回之苦，因而出世现身说法。叫我们大家梦醒，不要执着。我们能放下就成佛，所以很快、很便当，不是没有希望。大家不要疑惑：“唉呀，我没有希望啊，我们的业障重啊，不能成佛啊。”那是错误见解。所以第一要知见正。 | The Buddha saw that we are to be pitied: although all sentient beings possess the Buddha-nature, they are completely unaware of it. Living muddle-headedly, they create karma and undergo its retributive effects, needlessly enduring the bitter suffering of cyclic birth and death. It was precisely for this reason that the Buddha appeared in the world and manifested his physical form to preach the Dharma. He calls upon us all to wake up from the dream and stop clinging. If we can simply let go, we achieve Buddhahood; thus, it is incredibly fast and convenient, not an impossible hope. You must not harbour doubts, thinking: 'Oh, there is no hope for me, my karmic obstacles are too heavy, I cannot become a Buddha.' That is an erroneous view. Therefore, the absolute priority is to ensure your view is correct. |
| 显教里面这么讲，密教里也这么讲。它也说几个知见。 | Exoteric Buddhism teaches it this way, and Esoteric Buddhism teaches it this way as well. It also speaks of several different types of views. |
| 第一个是凡夫知见。认为一切都有，执着不舍不放。 | The first is the ordinary person's view (mundane view). They believe that everything exists in a solid, concrete way, clinging to phenomena tightly without letting go or releasing their attachments. |
| 第二是外道见。计断计常，就是执着。计常者，就是有个东西可得，我有阳神，这个是永远存在的。它不知道这个阳神也是我们第七识所生起的，还是假象，不是我们的天真佛性，所以这个阳神还是有寿限的。 | The second is the heterodox view. Speculating on eternalism or nihilism is a form of attachment. Those who speculate on eternalism believe there is a concrete entity to be obtained, such as possessing a 'yang spirit' that will exist forever. What they fail to realize is that this yang spirit is actually generated by our seventh consciousness (the Manas consciousness); it is still an illusion and is not our natural Buddha-nature. Therefore, this yang spirit still has a limited lifespan. |
| 从前吕纯阳祖师见黄龙禅师，他以为自己炼成阳神永远不死了，没想到黄龙禅师说，你“纵饶百万劫，依旧落空亡”。顶多你活得比常人时间长，但是百万劫之后你还是归于无有。 | In the past, when the Taoist Patriarch Lü Chunyang met Chan Master Huanglong, Lü believed he had cultivated a yang spirit and would never die. To his surprise, Chan Master Huanglong told him: “Even if you endure for millions of eons, in the end, you will still fall into the great void.” At most, you may live much longer than ordinary people, but after a million eons, you will still return to nothingness. |
| 因为有生必有灭，没有灭哪有生，这是辩证法，既然已经生出来了，将来必定要灭亡。而我们的佛性呢，是本来天真，不生不灭，不是什么时候生出来的，所以说无始以来，本来就是如此。 | Because whatever has a birth must have a death—without death, how could there be birth? This is dialectics; since it has already been born into existence, it must inevitably perish in the future. Our Buddha-nature, however, is inherently natural, unborn and undying. It was never born at any specific moment; therefore, we say that since time immemorial, it has always been exactly like this. |
| 第三种是声闻见，即罗汉见。就是说偏空之理，不知道佛性之妙有。 | The third type is the Sravaka view, which is the Arhat view. That is to say, they speak of the principle of biased emptiness and fail to realize the wondrous existence of Buddha-nature. |
| 第四种是唯识见。唯识是什么，就是我们中国的法相宗，就是玄奘法师到印度取经取来的《成唯识论》，是法相宗最要紧的一部经论。其中讲三种性，一是遍计所执性，二是依他起性，三是圆成实性。 | The fourth is the Consciousness-Only view. What is Consciousness-Only? It is the Dharma Characteristics School (Faxiang School) of China. The Cheng Weishi Lun (Treatise on the Establishment of Consciousness-Only), brought back from India by Master Xuanzang after his pilgrimage for scriptures, is the most vital scriptural treatise of the Dharma-Character School. It teaches the Three Natures: first, the nature of pervasive discrimination and attachment; second, the nature of dependence on others; and third, the nature of absolute reality and perfection. |
| 什么是依他起呢？就是一切事物皆是依靠别的东西而生起的。譬如这个杯子，本来没有，是瓷土放到窑里面去烧，烧成杯子。桌子本来也没有，是木头做成的。 | What is the dependent nature? It means that all things and phenomena arise by depending on other factors. For example, this cup did not originally exist; it was porcelain clay placed into a kiln and fired to become a cup. This table did not originally exist either; it was crafted from wood. |
| 佛经里叫做因缘所生，就是关系条件聚合起来而生的，所以叫做依他起性。从依他起性来看，一切东西都没有自体，都是依靠别的东西合起来的。东西既然本来没有，就不着相了，就进到圆成实性，就见到本性了。 | In Buddhist scriptures, this is called 'arising from causes and conditions' —meaning things are born from the convergence of relationships and conditions. This is why it is called the dependent nature. Looking from the perspective of the dependent nature, nothing possesses an independent, intrinsic self-entity; everything relies on other elements coming together. Since things fundamentally do not exist on their own, one stops attaching to forms, advances into the perfected nature, and beholds their original nature. Conversely, if you attach to forms, fail to recognize the illusion of dependent arising, and chase after these things believing they are substantially real, that is nature of pervasive discrimination and attachment. |
| 假使着相，不知依他起的假相，认为这一切都是实有，去追求，那就是遍计所执性。就是普遍执牢，认为实有，这就是妄想。所以第一种是妄见，第二种就是知道一切东西本来没有实体，都是虚幻不实的，不执着。不执着就是放下，就证到本性——圆成实性了。 | This means universally and tightly clinging to things as real, which is sheer delusion. Therefore, the first state is a deluded view, while the second state is recognizing that all things fundamentally lack a solid reality and are illusory and unreal, thereby remaining unattached. Non-attachment is letting go; by letting go, one realizes their original nature—the perfected nature. |
| 第五种是中观见。就是一切东西本来没有，是真空妙有，缘起性空，一切事物都是关系条件结合起来而有，本体是无有的。 | The fifth type is the Madhyamaka View, or Middle Way View. It teaches that all phenomena are originally devoid of inherent existence: this is true emptiness and wondrous existence, conditioned arising and emptiness. All things arise through the convergence of causes and conditions; in themselves, they possess no fixed essence. |
| 第六种是俱生知见。即一切众生都有佛性，都是佛。不要藐视自己，认为我是薄地凡夫，不是佛，有卑劣之见。要大胆承当，我就是佛。 | The sixth type is the Innate View. This means that all sentient beings possess Buddha-nature, and all are Buddhas. Do not look down upon yourself, harbor feelings of inferiority, or think, 'I am just an ordinary unenlightened being, not a Buddha.' You must boldly take responsibility and declare: 'I am a Buddha.' Because you can shoulder this responsibility and know that you are a Buddha, your conduct must align with the level of a Buddha. |
| 因为承当得起，我是佛，所以我的行为就要符合佛的等级，真能一切放得下，妙用起得起，坦坦荡荡，潇洒自在。所以我们承认是佛就要有妙行来相继相应，把我们从前所有的执着恶习都消光，恢复我们的本性，这就是我们的大智慧。 | You must truly be able to lay everything down, allow the wondrous function to arise freely, and live with complete openness, ease, and spontaneous freedom. Therefore, our recognition that we are Buddhas must be continuously sustained by and aligned with wondrous conduct—wiping out all our past attachments and bad habits to fully restore our original nature. This is precisely our Great Wisdom. |
| 最后一种就是大圆满知见。大圆满知见就是所有一切妙有就是我的性所显现，性就是相，相就是性，性相不二。即空即有，有就是空，空就是有，一切有都是我的妙性显现。 | The final type is the Great Perfection view (the Dzogchen perspective). The Great Perfection view dictates that all 'wondrous existence' is the manifestation of my own Buddha nature; nature is appearance, and appearance is nature—nature and appearance are non-dual. It is simultaneously empty and existing; existence is emptiness, and emptiness is existence—every form of existence is the manifestation of my wondrous nature. |
| 所以不是在相之外去见性，也不是在性之外取相，相都是我们的妙性所显现的。譬如造房子，造房前先要工程师设计图样，设计图样的时候要通过大脑，要思维怎么样建造，算好要多少材料，这一切都要经过大脑。 | Therefore, one does not see the nature outside of appearance, nor does one grasp appearance outside of the nature; all appearances are manifested by our wondrous nature. For example, when building a house, an engineer must first design the blueprints. While designing the blueprints, they must use their brain to think about how to construct it and calculate how much material is required; all of this must process through the brain. |
| 大脑的功用怎么起来的？就是靠我们的佛性起作用。一个人心脏不跳已经死了，而大脑没坏，这大脑为什么不能起作用呢？是因为佛性离开身体了，它就不起作用了。 | But how is the brain's function activated in the first place? It relies entirely on our Buddha-nature to function. If a person's heart stops beating and they have died, but the brain remains physically undamaged, why can the brain no longer function? It is because Buddha-nature has departed from the body, so it ceases to operate. |
| 就像电灯，电网电线拉好之后，没通电，电灯就不亮，通电之后电灯才亮起来。佛性等于是电，所有这一切作用都是佛性的作用，一切相都是佛性所创造、所显现、所看见的。 | This is just like an electric lamp: after the power grid and wiring are fully installed, if the electricity is not turned on, the lamp will not light up; it only shines once the electricity flows through it. Buddha-nature is equivalent to that electricity. All of these functions are the functions of Buddha-nature, and all appearances are created, manifested, and perceived by Buddha-nature. |
| 所以一切相就是我自己，我就是一切相，这就是大圆满知见。即有即空，非空而非有，非有而非空。你说空，明明有三千大千世界，森罗万象；你说有，一切相都不可得，都是镜子里的影子。 | Therefore, all appearances are myself, and I am all appearances—this is precisely the Great Perfection view. It is simultaneously existing and empty; it is neither empty nor existing, yet it is neither non-existing nor non-empty. If you say it is empty, there clearly exist the great trichiliocosm and its myriad phenomena; if you say it exists, all appearances are utterly unobtainable, being nothing more than reflections in a mirror. |
| 因为我们的佛性就是大圆镜智，朗照大千十方世界。因此，有佛性就有一切相，这些相就是我们心的妙用，性的显现。佛性本身无相可见，但它能现一切，所以相就是我们的本性。这是大圆满知见。 | For our Buddha-nature is itself the 'Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom', brilliantly illuminating the ten directions of the great cosmos. Consequently, where there is Buddha-nature, there are all appearances; these appearances are the wondrous function of our mind and the manifestation of our Buddha-nature. Buddha-nature itself has no physical form to be seen, yet it can manifest everything. Therefore, appearance is our original nature. This is the Great Perfection view. |
| 我们现在把知见立正，知道我们不是空无所有。禅宗说要知道妙有，是指我们的佛性是有的。佛性虽然无相可见，但它能起一切妙用，现一切假象。认识这个假象就是我的性所显现的，不去执着这个假象，这样用功就快了。 | Now, we must establish our view correctly and recognize that we are not a blank vacuum of nothingness. The Chan school states that we must know 'wondrous existence', which points to the fact that our Buddha-nature is inherently present. Although Buddha-nature has no physical form to be seen, it can initiate all wondrous functions and manifest all temporary, illusory appearances. Once we recognize that these illusory appearances are simply the reflections of our own nature, and we refuse to cling to them, our spiritual practice will progress rapidly. |
| 因为既不着空又不著有，就可以证道了，所以知见第一要正。不是空得什么都没有，偏到空里去了，把什么都丢光了，那又错误了。 | Because we cling neither to emptiness nor to existence, we can attain the Way; thus, ensuring the view is correct is the absolute first priority. It is not about emptying things out until nothing remains, leaning into a dead emptiness, and discarding absolutely everything—that is another grave mistake. |
| 从前希腊的大哲学家苏格拉底，研究哲学，也发现一切都不可得，所以大智慧的人都知道事相是空不可得。但他偏空了，不知道妙有，所有东西都不要了。 | In ancient Greece, the great philosopher Socrates investigated philosophy and also discovered that all things are unobtainable; thus, people of great wisdom all recognize that phenomenal appearances are empty and unobtainable. However, he fell into a biased emptiness and did not know wondrous existence, so he rejected all physical possessions. |
| 晚上在阴沟洞里睡觉，房子也不要了，裤袋上挂一个杯子，到河里舀点水喝。一天看到小孩子在外面玩，两个手捧水喝，他看到了，哦，杯子也不用了，把杯子也丢掉了，喝水用手捧着喝。太偏空了。 | He would sleep in open drainage ditches at night, having abandoned housing altogether, and carried nothing but a single cup tied to his belt to scoop water from the river to drink. One day, he saw a child playing outside who was scooping up water with both hands to drink. Upon seeing this, he realized, 'Oh, even the cup is unnecessary,' and he threw the cup away, using only his cupped hands to drink. That is far too biased toward emptiness. |
| 所以外道见不是计常就是执断。现在很多做气功的人都是执有，执著有气，在精气神上著有、着常见，而不知道这是假象，不是真的。这个精气神，外道说是三宝，其实根本在我们的佛性上，没有佛性就生不起精气神，精气神就是我们的佛性所发起的。所以要认识根本。 | Therefore, heterodox views consist of either speculating on eternalism or clinging to nihilism. Today, many Qigong practitioners cling to existence; they are attached to the presence of Qi, becoming stuck on form and eternalist views regarding Essence, Qi, and Spirit, completely unaware that these are merely temporary, illusory phenomena rather than the ultimate reality. Heterodox paths call Essence, Qi, and Spirit the 'Three Treasures,' but their fundamental source actually lies within our Buddha-nature. Without Buddha-nature, Essence, Qi, and Spirit could never arise; they are generated entirely by our Buddha-nature. Therefore, we must recognize the root. |
| 我们学佛，第一要把知见立正。我们的佛性是非空非有，你说有，它无相可得，你说空，它有妙用，显现一切相，起一切作用，它能说能听，能做事能走路。 | In our study and practice of Buddhism, the very first priority is to establish our view correctly. Our Buddha-nature is neither empty nor existing. If you say it exists, it possesses no physical form to be grasped; if you say it is empty, it possesses a wondrous function that manifests all appearances and initiates all activities—it can speak, hear, work, and walk. |
| 非空非有，两面不着，中间也不立，两面没有就没有中间了，有两面就有中间。以这种知见学佛，就自然能证到圆满的结果，就成佛。 | It is neither empty nor existing; it clings to neither side, nor does it establish a middle ground. If there are no two sides, there is no middle ground to speak of; a middle only exists when there are two sides. If you study Buddhism with this insight, you will naturally realize the perfect result and achieve Buddhahood. Therefore, the correct view is extraordinarily important. |
| 所以知见非常重要，今天再与诸位把知见提一提，认识这个真正的知见，不要偏空，认为一切都没有。更不能执有，认为一切都是有，赶快去追求，贪得无厌，这样更不对。 | Today, I am raising this point regarding the correct view once more with all of you, so that you may recognize the true perspective. Do not lean into a dead emptiness and believe that absolutely nothing exists. Even less should you cling to existence, believing that everything is solidly real, chasing after things with insatiable greed—that is even more incorrect. |
| 所以我们既不偏空，又不著有，一切事随缘应用，今天有多少就受用多少，不去和别人攀比。我们的大错误就是和人比较。唉呀，别人有花园洋房了，我没有，我想办法弄个花园洋房。人家进出有轿车，我没有，我也想办法弄。 | Therefore, we neither lean toward emptiness nor cling to existence. In all affairs, we respond to conditions and apply the mind accordingly; whatever we have today, we accept and utilize to that extent, without comparing ourselves to others. Our greatest mistake is comparing ourselves to others. People think, 'Ah, others have garden villas and I don't; I must find a way to get a garden villa.' Or, 'Others travel in luxury cars and I don't; |
| 弄不到就不惜做坏事，杀人放火都来了，所以造业受报了。我们明白这个道理，一切随缘，有就用，没有也不去求。一切都是假象，各人有各人的因缘，因为我们每人所造的事业都不同。 | I must find a way to get one too.' When they cannot obtain these things through normal means, they do not hesitate to commit evil deeds, even resorting to murder and arson, thereby creating karma and undergoing retribution. If we understand this principle, we will follow conditions in all things—if it is there, it is there; if it is not, we do not forcefully seek it. Everything is a temporary, illusory appearance. Each person has his own karmic causes and conditions, because the deeds and karma created by each individual are not the same. |
| 像现在各人所做的工作事业都不同，所造事业不同，所得结果当然不同。有的人收入很多，他的受用比较好一些，有的人收入很少，受用就比较差一些，不可能拉平。什么缘故？因为过去世造业不同。 | Just as people pursue different occupations and endeavours, the karma they create differs, and therefore the fruits they reap inevitably differ as well. Some people have high incomes, so their material enjoyment is slightly better; some people have low incomes, so their enjoyment is slightly lesser—it is impossible to equalize everyone. What is the reason? It is because the karma created in past lives was different. |
| 过去世是因，这一世是果，过去造的因不同，这世受的果也不同了，这世我们又做事又造业了，我们往往要满足自己的欲望，欺负别人，打倒别人，自己可以往上窜，做坏事了。 | The past life is the cause, and this life is the fruit. Because the causes created in the past were different, the fruits experienced in this life are also different. In this life, we work and create karma all over again; often, to satisfy our own desires, we bully others or tear them down just so we can climb higher, thereby doing evil deeds. |
| 所以做事业当中，有时做好事，有时做坏事，人就是善恶夹着的。假如没有恶就升天了，就不在人道里了。 | Therefore, in the course of one's activities and undertakings, there are times when one does good and times when one does wrong; human beings are a mixture of good and evil. If a being had no evil whatsoever, they would ascend to the heavens and would not be born in the human realm. |
| 六道轮回，有善有恶的入人道，纯善无恶的升天，纯恶的贪嗔痴俱全的下地狱，嗔心特别重的入修罗道，贪心特别重的入饿鬼道，愚痴特别重的入畜生道。一切唯心造，都是自己创造的，自作自受，不是由谁来支配的。 | Within the Six Realms of Samsara, those with a mixture of good and evil enter the human realm; those with pure goodness and no evil ascend to the heavens; and those with pure evil—fully beset by greed, anger, and ignorance—descend into the hells. Those with particularly heavy anger enter the Asura realm; those with particularly heavy greed enter the Hungry Ghost realm; and those with particularly heavy ignorance enter the Animal realm. Everything is created solely by the mind; it is all of your own making, and you must bear your own consequences—it is not governed or dictated by anyone else. |
| 学佛成道，这是我们的大福德。芸芸众生，能有多少人信佛？很少。信佛的人比不信佛的人已经少了，但真正信的、深信因果的有多少呢？更少。 | To learn the Buddha Dharma and realize the Path is a great blessing and a great store of merit. Among the countless multitude of sentient beings, how many actually believe in Buddhism? Very few. The number of people who believein Buddhism is already small compared to those who do not; but among those who do claim to believe, how many truly believe and deeply understand the law of cause and effect? Fewer still. |
| 许多信佛的都是在烧烧香，拜拜佛，求佛加被，获取福报，这样的信佛不算是真信佛。要明白自己是佛，要明白一切众生都是佛，从而用功，把自己执着贪嗔痴的妄心、妄想、妄念消光，圆成佛道，才是真信佛。 | Many who claim to believe in Buddhism merely burn incense, bow to statues, and pray for the Buddha’s blessings to gain worldly rewards. This kind of belief cannot be considered true faith in Buddhism. True faith requires understanding that you yourself are a Buddha and that all sentient beings are Buddhas. Driven by this realization, one puts in the spiritual effort to completely wipe out the deluded mind, deluded thoughts, and deluded notions rooted in the attachment of greed, anger, and ignorance, thereby perfectly completing the Buddha Path. |
| 所以我们现在真信佛，是不可限量的大福德，这样才能出六道轮回。今天大家来学佛，来修道，这是大福德，所以要把大家指引到正路上去。就是认识到我们都是佛，众生都是佛，只要我们放下，就能够成佛，所以非常重要。 | Therefore, our current genuine faith in Buddhism represents an immeasurable, boundless store of blessings and virtue—this is the only way to escape the Six Realms of Samsara. For everyone here today to come together to study Buddhism and cultivate the Way is an immense blessing. Thus, it is vital to guide everyone onto the correct path: which is to recognize that we are all Buddhas, all sentient beings are Buddhas, and as long as we simply let go, we can attain Buddhahood. This is of paramount importance. |
| 讲到我们修法，我们现在传的是心中心法，心中心法是密宗里的上乘佛法。上次我们也讲过，密部里有九乘次第，有外三乘，内三乘，密三乘。 | Speaking of our practice, what we now transmit is the Heart-of-Heart Dharma, a supreme teaching within Esoteric Buddhism. As we mentioned last time, Esoteric Buddhism presents a sequence of nine vehicles: three outer vehicles, three inner vehicles, and three secret vehicles. |
| 这心中心法属于密三乘中顶尖的法，即最后一个无比相应大圆满法，就是与红教的大圆满相应的法。诸位可能有疑问，大圆满是红教中最高的佛法，而心中心不属于红教的大圆满，怎么会相应呢？现在来解释一下。 | The Heart-of-Heart Dharma belongs to the highest level of the three secret vehicles—the final, unexcelled Great Perfection teaching with which it accords, corresponding to the Dzogchen of the Nyingma (Red) School. You may wonder: Dzogchen is the highest teaching of the Nyingma School, yet the Heart-of-Heart Dharma itself does not belong to the Nyingma Dzogchen tradition. How, then, can they correspond? Let us explain. |
| 红教大圆满法分二部，一部是“彻却”，汉文译义就是“立断”，妄念一起当下就把它斩断，不随之流浪，使真心现前；后一部是“脱嘎”，译文为“顿超”，修之能超出三界，了断生死轮回。心中心法修的就是立断顿超。 | Nyingma Dzogchen has two parts. One is Trekchö ("cutting through"): the moment a deluded thought arises, cut it off at once, do not wander after it, and let the true mind appear. The other is Tögal ("direct crossing" or "leap-over"): through this practice one transcends the three realms and ends the round of birth and death. The Heart-of-Heart Dharma practices precisely this cutting through and direct crossing. |
| 它是无相密，以一个咒、六个手印来修持，直下见性，不要修什么相来过渡。有相法须修成相后，把相化空，才能见到本性。须走很多弯路，不能立断顿超。 | It is a formless esoteric method that uses one mantra and six mudrās to realize one's true nature directly, without cultivating visualized forms as a transition. Form-based methods require one first to establish a visualized form and then dissolve it into emptiness before realizing the original nature; this entails many detours and does not allow immediate cutting through and direct crossing. |
| 我人本性是无相可见、摸不着、闻不到的。大家一下子无从下手，因而西藏密宗要走很多弯路，先要做磕大头等四加行，再做前行观想，把相观起来，有个着手处，才能进一步修见性法。 | Our true nature is formless; it cannot be seen, touched, or heard. Because people often find it impossible to know where to begin, Tibetan Esoteric Buddhism (Vajrayana) takes a more circuitous route. Practitioners must first complete the Four Preliminary Practices (Ngöndro), such as performing great prostrations, and then engage in visualization practices. By generating a visualized form, they establish a starting point from which they can progress further to practice the Dharma for realizing true nature. |
| 大圆满“彻却”先也要修气脉明点，在气上下手，观脉管，三脉七轮（三脉——中脉、左脉、右脉；七轮——顶轮、眉间轮、喉轮、心轮、脐轮、丹田轮、海底轮）观好后，再把这个相观空。 | In the Dzogchen practice of Trekchö ("cutting through"), one must also initially cultivate the subtle winds, channels, and drops (Prana, Nadi, and Bindu). Practice begins with the winds, visualizing the subtle channels, namely the three channels and seven chakras. (The three channels are the central, left, and right channels; the seven chakras are the crown, brow, throat, heart, navel, dantian, and root chakras). Once these forms are successfully visualized, one then visualizes them as empty. |
| 这叫大圆满彻却前行，就是修行前的方便。 | This is known as the preliminary practice for Dzogchen Trekchö, which serves as an expedient skillful means before the main practice. |
| 我们用六印一咒，不要观什么脉管，当下把我们的妄心聚在一个咒上，就是念的时候心念耳闻，用心念咒，耳朵听清楚自己念咒的声音，把意根妄想抓住，使妄念不行，当下即能深入禅定。 | Our method uses six mudrās and one mantra and requires no visualization of channels. Here and now, we gather the deluded mind entirely onto a single mantra. That is, when reciting, recite with the mind and listen with the ears. Recite the mantra with the mind, and listen clearly with the ears to the sound of your own recitation. This restrains the wandering thoughts of the mind faculty, stops deluded thoughts from moving, and enables one to enter deep samādhi immediately. |
| 这样修行就是观世音菩萨耳根圆通法门。娑婆世界众生六根当中，耳根最灵敏。譬如眼睛能看很多东西，很远都能看见，但是一张纸一隔就看不见了；耳朵不然，隔着大山声音还听得到。 | This practice is precisely Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva's Dharma Gate of Perfect Penetration via the Ear Faculty. Among the six faculties of sentient beings in this Saha World, the ear faculty is the sharpest and most sensitive. For instance, while the eyes can see many things and look deep into the distance, they can be completely blocked by a single sheet of paper. The ears are different; even when separated by a great mountain, sounds can still be heard. |
| 又譬如睡着了，拿张纸给他看，他也不能醒，但一喊他就醒了。所以耳根最灵敏，用耳根来修法最好。 | Furthermore, if a person is asleep, holding a piece of paper before their eyes will not wake them, but calling out to them will awaken them instantly. Therefore, the faculty of hearing is the most sensitive, and using it to practice is best. |
| 《楞严经》说得很清楚，二十五个大师（都是大菩萨），说各自的用功方法，观世音菩萨说从耳根入，最后佛叫文殊菩萨选择，娑婆世界众生用哪一根修法最得当、最快，文殊菩萨选择观世音菩萨耳根法门。 | The Surangama Sutra explains this very clearly. Twenty-five Great Masters (all great Bodhisattvas) presented their respective methods of cultivation. Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara stated that he entered realization through the faculty of hearing. In the end, the Buddha asked Manjushri Bodhisattva to select which sense faculty would be the most appropriate and fastest for the sentient beings of the Saha World to use in their practice. Manjushri Bodhisattva selected Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva's Dharma Gate of Perfect Penetration via the Ear Faculty. |
| 因为耳根最利，所以我们现在就用耳根来听自己念咒的声音，把意根抓住，第六意识就不动了。这样修法比大圆满法更直接，更“立断”。 | Because the faculty of hearing is the sharpest, we now use it to listen to the sound of our own mantra chanting, thereby holding the mind faculty steady so that the sixth consciousness no longer moves. Practicing in this way is even more direct than the Great Perfection teaching, even more a direct ‘cutting through.’ |
| 大家注意：修法时一定要心念耳闻，要如法，绝对不能嘴念咒，而心想别的事情，有口无心，没用处。念佛也是一样，念阿弥陀佛，口念心散乱，思想乱七八糟，佛号念不上，将来西方极乐世界升不到，因为心太乱了。 | Everyone should pay close attention: when practicing, you must recite with the mind and listen with the ears. You must practice in accordance with the proper method. Under no circumstances should the mouth recite the mantra while the mind is occupied with other things. Mere recitation without wholehearted attention is useless. The same applies to reciting the Buddha’s name. If one recites ‘Amitabha Buddha’ with the mouth while the mind remains scattered and filled with chaotic thoughts, the Buddha-name cannot truly take hold. In the future, one will not be able to ascend to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, because the mind is too disturbed. |
| 心不清静，佛现身时就看不见了。永明寿大师（永明寿大师既是禅宗大祖师，又是净土宗大祖师。他是法眼宗的徒孙，最后皈心净土，所以是净土宗大祖师）说：“口念弥陀心散乱，喊破喉咙亦徒然。 | When the mind is not pure and calm, even if the Buddha appears before you, you will not perceive him. Master Yongming Yanshou—who was both a great patriarch of Chan Buddhism and also a great patriarch of the Pure Land tradition (he was a Dharma-descendant of the Fayan School and later devoted himself to the Pure Land path)—said: ‘If the mouth recites Amitabha while the mind is scattered, even shouting until the throat breaks is futile.’ Why did he say this? |
| ”为什么这样说呢？他说心如水也，心水清静了，就像河里的水清静了，天上的月亮影子就显现出来。 | He explained that the mind is like water. When the water of the mind becomes clear and still, it is like the calm water of a river reflecting the moon in the sky. |
| 阿弥陀佛等于是天上的月亮，我们的心等于是水，水不清静天上的月亮显现不出来，心不清静阿弥陀佛在你心里显不出来，那就见不到阿弥陀佛来接引，就不能往生了。 | Amitabha is like the moon in the heavens, while our mind is like water. If the water is not still and clear, the moon’s reflection cannot appear. Likewise, if the mind is not pure and tranquil, Amitabha Buddha cannot manifest within your mind. Then you will not see Amitabha coming to receive you, and you will not attain rebirth in the Pure Land. |
| 大势至菩萨教导我们“都摄六根，净念相继”，要以一句弥陀圣号把眼耳鼻舌身意六根抓住，清清静静地念阿弥陀佛，念到一心不乱，才能往生西方极乐世界。我们知道六根当中意根是最难摄的，一静下来这个妄想就来了。 | Mahāsthāmaprāpta Bodhisattva taught us to "gather in the six sense faculties and sustain pure mindfulness in continuous succession." With the single sacred name of Amitābha, gather in the six faculties—eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind—and recite "Amitābha Buddha" with clarity and stillness until the mind becomes one-pointed and undistracted; only then can one attain rebirth in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. We know that among the six faculties, the mind faculty is the most difficult to rein in. The moment you quiet down, deluded thoughts come rushing in. |
| 因为动惯了，不静下来还不知道，有时候心乱了，还不知道，静下来后就容易看见。这是什么缘故？因为水清静了，泥沙沉下来，就看见了，水不清静，就看不见泥沙，所以坐下来就看见了。 | Because the mind is accustomed to constant movement, you don't even notice its turbulence until you try to sit still. Sometimes your mind is totally chaotic, yet you remain unaware; it is only after sitting in stillness that these thoughts become easily visible. Why is this so? Because when water becomes clear and still, the mud and sand settle to the bottom and become visible. If the water is disturbed, the mud and sand cannot be seen. Likewise, once we sit quietly, we begin to see our deluded thoughts and inverted thinking clearly. |
| 妄念颠倒，很难掌握住不起妄念，所以要用心念耳闻的办法来抓摄六根，把妄想打断、身心脱落，本来的佛性就显现了。所以，如法修持非常重要，不如法修持就不能见性。 | It is incredibly difficult to master the upside-down movements of deluded thoughts and prevent them from arising. This is exactly why we must employ the method of reciting with the mind and listening with the ears to firmly grasp and rein in the six faculties. By doing so, we cut off wandering thoughts, allow the body and mind to completely drop away, and our original Buddha-nature naturally manifests. Therefore, practicing strictly in accordance with the Dharma is exceptionally important; if your cultivation deviates from the proper method, you will not be able to realize your true nature. |
| 大家修心中心法，修了很多时了，应该有所成就。为什么呢？因为本来是佛，只要肯放下，就能恢复本来，就能见道。修了很多时，为什么还不行呢？就是因为不如法。 | Everyone has been practicing the Heart-of-Heart Dharma for a long time now, so you ought to have achieved some level of accomplishment. Why is that? Because you are already a Buddha from the very beginning; as long as you are willing to let go, you can restore your original nature and realize the Way. Having practiced for so long, why is it still not working? It is simply because your practice has not been in accordance with the proper method. |
| 第一种不如法的人就是坐坐停停，停停坐坐。今天坐坐，明天说身体不好、事情很忙，就把功夫耽搁下来了，这样修就不行了。譬如烧饭，饭没烧好就拿下来，冷一冷然后再烧，再拿下来，这饭就烧僵了。我们学法修行，犹如逆水行舟，若不用劲撑船，船就被水冲下来了，所以断断续续修行不好。 | The first type of person who fails to practice properly is the one who sits on and off, stopping and starting constantly. They sit for a bit today, but tomorrow they say they aren't feeling well or are too busy with work, and so they let their practice slide. Cultivating this way simply will not work. It is just like cooking rice: if you take it off the heat before it is fully cooked, let it cool down, and then try to cook it again before taking it off once more, the rice will turn out hard, ruined, and uncookable. Our Dharma practice and cultivation is exactly like rowing a boat against the current—if you do not exert continuous effort to push the boat forward, it will inevitably be swept downstream by the water. Therefore, practicing in an intermittent and broken manner yields no good results. |
| 第二种是没有心念耳闻。耳朵没有在听，而是一面念咒，一面打妄想，“这个事怎么办？那个事怎么解决？”这就是不如法，妄心就斩不断，斩不断怎么打得开本来呢？怎么见得到本性呢？ | The second type of improper practice is failing to recite with the mind and listen with the ears. The ears are not actually listening; instead, while the mouth recites the mantra, the mind spins deluded thoughts: "How should I handle this matter? How should I resolve that issue?" This is not in accord with the Dharma. The deluded mind cannot be cut off; and if it cannot be cut off, how can you break through to your original nature? How can you see your true nature? |
| 第三种重要原因是下座时不观照，忘记了。在座上修法勤勤恳恳，下座后随妄念转，跟着境界跑，等于一曝十寒，功夫因之很难做上。 | The third critical reason is the failure to maintain meditative awareness and contemplation after leaving the meditation cushion—simply forgetting all about it. On the cushion, one practices the Dharma with utmost diligence and sincerity, but once they step down, they immediately turn with every stray thought and run after external circumstances. This is exactly like giving a plant one day of sun followed by ten days of cold; consequently, it is very difficult to make any real progress in one's spiritual cultivation. |
| 尤其是现在这个动荡的时期，比如大家都做股票，心思都到股票上去了，“唉呀，我买的股票赚钱了吧，涨价了吧，跌价了吧，折本了吧。”颠颠倒倒地妄想，不观照。用功须时时观照，念头一起就看见，不要跟着跑，要了了觉知这能说、能见、能闻的是我的本性，不为境转才行。这些缺点不改进不能见道。 | This is especially true in times like the present, where everyone plays the stock market, for instance, and their entire mind becomes consumed by it: 'Oh, is the stock I bought making money? Did the price go up? Did it drop? Did I lose my capital?' One spins in these upside-down, deluded thoughts instead of maintaining mindful awareness. True cultivation requires constant, moment-to-moment awareness. The very instant a thought arises, you must perceive it and refuse to run after it. You must clearly and vividly recognize that this very capacity to speak, to see, and to hear is your original nature, and you must remain completely unmoved by external environments for the practice to work. If these shortcomings are not corrected, you cannot realize the Way. |
| 修法的目的在于打开本来，见到本性。我们修心密只要如法，决定能迅速做到。我们修法，念咒念到不能念时，忽然之间能念之心和所念之咒一时脱落，内而身心、外而世界一齐化空，虚空也粉碎。 | The ultimate purpose of practicing the Dharma is to break through to our original nature and see it directly. In our cultivation of Heart-of-Heart Dharma, as long as we practice strictly in accordance with the proper method, we can certainly do so quickly. In our practice, when we recite the mantra to the point where recitation becomes completely impossible, suddenly, the reciting mind and the recited mantra fall away together. Internally, the body and mind, and externally, the world, dissolve into emptiness together, and even the void itself is shattered. |
| 但非断灭，有个了了灵知在，那就是本性显现。本性显现之后，还有多生累积习气在，还没除光。所以大圆满还须修脱嘎，也就是保护本性，使妄习渐消，觉受增长，和我们说的悟后保任功夫一模一样，要好好地保护本性。 | Yet, this is not a state of total annihilation or dead emptiness; clear, vivid, thought-free luminous knowing remains, and that is precisely the manifestation of our true nature. After our true nature manifests, the accumulated habits and tendencies from many past lifetimes still remain, as they have not yet been completely eliminated. Therefore, in the Great Perfection (Dzogchen), one must still practice Tögal to protect and nurture this true nature, allowing deluded habits to gradually fade away while spiritual realization and experience grow. This is precisely what we call post-awakening preservation: one must carefully protect one's true nature. |
| 正行就不讲有修了，修不修都是两头话，时时观照除自己习气即是。不过大圆满要观光而身化虹光，我们心密修法是禅宗法，不着身相。所以不注重化不化虹光。假如着在身化虹光上，反而被呵为“宇宙之间一游魂”而不能圆证圣果。 | When it comes to the Main Practice, one no longer speaks of "having a practice." Whether one is practicing or not practicing is merely a pair of extremes of dualistic speech; simply maintaining constant contemplation and awareness at all times to eradicate one's own habits is itself the path. However, the Great Perfection (Dzogchen) requires the contemplation of light to transform the physical body into a rainbow body, whereas our Formless Heart Esotericism practice follows the principles of the Chan school and does not cling to bodily appearances. Therefore, we do not emphasize whether one transforms into a rainbow body or not. If one clings to the idea of the body transforming into a rainbow body, they will instead be rebuked as "a mere wandering spirit within the universe," rendering them unable to attain the complete realization of the holy fruit. |
| 我们本来是佛，所以见性不难。现在可以用禅宗公案直接和大家讲什么是性，指示大家当下见性。禅宗是直接指示大家见性，不用参什么话头的。 | We are originally Buddha, therefore realizing our true nature is not difficult. Now we can directly use Chan koans to explain to everyone what the true nature is and point directly to immediate realization of it. Chan Buddhism directly points people to the realization of their true nature; originally there was no need to investigate any huatou. |
| 比如你问师父：“如何是佛？”师父指示你：“清谈对面非佛而何！”或对你说：“你即是佛！”更或唤你一声，你答应了，即对你说：“即此是！”等等。达摩大师从印度来就是直指人心，见性成佛，没有人用功处。 | For example, you might ask the master, ‘What is Buddha?’ The master may point directly and say, ‘Who else but the one right before you, conversing clearly at this very moment, is Buddha?’ Or he may simply tell you, ‘You yourself are Buddha!’ Or he may call out to you, and when you respond, say, ‘Just this is it!’ and so forth. When Bodhidharma came from India, he taught direct pointing to the human mind so that one could see one’s nature and become Buddha. There was originally no special ‘method of effort’ involved. |
| 后来因为人的根性钝了，直接指示不敢或不肯承当，以为这没什么了不起，所以祖师们改为参话头，这是宋朝以后的事。参话头，起疑情，用疑情挡住妄念，把妄念隔断，从而打开本来，这就多跨一道门，多走一段弯路了。 | Later, however, because people’s capacities became duller, they did not dare—or were unwilling—to truly accept such direct pointing, thinking there was nothing remarkable about it. Therefore, the patriarchs changed the method into investigating huatou (critical phrase), which developed after the Song dynasty. In investigating a huatou (critical phrase), one arouses a sense of doubt and uses it to block and cut off deluded thoughts, thereby breaking through to one's original nature. But this adds another gate to pass through and takes a somewhat roundabout route. |
| 有相密宗要到最后才直接指示什么是本性，叫做开示见宗，见宗就是叫我们明白自己的本性，就是见性，即直接指示你见性。所以最高深的密宗就是禅，禅是无上密，是最高层的密法，禅和密没有两样。 | In the form-based schools of Esoteric Buddhism, it is only at the very end that they directly point out what the inherent nature is. This is called "Disclosing and Instructing on the Realization of the Core Principle". To "realize the core principle" simply means to make us understand our own inherent nature—it is exactly "seeing into one's nature," meaning that they directly point it out for you to see into your nature. Therefore, the highest and most profound Esoteric Buddhism is precisely Chan; Chan is the Unsurpassed Esotericism, the highest level of Esoteric Dharma. Chan and Esotericism are no different. |
| 把密宗和禅看成两样是错误的，禅就是密，密就是禅。心中心法一开始就说，以禅为体，以密为用，即藉密咒和手印用一用，藉佛的力量加持，以打开本来，亲证本性。证到本性后，以净土为归，归到一真法界常寂光净土。 | It is a mistake to look at Esotericism and Chan as two different things; Chan is Esotericism, and Esotericism is Chan. At the very beginning, the Heart-of-Heart Dharma teaches: “Take Chan as the essence and Esoteric practice as the function.” That is, one makes provisional use of mantras and mudras, relying on the Buddha’s empowering blessing to break through to one's original nature and personally realize the inherent nature. Once you have realized the inherent nature, take the Pure Land as the ultimate destination—returning to the One True Dharma Realm, the Eternal Quiescent Light Pure Land. |
| 西方极乐世界有四种土：凡圣同居土，方便有余土，实报庄严土，常寂光净土。常寂光净土，就是尽虚空遍法界都是净土，没有什么方所，没有东南西北方的分别，都是净土。 | The Western Land of Ultimate Bliss consists of four lands: the Land of the Common Residence of Ordinary Beings and Sages, the Land of Expedient Means with Residue, the Land of True Reward and Adornment, and the Land of Eternal Quiescent Light. The Land of Eternal Quiescent Light means that the entire expanse of empty space and the Dharma Realm is itself Pure Land; there is no fixed location and no distinction of east, south, west, or north—it is all Pure Land. |
| 因为我们的法身，就是一真法界，尽虚空遍法界，不分方所，没有垢净。有个清净就不是，没有污秽哪有清净，所以它是一尘不染，一丝不挂，一法不立的。所以不到净土不算究竟，要证到十方都是净土。 | Because our Dharmakāya is itself the One True Dharma Realm, it pervades empty space and the Dharma Realm without division into places and without defilement or purity. If there were something called purity, it would not be ultimate; without defilement, how could purity be established? It is therefore unstained by a speck of dust, utterly unencumbered, and establishes not a single dharma. Thus, unless one reaches this Pure Land, realization is not ultimate; one must realize that the ten directions are all Pure Land. |
| 我们上次也直接指示大家，这个佛性不在别处，就是现在一念断处的离念灵知。当妄念都放下，一点不起的时候，这时候也不是没有知觉，还是了了分明。这了了分明的灵知，就是我们的佛性。所以见性不难。 | Last time we also pointed this out directly to everyone: this Buddha-nature is not somewhere else. It is precisely the thought-free luminous knowing at the very place where a single thought ceases. When all delusive thoughts are laid down and not a single one arises, it is not that you are devoid of knowing; rather, there is still a vivid and distinct clarity. This utterly clear and vivid knowing is precisely our Buddha-nature. Therefore, recognizing one's nature is not difficult. |
| 不要在那儿猜谜，“噢，悟道了，看见黄的红的绿的东西了。”不相干的，那是见鬼。见性是见无所见，没有一点东西的。 | Do not sit there playing guessing games: "Oh, I have awakened to the Way, I saw yellow, red, or green things." That has absolutely nothing to do with it; that is just seeing ghosts! To see one’s true nature is to see without anything being seen—there’s absolutely nothing there. |
| 譬如现在你们大家把念头一断，什么也不想，一切的现象都在你们的视线之内，但是你们没有着哪样东西哪个人，虽然有许多人很多东西，但见无所见，不知道谁是张三，谁是李四，这是什么，那是什么，这无念的灵知，能起见闻觉知的功能，即当人的本性。 | For instance, if all of you cut off your thoughts right now and think of absolutely nothing, all phenomena will still remain within your field of vision. Yet, you do not cling to any particular object or any particular person. Although there may be many people and many objects present, there is seeing without anything being seen—you do not conceptually identify who is Zhang San and who is Li Si, what this is or what that is. This thought-free luminous knowing possesses the capacity for seeing, hearing, sensing, and knowing, is precisely our inherent nature. |
| 如果我看见张三、李四、茶杯、阳伞等等，那就糟糕了，那是着相了。经云：“见见之时，见非是见。”假如你有所见，那就不是真见，所以“见不能及”，“见要离见”，要离开自己的见，才是真见。 | If I see Zhang San, Li Si, a teacup, or an umbrella, then that is a problem — that is attachment to appearances. The sūtra says, "When seeing sees seeing, that seeing is not true seeing." If there is something you perceive as an object, then it is not true seeing. Therefore, "seeing cannot reach it," and "seeing must be free from seeing." Only when you leave behind your own subject-object seeing do you realize true seeing. |
| 无所见，那就是你们的佛性。所以见相不着相，无所见，就是真见。所以明心见性不难。有人自夸：“我的佛法好。你们到我这儿来学法六个月，不要，六天，也不要，六个钟头，即教你们见性。 | That seeing in which nothing is grasped as seen is precisely your Buddha-nature. Thus, to see appearances without clinging to appearances—to see without fixing on an object—is true seeing. This is why awakening to the mind and seeing one's true nature is not difficult. Some people boast: “My Buddhadharma is excellent. Come study with me, and in six months—no, not even six days, not even six hours—I will make you realize your nature.” In reality, realizing your nature doesn’t even take a single minute; you can be guided to understand and see your true nature right this very moment. |
| ”其实，见性一分钟也不要，当下就能教大家明白见性了。但是大家往往在这个地方不敢承当。“这就是见性啊，恐怕不是吧？假如这就是我的本性，我怎么不发神通呢？”大家都被神通挡住了，迷住了。 | However, people often lack the courage to accept it when it's right in front of them. They think, "Is this really it? Probably not. If this is truly my inherent nature, why haven't I developed spiritual powers?" Everyone is obstructed and deluded by the idea of spiritual powers. |
| 他们其实不知道什么是神通。我们说话，大家听话，这不是神通是什么？假如不是神用，这个身体就听不见，说不出。身体就像机器人，不通电这个机器人不能动。现在能说能听，就是佛性的妙用。 | In fact, they do not understand what spiritual powers really are. We speak, and others hear us—is this not already a spiritual power? If it were not for this wondrous spiritual functioning, the body could neither hear nor speak. The body is like a robot: without electricity, it cannot move. Your ability to speak and hear at this very moment is the wondrous functioning of the Buddha-nature. |
| 佛性无所不能，所以叫神，无所不具，所以叫通。佛性样样都能，样样都通，没有阻隔。你一着相就不通了。执着看这个杯子，就不见其余，那你就不通了。你不着，没有挡路牌，一切事物俱在你视线之内，你就通达无碍了。 | Buddha-nature is all-capable, and so it is called ‘miraculous’ (shen); it is all-inclusive and lacking in nothing, and so it is called 'unobstructed' (tong). The Buddha-nature is capable of everything and reaches everywhere without obstruction. But the moment you cling to appearances, you become obstructed. If you fixate on looking at this cup, you miss everything else—and so you are no longer unobstructed. If you don't cling, there are no roadblocks; everything falls within your field of vision, and you are perfectly penetrating and unobstructed. |
| 所以一切妙用都是神通。庞居士说，运水与搬柴就是神通妙用。大家时时在神通妙用中而不知道，执着人家不能而自己能，那才是神通，真冤屈死了。 | Thus, every wondrous function is a spiritual power. Layman Pang said, “Carrying water and hauling firewood are spiritual powers and wondrous functions.” People are constantly amidst these marvellous powers without realizing it. They imagine that spiritual powers mean being able to do what others cannot do—what a tragic misunderstanding! |
| 其实三明六通也不难，为什么呢？因为修道人都是见性在先，除尽旧习，得通在后。宗师称为：“但得本，不愁末。”刚刚悟道，才明白道理，事相上还透不过去。 | In reality, the Three Clear Insights and Six Spiritual Powers are not difficult either. Why? Because practitioners first realize their nature, then gradually eliminate their old habitual tendencies, and only afterward attain these powers. The great Chan masters said: “Once the root is attained, there is no need to worry about the branches.” When you first awaken to the Way, you have understood the principle, but you cannot yet pass freely through the realm of concrete events. |
| 这时自救不了，多生累积的习气还在，把本性妙用给遮盖住了，要把这个习气除掉，才能发通。这就相当于大圆满法里说的正行。所以于见性之后须进一步用功，时时刻刻断念、保护，一切相都不可得，不要有所住着，自有水到渠成圆证圣果之日。 | At this stage, you cannot yet liberate yourself, because the habitual tendencies accumulated over countless lifetimes still remain and obscure the wondrous functioning of the original nature. Only when these habitual tendencies are removed can spiritual powers naturally manifest. This corresponds to what the Great Perfection teachings call the "main practice." Therefore, after realizing one's true nature, one must continue to practice diligently, moment after moment cutting off wandering thoughts and protecting the realization. All appearances are unattainable; do not abide in or cling to anything. When the conditions mature, complete realization of the noble fruition will naturally follow. |
| 不要以为这个初悟没用处，将来发大神通成大道就靠这个初悟。因为不明白这个真性，就无从下手用功。要认识这个本性，保护这个本性，才好用功，所以叫做悟后真修。 | Do not think for a moment that this initial awakening is useless; your future manifestation of great spiritual powers and attainment of the Great Way depend entirely upon this very initial awakening. If you do not understand this true nature, you will have no place to begin your genuine practice. You must recognize this inherent nature and protect it so that you can cultivate effectively; this is why it is called "true cultivation after awakening." |
| 保护自己，就像婴儿刚刚生下来，一切作用不能起，要靠大人保护他。但你不能因婴儿不起作用而说他不是人。他是人，保护他长大就行了。所以说悟道这一点最重要，大家不要轻视这一点。绵密保护，念头一起就把它斩断。 | Protecting this realization is just like caring for a newborn baby; when an infant is first born, they cannot perform any functions, and they must rely on an adult to protect them. However, you cannot claim that the baby is not a human being simply because they cannot perform any functions yet. They are human beings; you just need to protect them until they grow up. Therefore, this single point of awakening to the Way is what matters most; everyone must avoid taking it lightly. Maintain seamless protection, and the very moment a thought arises, cut it off immediately. |
| 有些人弄错了，以为清清楚楚看见这个念头就是了，这大错特错！清清楚楚住着这个念头，是妄上加妄，不是本性，要念头断处了了分明的才是本性。 | Some people have completely misunderstood this, believing that simply seeing a thought clearly is enough—this is a grave mistake! To clearly see and then dwell upon a thought is to add delusion on top of delusion; it is not your inherent nature. Only that which remains utterly clear and vivid at the exact point where thoughts are cut off is the inherent nature. |
| 看见念头起这不相干，假如看见念头起，着相，这是凡夫，把这个念头看成是真的，这就走到错误道路上去了。看见念头起，不跟着念头跑，把这个念头斩断才对，千万不要弄错！做保护功夫，保护得愈绵密愈好。 | Merely seeing a thought arise has nothing to do with it; if you see a thought arise and then attach to it, you are just an ordinary being. By treating that thought as real, you have strayed onto a mistaken path. When you see a thought arise, you must refuse to run after it and cut it off instead—you must never get this wrong! When doing the work of protection, the more seamless and continuous your protection is, the better. |
| 一切色相都是我们真性所显现的影子，换句话说就是我们的化身。一切东西都是我们的真心变化做作，都是我们的化身。 | All forms and appearances are merely shadows manifested by our true nature; in other words, they are our transformation body (Nirmāṇakāya). Everything is a transformation and expression of our true mind; all things are our transformation body. |
| 大家要成就法、报、化三身，现在我们一念断处，了了分明的，就是我们的法身；光明朗照一切东西，这就是我们的报身；一切东西都是我们佛性所显现的影子，不执着，不追求，就是我们的化身。 | We seek to accomplish the three bodies of the Buddha—the Dharma Body, Reward Body, and Manifestation Body. Right now, at the very place where a thought is cut off and yet there is clear and vivid awareness, that is our Dharma Body (Dharmakāya). The luminous clarity that shines upon all things is our Reward Body (Saṃbhogakāya). And all things, being but shadows manifested by our Buddha-nature—when we neither cling to them nor pursue them—that is our Manifestation Body (Nirmāṇakāya). |
| 法报化三身都具足了，这不当下成佛了吗？！所以成佛没有难处，不要说成佛很难。大家都是佛，当下都能成就，法报化三身当下都能圆满。不要把成佛推到高不可攀、很复杂、很艰难的道路上去。 | The Dharma Body, Reward Body, and Manifestation Body are all fully present. Is this not Buddhahood realized here and now?! Therefore, becoming a Buddha is not difficult. Do not say that Buddhahood is something remote and hard to attain. Everyone is already Buddha; everyone can realize it at this very moment. The three bodies can all be perfected instantly and completely. Do not push Buddhahood so far away that it appears unattainable, nor imagine the path to be so complex and difficult. |
| 以卑劣的心理，认为我们都是凡夫，成圣作祖那都是佛菩萨的事，那就错误了。要自肯承当，我就是佛，一切众生都是佛，没有众生不是佛。要时时无住，从而圆成我们的佛格。 | It is mistaken to cling to an inferior mentality, thinking, “We are merely ordinary beings, while becoming sages and patriarchs belongs only to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.” One must personally acknowledge and take responsibility for this truth: I am Buddha; all sentient beings are Buddha; there is no being that is not Buddha. At all times remain without abiding anywhere, and thereby perfect the dignity and character of Buddhahood within ourselves. |
| 既然是佛了，就要有佛格，佛不住着一切东西，一切东西都无所爱。做一切事情尽管做，因为我们的佛性是能起一切妙用的，任何事都能做。但是都不执着，都无所得，成佛就成个一切无所得。不要乱去追求神通。 | Since you are a Buddha, act with the character of a Buddha: a Buddha dwells on nothing and clings to absolutely nothing. One may carry out all activities freely, for our Buddha-nature is capable of manifesting every wondrous function and can do all things. Yet in doing everything, there is no attachment and nothing gained. Thus, becoming Buddha means realizing a state in which there is absolutely nothing to attain. Do not recklessly chase after spiritual powers. |
| 以为有神通才是佛，错误！追求神通，非但不得神通，而且会着魔，成魔有份在。佛和魔好比一只手，这里了了分明，不着相，就是佛；那里着相了，就是魔。 | To think that possessing spiritual powers makes you a Buddha is completely wrong! Chasing after spiritual powers will not only fail to grant them to you, but may instead cause you to fall into demonic deviation. Buddha and demon are just like two sides of the same hand: being perfectly clear and unattached to forms right here is Buddha; becoming attached to forms right there is a demon. |
| 沾沾自喜，“噢，我成佛了，我有神通了”，那你不是成佛，你成魔了。因为神通人人本具，不是你一个人有，都是一样，哪有什么稀奇夸张的？所以没有什么沾沾自喜的地方，一切都不可得，无所得，那才真正成佛。 | The moment you delight in yourself and proclaim, 'Oh, I've become a Buddha, I have spiritual powers now,' you haven't become a Buddha—you've become a demon. Because spiritual powers are inherently possessed by everyone; they are not unique to you, they are exactly the same for all. What is there to marvel at or boast about? Therefore, there is no room for self-congratulation. When everything is recognized as ungraspable and nothing is attained, only then do you truly become a Buddha. |
| 真成佛时，佛也不可得。赵州和尚说的“佛之一字，我不喜闻”即是此义。所以不可时时住着“我就是佛”这个念头。《圆觉经》说得很清楚：“住妄想境不加了知，于无了知，不辨真实。 | When you truly become a Buddha, even "Buddha" itself cannot be attained. This is what Master Zhaozhou meant by, "The very word 'Buddha' is one I do not delight in hearing." Therefore, do not constantly abide in the thought, "I am a Buddha." The Sūtra of Perfect Enlightenment states this clearly: ‘Dwelling amid the realm of delusion, do not superimpose any further knowing；And in the absence of such knowing, do not discern what is the ultimate reality’ |
| ”妄想境就是山河大地，草木丛林，这些东西就是我们的妄想所蕴积成的，这就是我们不明白真性之用。而明白之后，这些境界都是我们的佛性所显现的，都是我们的法身变化的。但是不可有这个“了知之心”，住着在成佛之念上。再也不可起真妄虚实之念了。 | The realm of illusory thoughts refers to the mountains, rivers, the great earth, and the dense forests of grass and trees—these things are precisely what our illusory thoughts have accumulated into, which happens because we fail to understand the active function of our true nature. Once we understand, these realms are all manifestations of Buddha-nature and transformations of the Dharma Body. Yet we must never give rise to a "knowing mind" or dwell in the thought of having attained Buddhahood. Still less should one give rise to thoughts that divide reality into true and false, real and unreal. |
| 所以开悟之后，妄想、妄念、妄心，都变成我的佛性的妙用了。今天再给大家下个注解：妄心、妄想、妄念，着相就是妄。 | Therefore, after awakening, all delusive thoughts, delusive notions and the deluded mind itself are transformed entirely into the wondrous functioning of our Buddha-nature. Let me give you another annotation today: the wandering mind, illusory thoughts, and deluded notions—clinging to forms is exactly what makes them 'illusory.' Conversely, if you do not cling to forms, every single thought is the wondrous functioning of our Buddha-nature; |
| 反过来不着相，所有一切思想都是我们佛性的妙用，所有一切思想都是成就一切事物的妙用，都是我们佛性的妙用。佛性要起妙用，不是坐着守住不动，那是黑山背后，坐在鬼窟里面，不能成佛，坐几千万年也不能成佛。 | every single thought is the wondrous functioning that accomplishes all things—they are entirely the wondrous functioning of our Buddha-nature. For Buddha-nature to give rise to its wondrous functioning, one cannot just sit there, guarding it and remaining motionless. That is merely hiding behind the black mountain, sitting inside a ghost cave—you cannot achieve Buddhahood that way; even if you sit there for tens of millions of years, you will never achieve Buddhahood. |
| 因为死在那里不动，不知道怎么叫佛。佛就是现在妙用无边而不着相，能说、能讲、能行、能做一切工作，无所住着，活泼泼的，灵妙真心，这是真佛。所以大家要注意，善于分别什么是真佛，不要跟邪道走。 | This is because one remains lifelessly fixed there in immobility, completely ignorant of what a Buddha truly is. The Buddha is precisely this: manifesting boundless, wondrous functions right now without clinging to any appearances. It is capable of speaking, explaining, executing, and performing all manners of work, entirely without dwelling or attachment. It is dynamically alive, a vibrantly awake, luminous, and wondrous true mind—this is the true Buddha. Therefore, everyone must pay close attention and be skillful at discerning what a true Buddha is, so that you do not follow heterodox or deviant paths. |
| 现在邪魔歪道多得很，到处都是，都来欺骗人，叫人一时很难分辨。但是真的分辨也不难，可以听其言，观其行，看他言行是否一致。若说的一套，做的又是另一套，根本就是魔说。 | Nowadays, demonic and heretical paths are widespread—they are everywhere, actively deceiving people, which makes it very difficult for someone to tell them apart at first glance. However, discerning the truth is actually not that difficult. You can listen to their words and observe their actions to see if their speech and behaviour align. If they say one thing but do another, it is fundamentally the teaching of a demon. |
| 还有人做坏事，安个好听的名目，最后还说我是用来锻炼你们的分别和执着心的，自己做坏事还锻炼别人，这真是无耻的自欺欺人之谈。所以我们要慎重看他的行为是否端正，不可单听他的一派狂言而信以为真。 | Furthermore, some people commit evil acts, give them a pleasant-sounding name, and then say, “I am using this to temper your discriminating mind and your attachments.” To do wrong oneself and yet claim to be training others—this is nothing but shameless, self-deceiving talk that deceives others as well. Therefore, we must carefully examine whether a person's conduct is upright and proper. We should not merely listen to their wild claims and accept them as the truth. |
| 大家要明白，我们修法为的是恢复我们的真性，亲见我们的本性，亲见本性后要时时刻刻在事境上锻炼，除去自己的妄习。 | Everyone must understand that the purpose of our Dharma practice is to recover our true nature and personally realize our inherent nature. After personally realizing this inherent nature, we must maintain continuous cultivation amidst daily situations and circumstances at every single moment, in order to eradicate our deluded habits. |
| 千万不可心外取法、在气脉和光明上着眼，须知我们的本性是个大光明藏，不是仅仅看到一点红光，白光，黑光算数的，它是朗照十方的大光明，是十方净土一时显现的大光明，不是现在你们能得到的。 | Under no circumstances should you seek the Dharma outside of the mind, nor should you focus your attention on subtle winds, channels, or visions of light. You must know that our inherent nature is the Great Treasury of Radiant Light. It is not a matter of merely catching a glimpse of some red, white, or black light. It is a grand radiance that luminously illuminates all ten directions—a great light through which the pure lands of the ten directions simultaneously manifest. This is not something you can attain right now. |
| 现在你们第一须开悟见性，就是明白我们一念断处，了了分明的是佛性。不是念头起处是佛性，更不是亲见念头起是佛性。是看到念头起，不跟他跑，一念断处了了分明的是佛性，这点不要弄错。 | At present, your primary requirement is to achieve awakening and realize your true nature. That is to say, you must understand that the state where a single thought is cut off, yet remains thoroughly and vividly aware, is the Buddha-nature. It is not that the arising of thought is Buddha-nature. Nor is it merely witnessing the arising of thought that is Buddha-nature. Rather, when you see a thought arise and do not follow it, then at the point where the thought is cut off, what remains clearly and luminously aware is the Buddha-nature. This point must not be misunderstood. |
| 还有不着相的念头是起妙用，着相的念头是妄想造业，这里须分别清楚，不可含糊。今天畅晓无误的告诉你们怎么样是见性成佛，怎么样是妄想，怎么样是妙用，给你们指点清楚，不要走到歧途上去。 | Furthermore, thoughts that are free from attachment to appearances are the wondrous functioning of Buddha-nature, whereas thoughts that cling to appearances become delusive thinking and create karma. This distinction must be clearly understood and not confused. Today I have explained plainly and without ambiguity what it means to see the nature and realize Buddhahood, what constitutes delusive thinking, and what constitutes wondrous function. I have pointed these out clearly so that you will not stray onto a mistaken path. |
| 你们有了验证魔正的方法，就不致于走错路头，而受别人欺骗，不然给你们说魔法也不知道。希望你们大家好好用功。净土宗也很好，一心念佛，生净土很好；当下见性成佛，发愿往生净土，能够上品上生更好。 | Once you possess a reliable way of orthodox teaching versus demonic delusion, you will be less likely to go astray or be deceived by others. Otherwise, even if someone were teaching a demonic path, you would not recognize it as such. I hope you all practice diligently. The Pure Land teaching is also excellent. To single-mindedly recite the Buddha’s name and be reborn in the Pure Land is a very good path. Better still is to awaken to your nature and realize Buddhahood here and now, while also making the vow to be reborn in the Pure Land, thereby attaining the highest grade of rebirth. |
| 所以要一门深入，不要这条路走走，那条路走走，结果是一无所成。大家要一门深入好好用功，修法的时候一定要心念耳闻，下座的时候一定要行住坐卧时时观照，断除自己的妄习。着相就错误，千万不要着相。珍重！ | Therefore, practice deeply in one path. Do not drift from teaching to teaching, for such wandering brings little result. Commit yourselves wholeheartedly to a single practice and cultivate diligently. While practicing, you must absolutely recite with the mind and listen with the ears. Upon leaving the meditation seat, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, maintain constant awareness and contemplation, and gradually eradicate your habitual delusive tendencies. The moment you become attached to appearances, you have gone wrong. Never cling to appearances. Take care! |
Glossary
佛学名相词汇
Terms are arranged alphabetically by English headword. Definitions are written for the context of this text; Chinese equivalents appear at the end of each entry.
A
Afflictions: 烦恼
Mental disturbances such as greed, anger, ignorance, and attachment that obscure awakened nature and sustain suffering.
Ālaya阿赖耶识；第八识；藏识
consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna): The eighth or storehouse consciousness in Yogācāra, in which karmic seeds and habitual tendencies are retained.
Amitābha阿弥陀佛
Buddha: The Buddha of Infinite Light and Infinite Life, whose Western Pure Land is central to Pure Land practice.
Annihilationism: 断见；断灭见；计断
The extreme view that a person or reality becomes utterly nonexistent; contrasted with eternalism and the Middle Way.
Arhat: 阿罗汉；罗汉
One who has attained liberation from cyclic existence in the early Buddhist path.
Arhat view: 罗汉见；声闻见
The perspective attributed in this discourse to practitioners who realize personal emptiness but remain attached to dharmas or a one-sided emptiness.
Attachment: 执著；住著
Grasping at appearances, objects, views, practices, attainments, or identities as fixed and possessable.
Attachment to dharmas: 法执；法我见
Clinging to teachings, elements, practices, or attainments as independently real after attachment to a personal self has weakened.
Avalokiteśvara观世音菩萨；观音菩萨
Bodhisattva: The bodhisattva of compassion whose method of realization through the faculty of hearing is emphasized in the discourse.
B
Biased emptiness: 偏空
A one-sided understanding of emptiness as blank nonexistence that overlooks dependent appearance and wondrous functioning.
Bodhidharma: 达摩大师；菩提达摩
The Indian master traditionally regarded as the first patriarch of Chan in China and associated with direct pointing to mind.
Bodhisattva: 菩萨
One who aspires to buddhahood and cultivates wisdom and compassion for the liberation of all sentient beings.
Bodhisattva view: 菩萨知见
The view that practices from a deep understanding of cause and effect and the emptiness of both personal self and dharmas.
Buddha-Dharma: 佛法
The Buddha's teachings and the paths of study, contemplation, and practice based upon them.
Buddhahood: 佛果；成佛
Complete awakening in which delusion and attachment are exhausted and wisdom and liberative functioning are perfected.
Buddha-nature: 佛性
The intrinsic awakened nature present in all sentient beings, described here through its clear knowing and unobstructed functioning.
Buddha-recitation: 佛
Recollection of a Buddha and, especially in this discourse, recitation of Amitābha's name as a method of gathering and purifying the mind. 念
Buddha view: 佛知见
The view that oneself and all sentient beings are intrinsically endowed with Buddha-nature and are to practice from that recognition.
C
Cause and effect: 因果
The principle that intentional actions and conditions give rise to corresponding results.
Chan: 禅；禅宗
The Chinese Buddhist tradition emphasizing direct realization of mind and true nature and the maturation of that realization in daily life.
Chan koan: 禅宗公案；公案
A recorded encounter, saying, or case used in Chan to expose conceptual fixation and point directly to awakened nature.
Cheng Weishi Lun: 《成唯识论》
Xuanzang's Treatise on the Establishment of Consciousness-Only, a foundational text of the East Asian Yogācāra or Faxiang school.
Consciousness-Only: 唯识
The Yogācāra teaching that analyzes experience through consciousness and its transformations rather than independently existing external objects.
Consciousness-Only view: 唯识见
The perspective explained in the discourse through the Three Natures of imagined construction, dependent arising, and perfected reality.
Contemplative awareness: 观照
Moment-to-moment observation that recognizes thoughts without following them and remains unmoved by external circumstances.
Correct practice: 如法修持；如法用功
Cultivation carried out in accordance with the prescribed method, especially reciting with the mind and listening with the ears, continuity, and post-session awareness.
Cyclic existence: 轮回；生死
The continuing round of birth and death propelled by ignorance, attachment, and karma.
D
Dependent arising: 缘起；因缘所生
The principle that phenomena arise through causes and conditions and therefore lack an independent, fixed essence.
Dependent nature (依他起性
paratantra-svabhāva): The Yogācāra nature of phenomena as arising dependently through causes, conditions, consciousness, and karmic seeds.
Dharma Body (法身
Dharmakāya): The formless reality-body of buddhahood; the discourse identifies it with clear awareness at the point where thought ceases.
Dharma Characteristics School: 法相宗
The Chinese Faxiang school of Yogācāra, especially associated with Xuanzang and the Cheng Weishi Lun.
Dharma gate: 法门
A particular teaching or method through which one enters Buddhist understanding and practice.
Direct pointing to the mind: 直指人心
The Chan approach of indicating awakened nature directly rather than relying solely on gradual conceptual explanation.
Dzogchen: 大圆满；大圆满法
The Great Perfection tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, presented in this discourse through the paired practices of Trekchö and Tögal.
E
Ear faculty: 耳根
The faculty of hearing, treated in the discourse as especially effective for collecting the mind and entering practice.
Elemental nature: 四大种性；种性
The generative capacity attributed in the discourse to the four elements as the basis from which bodies and things appear.
Emptiness: 空；性空
The absence of fixed, independent self-nature; it does not mean inert blankness or absolute nonexistence.
Esoteric Buddhism: 密宗；密教；密法
Buddhist traditions employing mantra, mudrā, visualization, empowerment, and related methods of body, speech, and mind.
Eternalism：常见；计常
The extreme view that a self, soul, or other entity exists permanently and independently.
Exoteric Buddhism: 显教
Buddhist teachings presented openly through sūtras, doctrines, contemplation, and ethical or meditative practice.
F
Faxiang法相宗
School: The East Asian Yogācāra school that analyzes consciousness, cognition, and the Three Natures.
Form-based esoteric practice: 有相密；有相法
Esoteric practice that uses visualized forms and then dissolves those forms into emptiness as part of the path.
Formless esoteric practice: 无相密
An esoteric method not dependent on elaborate visualization; the Heart-of-Heart Dharma is described this way in the discourse.
Four great elements: 地、水、火、风四大
Earth, water, fire, and wind, understood as the primary material qualities composing bodies and the physical world.
Four postures: 行、住、坐、卧
Walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, an expression for maintaining practice throughout daily life.
Four preliminary practices: 四加行；前行
Preparatory Tibetan Buddhist practices, commonly including refuge, bodhicitta, Vajrasattva purification, maṇḍala offering, and guru yoga, with prostrations integrated into the preliminaries.
Four Pure Lands: 四种净土；四土
The fourfold East Asian classification of Pure Lands: the Land of the Common Residence of Ordinary Beings and Sages, the Land of Expedient Means with Residue, the Land of True Reward and Adornment, and the Land of Eternal Quiescent Light.
G
Gather in the six sense faculties: 都摄六根
To collect and restrain the six faculties so attention no longer scatters outward after sense objects.
Great Perfection view: 大圆满知见
The view presented here that nature and appearance, emptiness and manifestation, are non-dual.
Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom: 大圆镜智
One of the four wisdoms of buddhahood, likened to a clear mirror that reflects phenomena without grasping.
Great Treasury of Radiant Light: 大光明藏
An image for the all-pervading luminosity of true nature, distinguished from limited visions of colored light.
H
Habitual tendencies: 习气；妄习
Deeply ingrained patterns of thought, emotion, and conduct accumulated through repeated action and karma.
Heart-of-Heart Dharma: 心中心法
The established English rendering for Xīnzhōngxīn Fǎ, described as a formless esoteric practice using one mantra and six mudrās to realize true nature directly.
Heterodox view: 外道见
A view that seeks realization outside mind or clings to eternalism, annihilationism, or another fixed speculative position.
Huatou (critical phrase): 话头；参话头
A concise Chan phrase or question investigated by turning attention toward the source before conceptual thought arises.
Human and Deva Vehicle: 人天乘
Practice of ethical conduct and wholesome action aimed at preserving human birth or attaining rebirth among devas.
I
Innate view: 俱生知见
The view presented in the discourse that all beings intrinsically possess Buddha-nature and should practice from confident recognition of it.
Internal listening: 耳闻；心念耳闻
Listening clearly to one's own recitation so that the mind remains gathered rather than wandering after other thoughts.
K
Karma: 业
Intentional activity of body, speech, and mind and the causal consequences that follow from it.
Karmic obstacles: 业障
Obstructions created by past actions and habitual patterns that hinder understanding, practice, or realization.
Karmic retribution: 业报；受报
The ripening of intentional actions as corresponding results or lived consequences.
L
Land of Eternal Quiescent Light: 常寂光净土
The ultimate Pure Land identified with Dharmakāya and the all-pervading Dharma Realm beyond fixed location and dualistic purity.
Land of Expedient Means with Residue: 方便有余土
The Pure Land associated with practitioners liberated from ordinary cyclic birth yet still progressing toward complete buddhahood.
Land of the Common Residence of Ordinary Beings and Sages: 凡圣同居土
The Pure Land in which ordinary beings and sages dwell together in the four-land classification.
Land of True Reward and Adornment: 实报庄严土
The purified realm associated with advanced bodhisattvas and the fruition of profound wisdom and merit.
M
Madhyamaka中观；中观宗
: The Middle Way tradition emphasizing dependent arising, emptiness, and freedom from the extremes of existence and nonexistence.
Madhyamaka中观见
view: The view that phenomena arise through conditions and are therefore empty of independent essence without being sheer nothingness.
Mahāsthāmaprāpta大势至菩萨
Bodhisattva: The Pure Land bodhisattva who teaches gathering in the six faculties and sustaining pure mindfulness through Buddha-recitation.
Manas末那识；第七识
consciousness: The seventh consciousness in Yogācāra, which appropriates the storehouse consciousness as a self and sustains self-grasping.
Mantra: 咒；真言
A sacred formula recited aloud or mentally as a method of collecting and transforming the mind.
Mudrā：手印；印
A ritual hand gesture or seal used in esoteric Buddhist practice to embody and stabilize a teaching or meditative function.
N
Nine Vehicles: 九乘次第；外三乘、内三乘、密三乘
A graded classification of Buddhist paths used in the Nyingma tradition; the discourse summarizes them as outer, inner, and secret groups.
Non-abiding: 无住；无所住著
Freedom from fixing the mind on an appearance, object, view, identity, practice, or attainment.
Non-attachment: 不执著；不着相
Engaging with appearances and activities without grasping, pursuing, or treating them as independently real.
Non-duality of nature and appearance: 性相不二；性就是相，相就是性
The teaching that appearances are manifestations of true nature and are not separate from it, while remaining empty of fixed essence.
Nothing to attain: 无所得；不可得
Freedom from treating buddhahood, realization, or any phenomenon as a fixed object to be acquired.
O
One-pointed mind without distraction: 一心不乱
Unified attention in which Buddha-recitation continues without the mind scattering toward other objects.
Ordinary person's view: 凡夫见；凡夫知见
The view that phenomena exist solidly and independently, leading to outward pursuit, grasping, and karmic action.
Original Face: 本来面目
A classic Chan expression for one's true nature before conceptual identification and discriminative thought.
Original nature: 本性；真性；自性
The intrinsic, unborn awakened nature identified in the discourse with Buddha-nature, true mind, and clear knowing.
P
Perfected nature (圆成实性
pariniṣpanna-svabhāva): The Yogācāra nature of reality realized when imagined duality is absent from dependently arisen experience.
Perfect Penetration via the Ear Faculty: 耳根圆通；耳根圆通法门
Avalokiteśvara's method of turning hearing back toward its source and realizing true nature through the faculty of hearing.
Post-awakening preservation: 悟后保任；保护本性
The Chan practice of protecting and maturing initial realization while habitual tendencies are gradually exhausted.
Pure Land: 净土
A purified buddha-field; in this discourse it includes the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss and the ultimate Land of Eternal Quiescent Light.
Pure Land school: 净土宗
The Buddhist tradition centered on Amitābha Buddha, Buddha-recitation, vows, and rebirth in the Western Pure Land.
Pure mindfulness in continuous succession: 净念相继
Sustained pure mindfulness that continues without scattering, taught here in connection with Amitābha Buddha-recitation.
R
Rainbow body: 虹光身；身化虹光
A Tibetan Buddhist expression for the transformation or dissolution of the physical body into light at the culmination of certain practices.
Realize one's true nature: 见性
To directly recognize one's intrinsic awakened nature rather than know it only as an idea.
Realize the Way: 见道；悟道；成道
To awaken to and embody the Buddhist path rather than merely understand it conceptually.
Recite with the mind and listen with the ears: 心念耳闻
The practice instruction to recite with focused mental attention while hearing each sound clearly with the ears.
Right View: 正知见；知见正
Accurate understanding that establishes the purpose and direction of practice and avoids the extremes of substantial existence and blank nonexistence.
S
Sahā娑婆世界
world: The world of endurance, the present world-system in Buddhist cosmology where beings experience suffering and cultivate the path.
Samādhi三摩地；禅定；定
Collected meditative stability or absorption in which the mind is unified and no longer scattered.
Samsara: 轮回；生死轮回
Cyclic existence, the repeated round of birth and death driven by ignorance, craving, and karma.
Seeing of non-seeing: 见无所见；真见
Seeing appearances without fixing upon a particular object or constructing a grasped seer and seen.
Sense of doubt: 疑情
The concentrated questioning aroused in huatou (critical phrase) practice to gather the mind and interrupt wandering thought.
Sentient beings: 众生
Living beings subject to ignorance, karma, and rebirth, yet fully endowed with Buddha-nature and the capacity for awakening.
Six faculties: 眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、意六根
The faculties of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind through which sensory and mental experience occurs.
Six 六印一咒
mudrās and one mantra: The concise ritual framework of the Heart-of-Heart Dharma described in the discourse.
Six realms of rebirth: 六道；六道轮回
The realms of hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, asuras, humans, and devas within cyclic existence.
Spiritual powers: 神通
Extraordinary capacities traditionally associated with advanced cultivation; the discourse also interprets ordinary unobstructed functioning as their basis.
Śrāvaka：声闻
A disciple who realizes liberation through hearing and practicing the Buddha's teaching; often associated with the arhat path.
Subject and object fall away together: 能念之心与所念之咒一时脱落；能所双亡
The cessation of the dualistic structure of a reciting mind and a recited mantra, allowing clear awareness to remain unobscured.
Śūraṅgama《楞严经》
Sūtra: An influential East Asian Buddhist scripture that presents twenty-five methods of perfect penetration and emphasizes Avalokiteśvara's ear-faculty practice.
Sūtra of Perfect Enlightenment:《圆觉经》
An influential East Asian Mahāyāna scripture centered on intrinsic perfect enlightenment, delusion, and cultivation.
T
Thought-free luminous knowing: 了了分明的灵知；离念灵知
The clear and vivid knowing that remains when a thought ceases; the discourse identifies it with one's true nature rather than blankness.
Three Bodies (法身、报身、化身；法报化三身
Trikāya): The threefold embodiment of buddhahood as Dharmakāya, Sambhogakāya, and Nirmāṇakāya.
Three channels and seven chakras: 三脉七轮
A subtle-body framework of central, left, and right channels together with seven energy centers, as listed in the discourse.
Three Insights and Six Supernormal Powers: 三明六通
Traditional categories of awakened knowledge and extraordinary ability attributed to advanced practitioners.
Three Natures: 三性；遍计所执性、依他起性、圆成实性
The nature of pervasive discrimination and attachment，the nature of dependence on others, the nature of absolute reality and perfection.
Three Poisons: 贪、瞋、痴三毒
Greed, anger, and ignorance, the fundamental afflictive forces that sustain karma, suffering, and rebirth.
Three Realms: 欲界、色界、无色界；三界
The desire realm, form realm, and formless realm, which together encompass conditioned cyclic existence.
Tögal: 嘎；顿超
The Dzogchen practice name commonly translated as "direct crossing" or "leap-over," presented in the discourse as carrying realization beyond cyclic existence. 三界脱
Trekchö：彻却；立断
The Dzogchen practice name commonly translated as "cutting through," presented here as immediately cutting off deluded thought so the true mind can appear.
True cultivation after awakening: 悟后真修
Continued practice after initial realization that removes habitual tendencies and allows awakened functioning to mature.
True emptiness and wondrous existence: 真空妙有；妙有真空
The unity of emptiness of fixed self-nature with the vivid appearance and effective functioning of phenomena.
True mind: 真心；灵妙真心
Mind free from deluded identification and grasping, described here as living, lucid, and capable of unobstructed functioning.
Twofold emptiness of self and phenomena: 我法二空；人法二空
Realization that neither a personal self nor dharmas possess fixed, independent existence.
Two Vehicles: 二乘；声闻乘、缘觉乘
The śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha paths, presented in Mahāyāna sources as liberating yet not the complete bodhisattva path.
U
Unborn and undying: 不生不灭
The quality of true nature as not produced by causes and therefore not subject to extinction.
V
Vajrayāna：金刚乘；密乘；西藏密宗
The Buddhist tantric vehicle employing mantra, mudrā, visualization, empowerment, and subtle-body methods.
W
Western Land of Ultimate Bliss: 西方极乐世界；西方净土
Amitābha Buddha's Western Pure Land, the principal destination of aspiration in Pure Land Buddhism.
Wondrous conduct: 妙行
Conduct that accords with awakened nature by functioning freely and responsively without attachment.
Wondrous functioning: 妙用；神通妙用
The responsive and unobstructed activity of awakened nature in seeing, hearing, speaking, acting, and benefiting beings.
X
Xuanzang: 玄奘法师
The Chinese Buddhist monk, translator, and Yogācāra master closely associated with the Faxiang school.
Y
Yogācāra:瑜伽行派；唯识宗
The Mahāyāna tradition that analyzes consciousness, karmic seeds, cognition, and the Three Natures.
