Damo Gushan promotes the social movement of "building a pure land on earth", which is based on spiritual environmental protection and takes the four guarantees of peace of mind, safety, home and work as actions; It also advocates etiquette environmental protection, life environmental protection, natural environmental protection, and cooperates with spiritual environmental protection to become a four-ring movement to promote peace and happiness of human society.
The integration of this book is due to the determination of the editorial team of Fa Gu Culture. The collected 12 articles have all appeared in the monthly magazine Life, of which the second, fifth and seventh articles are attached in the form of "albums", and the remaining 9 articles are published in the column "Boundless Mirror of Life".
The articles in this book are divided into three parts by nature: 1. Four safes, two. Life education; 3. Facing the future. I made speeches in Taiwan Province Province and all over the United States. I didn't expect a book to be published when I spoke, so there were only themes and sub-themes. After I finish writing, if anyone thinks it is worth writing down, I will delete, supplement and polish it myself and give it to the magazine editorial department for later use. If no one arranges for me, I will forget them. Therefore, I want to thank the bodhisattvas who organized my speech.
This book is short in words and short in experience. From1March 20th, 1993 in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan Province Province to 19961March 9th in New Jersey, USA, it was about three years and seven months. But in fact, I have made many speeches. Of course, what I saw in this book is one of the more exciting parts.
My speech is a discussion on the problem of humanization, and it is to put forward opinions and practices with correct Buddhism to relieve the troubles and troubles that often occur in the world. I am transforming Buddhist theories and beliefs into concepts and methods that everyone can understand and use. Although the ideas and methods I provided are not magic wands or panacea, they are really useful to many people. Of course, this is beyond my ability, but Buddhism has this function.
1999 is a peaceful year for dharma drum mountain to carry out the peace movement. The publication of this book can not only be dedicated to us as a commemorative gift, but also hope that it can undertake the task of safety movement. 1998 1 1 22nd, new york.
The first is to stabilize people's hearts and society.
Ordinary people often demand "security" and "stability" protection, and always hope that the environment will give us security and stability. If the environment does not have any safety measures, there will be insecurity; If you don't have enough material conditions in your life, you will also feel unstable.
The relationship between each of us and society is just like the interdependence and mutual influence between man and environment. Environment can affect people, and people also affect the environment. But who will influence the environment? The answer is: everyone can influence the environment, even an idea, a sentence and every move can affect the whole society.
Maybe some people think that the strength of ordinary people is not enough, and it takes great people to climb high to have strength. In fact, great men have the power of great men, while small men have the influence of small men. The strength of great men is also based on the needs of ordinary people, and they converge into their voices and their strength; Moreover, the great man only has the scope of his personal influence; However, the collective strength of the masses is a huge force, which can affect the whole society. Therefore, as long as everyone's thoughts change, or a certain psychological concept changes, society will be affected differently, and the influence will be even greater if the behavior shown by personal practice is added.
Since individuals and society are interactive, social attitudes or social atmosphere will make everyone make corresponding changes. But where does the social atmosphere come from? Sometimes it is caused by the big environment. For example, what happened in Japanese, American and European societies often spread to Taiwan Province Province quickly, and even caused an invincible trend. Some unhealthy practices will also be brought to Taiwan Province Province through this mode.
Although it is said that "society affects us and we are also influenced by society", from the standpoint of religious education, people can get worse without the influence of environment, but they can get better because of the influence of faith, thus affecting society. The average person says, "A leopard cannot change his spots. However, the spirit of religious education is that we will not be disappointed in anyone, nor will we despair in any situation.
A clean heart leads to a clean land.
"Vimalakīrti Jing" says: "If the mind is clean, the Buddha's land is clean", and "Mahayana Belief Theory" says: "If the mind is clean, the environment you see is clean, and what you yearn for and want to achieve will certainly be completed; For example, when you are calm and naturally cool, it should be noted that when you are calm, your body temperature will not rise, and you can bear the sultry heat.
Therefore, if the heart can be clean, the feelings about the environment and society will be very different; If your heart is unclean and full of grievances, anger, hatred, jealousy and dissatisfaction, everyone you see thinks it is a bad person, and you will feel bored when you meet anything. This is because the heart is not clean, so seeing any phenomenon will cause your own troubles. If the mentality can be stable, then the society you see will be reassuring.
Today's social atmosphere everywhere shows people's inner anguish and the dilemma of not getting a sense of stability. Most people think that the first thing to seek people's stability is to improve their lives, so they expect to improve the social environment through politics, economy and law, that is, they hope that everyone will have food, shelter and clothing, and further hope to establish good political and economic measures and perfect legal system to protect the people; Therefore, politicians, educators, religious figures and entrepreneurs have been devoting their strength and talents from different angles and positions, hoping to build a stable society.
Therefore, people in the past worked hard for the country, the nation and the society and found a stable force in their hearts. However, modern people's cognition of country, nation and society has gradually faded and blurred, so that many people in today's society feel that they are living in a daze day by day, don't know what they are busy with every day, and completely lose their goals in life. In fact, if people have their hopes, they can settle down under any circumstances. Therefore, to save people, you must first save your own heart. To achieve real social stability, we should start with stabilizing people's hearts.
The heart does not follow the external environment.
How to feel at ease? The most important thing is that it is not affected by the external environment. If the heart is not affected by the environment, it is a wise man, and the heart will be at ease. If the heart is turned by the environment, it will be troubled. For example, too strong desire will cause anger because it is not satisfied, and the subsequent setbacks will bring fear and suspicion; For example, if someone slanders you, you will be furious; If people praise you, they will be proud; Being wronged is painful and annoying; When others praise you, you get cocky. Although these reactions are human nature, they are all because they cannot be sure of themselves, so they need others to be sure of themselves everywhere. Buddhism teaches us that the mind should not be moved by the "environmental wind", that is, "the eight winds cannot be blown." The so-called "eight winds" refer to: gain, decline, ruin, reputation, weight, ridicule, bitterness and joy.
Of course, adversity is inevitable in life. I often advise everyone to face, accept, deal with and let go when dealing with difficult problems. In other words, if you encounter any difficulties, tribulations or uneven situations, you won't escape, because escaping can't solve the problem. Only by shouldering the responsibility with wisdom can we really get rid of the troubled problems.
In order to achieve inner peace, we should accept the concept of spiritual environmental protection, that is, we should be happy with contentment. Although it is not easy to do it immediately in real life, it is even more difficult to do it all the time, but you may wish to practice every day and slowly feel at ease.
There are three ways to practice spiritual environmental protection:
Buddhist meditation and chanting can make people feel natural and stable.
Always feel ashamed, introspect and repent, just like the Confucian saying "three rescues a day". In fact, it is not enough to reflect three times a day. You should always know what your heart is doing.
Always with a grateful heart, facing everyone and everything in the living environment, and serving wholeheartedly, the purpose is to repay kindness.
Using these three methods to implement spiritual environmental protection can stabilize one's body and mind, grow one's personality and bring stability to the public at any time and place.
The world needs warmth and society needs care. If everyone can stabilize himself, he will certainly stabilize others. Therefore, we must work together to build a stable society. (1July 26, 995, at the monthly meeting of Taipei * * * police officers)
The second is to settle down, feel at ease, settle down and work with peace of mind.
I am not an expert in science and technology, nor in physiology, nutrition, psychoanalysis, family problems, nor in business management. I am a master who uses Buddhism to integrate and guide problems. From the standpoint of Buddhism, I will guide all the physical, psychological and environmental problems in the world with my experience of Buddhism, and provide you with some principled guidance to achieve the purpose of peace of mind, safety, housing and employment.
Those who can be safe-those who can be safe will be safe.
Follow the Bodhisattva Road-respect others and live with peace of mind.
Most people always find a place to live first, and then seek peace of mind, that is to say, they think that their bodies can be stable and their hearts can be stable; I also think I should seek a sense of security first, and then consider other people in society.
However, people who study Buddhism, a practitioner and practitioner of Bodhisattva, have the opposite idea. They take peace of mind as the basic principle of settling down, and complete the merits of self-security through settling down.
Because after peace of mind, the body is naturally stable. Mental health, even if the body is sick, is also a normal and healthy person; If the heart is unhealthy and the body is good, this person is also problematic and may bring trouble to society and family.
If you can put the safety, stability, happiness and interests of others in the first place anytime and anywhere, you must be a very stable person, and your family, relatives and friends will be safe.
Therefore, those who practice Bodhisattva must be self-sacrificing, benefit others and feel at ease.
How to feel at ease? The most important thing is to protect our minds from environmental pollution and not to affect the social environment because of the stupid behavior of our own minds. This is the "spiritual environmental protection" advocated by Fa Gushan.
How to settle down? It is to implement the "etiquette and environmental protection" put forward by dharma drum mountain, including heart, body and mouth, which requires us to show respect, respect, gratitude, gratitude to others in terms of language, body, facial expressions and actions. Because we are sincere and polite to people, the response we get must be stable and safe, and of course our environment will be safe.
Peace of mind and body-balance and stability of mind and body
The main cause of physical discomfort is the imbalance of physical function. Buddhists call it the "Four Big"-the imbalance of fire, water and wind, that is, the imbalance of cold and heat, diet, sleep, lack of exercise or excessive exercise, and irregular work and rest will all make our bodies unbalanced. In addition, it is impossible to control the inner floating, leading to all kinds of involuntary situations, which will also damage the health of the body.
In addition, the temptation of the outside world and the pressure of the environment will also make us lose balance. I didn't want to get angry, but I got angry. I didn't want to drink, but I didn't want to gamble. I don't want to overeat originally, and I try to eat and drink in order to control my troubles ... These are rooted in the inner imbalance and will eventually turn into physical dysfunction.
In daily life, when you find your inner contradiction, pain and imbalance, you should first pay attention to your breathing, and then pay attention to what you are thinking. Then objectify yourself and observe why you are angry. What are you angry about? Look at your breath when you are angry. How's the heart beating? Next, pay attention to your feelings. Is it uncomfortable?
In other words, when your heart is unstable, you might as well immediately shift your mind to observing the various reactions of your body, and your mood will calm down immediately. This method of balancing and stabilizing body and mind is very useful, but it should be practiced frequently.
Therefore, the implementation of "spiritual environmental protection" is actually to use Buddhism to regulate our hearts; Although it is impossible to become a Buddha at once, at least these simple methods can be used to balance the body and mind.
In addition, when encountering major difficulties, it is useless to be anxious and miserable. You should lift your spirits, recite the holy names of Amitabha and Guanyin, pray for the blessing of Buddha and Bodhisattva, and give you confidence and strength. In fact, when you recite the name of Amitabha or Guanyin Bodhisattva, your mood is already very calm and stable.
Living and working in peace and contentment-the happiness and guarantee of family business
The definition of home refers to people who live together. Each of us has a home, and we all have different levels of homes. If you have a family, you must have a family. As soon as possible, it means loving, caring, being close, caring and caring for the people you belong to. This is called dependence. In the family, every member should take care of, care for and encourage each other, love and help each other, and must also have responsibilities, obligations and ethical relations.
Nowadays, ordinary families are small families separated by big families, so the stability of families is often weak, and couples often quarrel and divorce for a little thing. When children grow up a little, they start to rebel and even run away from home.
If we can start from a small family, gradually expand the scope and regard the institutions, companies and organizations we serve as our own homes, we will be generous and will not always quarrel and get angry around small families.
Sakyamuni Buddha told us that we should take the Tathagata's career as our housework and all living beings as our families, so that this kind of home will have a very large scope. In the Vimalakīrti Sutra, the Bodhisattva Vimalachi takes all troubles as the Tathagata, and all sentient beings live together as a Buddhist career.
Taking care of one's small family is the foundation of the Bodhisattva's trip, but it will be a profound bodhisattva's wish to further expand it, take the troubles of all beings as the home and undertake the "Tathagata family business". However, the order must not be reversed, and we must be small and broad in order to get real security, stability and peace.
Living in peace-lies in the diligence and frugality of life.
Busy people have the most time, and their efforts and health are the best.
Living too fast is not necessarily a bad thing, and living too comfortably is not necessarily a good thing.
Many people try their best to make money in order to "support their children for their old age and save money to feed their hunger", hoping to enjoy a stable life in their later years after hard work; It seems that the purpose of work is only to ensure the stability of one's life.
Therefore, many people say that the most important thing in old age is to have an "old capital". But many people quarrel with their parents, children, brothers and friends for money, and as a result, their money becomes unsafe.
Based on security, for the country, it is necessary to hide wealth from the people; For individuals, it is the most reliable and safest to store the fruits of their efforts in society, between people and put their own safety in society.
If you only want to be safe for yourself and your descendants, you will still have food, clothing, shelter and transportation after ten generations, one hundred generations and one thousand generations. This idea is not only unreliable, but will harm your children and grandchildren. Of course, first of all, you should create and increase your own wealth, and then your family, group and society will be happy because of your efforts.
People should work, but work is not equal to life. Life is not only for material wealth, not only for the enjoyment of material desires, but for healthy body and mind and grateful dedication.
An industrious person, usually a healthy and industrious person, knows how to take care of himself even if he is in poor health; People who work hard will not be lonely. Therefore, I encourage the elderly to have something to do, although it is not necessarily for money, otherwise it is an unhealthy lifestyle.
Hard work can not only make people healthy and peaceful, but also get material rewards. However, with material rewards, we must use them sparingly, otherwise, in order to enjoy material desires, we will have unhealthy behaviors to our body and mind.
In other words, hard work should be accompanied by thrift, so these two principles are the secrets of good health. As a result of thrift, you will have many benefits that you can provide to others. By that time, you will be a person that everyone likes and admires.
Busy, busy, busy, happy! Tired, tired and happy!
Usually, when we are busy, we will be very tired. When we are tired, we feel bored. In fact, being busy is also a kind of happiness. Some people may think that busy people have less time, but in fact, busy people have more time, because they will cherish time, arrange time, fight for time, and take time out to do what they should and want to do.
Relax and smile at everyone.
Relaxation can make us healthy physically and mentally. No matter what happens, don't be afraid to meet anyone, don't worry. If you are grateful, you can smile. If you are often in a state of tension, sadness and anger, or if you go deep into your head to think without knowing what you are doing, you will definitely lack a smile on your face, which will lead to mental unhealthy, and as a result, your body will not be healthy.
We should always keep nothing to worry about, that is, nothing to be unhappy or dissatisfied with, because in this world, "nine times out of ten things are unsatisfactory." Now that we know that 80% or 90% of things may not be satisfactory, what else is unsatisfactory?
Knowing the blessings and cherishing the blessings, planting Futian extensively, benefiting others and benefiting themselves, and making more connections.
As the saying goes, "those who get the word help more" and "those who have virtue are not alone". If they can win popularity, always think of others and give them safety, they will probably give you safety. Give happiness to others, and others will probably give you happiness. This is the truth that "those who respect others will always respect others".
Of course, this seems to be a distant pursuit. Some people question: "If people don't save themselves, the devil takes the hindmost." If you can't take care of yourself, can you still benefit others?
I have two sentences in the exhortation of the four buddhas: "Do your best to benefit others and yourself", which is to encourage everyone to benefit others and themselves, not others first. However, we must first strive to grow ourselves and take good care of ourselves in order to benefit others; But the purpose of growing yourself is not for yourself, but for others, then you will be safe.
I've been looking for growth all my life. For what? Because "Buddhism is too good, too few people know it and too many people misunderstand it." In order to spread Buddhism, we should enrich ourselves and grow up. At the same time, we should spread Buddhism and gain popularity, so that we can grow more.
Inner peace-is that there is no desire and satisfaction in life.
Not much, too much.
What is "need"? Even without it, we can't live, such as sunshine, air, moisture, basic food, warm clothes, shelter from the wind and rain. In our time, basic means of transportation, computers and telephones have become necessities, and owning these necessities is not a desire.
What is desire? It is a luxury and ornament other than necessities, just to satisfy one's vanity, or to support the scene. However, in different occasions, different positions, in order to match the environmental karma at that time, it is still necessary to have a certain degree of solemnity, which is also a need, but it must be moderate.
Staying in Qingshan is not afraid of burning wood, I can still breathe, of course I am satisfied.
When your heart is in anger, anxiety and fear and can't be balanced, read these four sentences and your heart will settle down. Because there is still breathing, although there is nothing left, at least it is not dead; Being alive and breathing shows that there is still hope, that is, a blessed person, why worry, worry and fear!
For personal gain, we should be content with the status quo and settle our hearts. For the well-being of all beings, we should try our best to reassure others.
If you want to be less satisfied, you won't have a strong desire and be insatiable, and you can settle your heart.
It is a kind of bodhisattva behavior, a kind of compassionate wish to reassure others' hearts, so we should launch a compassionate wish to benefit all beings and seek welfare for others; Otherwise, just wanting to be less satisfied is not only not positive enough, but even negative.
The upper class is content with Tao, the middle class with things, and the lower class with fame and fortune.
The master lives in the center of the Tao, develops bodhicitta, and walks the Bodhisattva Road; The middle-class man is comfortable and gives him a moderately busy job. He won't bother himself or cause trouble to others. People with low self-esteem only know how to be satisfied with the pursuit of fame and fortune. I hope everyone can at least feel at ease, not the inferior people who pursue fame and profit.
Settle down-love and help in the family.
The function of family lies in mutual respect, mutual help, responsibility sharing, honor sharing, happiness sharing, difficulty sharing and growth sharing.
The warmth of family lies in mutual respect, and the value of family lies in mutual help. Mutual assistance means that people in need can get help. When helping others, don't be cocky, don't think you are a benefactor, others should thank you; On the contrary, you should be grateful and grateful to the other party for giving you the opportunity to contribute and grow in the process of serving him.
The responsibilities and obligations of family ethics must be observed, that is, the father should be like the father, the mother should be like the mother, and the wife, husband and children should also do their duties and play their roles well. Don't haggle over every ounce, there will be problems, because family members, like our society, have their own responsibilities. If so, the family will be at peace.
Anyone who establishes a relationship of love and mutual assistance with life is regarded as home.
The scope of home can be large or small, from monogamy to a family, a society, a clan, a country and a world. Anyone who establishes a relationship of love and mutual assistance with life is regarded as home.
The key to settle down is to respect each other, learn from each other, understand each other, care about each other, thank each other and contribute to each other.
Settling down materially is not a real home; The real solution is to let everyone in the family do their best and do their duty.
Family members are bodhisattva companions who practice compassion and wisdom.
Think of other people in the family as bodhisattvas, because they are always helping us, alerting us and giving us a chance to learn and grow.
Especially as a Buddhist, he is a Bodhisattva practitioner of Bodhisattva Road. Regardless of the personality and behavior of every member of the family, he is a bodhisattva, helping us grow up and move forward on the path of bodhisattva.
What's more, Bodhisattva is a lifesaver. In order to save suffering, we must first learn to suffer. With the experience of suffering, we can really grow up, settle down, feel at ease, know how to save the suffering of all beings and how to save them.
Compassion has no enemies, and wisdom does not worry.
When you get along with your family, your family will be very happy if you can read these two sentences often.
Treat yourself with wisdom, and you won't have trouble. If you don't have wisdom, you should learn and listen to Buddhism, help yourself and illuminate your heart with the wisdom of Buddhism, and also illuminate the hearts of others with the wisdom of Buddhism. At the same time, you should learn from the compassion of Bodhisattva to benefit all people, care for all people and love all people.
A profession-lies in the purity and diligence of body, mouth and heart.
All gestures, words and thoughts are called homework.
Generally speaking, having a stable career means that your career and work are stable and secure. However, if we take the purity and diligence of the three types of behavior as the scope, it already includes personal behavior and work.
We should pay attention to our own behavior, be contented, don't act rashly, have no rules, don't talk nonsense, and don't be half-hearted. These are the achievements that we must abide by in our daily life.
Furthermore, people who practice Bodhisattva should practice two professions: one is "wisdom", that is, wisdom; One is "good fortune", that is, good luck. Wisdom has a complete career, just like manjusri bodhisattva; Compassion karma is complete, just like avalokitesvara. When these two kinds of karma are complete, it is called blessing and wisdom, and that is Buddha. All buddhas and bodhisattvas regard the stability of all beings as the Tathagata cause, and this spirit is an example that all of us should learn.
"Baby Bodhisattva" should be ups and downs, rising repeatedly, and strengthen the bodhisattva's desire for Taoism.
All sentient beings who are bodhicitta are ordinary people and have shortcomings, but they are budding bodhisattvas who are practicing bodhisattvas, and they are all "babies walking bodhisattvas". In infancy, when people learn to walk, they always shake and often fall. When they fall, they have less time to stand up and walk. Although I have less time to stand up and more time to climb on the ground, I still have to practice, and I will stand up independently when I grow up.
Therefore, as a "walking baby bodhisattva", we should encourage ourselves. It doesn't matter if you fall, just stand up again, and we can keep going according to the Bodhisattva Road we want to practice.
Being conscientious about one's behavior means being dedicated and diligent.
Everything is considered from the viewpoint of "benefiting others and benefiting themselves", that is, music group and purity.
Although it is a cliche, it is not easy to do it. Even if everything is successful and satisfactory, once there are some twists and turns, troubles and problems, you will doubt who you are working for and who you are working for. If these ideas appear, it is not a special music group.
Dedication means being responsible and serious about what you do; Diligence is unremitting efforts and dedication; If you have reservations about your heart, physical strength and ability, it is not called dedication and diligence.
Any behavior of one's own should be considered from the viewpoint of "benefiting others and benefiting oneself", instead of pursuing one's own interests, one should strive for the welfare of others, and seek far-reaching and near-term benefits for others. If you can face everything with this attitude, I believe you will be very popular at home, in the company and even on any occasion.
In stability and harmony, only by grasping today can we get out of tomorrow.
This is not realism, but "modernism". The most important thing in practice is to grasp the present. The past has passed, and the future has not yet arrived. Only the present moment is the most important, which enables us to concentrate and work hard in time.
If we now have the opportunity to work hard and not work hard, and the stage to act and not act, if we miss an opportunity, we will lose an opportunity to grow. It would be a pity. Therefore, what we can do now must be done as well as possible.
With a clear sense of direction, always stand firm and step by step.
In the process of human life, we should establish the direction as soon as possible, consider our talents, interests and resources, including physical health, intelligence and willingness, as the basis for judgment, and then find the general direction of life.
You can't change direction easily, but you can change your position. For example, if you are the general manager today, the chairman tomorrow, the son today, the father tomorrow, the wife today and the mother tomorrow, your position can be constantly changed. If you don't change your position and adjust your foothold, you are probably an inactive person.
After choosing a good direction and gaining a firm foothold, you must be practical and step by step, so that any career will be successful.
Use wisdom to correct the direction from time to time, and use compassion to facilitate people everywhere.
Ordinary people often feel at a loss because of the influence of the environment, the changes of the times, various external factors and the lack of their own conditions. I don't know what to do. It's like walking at a fork in the road, not knowing where your direction is.
At this time, I will go back and think about it: "What is my fundamental direction? If you find that the present situation has deviated from the original goal, you must use wise judgment to correct it.
Don't be selfish, seek happiness for yourself, don't bite off more than one can chew, sacrifice lightly, and don't be unfaithful.
Pay less attention to immediate self-interest and more attention to far-reaching public interests.
The growth of character and the firmness of bodhicitta are great successes.
Success is diversified and multifaceted. Don't dwell on a specific event, a specific situation, that is called success. Even if wealth, status and career fail temporarily, don't lose bodhicitta and personality. Even if all efforts are unsuccessful, as long as the personality grows and the character is improved, that is success.
Everything depends on various causes, which is often beyond one's control. Personal efforts are the main cause, and karmic maturity is the result. Therefore, don't get carried away when things are smooth sailing, and don't get discouraged when things are full of twists and turns. When the situation is good, we must be alert and have no sense of crisis; Don't lose confidence and perseverance when it is not good; It is likely that the situation will improve as soon as opportunities, environment and conditions change.
Therefore, using the concept of causality can make you face the reality bravely and create the future. You will not complain, envy or envy others. Because there is no eternal disappointment and failure, and there is no personal achievement and success. (1March 25, 995, I spoke at the training class of the Sian Lecturer Group of Nongchan Temple)