持咒先要正心誠意

　　Recite Mantras with a Proper and Sincere Mind

　　心正了，學咒才有感應；不敷衍了事，茍且塞責，這樣才有感應。

　　If you learn a mantra with a proper mind, you can obtain a response.

　　There will be a response only if you aren”t sloppy or careless.

　　誦持默念少意言，

　　示教利喜化大千；

　　所作諸法悉究竟，

　　不增不減到涅槃。

　　By reciting, upholding, and silent chanting,

　　diminish thoughts and words.

　　Explain the teaching to bring benefit and joy,

　　transforming the universe.

　　The enacting of these Dharmas can

　　 lead to the ultimate goal.

　　With nothing more and nothing less,

　　 reach Nirvana.

　　學咒先要正心誠意，若心不正，學什麼咒都是邪的；心正了，學咒才有感應。心正了還不行，還要誠意。誠意就是念茲在茲，絲毫都不馬虎，不敷衍了事，或茍且塞責，這樣才有感應。

　　When studying mantras, you must first have a proper and sincere mind. If your mind is not proper, then no matter which mantra you learn, it will be deviant. If you learn a mantra with a proper mind, you can obtain a response. Not only should your mind be proper, it should also be sincere, means devoting your full attention to the mantra and not being the least bit casual. There will be a response only if you aren”t sloppy or careless.

　　你不是正心誠意，而存著邪知邪見想去害人，這就是魔法，是魔王所行的法。魔是害人不利人；真正想修法的人，在任何情形下也不會害人的。學咒要存利益衆生的心，不要有想降伏魔鬼的思想，或者和其他人起對待心。在佛教裏，沒有敵人，不向任何人報複，就是任何人對自己有害處，也要忍耐，修忍辱波羅蜜，不生報複之心。這就是佛教高超之處。

　　If you harbor deviant views and wish to harm people, your practice is demonic. Demons want to harm people, while genuine cultivators would never harm anyone under any circumstances. You should want to benefit beings. Don”t learn mantras thinking that you”ll be able to subdue demons and ghosts or fight people. Buddhism does not regard anyone as an enemy. Don”t seek revenge on anyone. No matter who mistreats you, endure it. Be patient, and don”t harbor grudges. The nobility of Buddhism lies in that.

　　佛教的優點，其他的宗教都沒有這種精神。雖然基督教說「愛敵」，但也只不過是口頭上說說而已，它真能愛敵嗎？它認爲佛教是它的敵人，它愛佛教嗎？不會的。它開口就是「魔鬼」，閉口也是「魔鬼」，怎麼還會愛敵呢？佛教最重要的教旨就是：「你是魔鬼，我也絕不傷害你，也要攝受你，而不生一種對待法。」這就是佛教最特別的教義，對任何衆生都存慈悲心，不去傷害他們。

　　That particular quality is not embodied in other religions. Although Christianity avows to "Love thy enemy," many only pay that lip service without being able to actually do it. Some even view Buddhism as an enemy; how could it be said that they love Buddhism

　　 It can”t be, not when they refer to Buddhists as devils. The Buddhist attitude should be: "Even if someone is a devil, we won”t harm him. We will gather him in and will refrain from attacking him." Buddhism teaches us to treat all beings with compassion and not harm them.

　　〈楞嚴咒〉是驚天地、泣鬼神，最有效的靈文，所以我們學會〈楞嚴咒〉，就要時時刻刻存慈悲心，舉心動念都不要去傷害人。旁人就是對自己怎麼不好，也不怪他，也不去傷害他。心量要有叁千大千世界那麼大，把所有森羅萬象都包括在裏面，這才是佛教徒的本份。

　　The Shurangama Mantra is a most efficacious mantra; its power can awe heaven and earth and cause the ghosts and spirits to weep. For this reason, after we learn the Shurangama Mantra, we must constantly keep a compassionate frame of mind and make sure that we don”t have even the thought of harming others. No matter how badly someone treats you, don”t blame or hurt him or her. Your heart should be as vast as the universe, so that it can encompass all the myriad phenomena. That”s the right attitude for a Buddhist to have.

　　我們切記，不要做犯上作亂的事，有這種行爲是很危險的。「誦持默念少意言」：就是不要講那麼多話，打那麼多妄想，專一則靈，分歧則蔽。

　　We should never engage in rebellious activities, for that”s very dangerous. By reciting, upholding, and silent chanting, diminish thoughts and words. That is, don”t talk so much and have so many discursive thoughts. Singleminded concentration is efficacious, while being scattered is useless.

　　何謂「專一」？就是不生害人之心。若存害人之心，將來是很危險的，所謂「多行不義必自斃」，害人反害己。「殺人之父，人必殺其父；殺人之兄，人必殺其兄。」這是因果。我們佛教徒要避免惡因，以免將來受惡的果報，所以說「誦持默念少意言」。

　　What”s meant by singleminded concentration

　　 Not having malicious thoughts towards others. If you harbor thoughts of malice, you”ll later find yourself in danger. It”s said, "If you engage in many unrighteous acts, you only bring death upon yourself…

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