..續本文上一頁家庭平安，大者社會安定，天下太平。而教育子弟，首要戒貪；一念貪，念念貪。

　　When we educate our children, we want them to walk on the right path. But what is the right path

　　 Is it high official position and a good salary”

　　 Fame and riches

　　 Beautiful maids and charming mistresses

　　 Or many children

　　 You may say it”s high official position and a good salary, but serving the king is like accompanying a tiger; if one day you are sentenced to death, what fun is there in that

　　 You may say it”s being famous and wealthy, but it”s difficult to stop your desires; if your reputation is totally ruined one day, what fun will that be

　　 You may want to enjoy beautiful maids and charming mistresses, but it”s human nature to be jealous; when they fight amongst themselves in the bed-room, how will that be enjoyable

　　 You may want to have many children, but when there are many people there are bound to be disagreements; if there”s a tragedy in the family, what is the fun

　　 Thus it”s better to teach children the right ideas from the beginning. Then they themselves will enjoy endless blessings and their families will be harmonious. Ultimately, the society will be stable and the world will be at peace. The first thing to teach children is not to be greedy. A single thought of greed leads to endless greed.

　　古人說﹕「食者天也；色者性也。」又說﹕「民以食爲天。」足見飲食本是衆生最原始的欲望，所以說，貪食正是貪財貪色之本；豈能以爲是飲食小事，率而輕忽了它呢！至于飲酒，本來小飲兩杯，既不犯殺生，也不致損傷健康，或危害他人，應該沒什麼關系吧？問題是世上能自製的人太少了！

　　There”s an old saying: "Food is all-important; lust is part of human nature." Another saying goes; "To people, food is all-important." This goes to show that eating and drinking are basic human desires. Thus there”s another saying: "Greed for wealth and sex stems from greed for food." How can we overlook the matters of eating and drinking and think they are unimportant

　　 As for drinking alcohol, one might think that having a couple of drinks won”t matter, since it doesn”t violate the precept against killing, damage the health, or hurt anyone else. The problem is, very few people are able to control themselves!

　　有個修行人自己住著，一天晚上，正在小飲兩杯之際，忽然跑進來一只小雞；他一看，這可不正是下酒菜？于是也顧不了犯殺戒、盜戒，就把雞殺來吃了。愈吃，酒也愈灌得多；酒愈灌得多，也愈性起。鄰家少婦跑來問雞，他順口扯謊﹕「沒看見！」醉眼蒙眬之際，看那女人長得也不錯，就又把她強奸了！年輕子弟血氣未剛者，戒之在色；血氣方剛者，戒之在鬥；而酒能亂性，血氣難伏，一但失去自製，就殺、盜、邪淫、妄語，什麼都做得出來了！

　　Once there was a cultivator who lived by himself .One night when he has having a couple of drinks, a chicken wandered in. Seeing it, he thought, "Wouldn”t it be nice to have some chicken to go with the wine

　　" Forgetting about the precepts against killing and stealing, he slaughtered and cooked the chicken. Then he ate it and had some more wine. The more he drank, the more excited he got. When his neighbor, a young woman, came looking for her chicken, he lied, "I haven”t seen it." Seeing the woman through his blurred drunkenness, he found her quite attractive and raped her. Young people are not yet physically mature and should refrain from indulging in lust. When they are in the prime of life, they should refrain from fighting. Intoxicants confuse the nature, making it difficult to subdue energy. Once a person loses self-control, he is liable to do anything, including killing, stealing, acting promiscuously, and lying.

　　本來佛當初製戒時，飲酒並不在戒中。後來，一位修習有神通的弟子，因爲勇伏毒龍，居士很感謝地獻酒供養；他一高興，竟飲酒失度，最後醉臥街頭，有如爛泥。佛看平日這麼一位威武的行者，酒後竟是如此脆弱不堪，醜態百出，從此才把這不飲酒，與不殺、不盜、不邪淫、不妄語，同列在基本五戒之中。

　　When the Buddha first set up the precepts, he didn”t prohibit intoxicants. Later on, a disciple who had spiritual powers bravely tamed a poisonous dragon. When the grateful laypeople offered him some liquor, he drank it joyfully, lost control of himself, and lay about in the streets in a drunken stupor, like a piece of trash. Seeing that awe-some cultivator become so weak and disgraceful when he was drunk, the Buddha added no intoxicants to the other precepts of no killing, no stealing, no lust, and no lying, to make the five basic precepts.

　　想想看﹕一位修到那麼高境界的出世者，尚且逃不過酒的考驗，我們凡夫俗子，又怎敢自命不凡地說﹕「沒關系！我就喝兩口罷了！」

　　Think about it: If such an accomplished cultivator failed the test of intoxicants, how could we ordinary people brag: "I”ll only take a couple of sips; there”s no harm in that."

《弟子規淺釋 Standards for Students 第四章﹕謹 Chapter Four: LEARNING TO BE CAREFUL - 4》全文閱讀結束。