改變命運多做功德
To Change Your Fate, Do Many Meritorious Deeds
「君子有造命之學」；命由我立，福自己求。
A superior person knows how to determine his own fate.
One can establish one”s own destiny and seek one”s own blessings.
在世界上有很多問題，你認爲是好的，可是在這裏頭也會有不好的事情發生；現在你認爲是很快樂，將來可能會受痛苦。要想避開這些煩惱，莫如守中道，中道既不太過，也沒有不及；沒有煩惱，沒有快樂。在《中庸》上說：
In the world, there are many things which you might think are good, but there are also bad things which occur within them. You might think you”re very happy right now, but in the future you may experience pain and grief. If you want to avoid these afflictions, you should simply hold to the Middle Way. Holding to the Middle Way means neither going too far nor coming up short. Afflictions are gone, and so is happiness. The Doctrine of the Mean says:
喜怒哀樂之未發，
謂之中；
發而皆中節，
謂之和。
While there are no stirrings of
pleasure, anger, sorrow, or joy,
The mind may be said to be in
the state of equilibrium.
When those feelings have been stirred,
and they are moderated,
What ensues may be called the state of harmony.
如果懂得這個道理，無論做什麼事情，不要太過，不要迷惑，不要顛倒。你要認清楚，黑的是黑，白的是白；善的是善，惡的是惡，把它分析得明明了了，就不會做善惡夾雜的事。
If you understand this principle, then no matter what you do, you shouldn”t go overboard, become confused, or be turned upside-down. You should clearly recognize black as black, white as white, good as good, and bad as bad. If you can distinguish them clearly, you won”t do things that are a mixture of good and evil.
我們一生所遭所遇都是往昔業力所造成的，現在要改變我們的命運，必須多做功德事。所謂「君子有造命之學」，命由我立，福自己求。「禍福無門，惟人自召。」就是這個道理。
Everything that happens to us in this life comes from the karma that we created in past lives. If we want to change our fate, we must perform many meritorious deeds. It is said, “A superior person knows how to determine his own fate. One can establish one”s own destiny and seek one”s own blessings. Calamities and blessings do not come on their own; people themselves bring them about.” This is the same principle.
學佛法的人，一定要對因果報應認識清楚，不可以隨便造惡業、種惡因，更不可以錯因果，要十分謹慎。否則等到受果報時，則悔之晚矣！
Students of the Buddhadharma must clearly recognize causes, effects, retributions, and responses. Don”t carelessly create evil karma or plant evil causes. Don”t make mistakes in cause and effect. Be extremely cautious, or you”ll be sorry when you undergo the retribution.
一九八叁年十月一日開示
A talk given on October 1, 1983