..續本文上一頁ssolving.” So all phenomena in this world are like dreams, like illusions, like mirages. There may be many manifestations, but there is not a drop or a shred of a true self.

　　Of course, this principle is not just a religious saying. Nowadays many people are quite against religions. They believe that now is the new age of science, religions are long passé, and it is enough for people to aspire to advanced technology. This is the biggest error. If there is no religion to guide the heart, then the intelligence and creativity of scientists have the potential to become tools that harm innumerable beings, and even lead to the self-destruction of the human race.

　　Nowadays, most of those born in the 80s and 90s only care about finding a good job, a good partner, buy a good house, as if after having these, life seems to be very fulfilled. Yet as soon as religion is mentioned, they often believe: “This is to do with religious people, I have no use for it, it”s enough that I master my professional knowledge.” In fact it is not like this. If you do not even understand that life is like a dream, then even if you have the most superior knowledge, you may not necessarily find the right direction in life.

　　Actually, many literary figures in ancient times also agreed with the truth that life is like a dream. The Tang Dynasty [CE 618 – 907] poet Li Bai said: “In this vast, grand dream, only I awaken first”. In this grand dream of life, he believed that only he awakened first. Of course, it is hard to discern how deep his awakening was. But irrespectively, there were many wise ones in the past who through the analogy of “dream” saw through life, and realized the nature of the mind.

　　In Tibetan Buddhism, there are also many brilliant debates on how to prove that life is like a dream. For example, one side can take the stance of the awake, listing reasons for why being awake is real and dreams are false. The other side can take the angle of the dreaming, using reason to argue that awake and dreaming are both false. Although many start with the belief that dreams are false and being awake is real, after debating, all come to realize that these two have no differences whatsoever.

　　When you are dreaming, what the eyes see, ears hear, hands touch; all appear real. Yet upon waking there is nothing there. Equally, everything your eyes, ears, hands encounter now, when tomorrow comes would not be there. It is no different to a dream. So, past events are yesterday”s dream, future events are tomorrow”s dream, everything in front of one now is in a dream.

　　Perhaps some do not think thus: “You see, dreams are very short in time, but the time when I am awake is as long as a lifetime. So, waking and dreaming must be very different.” This argument is not reasonable. Dreams can also span a long time. For example, one Tibetan Buddhism master dreamt that he stayed in a pure Buddha land for 21 years. Only when he woke did he realize that it was the dream of one night.

　　Also, in the Han story of “Dream of golden millet”, a poor student took a nap while the restaurant owner made yellow rice. In the dream he experienced the whole process of marrying a wife, having a son, enjoying wealth and fortune, until his eventual death. But when he woke, the rice was not yet ready.

　　In the story of The dream of Nan Ke, it was also said, a man became drunk during his birthday and gradually fell asleep under a locust tree. In the dream he married a princess, had many children, and was assigned by the emperor to Nan Ke as the viceroy. After 20 years there, there was one invasion by an enemy state and he suffered a terrible defeat. When he went home, his wife had also died and the emperor was extremely dissatisfied with him, dismissed him and sent him to his hometown. He was overcome with…

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