..續本文上一頁uring on the Shurangama Sutra to a group of over thirty students from the University of Washington in Seattle. During the ninety-six days of summer vacation, I lectured on the Shurangama Sutra to those college students. During that time, there was only a half day”s break on Saturdays. Aside from that, I lectured on the Sutra every day, and they all took notes. In the beginning, I lectured once a day, and then they studied on their own. After half a month, I assessed the time and the length of the Shurangama Sutra. Fearing that I might not finish in time, I began lecturing twice a day. After a while, I calculated again and decided that I still would not be able to finish, so I started lecturing three times a day. Finally, in the last half month or more, I lectured four times a day.
在這個「暑假楞嚴講修班」的期間，我一個人，給他們講經也是我，做飯也是我，做菜也是我，燒茶也是我，那麼買菜一切一切都是我，那時候四十八單執事，我一個人兼而行之，就這樣子。那麼這些個學生我本來可以叫他們輪流來做事情，但是我怕耽誤他們的功課，耽誤他們研究經典的時間，所以誰我也不用，那時候不敢說行菩薩道，但是因爲有人要學《楞嚴經》，我願意盡形壽來供養這樣的人，所以在九十六天中，把《楞嚴經》講完了。講完之後，這是在美國一般人認識佛教的一個開始。
During the Summer Shurangama Study and Cultivation Session, not only did I lecture on the Sutra, I also cooked the meals, made tea, and did the grocery shopping and everything else for them. You could say I single-handedly took on all the monastic chores. Of course, I could have asked the students to take turns working, but I did not want to interfere with their cultivation and study of the Sutra. So I didn”t let a single person help. Although I dare not say I was practicing the Bodhisattva Way, if people wanted to study the Shurangama Sutra, I was willing to dedicate my life to serve and support them. After ninety-six days, I finished lecturing the Shurangama Sutra. With the end of this lecture, people in America were beginning to give recognition to Buddhism.
講完《楞嚴經》，有五個人就出家了，在那年正月初一的時候，我曾經對一切的信衆說過，「今年美國的佛教會開五朵蓮華，這五朵蓮華將來就是把佛教傳到西方去。」這是那時候說的話。
At the end of the Shurangama Sutra lecture series, five people left the home-life. On New Year”s Day, I said to the assembly, "This year, five lotuses will bloom in American Buddhism. In the future, these five lotuses will spread Buddhism in the West." That”s what I said then.
那麼在這個「暑假楞嚴講修班」畢業之後，就有五個美國人要出家，我就派他們到臺灣海會寺去受戒，遇著臺灣的善知識，就告訴這五個人，說：「現在末法時代了，沒有人在修行了，你們還吃一餐哪，被你師父給騙了！」我這些個美國徒弟，一聽這個話，「哦！原來我們是被師父騙了，那我們怎麼辦呢？」這個善知識就說：「吃飯嘛！喝酒嘛！吃肉嘛！」這五個人對佛教就生了懷疑了，「怎麼我師父教我們吃一餐，他們叫我們早晚都應該吃飯的，這是怎麼搞的？這裏頭一定有問題？」心裏就活活動動地就要吃飯，于是乎他們自己就開會，說：「我們回去問清楚再吃飯！」他們又告訴那個臺灣的善知識說：「我們是坐單的。」臺灣有一些個人就告訴他們說：「坐單！那是佛住世的時候，有人坐單；現在佛都不在世了，你們坐什麼單哪？唉！真是美國人被中國人騙了。」
After they graduated from the Summer Shurangama Lecture and Practice Session, five Americans left the home-life. I sent them to Hai Hui (Sea-like Assembly) Monastery in Taiwan to receive the precepts. The Good and Wise Advisors in Taiwan told them, "Now it is the Dharma-Ending Age. No one cultivates anymore. You”re still eating one meal a day
You”ve been cheated by your teacher." When my American disciples heard this, they thought, "Oh, so we”ve been cheated by our teacher. What should we do
" The Good and Wise Advisors said, "Well, go ahead and eat. Drink wine and eat meat." The five people started to have doubts about Buddhism. "How come our teacher taught us to eat one meal a day, and now they tell us we should eat in the morning and evening as well
What”s going on
There must be something wrong here." Their minds were swayed, and they wanted to start eating more meals, but they had a meeting and decided to go back and make sure before they did that. They also told the Good and Wise Advisors in Taiwan that they slept sitting up. Some people in Taiwan told them, "You sleep sitting up
People did that when the Buddha was in the world. Now the Buddha isn”t around anymore, so why do you do it
It”s really a case of Americans being cheated by the Chinese."
這麼樣一來，怎麼樣呢？回去就調皮了，說：「人家臺…
《《楞嚴經》是照妖鏡 The Shurangama Sutra Is a Demon-spotting Mirror》全文未完，請進入下頁繼續閱讀…