..续本文上一页s all present themselves as lay people. Thus do not misunderstand that lay people will not achieve profound enlightenment and think that it can only be attained by the members of the Order.

　　If there is not much difference, what exactly is the distinction

　　 The Sakyamuni Buddha was born in India. He then renounced his family life and later attained Buddhahood. When he spread the Dharma initially, his followers voluntarily followed his footsteps to lead a monastic life. The Buddha assembled these followers together, and formed the Order.

　　The members of the Order are forbidden from dealing in business or holding government positions. The only aim of the Order is to spread the Dharma. The teaching of the Buddha is then propagated from generation to generation with the Order as the backbone of this continuity. In the past, the preservation of Dharma was the emphasis of the responsibilities for the Order.

　　Let”s draw an analogy from a political party. It must first have an ideology. The party members must have faith in the ideology and hence implement and transform the party ideology into reality. As well, it requires some party members to not only have faith, but to also concentrate on running the party and make it their profession.

　　This is not to say that lay people do not need to spread the Dharma. As we all know, lay people have parents, spouses and children at home to look after. They are also busy in their pursuit of their occupations. They are unable to concentrate solely on propagating the teaching of Buddha. Hence it is important and necessary for the Order of Monks and Nuns to carry out this duty.

　　The monastic community do not have the troubles and worries of family and occupation. Their environment is more conducive to practicing and spreading the Dharma. This is the minor difference between lay people and the Order of Monks and Nuns.

　　One should not think that lay people are tied down and hence cannot practise and propagate the Dharma. It is actually to the advantage of lay people. Buddhism is not only observances such as chanting in the monastery or giving Dharma talks and meditation. It should involve in changing and directing the world, leading the inhabitants of this world in upgrading themselves day by day. In this way we may all bathe in the goodness of the Buddha, and pave the way for each other to attain enlightenment.

　　Since lay people are dispersed in all walks of life, it provides Buddhism with the strength and the vehicle to disseminate to every corner of the world. The monastic community generally preserves the sravakayana tradition of maintaining a certain distance from the general public. Some even practise on their own in seclusion. They may, temporarily sever their ties with the community. However, the monks or nuns of Mahayana tradition have all sentient beings as their target of practice. Thus they choose to reside in villages, towns or cities where they spread the Dharma and actively become involved in the community.

　　The relationship of lay people and the community may be very intimate, which makes the task of spreading the Dharma easier. From this we can see the importance of lay people in Buddhism. Lay people should particularly learn about the aspects of the Dharma that emphasize how to live in peace with others in the community. In this way, they may help those who are in need, and look after and enhance the well-being of other sentient beings. They should rejoice in the goodness of others.

　　They should abstain from over-indulging in the pessimistic and selfish issue of death and dying. There should be co-operation and distribution of tasks between the Order of Monks and Nuns and lay people to promote the spreading of the Dharma. If the Lay People Organization functions in a similar way to a monas…

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