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人类需要宗教，并不是为了要圆成未来的美梦，或为自己提供某些依怙，这种做法等于自我投降，将成为他人讥笑的对象。一个宗教必须以合理和确实的方法，让人类在现实中活得更有意义，同时也给他人做一个好榜样。很多宗教鼓励人类追求外在的力量，佛教却鼓励人们向自己的内心寻求潜藏的宁静──「法」。「法」的真相是：人既是法，法既是人。因此，「法」必须透过内心的修持和觉悟于智慧、慈悲和纯净来获得，除了修持外，没有其他途径能够获得这神圣和伟大的「法」。
Which is the Proper Religion
正信的宗教
If any religion has the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, then it can be regarded as a proper religion.
具备四圣谛、八圣道的宗教，就是真正的宗教。
It is a very difficult for a man to find out why there are so many different religions, and which religion is the true one. Followers of every religion are trying to show the superiority of their religion. Diversity has created some uniformity, but in matters of religion, men took upon each other with jealousy, hatred and disdain. The most respected religious practices in one religion are deemed ridiculous to others. To introduce their pine and peaceful messages some people have to resorted to weapons and wars. Have they polluted the good name of religion
It seems that certain religions are responsible for piding instead of uniting mankind.
To find a true and proper religion, we must weigh with an unbiased mind what exactly is a false religion. False religion or philosophies include: materialism which denies survival after death; amoralism which denies good and evil; any religion which asserts that man is miraculously saved or doomed; theistic evolution which holds that everything is preordained and everyone is destined to attain eventual salvation through mere faith.
Buddhism is free from unsatisfactory and uncertain foundations. Buddhism is realistic and verifiable. Its Truths have been verified by the Buddha, verified by His disciples, and always remain open to be verified by anyone who wishes to do so. And today, the Teachings of the Buddha, are being verified by the most severe methods of scientific investigation.
一个人在众多的宗教当中，要找一个真正的宗教是不容易的。每一个宗教的信徒，都认为他们所信仰的宗教是最卓越的。在五花八门的宗教里，共同的一项事实就是彼此轻视、嫉妒和诬蔑，每一个宗教都讥笑其他宗教的教义和修持方法。为什么有些宗教要用武力去宣扬它们的「神」，以及它们那「和平」的福音。它们是否亵渎了宗教的神圣性？从这点看来，某些宗教要为人类由合而分负起大部份责任。要找到一个真正的宗教，必须以不偏不倚的心来观察，什么是虚妄和不实际的宗教或宗教理论，包括：唯物主义，它否定了死后的存在，反道德主义，它否定了善与恶。大多数的宗教都宣扬人被奇迹般的拯救或毁灭。而有些有神论者，则认为每一件事都是宿命的，每一个人注定在最后得救。佛教并没有这些令人不满意或不正确的基础，佛教是现实主义者，一切理论都能被证实，它的真理已被佛陀和他的弟子们证实。佛教的真理不止被证实，而且还是敞开的，如今，仍然有很多人想要去证实它。佛陀所宣扬和教导的真理，今天已经获得严谨的科学家们所证实。
The Buddha advises that any form of religion is proper if it contains the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. This clearly shows that the Buddha did not want to form a particular religion. What He wanted was to reveal the Ultimate Truth of our life and the world. Although the Buddha expounded the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Noble Path, this method is not the property of Buddhists alone. This is universal Truth.
佛陀说：「任何形式的宗教，只要包含了四圣谛和八圣道，就是真正的宗教。」这论点明白的表示，佛教不需要有特别的组织，佛教所示现的就是我们的生活和宇宙最究竟的真理。佛陀所宣说的四圣谛和八圣道，不仅属于所有的佛教徒，也是属于整个世界的真理。
Most people find it necessary to put forth arguments to ”prove” the validity of the religion that they are following. Some claim that their religion is the oldest and therefore contains the truth. Others claim that their religion is the latest or newest and therefore contains the truth. Some claim that their religion has the most followers and therefore contains the truth. Yet none of these arguments are valid to establish the truth of a religion. One can judge the value of a religion by using only common sense and understanding.
Some religious traditions require man to be subservient to a greater power than himself, a power which controls his creation, his actions and his final deliverance. The Buddha did not accept such powers. Rather, He assigned to man that very power by asserting that each man is his own creator, responsible for his own salvation. That is why it is said that ”There is none so godless as the Buddha and yet none so godlike”. The …
《第十三章 自然· 价值观和宗教信仰 Chapter 13 Nature, Value And Choice Of Religious Beliefs》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…