权巧方便

　　Expedient Teaching

　　比丘.恒缘/文 by Bhikshu Heng Yuen

　　The Venerable Master”s name first came to my attention when a friend gave me the book The Ten Dharma Realms Are not beyond a Single Thought. The book was based on a lecture by the Venerable Master. His explanation very succinctly linked the basics of the Buddha Dharma for me; our actions, words, and thoughts--how they form into karma, and eventually how they determine the kind of realms we could be reborn into. The book reminded me how vulnerable we are if we are not constantly mindful of the karma constantly being created by our body, mouth, and mind.

　　我第一次知道上人的名字，是在我的一个朋友给我《十法界不离一念心》这本书的时候。这本书是根据上人的开示编辑而成的，上人简单明了地帮我们将佛法的基本要素——身、口、意，串通起来。我们的身、口、意，它们又怎么样造成了业；最后这业力又如何决定了我们将往生到哪一法界去。这本书提示了我们，我们对身口意所造的业，如果不注意的话，就会带来很大的危险。

　　I then began to evaluate myself. Up to that point in my life, my understanding of the Dharma had been very superficial, and I realized that in this life I had already created lots of bad karma. If I didn”t start serious cultivation immediately, I would not be able to save myself from being reborn into the lower suffering realms. Soon after, I decided to leave the home life under the Venerable Master as I realized that I might not have such an opportunity again in a million years.

　　那时我就开始对我自己重新评价。在那以前，我对佛法的了解是很肤浅的；我了解到今生我已经造了许多的恶业。假如我不马上认真修行的话，我恐怕就会堕入三恶道。不久之后；我决定随上人出家，因为我意识到百万年间，我恐怕都不会再碰到这样的机会。

　　In the beginning, I knew very little about the Venerable Master, other than what was printed in his biography and from his published lectures. Gradually, as the days passed, I realized how very fortunate I was to have found such a rare teacher.

　　Indeed, it is extremely difficult to find and be accepted by such a wise, virtuous, and compassionate teacher.Although he was not looking over my shoulders every day, he had his ways to watch my every action and thought. And he had his special ways to let me know that he was watching me, and let me know where I went wrong.

　　刚开始时，除了阅读已出版的上人简传，及上人开示上的数据之外，我逐渐知道自己能找到这样一位稀有的师父是多么幸运。的确能找到这一位德智兼备又慈悲的善知识作为我的师父，是很不容易的。虽然上人不是每天看着我，但对我的每一言行，上人自有方法，悉知悉见，而且让我知道我什么做错了。

　　For example, one night, while attending one of the daily Sutra lectures, my mind wandered. I remembered that when I requested Shifu to accept me as his left-home disciple, he asked me how my lay name was written, my date of birth, and certain other biographical data. A doubt then came to my mind:“Does Shifu still remember my lay name

　　” Half an hour later, the class ended. As I left the Buddha Hall and was just walking past the telephone in the lobby, it rang. I answered it. It was Shifu on the phone! The first words he said were:“Is your lay name such and such

　　” I was stunned. Shifu usually talked about temple business whenever he phoned and not indulge in casual conversation with me. At that time, he was in Los Angeles, which was about a thousand miles away. He phoned just to tell me that I shouldn”t let my mind wander when attending lectures! It was his way to let me know that he was watching me. I learned one lesson.

　　举例来说，有一次在晚上听经的时候，我的心开始不老实，我想起当我请求上人接受我做出家弟子时，上人问我俗家名字怎么写，我的生日是哪时，还问了一些其他个人资料。那晚听经时，我在想：「不知道上人现在还记得我的俗家名字吗？」半小时后，听经结束时，我走出佛殿，经过电话桌时，忽然电话铃响了起来，我接起来一听，是师父！师父一开口就说：「你的俗家名字是不是叫某某某？」我哑口无言！平时上人打电话来，总是讲一些庙上的公事，从不和我们闲谈。那时上人正在洛杉矶，大概离我住的地方有一千哩远。上人特地打电话来，就为了告诉我，听经时不应该让我的心散去。这是上人让我知道他在看着我的一个方法，我领教了。

　　In the early stage of being a monk, I was just getting used to eating one meal a day. Sometimes, my stomach would growl with hunger in the morning. One morning I found an old box of cereal in the kitchen. It was the kind which, when mixed with hot water, would become gluey. I decided to mix some to quiet down my hunger. The next day Shifu phoned, and his first words were:“How is your eating now

　　” I was dumbstruck! Was he inquiring how I was adjusting to eating one meal a da…

《权巧方便 Expedient Teaching》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…