..续本文上一页f the Rightly Self-awakened One

　　Dukkha-nissaranasseva

　　Bhagi assam anagate

　　So that in the future I will have a part

　　Of the escape from suffering & stress.

　　(Women should substitute gata for gato, upasikattam for upasakattam, and bhaginissam for bhagi assam.)

　　The Pali word for adherent, upasaka (fem. upasika), literally means "one who is close." There are ten qualities looked for in adherent: five activities to be refrained from and five qualities to possess. The five to be refrained from are:

　　1. selling weapons,

　　2. selling human beings,

　　3. selling animals to be killed for food, or the flesh of animals that one has killed oneself,

　　4. selling intoxicants,

　　5. selling poison.

　　The five qualities to possess:

　　1. conviction,

　　2. observance of the precepts,

　　3. belief in nothing but the principle of kamma — that those who do good will meet with good, those who do evil will meet with evil,

　　4. an unwillingness to look for merit in ways excluded by the Buddha”s teachings,

　　5. performance of merit in ways particular to the Buddha”s teachings.

　　To possess these qualifications means by definition that one is an adherent to generosity, virtue, and meditation.

　　* * *

　　Now that the service is over, you should take the opportunity to develop peace and respite of mind. Don”t let the day go to waste. Take the word buddho as your meditation exercise. To be intent on repeating the word buddho in your mind is one form of concentration (samadhi). Discernment (pañña) means thorough comprehension of all fashioned and conditioned things. The value of discernment is that it abandons all forms of defilement. Virtue, concentration, and discernment: These qualities form the heart of the Buddha”s message, which we should all try to develop to the best of our abilities.

　　Now we will pose a number of questions dealing with virtue and concentration as a way of further elaborating on these topics.

　　* * *

　　Virtue: Questions & Answers

　　1. What are the benefits of observing the precepts

　　 What are the drawbacks of not observing them

　　2. What is meant by virtue

　　3. How many kinds of virtue are there

　　4. What is the essence of virtue

　　5. What is needed for virtue to be maintained

　　1. To answer the first question: People observing the precepts can perceive the following benefits as far as this lifetime is concerned: They are not distrusted or despised by people at large; they can enter with confidence into the company of sages and people in general. After they die, they are sure to qualify for rebirth on the human plane at the very least. For these reasons, virtuous people are not willing to let their virtue be defiled.

　　Another answer is that virtuous people are admired throughout the world. Why is this so

　　 Because no one in the world likes abuse, not even the least little bit. Not to mention good people, even thieves and robbers complain about people who have no principles, as when they get together to commit a robbery: The members of the band are sure to find fault with each other because of the hardships involved in what they”re doing. Still, they go ahead and do it, out of their own ignorance, stupidity, and lack of judgment.

　　Another answer is that people who observe the precepts work for the prosperity of this world and the next. Most of us overlook this aspect of virtue. Wrong looks right to us, and we think that observing the precepts retards progress, that people who observe the precepts are old-fashioned and behind the times, or that the precepts make it impossible to earn a living. All of these views have no basis in truth. Exactly how do the precepts retard progress

　　 Consider this carefully: The nature of the world is that not a single person likes to suffer. Even common animals don”t set their sights on pain. So to be virtuous …

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