..续本文上一页chance to grow feathers and wings and be able to survive on its own in the future. "To avoid is a tail:" This refers to the tail (rudder) of a boat. If the person holding the rudder knows how to steer, he”ll be able to avoid stumps and sand bars. For the boat to avoid running aground depends on the rudder. Since this is the way I see things, I prefer living in the forest.

　　3) I”ve come to consider the principles of nature: It”s a quiet place, where you can observe the influences of the environment. Wild animals, for example, sleep differently from domesticated animals. This can be a good lesson. Or take the wild rooster: Its eyes are quick, its tail feathers sparse, its wings strong and its call short. It can run fast and fly far. What do these characteristics come from

　　 I”ve made this a lesson for myself. Domesticated roosters and wild roosters come from the same species, but the domesticated rooster”s wings are weak, its call long, its tail feathers lush and ungainly, its behavior different from that of the wild rooster. The wild rooster is the way it is because it can”t afford to let down its guard. It always has to be on the alert, because danger is ever-present in the forest. If the wild rooster went around acting like a domestic rooster, the cobras and mongooses would make a meal of it in no time. So when it eats, sleeps, opens and closes its eyes, the wild rooster has to be strong and resilient in order to stay alive.

　　So it is with us. If we spend all our time wallowing around in companionship, we”re like a knife or a hoe stuck down into the dirt: It”ll rust easily. But if it”s constantly sharpened on a stone or a file, rust won”t have a chance to take hold. Thus we should learn to be always on the alert. This is why I like to stay in the forest. I benefit from it, and learn many lessons.

　　4) I”ve learned to reflect on the teachings that the Buddha taught first to each newly-ordained monk. They”re very thought-provoking. He taught the Dhamma first, and then the Vinaya. He”d begin with the virtues of the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, followed by the five basic objects of meditation: hair of the head, hair of the body, nails, teeth and skin. Then he”d give a sermon with four major points:

　　a) Make a practice of going out for alms. Be an asker, but not a beggar. Be content with whatever you are given.

　　b) Live in a quiet place, such as an abandoned house, under a projecting cliff face, in a cave. People have asked if the Buddha had any reasons for this teaching, but I”ve always been convinced that if there were no benefits to be gained from these places, he wouldn”t have recommended them. Still, I wondered what the benefits were, which is why I”ve taken an interest in this matter.

　　c) The Buddha taught monks to make robes from cloth that had been thrown away — even to the point of wearing robes made from the cloth used to wrap a corpse. This teaching made me reflect on death. What benefits could come from wearing the cloth used to wrap a corpse

　　 For a simple answer, think for a moment about a corpse”s things: They don”t appeal to anyone. No one wants them — and so they hold no dangers. In this point it”s easy enough to see that the Buddha taught us not to take pride in our possessions.

　　d) The Buddha taught that we should use medicines near at hand, such as medicinal plants pickled in urine.

　　These teachings of the Buddha, when I first heard them, sparked my curiosity. Whether or not I would benefit from following them, there was one thing I was sure of: that the Buddha was not the sort of person who would hold blindly to anything, and that he would never teach anything without good reason. So even if I wasn”t totally convinced of his teachings, I should at least respect them. Or if I didn”t yet have confidence in my teacher”s …

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