..续本文上一页 Don”t forget that monks” business is monks” business. To forget yourself is none of your business as a monk. Even lay people who are mindful don”t forget themselves. They”re always even in the way they place themselves in relation to others. We”re monks -- meditating monks at that -- which is even more of a delicate matter. It”s our business to be mindful of ourselves and to use our discernment to scrutinize events that come to involve us at all times, not to be careless and forgetful in any circumstances. This is how we show our colors as monks who see danger in what is dangerous.

　　We are members of the Sakyan lineage, the lineage of the Buddha, who was sharper and more intelligent than anyone else in the three levels of the cosmos. For what reason, should we make fools of ourselves over the baits of the world, which fill the earth and aren”t anywhere nearly as difficult to find as the Dhamma

　　 To forget ourselves, to swell up with pride because of extraneous gains or the respect of people at large: Is this our proper honor and pride as sons of the Sakyan

　　 It”s simply because we see the superlative Dhamma as something lower than these things that we monks don”t think or come to our senses enough to fear their danger in the footsteps of our Teacher.

　　Sakkaro purisam hanti -- ”Homage kills a man.” Fish die because they are tempted by bait. If we monks don”t die because of things like this, what does make us die

　　 Consider this carefully. Did the Buddha give this teaching to stupid fish or to those of us monks who are moving toward the hook at the moment

　　 Be aware of the fact that the outside is bait, but inside the bait is the hook. If you don”t want to meet with disaster, be careful not to bite the hook.

　　Eating from the bowl: This is a very important activity, but we don”t see its importance. Ordinarily, we who have ordained in the religion have no vessel for our food more appropriate than our bowl. Even monogrammed plates and gold platters aren”t more appropriate than the bowl. Only the bowl is appropriate for monks when they eat. Nothing else is better or more fitting. We each have only one bowl and put everything in there together. The Buddha has already set us a solid example.

　　Or is it that when food gets mixed together like that, it”ll spoil our digestion -- as most people say, and we”ve already heard many times. If that”s the case, then when it all gets mixed in the stomach, won”t it spoil our digestion

　　 How many stomachs do we have in our belly

　　 How many vessels are in there for us to put our separate sorts of food in

　　 This one for desserts, this one for meat dishes, this one for spicy curry, this one for hot curry: Are there any

　　 Are there different vessels for putting our separate sorts of food in, to keep our digestion from spoiling

　　 We simply see that when food is mixed in the bowl, it”ll spoil our digestion, but not when it”s mixed in the stomach. This view -- fearing that our digestion will be spoiled -- is for the sake of promoting our tongues and stomachs, not for promoting the mind and the Dhamma through our various practices.

　　If there is anything toxic in the food -- whether or not it”s mixed in the bowl -- then when it”s eaten, it can spoil our digestion, with no relation to whether or not it”s mixed together, because the toxicity lies with the things that are toxic, and not with the mixing together. When it”s eaten, it”s toxic. But if the food isn”t toxic, then when it”s mixed it isn”t toxic, so where will it get any toxicity

　　 The food is beneficial, without any harm or toxicity mixed in. When it”s placed together in the bowl, it”s still food. When it”s eaten and goes to the stomach, it”s a benefit to the body.

　　So we as monks and meditators should be observant of the differences between Dhamma and not-D…

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