..续本文上一页 Why did you take it down so soon

　　 This shows a lack of intelligence. From what I see, in everything you do you are not even up to kids. The more you do, the more you fall behind.

　　When we lined up outside, neither men nor the women were organized. We should line up according to height, with tall people standing next to tall people, the short people standing next to short people; and the children standing together, too. But you were all disordered, with tall and short mixed together: So today they called you the soldiers of Buddhism, but you don”t understand warfare. Think about the army. I”m sure when they line up the tall ones are together and the short ones are together, and they are very orderly. Although we usually rank ourselves by the number of years we have held the precepts, and by age, when there”s a special event like the welcoming party, we have to be really neat, very full of spirit, very energetic, with resonant voices which are neither too high nor too low in pitch. And when you walk to Wonderful Words Hall, every evening, I hear you walking, but your chanting of the Buddha”s name fades away to silence. Just what would you say you are doing here

　　 If you aren”t even willing to recite the Buddha”s name, what are you here for

　　 Just eating till you”re full, and then being chatterboxes, gossiping about rights and wrongs. I, really don”t dare to go along with such behavior of yours.

　　Our clothes should also be clean. Don”t go for too long without washing them. Otherwise, no matter whom you approach, he will be repelled by the stench of perspiration you carry, and you end up creating offenses. Therefore, you must first take care of the matters of clothing, food, and dwelling. To cultivate the Way, you must first work on these. If you can”t even take care of clothing, food, and dwelling satisfactorily, how can you cultivate the Way

　　 There are both internal and external conditions for cultivating the Way. Externally, you have to wear clothes, eat, and dwell according to the rules. You cannot be so careless and sloppy everyday. if you constantly swing your arms to and fro while wearing a robe, you are violating the awesome deportment. When left-home people walk, they should put both hands in front of the chest. You must not walk as if you had wings flapping back and forth - that”s really unattractive. I”ve seen a lot of shramanerikas who don”t even understand this much. When I see them, I feel so disappointed! Since they don”t even understand this basic rule, they walk around with their robes sweeping the ground. It”s just like someone who used to be here; she walked in circles, like a drunk. While everyone was circumambulating the Buddha, she would always take a few steps left, then a few steps right, never following the rules, always trying to manifest a special style. I heard that a few years ago, a certain person was also criticized for trying to act special, so now he doesn”t dare to do that anymore. You should not try to be conspicuous, making circles or staggering left and right when everyone else is walking in a straight line, or dress sloppily, as if you had wings and were about to fly away. I am still being polite. To put it impolitely, you look as if you had a tail.

　　Time is up. We cannot hold time back, nor tell the sun to stop turning. Everyone should take a moment to think, "What kind of contribution have I made to the Way-place

　　 What help have I given

　　" Living on this land, we should fulfill our share of responsiblity, and not just cross our arms and stand on the sidelines. Just see how that Dharma Master pointed out our problems as soon as he got here. He said, "When it”s time to eat, everyone shows up. But when the meal is over, everyone disappears." I don”t know what burrow you all crawled into. Did you crawl into a mousehole, or into an ant”s nest

　　 I don”t know! There”s no way to find you. Someone saw our problems as soon as he arrived. So how can we who live here feel at ease

　　 How ugly it is to be living here in such conditions!

《日常生活见修行 食衣住行显功夫 Cultivation is seen in Daily life· How we eat, dress, live, and act shows our skill· 》全文阅读结束。