Practicing Goodness to Accumulate Virtue

National Headquarters  |  May 4, 2016

Notes from Master Cheng Yen’s teaching on the first day of Tzu Chi’s 51st year

Throughout my life, I have always had three daily prayers. First, I pray not for a healthy body, but for a clear mind. Clarity of mind is more important than a healthy body. As the years pass, our bodies undergo aging and finally death, but our wisdom-life is everlasting. If we do not quickly develop our wisdom-life and strengthen our aspirations, then our wisdom will not grow. Thus, I do not ask for good health, but for a mind of clarity and wisdom, without discursive thoughts. This is my first prayer.

Second, I pray not for everything to go my way, but for perseverance and courage. In life, nine things out of ten do not happen according to our wishes, so why do we try to force things to go our way? As ordinary beings, it is our expectations and desires that cause us suffering and afflictions. So, I do not ask for everything to go my way, but for perseverance and courage. When things do not go as we wish, we must persevere; this is a skill we must master. We must also keep up our courage. We should not easily become disappointed or discouraged when we do not get what we want. If we constantly let ourselves be defeated, won’t we remain powerless our whole lives? Therefore, we should not ask for everything to go according to our wishes. Instead, we should always reflect on ourselves to see if we have perseverance and courage.

It is precious to be born as a human being. The Buddha tells us that over millions of kalpas, it is difficult to attain human form even once. We may wonder whether, in the past, we were born in the three evil realms. Have we suffered in hell? Have we been born in the animal realm, suffering from ignorance and being killed by humans? Or have we been tormented in the realm of hungry ghosts? The Buddha-Dharma tells us that these three evil realms are filled with unbearable suffering. This is truly frightening! Therefore, we must work hard to cultivate ourselves.

Being born as humans, we have the opportunity to witness all kinds of wholesome and unwholesome lives. When we see someone doing good, we have to ask ourselves, do we rejoice at this? When we see other people do good deeds, we are filled with respect and joy. However, we should not only rejoice in their good deeds, but should also get involved ourselves. If we are able to do this, we will feel very fortunate to have been born human. When we see other people do good deeds, we joyfully praise them and gladly join them in the work to help suffering sentient beings. When we help those who suffer fulfill their needs, we realize that we have more than enough. Since we have more than we need, we have the power to help others meet their needs and overcome their obstacles. Then the happiness we feel is due not only to taking joy in others people’s merits, but to being filled with Dharma-joy ourselves. This is something that is possible only in the human realm.

Since we have been born as humans, how can we not make good use of our life? We need to seize our time in this life and take good care of our thoughts. I often say, “Seize the moment and sustain your aspirations forever.” At every moment, we have to be mindful of our thoughts; when a good thought arises, no matter how brief it is, we must take hold of it and sustain it forever. Recently, I have been encouraging everyone to uphold the Four Practices: extended practice, uninterrupted practice, practice with nothing further, and practice with reverence. This means we need to endlessly sustain and uphold our initial aspiration. Moment by moment, time passes us by and thoughts keep arising. Therefore, we must have perseverance; we must always sustain our good and virtuous thoughts and put our love into action by helping others. This is spiritual cultivation.

Furthermore, we must not be afraid of taking responsibility. We are all fortunate enough to have been born into this world, so aren’t the matters of this world everyone’s responsibility? How much more so for us spiritual practitioners! We who are learning the Buddha’s spirit must learn the persistence of the Buddha, who keeps coming back for the single great cause of helping sentient beings in this world. One person’s strength alone is not enough for this, which is why the Buddha wants to teach many people. When every person makes the aspiration to be a Bodhisattva, everyone must put the teachings into practice. Then, this collective strength will be tremendous.

Therefore, my third prayer is not for lighter responsibilities, but for greater strength. I hope that we can purify people’s hearts and inspire people’s love. The world is vast and there are countless sentient beings. If everyone can join together in the same aspiration, our love can reach every corner of the world. Then, there is no limit to the good that can be accomplished.

The Jing Si Dharma Lineage is a path of diligent practice.

We carry on the Dharma’s essence and make great vows.

The Tzu Chi School of Buddhism is a path through the world.

With compassion and wisdom, we exercise the Four Infinite Minds.

With sincerity, we vow to deliver all sentient beings.

With integrity, we vow to eliminate all afflictions.

With faith, we vow to learn all teachings.

With steadfastness, we vow to attain Buddhahood.

Great loving-kindness without regrets brings infinite love.

Great compassion without resentment brings infinite vows.

Great joy without worries brings infinite happiness.

Great equanimity without expectations brings infinite grace.

We work together while remaining clear and pure like a crystal sphere.

This forest of Bodhi trees flourishes from the same root.

We are all united in cultivating fields of blessings.

We deeply plant the roots of wisdom on the Bodhisattva-path

Fifty years have passed since Tzu Chi was founded. Today is the first day of Tzu Chi’s fifty-first year. I hope we can all practice diligently along the path of the Jing Si Dharma Lineage and the road of the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism. If we can do this, we will cultivate the good karma that accumulates to perfect our virtue.



2016.05.01慈濟五十一周年第一天     證嚴上人對弟子的期勉與叮嚀

師父一生一直在學「三不求」。一不求身體健康,只祈求智慧明睿。慧命比生命更重要,生命隨著歲月增長,老了終歸於死,但是慧命永住;慧命若不趕緊讓它發揮出力量來,心 力若不強盛,智慧慧命就成長不起來。所以不求身體健康,只求智慧明睿,没有雜念,這是第一所要求的。

第二,不求事事如意,但求毅力勇氣。人生不如意事十有八九,多數都是不如意,何必強 求呢?尤其我們凡夫的欲念,有求皆苦,就有煩惱,所以不求事事如意,只求毅力與勇氣。不如意的事情來了,就要用毅力堅持下去,這分毅力是我們人人要用功學習的,這叫做「功」。一定要有勇氣,不要求不到,動不動就失望、不如意了,受到很多打擊。若如此,我們這一生不就永遠都是這麼脆弱嗎?所以,我們不必求事事如意,要時時檢驗自己有無毅力、勇氣。

難得來人間,佛陀告訴我們,得人身是百千萬劫難遭遇。到底我們過去曾在三惡道過嗎?有在地獄受過苦嗎?或者是在愚癡的畜生道、受人類宰殺之苦嗎?或者曾在餓鬼道受盡折磨嗎?這三惡道皆苦不堪啊!聽佛法知三惡道苦,怕啊!我們就要好好修。難得在人道,我們能看盡人間一切善惡人生。看到善的,我們有無隨喜呢?

看到別人在做善事,我們尊重,不只是隨喜,還要用心投入。若有做到,我們心生慶幸,因為人身難得啊!看人家做好事,我們用歡喜心讚歎,又再歡喜投入,去為苦難眾生服務,彌補他的缺陷,我們就會覺得很滿足;我們富有餘,才有這分力量付出,去彌補別人的缺陷,去替他克服困難,我們所得到的歡喜,不只是隨喜功德,且是法喜充滿。也唯在人道,我們才能得到。

既然人身難得今已得,我們怎能不把握這一生呢?還要用一生的時間,照顧好我們這念心。「把握當下,恆持剎那」,當下的每一念、每一念,剎那、剎那,時間雖然短暫,這念心不要讓它斷掉。最近也一直向大家說,無餘修、長時修、無間修、尊重修,恆持剎那這念心,要一直保持著。因為時間剎那剎那地過,念頭剎那剎那地生,我們要好好地恆持,永遠守持好這念善念、愛心,造福人群,這也是內自用功。

不要怕負擔責任,難得來人間,天下事,匹夫有責,何況我們學佛者?學佛的精神,佛陀為一大事來人間這個毅力,希望救濟天下眾生;僅僅一個人,力量太微薄了,所以佛陀就要教育很多人,人人發菩薩心,人人要身體力行,力量合起來就大了。因此,第三不求,不想減輕責任,只期待增加力量。希望我們能夠淨化人心,啟發愛心,人人能將這念心合起來,同一個時間,就能普遍在不同的空間。天地之大,眾生之多,同一個時間,這麼多人共同一心,將愛普遍擴散出去,一時之間,就能做很多好事。

靜思法脈勤行道,傳承法髓弘誓願
慈濟宗門人間路,悲智雙運無量心

誠心誓願度眾生,正心誓願斷煩惱
信心誓願學法門,實心誓願成佛道

大慈無悔愛無量,大悲無怨願無量
大喜無憂樂無量,大捨無求恩無量

立體琉璃同心圓,菩提林立同根生
組隊合心耕福田,慧根深植菩薩道

五十年的慈濟,已經過去了,現在開始要說五十一年的第一天,法脈宗門,期待大家要多用功,才能累積善業成為德。(感恩   上德下禪師父結集叮嚀)

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