V 2-3: Cultivate both Nature and Life. Interaction of the Wise with Karmic Conditions【性命双修，智者遇缘】

 

 

Disclaimer from the translator: My translations are not official nor endorsed by 2OR, so please just treat it as a ‘fan-based’ translation based on my personal understanding of his teachings. The Buddha-Dharma is profound. No matter how you convey it, it won't be completely perfect. Because the Buddha-Dharma is an experience, it’s an awakening 【佛法深奥无比，怎么写， 都不会是究竟圆满。佛法是一种悟】. I am not an enlightened being like Master Lu, but I will treat his teachings with my utmost respect and do my best to convey and translate it to the best of my (limited) abilities for my friends and people who can’t read Chinese. Please enjoy and I hope it serves as a good filler until the official English version comes out.

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性命双修，很多人都知道晚年或者当有灾祸时，性命难保，什么叫性命难保？ 命就是你的肉体，性就是你的灵魂，性命难保就是你的灵魂和肉体都保不住了，所以要性修和命修，性修和命修是同样重要的。性修是修本性，修你的良心。命修是修身体和行为，所以要性命双修，如果你没有这个命，就修不来这个性，如果你的命很糟糕很差，苦不堪言，而且都无缘接触到台长的法门，就是一个没有福气的人。命是修行的基础，修行必须内修和外修，内修就是把心修的平静，外修就是要对众生无碍，师父经常给你们讲“外观无碍”，就是外修，要修你们的心和行为。外修要慈悲，修你们的脸，不要带有奸诈之相，要让人一看就是一个菩萨相，修心的人脸相都会变的，如果今天你的脸相还是那么凶，就是你的心根本没有修好。一个人要学什么像什么，学菩萨必须像菩萨，外修像菩萨，内心也要像菩萨，那你才是真正的菩萨。内修的人少病，少烦恼，因为心态平和了，心态平静了，这种人就会少病，少烦恼。外修的人脸要呈粉红色，要白里透红，眼睛要有光，性情要温柔，讲话要有礼貌，要有智慧，不讲话不知道，一讲话就明了。 

Cultivate both your nature 【性】and life 【命】. Many people know that when someone reaches old age or when they encounter a disaster, it’s hard to protect their nature and their life. What does it mean? Life here represents the physical body, and nature represents the spirit. That’s why both components are equally important to cultivate. To cultivate our nature is to cultivate our inherent nature and conscience. To cultivate life is to cultivate our bodies and conduct. If you don’t have a life, then you aren’t able to cultivate your nature.

Andywin08’s commentary:

In Buddhist philosophy, the cultivation of our inherent ‘Buddha’ nature is one of our goals as we aim to liberate our spirit from the karmic shackles of samsara. However, to cultivate it, we must possess a physical body that also possesses the potential to cultivate our mind and tap into our inherent nature. These qualities only exist when we are reborn into the Human realm. Thus, there’s the saying 【人身难得，佛法难闻】which means it’s very rare to attain a human body, and even rarer to encounter the Buddha-Dharma. Our human life is precious because only with it can we cultivate our nature and ultimately our spirit.

If your life is very bad, you experience a lot of hardships and suffering, and you don’t have the karmic affinity to encounter with Master’s Guan Yin Citta, then you are a very misfortunate person. Life is the foundation of cultivation, and cultivation must be done internally and externally. Internal cultivation is to cultivate a still mind; external cultivation is to become unhindered and relaxed when facing other sentient beings. Master often tells you all to cultivate ‘an appearance without hindrance’【外观无碍】, which means external cultivation. External cultivation requires mercy to cultivate your appearance to that of a Bodhisattva so that others see you as one. Once you cultivate the mind, your face will change. If today, your face looks ferocious, it basically means that your mind was not cultivated properly. A person must act like the subject they’re learning to become. If you’re learning to become a Bodhisattva, your appearance and your mind must be like a Bodhisattva's; then you’re a Bodhisattva. (Act as if, and eventually, you are【借假修真】). People who practise internal cultivation will have less physical sickness and sickness borne from worry and afflictions because their state of mind is peaceful. People who practise external cultivation will have a face that looks rosy and clean; their eyes will be spirited, they’ll have a tender nature, speak courteously and possess wisdom. Not knowing if nothing is said, but understands immediately once said.

不管外界是发出什么声音，都要听内心的佛声，要听内心佛菩萨的声音。不管遇到什么事情，师父告诉你们一个窍门，只要想一个念头，马上就要学会化解，就是要认为这是佛菩萨对你们的考验，当感觉到有不好的事情发生时，就要想到是佛菩萨对你们的考验，应该想一想怎样度过难关，要经得起考验，不论遇到什么事情只要想到菩萨，世上还有什么不能克服，不能战胜的困难。 

No matter how noisy the external environment is, you must be able to listen to the voice from within - the voice of your Buddha-nature. Master teaches you a trick. No matter what you encounter, when a thought is produced, immediately learn how to resolve it. Think of it as a trial from the Bodhisattvas to test you. When you feel something bad is going to happen, then you must think as if it’s just a trial and start thinking about how you should pass this trial. Thus no matter what you encounter, as long as you think about the Bodhisattvas, what else in this world is there that you can’t overcome and become victorious?

学佛的人必须要记住，过去何必再去思量，现在不用紧张，念佛自然吉祥。就是已经过去的事情不要再去想了，未来无需恐慌， 还没有到的事情你干吗要恐慌，实实在在把握住一个今天，胜过两个明天，天天念佛就自然吉祥了，智者遇缘自得力，有智慧的人遇到所有的缘分，不论是善缘还是恶缘，都能得到其中的力量，很多人碰到困难时，反而坚定了信心，能得到其中的力量。有智慧的人不论是顺道 ，还是逆道都会从中得到益处。今天的失败是你明天的成功，今天的成功也有可能预示着你明天的失败，其实这都是一个缘。 

Buddhist practitioners must take note. Why become entangled with the past?  There's no need to be nervous; you will naturally be safe by reciting mantras. So don’t think about the past anymore and don’t be afraid about the future because nothing has happened yet. One today is worth two tomorrows, so grasp the present properly. Fortune will naturally attract to you if you recite mantras every day. The wise gain strength as they stay in accordance with karmic conditions. No matter what kind of karmic affinity that the wise encounters, whether it’s positive or negative, they would still be able to gain strength from it. There are many people whose faith strengthens in the face of difficulties and gains a surge of power from within. Hence the wise can make gains whether they experience goods times or bad times. Today’s failure might bring tomorrow’s success. Today’s success might result in tomorrow’s failure. In reality, everything is just a projection of karmic conditions.

Andywin08’s commentary:

Acting in accordance with karmic conditions 【随缘】is to behave in a way where you don’t complain when something doesn’t go in your favour or what you expect. It’s because you are aware that everything is just karma, and everything around you is just a projection of your karmic conditions. So you go just go with the flow and not against it. Hence you remain in accordance with it. 

 给大家讲讲情绪经过科学鉴定，绝对会影响人的免疫功能，你的情绪好坏会影响你身体的免疫功能，当一个人发脾气，难过时免疫力就会下降。同样生气，会产生蛇毒类的物质，当一个人在生气的时候，相当于蛇吐出的毒，所以生气会气死人的，也可以说，被自己毒死的，因你的免疫功能损坏了你的肌体，生气的人是智慧不开，气出病来无人替。其实人体的潜能无限，用什么方法开发人体的潜能？是要用感恩心来开发人的潜能，你越感恩，你的潜能越大，解决问题的办法就越多，感恩能开发你的潜能，让你化灾解难，去除嗔恨心，生出爱心。 

Now let me talk to you about a person’s sentiment. After much research, it’s concluded that it has a definite impact on a person’s immune system. How good or bad your sentiment is will affect your immune system. When a person loses their temper or becomes depressed, their immune system’s effectiveness declines. In the same way, when somebody gets angry, their body will produce a kind of toxin. That’s why anger can kill, or in other words, they get killed by their own poison due to a decline in their immune system. When a person is angry, their wisdom is dormant. No one can share your sickness that’s caused by your own rage. In reality, a person’s physical body is full of potential, how do tap into it? The answer is gratitude. The more grateful you are towards others, the greater the potential you can unleash. Thus you have more methods to resolve your problems. Gratitude can unleash your potential, enables you to resolve disasters and hardships, remove aversion and give birth to compassion.

活在世人，要惜福，不要无病时糟蹋自己的身体，有病时再来埋怨。其实这是人们常讲的，浪费生命，平时多修练，多积德，等有病了不埋怨了，因为病很快会痊愈的。 

As we live out our everyday lives, we must learn to cherish our blessings. When you’re healthy, don’t ruin your body, and then complain about it when you get sick. This is what we commonly describe as ‘a waste of life’. Cultivate yourself and accumulate merits regularly so when you get sick, you don't need to complain because you will quickly recover.

 

下面给徒弟讲一则注意事项，给佛菩萨供水，绝对不能供空杯子，（供水时不能先把空杯子供上去，然后加水）必须先要有一点点水在杯内，水可以去除你的贪心，给佛菩萨供的东西一定要全身心的，不能有任何舍不得的思想在里面。供水是让你不要起贪嗔痴，不要起吝啬之心。

Here is a notice for disciples to take note. When you offer water to the Bodhisattvas at your Buddhist altar, don’t offer it into empty cups. (When offering water, the empty cups shouldn’t be placed on the altar already, and then pour water into). Instead, the cups must have some water inside it first. Water cleanses away greed. When offering to the Bodhisattvas, you must do so willfully and sincerely without any hesitation. Offering water will help subdue greed, aversion, delusion and stinginess.

水有四种功能 

1. 性清，供水时你的身心是健康的，六根会暂时清净。 

2. 质软，能让你的意念柔顺，经常喝水的人意念比较冷静，不经常喝水的人，易发脾气，比如嘴巴一干浑身冒火，就想发脾气。 

3. 易喉，多喝水能妙语连珠，讲出的话非常好听。多喝水能让人的心平静，多喝水能让你的脑子清楚。 

4. 清澈，意念清明，意念很干净。 

Water has four functions:

1. It improves your sentiment. When offering water, your mind and body feel relaxed and healthy, and your six roots of sensations are temporarily pure.

2. It softens up your nature and keeps your thoughts mild. People who regularly drink water are calm. People who don’t regularly drink water are easy to lose their temper. For example, if your mouth is dry, your body heats up and you become easily provoked.

3. It soothes your throat and enables you to speak clearly and articulately, which sounds pleasing to the ear. Drinking water also calms the mind and enables you to think clearly.

4. It keeps your intentions clean and pure.

师父告戒众徒弟：学佛人应以人师为我师，以人德为我德，以人表为我表。

Master warns disciples to keep this in mind:

When you see someone’s teacher is very good, then you must learn from them. When you see someone is doing something virtuous, you must learn from them. When you see someone perform well and possess good conduct, you must learn from their example. 

问：学佛人应以人师为我师，以人德为我德，以人表为我表。这句话如何理解？
答：以人德为我德：看见人家做得好的、有道德的事情，学过来；以人师为我师：看见人家的师父老师这么好，人家说的要好好学；以人表为我表：人表就是人家的表现、外在的行为、表率。

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--- 以上内容如有不如理不如法的地方，请南无大慈大悲观世音菩萨和护法菩萨原谅！请各位师兄原谅！