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著作英譯
1991 佛七講話-1 Day 4
Ven. Zhiyu’s Dharma Talks for Buddha Recitation Seven-Day Retreat, First Term, 1991
Reciting Buddha’s Name Gains Four Merits
Reciting Buddha’s name gains four kinds of merits and virtues. The first one is to dispel karmic obstructions. It says in the Sutras that one purges deadly sins committed in the past 8 billion kalpas during his recitation of Buddha’s name. The second is to eradicate afflictions, which is the cause of karmic obstructions. The third is to be rid of delusive thoughts, which is the cause of afflictions. The fourth is to break ignorance, the cause of all delusive thoughts, afflictions and karmic obstructions.
All the Buddhist teachings, not just the calling on Buddha names, can let us remove karmic obstructions, eliminate afflictions, get rid of delusive thoughts and break ignorance. To distinguish Buddhism from non-Buddhism, you may inspect whether the teachings have these four kinds of merits and virtues.
How do we know these four gains are meritorious and virtuous? They are called merits if you yourself achieve them; they are called virtues if you persuade others to achieve them. Therefore, you may examine what you are learning to see whether it gives you these four benefits. If they do, they certainly conform to Buddhism.
A Buddhist practitioner will possess Spiritual Powers when he attains to a certain stage. However, there are people who do not endeavor but instead aim to win the various kinds of supernormal powers as the only purpose. Spiritual Powers, as you will see, cannot remove your karmic obstructions, nor can they eradicate afflictions, let alone delusive thoughts, and ultimately they cannot break ignorance. I don’t know why people want to seek for those abilities.
Spiritual Powers when attained by dharma practice are obtained as a matter of course, with no need of acquisition, and are different from the innate ones, which are not so valuable. For example, although ghosts possess Spiritual Powers, the heavenly beings such as devas and nāgas (dragons) will not protect them; they protect the Dharma instead. It is pitiful that you would pursue non-dharmas rather than the Buddhadharma. Were Spiritual Powers really that precious, devas and nāgas should protect ghosts rather than the Three Jewels.
Karmic obstructions, as well as afflictions, delusive thoughts and ignorance are all kinds of karmic suffering—suffering due to the bondage of karma. Affliction is also named perplexity; karma is volitional action that leads to suffering. Perplexity, karma and suffering thus form a cycle of continuity. Ignorance is the fundamental cause of every deed; delusive thought is the cause of affliction; affliction is the cause of karma. In a word, they are all bound up by karma, and therefore named karmic suffering.
Whatever you are learning will be useless if it does not help release you from karmic suffering. Not a kind of learning in the world has this function. Relying on worldly learning, even erudite scholars and great doctors cannot break away from karmic suffering; neither can those highly valued emperors and ministers get away from it. Therefore, we should learn the Buddhadharma.
In specific definition, karmic suffering is of innumerable kinds; in general, there are eight: birth, aging, sickness, death, separation from beloved ones and pleasant conditions, association with unpleasant persons and conditions, not getting what one desires, and the instability of the five aggregates of body and mind. Filled with these eight kinds of suffering, there is no happiness in this world.
Why is it that there is no happiness in this world? For the happiness we normally refer to in this world is so named as contrast to pain—that is, a situation is considered pleasant if it is less painful. Therefore suffering is also of three kinds, namely, suffering due to ordinary painful situations, suffering due to pleasant situations, and suffering due to neither-painful-nor-pleasant situations. In painful situations, one experiences ordinary suffering, in pleasant situations one experiences suffering from destruction or loss of the conditions, and in neither-painful-nor-pleasant situations, one endures suffering caused by change.
The World of Ultimate Bliss is totally different. In the Amitābha Sutra, it says that in that Buddha’s Land, there are not any kinds of suffering but only all kinds of happiness. In that land, happiness is not in relation to pain; it is ultimate bliss.
Although in general only karma is referred to as karma, afflictions, delusive thoughts, and ignorance are also karmas. Karma has its characteristic, as in the saying “cause-and-condition is the characteristic of karma”, and that means karmas all arise from causes and conditions. For example, afflictions, delusive thoughts, and ignorance are all subject to the law of cause-and-condition, and whatever arises from causes and conditions is empty. Therefore in the Heart Sutra it says, no ignorance, nor end of ignorance. For it is empty of substance in nature.
Some people would probably say: “Since it is empty of substance in nature, why the hell am I afraid to produce karma? Any karma I may produce is empty, and, as it goes in the sutras, sin, empty in nature, is only created by the mind. Therefore, were I to kill someone, I would not be condemned to the hell.”
Those people are deluded, for karma is empty in nature if you do not make it. As long as you start the action, there is the karma. Has it not been made clear to you? Sin, empty in nature, is only “created” by the mind! For example, you are not guilty of killing only if you do not kill. Were you to kill someone, you would become guilty; this is the law of cause-and-effect.
There are other people who would tell such a lie as “the sins I have made are empty, I am not afraid.” This is just like they would say, “My father has never committed a sexual intercourse.” It is totally a lie. Why not take a second thought: if your father had not committed a sexual relationship, how did you get your birth?
Karma is like this, so are affliction, delusive thought, and ignorance. It is empty in nature, but upon your volitional action it comes to be. Sentient beings in the emptiness produce karmas, suffer from the effects, and continue the cycle of birth and death, not knowing all of which is unreal; the holy men who have transcended the mundane world gradually eliminate them. Therefore, sentient beings are called the deluded beings, whereas holy men are the awakened ones.
Practitioners of the śrāvaka Vehicle (followers of the Buddha’s direct teachings) are no longer bound up by evil karmas, but they still have taintless karmas because they have not destroyed their ignorance; bodhisattvas no longer have taintless karmas, but they still have karmas from two extreme views because they discriminate rebirth and nirvana; only Buddha has eradicated all faults and possesses all virtues.
Therefore, everyone ought to understand that recalling the Buddha Amitābha’s name can make you remove your karmic obstructions, eliminate your afflictions, get rid of your delusive thoughts, destroy your ignorance, and eventually attain the Upmost Enlightenment.
All the Buddhist teachings have these merits. Every one of you should discern by your wisdom: whatever does not possess these four merits is not Buddhism and is useless to learn. Non-Buddhist teachings are of millions of kinds, which can only be identified through your wisdom.
A calling of Amitābha Buddha can destroy ignorance straight. As it says in the Sutras, in remembrance of the Buddha, make your mind the Buddha and your mind is the Buddha. Buddha is a great saint who has eradicated all faults and possesses all good qualities; He has completely destroyed ignorance.
Now in this seven-day retreat, did it ever occur to you that the moment you are reciting the Buddha name, you are removing your karmic obstructions, eliminating your afflictions, getting rid of your delusive thoughts, and breaking your ignorance? What a good deal—only by the four-word Buddha name!
Therefore, I hope every one of you do recite Amitābha Buddha sincerely. This is much more valuable than any worldly learning. In this world, no matter how great your learning is, it cannot make you remove your karmic obstructions, eliminate your afflictions, get rid of your delusive thoughts, and break your ignorance. In other words, peerless talent and learning in this world is not so good as a calling of Amitābha Buddha.
Now, let’s recite Amitābha Buddha!
持佛名號四種功德
念佛有四種功德。第一個,消業障,令眾生消業障。經上說,持佛名號,念念中,可以滅八十億劫生死之罪。第二個,令眾生斷煩惱,煩惱是業障之因。第三個,能令眾生除妄想,妄想是煩惱之因。第四個,能令眾生破無明,無明是這一切妄想、煩惱、業障之因。
不僅是念佛如此,一切佛法皆如此,皆能令眾生消業障、斷煩惱、除妄想、破無明。大家學佛,可以觀察,如果有這四項功德的,是佛法;沒有的,非佛法。
怎麼說這四項有功德呢?如果自己作到這四項,謂之功;勸別人作到這四項,謂之德。你可以觀察,你所學的有沒有這四項?有這四項,是佛法。
於佛法中,修到的時候,可以得神通。有些人不求修行,只求神通。可是神通,你想想,不能令眾生消業障,也不能令眾生斷煩惱,更不能令眾生除妄想,究竟說一句,不能令眾生破無明。我不知道,你求神通,求的是什麼?
神通,修到的時候,不求自得,不同於報通,報通不可貴。譬如說,鬼都具有神通,可是天龍不護鬼,天龍護法。佛法,你不求,求非法,多可憐!如果神通可貴的話,天龍應該不護三寶,護鬼啊!
業障、煩惱、妄想、無明,皆是業繫苦,被業所繫。煩惱,又稱為惑;業,是業;受苦報。這就是惑業苦三。無明根本是一切之因,妄想是煩惱之因,煩惱是業之因。總說一句,都是被業所繫,所以稱之為「業繫苦」。
凡是不能使你脫離業繫苦的,你學它有什麼用呢?世間法皆不能脫離,世間法,就是大學問家、大博士,不能脫離業繫苦。在世間法,貴為天子、大臣,不能脫離。所以,我們要學佛。
業繫苦,廣說無量,略說有八種,就是生苦、老苦、病苦、死苦、愛別離苦、怨憎會苦、求不得苦、五陰熾盛苦,世間充滿這八苦,所以,世間沒有快樂。
為什麼世間沒有快樂呢?世間所謂的樂,是對苦言樂,一切的樂,苦輕為樂。所以是三種苦,就是苦的時候,固然是苦;樂的時候,也是苦;不苦不樂,也是苦。苦的時候苦,稱為苦苦;樂的時候苦,稱為壞苦;不苦不樂,是行苦。
極樂世界就不如此了。經上說,彼佛國土,無有眾苦,但受諸樂。它的樂不對苦,稱之為極樂。
總說起來,業固然是業,煩惱、妄想、無明,也可以說是業。業有其相,所謂「因緣是業相」,業皆是因緣所生。譬如說,煩惱、妄想、無明,皆是因緣所生,因緣所生法,就是空。所以經上說,無無明,亦無無明盡。因為它體性是空的。
或者有人說:「既然它的體性空,我怕什麼造業呢?造了業它是空,經上也說,罪性本空由心造。所以,我殺了人,也不會下地獄。」
這種人迷惑,業性空,要你不造作。你造作了,它就是有。不是告訴你很清楚嗎?罪性本空由心「造」!譬如說,你沒有殺人罪,可是要你不殺人。如果你殺人,就有罪了,這是因果不爽。
還有一班人,打這種妄語:說自己造的罪,是空的,不怕。這好比說:「我爸爸向來沒有犯婬欲。」這是打妄語。你不想想,你爸爸不犯婬欲,怎會生下你來?
業如此,煩惱也如此,妄想也如此,無明也如此。它本來空的,因為你造作,它就有了。眾生在空中,虛妄造業、虛妄受苦、虛妄受生死;出世間聖人,逐漸免除。所以,眾生稱為迷悶眾生,聖人是覺者。
聲聞乘人不被惡業所繫了,可是,他還有無漏業,因為他無明未破;菩薩沒有無漏業了,可是,有二邊業,因為菩薩有生死一邊、涅槃一邊;唯有佛,過盡德圓。
所以,大家要弄清楚,念佛可以使你消業障,可以使你斷煩惱,可以使你除妄想,可以使你破無明,可以使你證無上覺。
一切佛法,皆有這些功德。大家要用你的智慧檢查,凡是不具這四種功德的,非佛法,學它沒有用。非佛法有千萬種之數,那就要靠大家用智慧去簡別。
念佛,一聲佛號可以直破無明。經上說過,心念佛時,是心作佛,是心是佛。佛就是過盡德圓大聖人,破盡無明。
大家在打佛七,你可曾想到,當你持佛名號的時候,就消業障、斷煩惱、除妄想、破無明,這是多便宜的事情!只有四字佛名。
所以,希望大家,以真誠心念佛。這比世間大學問強得多,在世間,你學問蓋天下,它不能消業障、斷煩惱、除妄想、破無明。換句話說,蓋世之才學,不如你一聲阿彌陀佛。
現在開始念佛。