V 1-28 To look Beyond and Let go is Prajna (Wisdom) 看破、放下是般若
Disclaimer: The translations are not official nor endorsed by 2OR, so please just treat it as a ‘fan-based’ translation. 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】. Please enjoy, and I hope it serves as a good filler until the official English version comes out.
今天给大家讲“色身是无明”。这个色并不是指男女之色，是指在人间所看到的、所拥有的东西，是这个世界的有形之色。身就是我们这个肉身。无明是指你的无明习气，当你什么都不知道，这种空的就是无明。师父常跟你们讲的无明习气，就是几百年，几千年来你们元灵没修好所遗留下来的恶习气，是不好的东西。
Today Master will talk about ‘appearance-body is ignorance’. ‘Appearance’ here refers to everything we see and touch in the human realm. It is the appearance of the different forms in this world. ‘Body’ here refers to our physical body. ‘Ignorance’ here refers to our bad habits stemmed from our ignorance. When you know nothing, this kind of emptiness is called ignorance. When Master is talking about your bad habits stemmed from ignorance, Master refers to the unwholesome habits that are left over from your primordial soul’s incomplete cultivation over the past thousands of years. It is not good to have.
诸法无自性，所有的法门，所有的法，在这个世界称为法界。法界是没有自性的，是空的。人来到这个世间什么东西是自己的？在这个世界上你什么都没有，你连自己本来的本性都丢失了，因为你出生之后，你的本性被你前世再前世……全部遮住了（所掩盖），所以这辈子你已经不是原来的你了，已经没有原来的本性了，犹如长大后已找不到小时候那善良的自己了。想想看，这个世界里还有什么是你的本性？
All dharmas possess no self-nature. All Buddhist practices, all dharma are known as the Dharma-reality in this world. The Dharma-reality does not have a self-nature; it is empty. When a human is reborn into this realm, what can they truly possess? In this world, you have nothing, you’ve even lost your original, inherent nature. That’s because after you were born, your inherent nature has been completely contaminated due to the countless rebirths. That’s why in this life; you are no longer the original you; you’ve lost your original, inherent nature. Just like after you have grown up, you are no longer the kind-hearted self that you once was when you were still a child. Think about it, in this world, where can you find your inherent nature?
本性会丢失，但佛种从缘起，娑婆即是极乐，也就是说你把这个娑婆世界好好地变一下，用你的思维，用你的概念好好转变一下，就是一个极乐世界。佛种，即佛菩萨的种子。佛菩萨最早的种子是从缘起，我们学佛最早的东西就是我们说的佛性。佛性就是佛种，佛菩萨最原始的灵，是从缘起。孔夫子讲“人之初，性本善”，孔夫子所指的性本善，是指最原始的本性，是善良的，就是佛性，而我们现在生出的孩子，基本上已不是原来的本性，你今天叫这个名字，而前世就不是这个名字，想一想，经过一世死亡再经过一世死亡，累世的转世，才有今天的你，你说是原来的你吗？
Your inherent nature will be lost, but the Buddha-seeds start working on arising conditions. ‘Endurance is also ultimate bliss’, in other words, if you can use your thoughts and conceptual perception to transform the world of endurance, it will become a world of ultimate bliss, Buddha-seeds are the seed of Buddha-Bodhisattvas. The Buddha-Bodhisattvas’ earliest seeds started from arising conditions; the earliest thing we learnt from Buddhism is our Buddha-nature. The Buddha-nature is the Buddha-seed, that is the primordial soul of the Buddha-Bodhisattvas; it started from when conditions arose. Confucius said, “human nature is inherently wholesome in the beginning”. What he refers to about the nature being inherently wholesome is the originally inherent nature, it’s benevolent, that is the Buddha-nature. But now the children we encounter, are not their original, inherent nature anymore. In this life, this child is called this name, but in their previous life, it’s another name. Think about it, after countless deaths and rebirths over an immeasurable period, here you are today. Can you say you are still the original you?
如果一个人不能控制自己的喜、怒、哀、乐，就是一个没有能力的人，没有能力控制自己的本性，就没有能力主宰自己的命运，实际上你就和动物差不多。比如：一个不能控制自己能力的人，开心来时拼命开心，伤心来时，难过得受不了，这就是没有能力控制自己的情绪，是诸法无自性的表现。
If a person is unable to control their joy, anger, sorrow and happiness, then they are incapable. If one has no control over their inherent nature, no control over their fate and fortune, then they are no different to animals. For example, if a person cannot control themselves, then when they encounter fortunate times, they become extremely happy. When they encounter unfortunate times, they feel extreme grief. That indicates that they have no control over their emotions; it is an expression of the saying, ‘all dharmas are devoid of a self-nature’.
师父常给大家讲持戒，人为什么要守戒？因为守戒可以把你修心的福德漏洞全部堵住。比如：今天做了很多好事，但是到最后因为你的一句话把人都得罪了，那你今天所做的善事和功德就会漏掉很多。师父曾经给大家讲过，当你刚刚念完经之后，气场非常好，但去与人聊天，乱讲话，就会把你刚才念经的功德漏掉。
Master frequently tells everybody to uphold the precepts. Why should we uphold precepts? It’s because precepts can block all the outflows of worldly blessings and merit-virtues earned by cultivating the mind. For example, today you did a good deed, but in the end, you said something that offended the person you helped. Then that means all the benevolent and meritorious deeds you performed today are flawed, and there are outflows. Master has once said that when you’ve just finished reciting sutras, your energy field is very good. But when you start talking to people, and carelessly talk frivolously, then you create outflows of merit-virtues gained from the recitation earlier.
很多人就是放不下自己的儿孙，天天为他们担心，为他们在努力、在难过。许多人年纪都那么大了，整天为后代操心，应该想一想自己还能活几年，应该为自己过去所做的罪责承担责任，好好忏悔，还清账目，才能无债一身轻。怎样知道自己过去所造的罪呢？就是要看报应。如果到了晚年身体非常不好，都是病痛，说明你的冤亲债主都来找你，晚上噩梦不断，就应该好好忏悔自己所做过的罪业。
Many people are still unable to let go of their grandchildren; they are worried about them every day; they work hard for them and get upset. They are already so old, yet they are still constantly concerned about their descendants. Instead, they should think about how much longer they can live for, and they should take responsibility for all the sins they’ve committed in the past, and repent properly, repay karmic debts, so they are free. How do you know what sins you have committed before? You can look at the karma you’re experiencing. If your health is very bad when you’re at old age, and aching all over, it means all the people you wronged and karmic creditors in your life are giving you trouble, giving you constant nightmares every night. If so, you should properly repent all the sins and unwholesome deeds you committed in the past.
另外，如果儿孙比我强，留下钱财给他们做什么？觉得儿孙比自己好，为什么还要留钱财给他们？如果儿孙不如自己，又留钱财给他们为什么？如果儿孙不务正业常常气你，让你伤心难过，整天赌博酗酒不务正业，你又留钱财给他们干什么？让他们去造更多的孽，你这不是在害他们吗？知道留什么最好？多留一点德给孩子吧。自己多留一点德性给孩子比什么都好。如果父母整天吵架，给孩子留下了什么？如果孩子有前途，不会在乎你的钱财，如果孩子不好，不如你，你又给他钱财干什么？留下的钱财越多造成孩子与孩子之间的矛盾越大。如打官司、分财产等等。真正好的父母应该懂得留下什么东西给孩子。
Also, if your descendants are more capable than you, what’s the point of leaving your wealth to them? If your descendants are inferior to you, then leaving your wealth to them is for what purpose? If your descendants are unappreciative of you and frequently provoke you, make you get angry and upset, or gambles and get intoxicated and don’t have a proper job, then what’s the point of leaving your wealth to them? Instead, you should leave behind virtues; it’s better than everything. If parents are constantly fighting with one another, what do they leave to their child? If the child has good prospects, then they won’t care about your wealth. If the child is not good and inferior to you, then what’s the point of giving them your wealth? The greater the wealth you leave will create even more potential confrontations between child and child — for example, wills and probate litigation on inheritance. Only proper fathers and mothers know what they should leave to their child.
每个人都会有灾劫患难，有灾难来临时，就是我们修心日趋成熟的时候，知道为什么要这样说吗？因为有苦的时候，人才会想到拜佛念经，只有受苦的时候，这个人才会精进，只有贫穷的时候，才会发奋图强，只有身体不好的时候，才知道要锻炼身体，人就是这个毛病，什么事情等到要发生了，才会想到应该怎么办，所以不论任何事情都要未雨绸缪，早一点想到后果。
Every person will encounter tribulations and calamities. When it happens, it is the fruition of our everyday cultivation of the mind. Why did I say that? It’s because when there’s suffering, people would think of paying respects to Buddha and recite sutras. Only when somebody is suffering, do they become diligent. Only when somebody is poor, do they strive for the progress with determination. Only when somebody’s health is poor, do they want to train their body. Humans have this shortcoming; they always wait for something to occur and then think about what they should do about it. That’s why, regardless of whatever it is, you must make preparations. You must think about the consequences early on.