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.
学佛人最怕的是无所依处。过去很多庙里的法师，自己的师父走掉了，他就没有师父了，他自己就是无所依处，他就不能再依止佛法、继续修行，然后到处挂单，四处寻找适合自己的师父。修行人要不断地提高自己的境界，如果你自佛不皈，你没有皈依自己的本性佛，你就是没有依靠。你的心中要想有依靠，你一定要皈依自己的本性佛。
What Buddhists are most afraid of is there’s nobody to rely on. In the past, when the venerable monks passed away, some of their disciples felt that there’s nobody to rely on anymore. There’s nobody who could teach them about the Buddha-Dharma to continue improving their cultivation, so they travel around looking for a suitable master. Cultivators must continue elevating their level of spirituality. If you don’t seek refuge in your inner Buddha, then you have nobody to rely on. If you want to find something to rely on, you must seek refuge in your inner Buddha.
佛陀当年一手指天，一手指地，说“天上地下，唯我独尊”。很多人说：“佛陀怎么生出来就说‘唯我独尊’呢？很多人还不知道他是佛陀呢。”其实佛陀已经是明心见性，他是佛啊，他到了人间，很清楚自己是佛，他见到了自己的佛性，所以他才敢讲“唯我独尊”。因为他认识的不是自己这个小孩子的肉身，而是认识了自我的本性。师父要你们每个人都知道自己的本性，如果你知道自己的本性是佛，你也可以非常骄傲地说：“我是佛。”只要你好好地做佛的样子，你就是一尊佛，你就是开悟了。
When Gautama Buddha was born, he pointed up to the sky with his right hand, and he pointed down to the earth with his left hand. He said, “In all heavens above and the earth below, I am supreme.” Many people pondered, “Why did say that alone he was supreme when he was born. People didn’t know that he was the Buddha.” In fact, Gautama Buddha already possessed a clear mind and could see his inherent nature. He’s a Buddha, and when he arrived in the Human Realm, he was clear that he was a Buddha. He could see his Buddha-nature. That’s why he dared say that he was supreme. What he knew was not his mortal body of a child but his inherent nature. Master wants you to know about your inherent nature. If you know that your inherent nature is a Buddha, then you could also proudly say that you’re a Buddha. As long as you properly behave like a Buddha, then you are a Buddha; you are an enlightened being.
佛陀讲的“唯我独尊”，并不是指的他肉身的“我”，而是指的他自己的“性”。佛性是谁呢？佛性就是自己本身的“我”，本身所释放出来的佛的光明。所以，佛的自在就是开悟。当你觉得自己什么都不怕了，有菩萨、有佛保佑，这个时候你就找到了自我，自己有感觉了，你就是一个悟者，其实你就是皈依了自己。很多人什么都不怕，就相信佛菩萨一定会照顾自己、帮助自己的：我是一个善良的人，我从来不害人，为什么我不怕？因为我的心中有佛，我有依止。
What Gautama Buddha referred to when he said, “I am supreme,” was his inherent nature, not his mortal body. What’s the Buddha-nature? The Buddha-nature is the original ‘self’, the one that radiant the Buddha’s light. The Buddha’s feeling of freedom comes from enlightenment. When you feel that that there’s nothing to be afraid of and the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas protect you, it means that you have found your true self. You have developed a kind of sense; you are an enlightened being. In reality, you have sought refuge in yourself. Many people are fearless. They just have faith that the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will take care of them and help them. “I am a kind-hearted person. I have never harmed others, so why should I be fearful? I already have a Buddha within me who I can rely on.”
很多孩子要出门的时候，爸爸妈妈只要讲一句话，“不管外面发生什么事情，孩子都要打电话回来跟爸爸妈妈讲，爸爸妈妈一定会帮助你解决这些问题的”，小孩子出门就会昂首挺胸，因为他有依止。如果我们现在依止的是佛，不管发生什么事情，我们就不会害怕了。这就是告诉大家，学佛人要皈依光明的自性佛，这样我们就无所畏惧。
When children go out of the house, and their parents tell them, “No matter what happens, give us a call, and we will definitely help you resolve it,” they would raise their chests because they have somebody to rely on. If the ones we rely on are the Buddhas, then no matter what happens, we have nothing to fear. That is to tell you, Buddhists should seek refuge in their inner Buddha. That way, they have nothing to fear.
要明白，皈依佛法僧，就是皈依觉者，就是皈依佛性，就是皈依你自己修心修出来的佛性。所以，佛性、正法，还有自性，等于皈依佛法僧——你内心的三宝。要调心性，对外要尊敬众生，因为我们本身看不到自己的本性，所以学佛要学会调理，把自己内心的佛性要调理出来。
You have to understand that when you seek refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, you seek refuge in your Buddha-nature, the one you have cultivated. That’s why seeking refuge in the Buddha-nature, the right Dharma and one’s inherent nature are likened to seeking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha because they are the three treasures within you. You must adjust your temperament on the inside, while on the outside, you must be respectful towards other sentient beings. That’s because you haven’t discovered your inherent nature yet. That’s why by learning Buddhism, you are learning to adjust your mind so that your Buddha-nature manifests.
人生“来者无所从来，去者无所至”。你来到这个人间不知道干什么，也不知道今后要到哪里去。人怎么会生病的呢？“从痴有爱，则我病生”。从愚痴开始，从有爱开始。所以一个人在人间最大的苦恼就是爱，因为人的愚痴产生贪爱，就会生病。对于学佛人来说，众生有病，吾也有病，“以一切众生病，是故我病”。因为一切众生都得了贪爱的病。在这个娑婆世界，分分秒秒都是在生死当中，我们要学习菩萨的大慈悲和无畏精神，不要跳入欲望的火坑。这个世界到处都是欲望的火坑，就算我们生在水火之中，我们也要解救自己，靠着自己坚强的自性、坚强的佛性，我们一定要跳出自我的牢狱。
When you came to the Human Realm, you didn’t know what you were here for. When you leave the Human Realm, you don’t know where you will go. Why do people become sick? From foolishness comes love and attachment, and from it brings sickness. For Buddhists, we should have thoughts like, “If others are sick, we are also sick. The sickness of all sentient beings is also mine.” That’s because all sentient beings have caught the sickness of love and attachments. In the Saha world, life and death happen every second. We must learn from the Bodhisattva’s great compassionate and fearless spirit and not throw ourselves into the fiery pit of desires. There’s a fiery pit of desire all over the world. Even if we are born in the midst of despair, we must still save ourselves. What we depend on is our strong inherent nature and Buddha-nature to get out of our mental prison.
很多人连自己都不想救自己，经常想着“死了算了，我不想活了，我没有办法在这个世界生存”。一个连自己都不想救自己的人，谁能够救你呢？你自己先要想救自己，“我一定要活下去，再怎么苦，我也要坚持”，好了，菩萨就会来救你了。自杀的人，为什么连菩萨也救不了？因为连他自己都失去了对人生的希望。众生生活在水火之中非常的苦恼，菩萨非常慈悲，也不得不跳进苦海当中来救大家。乘愿再来的菩萨，来到人间都会吃很多的苦。我们小时候学过白求恩大夫的故事，他到中国来进行人道主义救援，最后他自己死了。想想看，救人哪有不冒风险的？哪有不付出的？学佛人要放下自己，多帮助别人，要去除自我身上不好的习惯，去帮助众生开悟解脱。
Many people don’t even want to try to save themselves, and they regularly have thoughts like, “I might as well just die. I don’t want to live anymore. I have no way to survive in this world.” If you don’t even want to save yourself, how could others save you? You must first want to save yourself, “I must live on. No matter how hard it gets, I must persevere.” If you have that mindset, the Bodhisattvas will save you. Why can’t the Bodhisattvas save those who commit suicide? It’s because those people have lost hope in life. The Bodhisattvas are very compassionate towards the sentient beings who are living in despair, and they can’t stop themselves from jumping into the sea of despair to save whoever they could. Those who were originally Bodhisattvas who vowed to return to the Human Realm have to face many hardships. When you were little, you may have heard about the story of Doctor Norman Bethune. He went to China and brought humanitarian aid, but in the end, he died. Think about it, which rescuer doesn’t face any risk? Which rescuer doesn’t have to put in the effort? Buddhists must let go of themselves, save others more often, gradually eliminate their habitual bad behaviour, and go and help others to awaken and become mentally and spiritually liberated.