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.
梵文的“佛”是什么意思呢？就是自觉觉他。佛不但是自己觉悟了，还要让人家去觉悟。一个人不但自己 好，而且还能够帮助别人，这个人就是佛。你们现在坐 在下面的很多人自己修得很好的，可是从来不知道出来 帮助别人，这种人能够成佛吗？成佛的人就是自觉觉 他。还有，佛是觉行圆满。“觉”就是自己能够感觉到 自己所有的行为，包括思维、行为、语言，全部都是圆 满的，这叫觉行圆满佛。
What does the term ‘Buddha’ mean in Sanskrit? It means self-enlightenment and the enlightenment of others. Not only is Buddha enlightened, but the Buddha also goes out to enlighten others. A person who is not only well themselves but also helps others is a Buddha. Many of you have cultivated yourself very well, but have never gone out to help others. Could you become a Buddha? A person who aspires to attain Buddhahood must not only be enlightened themselves but also be a somebody who enlightens others. Also, Buddha has perfected their awareness of their behaviour. It means that should they could sense all of their mental, physical and verbal behaviour, like thoughts, actions and speech. They have perfected it all, and so they are a Buddha who has perfected their awareness of their behaviour.
师父把“佛”的意思分开讲，大家理解之后，学佛 就更容易了。佛的意思首先是自觉，就是我们依止佛陀 的教法，自己来修正自己的身心行为。一个人修正身心 行为要靠自觉，一个人的进步都是靠自己，而不是靠别 人。你们仅仅靠每周三来听一次师父上课是修不好的， 你们要靠师父的引导，平时在家自己来修行，在生活中 约束自己的思想行为，就是使自己不能乱想，自己的行 为不能乱来。其次，佛的意思是觉他。觉他是什么意思 呢？就是度化他人，令他人对人间的一切有所觉悟，有 所进步，哪怕就是一点点的进步，但自觉是必须的，觉 他可以慢慢来。接下来佛的意思就是四个字“觉行圆 满”，用白话来讲就是功果圆满，现在就叫功德圆满， 功德圆满就是成佛了。
Master dissects the meaning of the term ‘Buddha’ and explains it individually so that after you understand it all, it’s easier for you to practise Buddhism. Firstly, one of the meanings of Buddha is self-enlightenment. We should practise according to Gautama Buddha’s teachings to cultivate the behaviour of our body and mind. To cultivate one’s body and mind, it depends on their state of conscious awareness of what they are doing. A person’s improvement depends on themselves, not others. If you simply listen to Master’s lecture on Wednesdays, you won’t cultivate well. You must rely on Master’s guidance, and also cultivate at home and when you’re going through your daily life. You should restrain your thoughts and behaviour so that you won’t overthink, or act recklessly. Secondly, the meaning of the term Buddha is to enlighten others. What does that mean? It’s to awaken others spiritually so that others are also awakened to everything in the Human Realm. But self-enlightenment is a must, the enlightenment of others can come gradually. Next, the Buddha’s meaning is also ‘perfection of one’s awareness of behaviour’. In plain terms, it’s the perfection of one merit-virtues. If one has perfected their merit-virtues, then they have attained Buddhahood.
佛是功德圆满的，因为他的果出来全部都是圆满的。那么师父问你们，佛的果出来都是圆满的，那么佛 种的因会不会圆满？佛不造因，出来的果当然是圆满 的。所以，皈依佛就是皈依觉。有弟子问师父：“师 父，我们现在拜师是不是皈依佛？”师父说：“我们现 在学的是佛法，拜的是观世音菩萨，那么我们皈依的是 不是佛啊？”皈依佛门最重要的是要觉悟，师父问你 们，你们觉悟了吗？所以，觉而不迷，才是真正的佛 教。什么叫正教？正教就是觉而不迷。人是很可怜的， 很容易走偏差，所以不能迷惑啊，人一旦迷惑了，就不 会觉悟。
Buddha has perfected their merit-virtues, so their karmic consequences are perfect. Master asks you, since the karmic consequences of the Buddha are perfect, does it mean that the karmic causes they sowed are perfect? The Buddha does not sow karmic causes, that's why everything consequential karmically is perfect. Seeking refuge with the Buddha is to seek refuge with enlightenment. A disciple asked Master, “Master, since we have been initiated, does it mean we have also sought refuge in Buddha?” Master replied, “We are currently learning the Buddha-Dharma, the one we are worshipping is Guan Yin Bodhisattva, so let me ask you, are you awakened yet?” The most important thing when one seeks refuge in Buddha is to be enlightened. So are you enlightened yet? To be enlightened and not be disillusioned is true Buddhism. People are pitiful. They are very susceptible to deviating. That’s why one must not be lost; otherwise, they won’t be enlightened.
很多人学佛之后经常到佛堂、寺院去做义工，因为 自己是佛教徒。实际上，单单做义工，不代表你是一个 佛教徒，你也可以说是一个清洁工，帮助做点善事。你 今天在佛堂里、在寺庙中，你去做这种善事，实际上你 的内心必须有佛。凡事都是有规则的，今天我们要想学 佛，就要秉承佛法的教育，所以佛教里有一句话叫“依教奉行”，就是依照佛法的教育而行自己在人生的路。
Many people regularly go to the Buddhist temples or monasteries and work voluntarily after they have learnt Buddhism, and they recognise themselves as Buddhists. But in reality, if one simply works voluntarily, it doesn’t mean that they’re a Buddhist. They could be a janitor who’s just helping out of kindness. When you go to the Buddhist temples and monasteries to do good deeds, your inner mind must possess a state of a Buddha. Everything has rules applied to it. So if you want to learn Buddhism, then you must uphold the teachings of Buddhism. That’s why there’s a phrase called ‘uphold the teachings of one’s religion’, it means to live your life in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha-Dharma.
那么，怎么样能够遵守佛法的教育呢？首先要守五戒。师父今天重点给大家讲讲五戒。其实，也没有重点讲，师父觉得做人就应该守五戒，更别说学佛做人了。 如果做人你都守不住五戒，那你就没有学佛成佛的根 本，所以，学佛人必须要守五戒，五戒是学佛的基础。
So, how do you do so? Firstly, one must observe the five precepts. The main topic that Master wants to expound in this chapter are the five precepts. To be honest, Master feels that every person should observe the five precepts, not to mention people who are Buddhists. If a person doesn’t observe the five precepts, then they lack the foundation of practising Buddhism and attaining Buddhahood. That’s why Buddhists must observe the five precepts; they are the foundation of practising Buddhism.
第一， 不杀生。大家都做得到，但是有些人做不 到，打蚊子、苍蝇、蟑螂都是杀生，碰到蚂蚁要赶走， 把蟑螂抓起来要放生，这些都是慈悲心的体现，因为当 你的念头一起“我要打死它”的时候，你的心就存在恶念，这就是在造业。
The first precept is do not kill. Some people can do it; some people can’t. Killing flies, wasps and cockroaches also constitutes as killing. When you see ants or cockroaches, you should drive them away or take it out of the room. These are all acts of compassion. When you develop a thought like, “I need to kill it,” then you will be creating negative karma.
第二， 不偷盗。师父问你们，做一个人能够偷别人 的东西吗？最起码的，偷东西你就不是一个人了。师父 看很多视频里面，女孩子偷东西被人家抓到，被偷的东 西也就价值十几块钱，女孩子跪在那里被人家扒她衣服 抽打、羞辱她，人家还要拿她偷的东西挂在她的脖子 上，想想看，就是因为她做了不是人的事情，才会这样 啊。说说看，人能够偷东西吗？师父的法会都是几万人 的，丢失的东西全部物归原主，因为学佛人守五戒不会 偷东西。
The second precept is do not steal. Master asks you, can anybody just casually steal something from others? At the very least, when somebody steals, they won’t be treated like a human. Master once saw a video where it showed that a woman was caught stealing. The item that the woman stole was only a few dollars, but the woman kneeled and pleaded on the floor while others around her grabbed hold of her clothes, beat her and humiliate her. The shopkeeper then wrapped the item that the woman stole around her neck. Take a look, because she did something that a normal person shouldn’t do, so she had to bear this kind of consequences. Think about it, is it right for people to steal? In every one of Master’s Dharma Convention, there are hundreds of thousands of people who attend. Any items lost and found would be returned to their owners. That’s because Buddhists observe the five precepts, and they won’t steal.
第三， 不邪淫。师父跟你们讲过，邪淫是人的一个 很大的弱点，你们一定要守戒，守住意念，就是守住了 行为。八卦新闻里面到处都是这种事情，因为人的恶念 让人已经守不住自己的行为了，所以才会邪淫。你们想 想看，邪淫有没有这个必要？咬咬牙，你就是一个人； 不能咬牙，克制不住，那你就是一个畜生，所以要克制 邪淫。佛法讲，在家居士叫戒邪淫，出家人的要求更 高。在家居士你可以跟异性接触，但是不能跟对方做出 过分的某种行为。对于出家人来说是什么呢？就是离非正之行愿，就是你必须离开不正当的凡人的一切行为， 守住自己的愿，这个要求更高，想都不能想，心都不敢 动。对在家居士的要求已经是很低了，在家人可以接触 异性，大家聊聊很开心，还可以用现代的方式发短信息 相互联系，但是出家人想都不能想这些。
The third precept is to refrain from committing sexual misconduct. Master has mentioned this before that lust is a very big weakness for many people. You must observe the precepts, hold your thoughts and actions. You hear a lot of related incident in the entertainment news. That’s because the person’s unwholesome thoughts have already caused them to lose control over their actions; that’s why they committed sexual misconduct. Think about it, is sexual misconduct necessary? Grit your teeth and stay strong through it, and you’re still a person. If you can’t control yourself, then you’re an animal. That’s why you must control your lust. The Buddha-Dharma expounded that for secular people, the precept is to refrain from committing sexual misconduct. For people who are already monks, the requirement for them is much higher. For secular people, they’re still allowed to get in contact with people of the opposite sex, but they can’t do anything beyond the boundaries of a normal relationship with them. Whereas for monks, they must remain distanced from all non-right secular behaviour and hold onto their vows. This requirement is much higher. They mustn’t even think about it or be moved by anything associated with the opposite sex. The requirements for secular people are already very low. They could stay in contact with people of the opposite sex and converse merrily. They could even exchange contacts and text and message each other. But monks can’t even think about these kinds of things.
第四， 不妄语。为什么师父现在对你们这些弟子要 求这么严格？你们只要在师父面前妄语，师父就会指出来，如果你们改正了，不妄语了，你们就会成为一个被 人家尊敬的人。师父问你们，妄语是不是会被人家看不 起？如果你回到家里吹个牛，被对方发现，对方恨不恨 你？一个强盗去抢一个人，明明强盗是不好的，强盗是 没有理由的，但是强盗问被抢的人说：“你还有钱 吗？”那个人妄语：“我的钱没有了。”结果钱被强盗 搜出来了，好啊，反而那个抢劫的人变成有道理的了， 被抢的人被他拼命打。你们现在知道妄语的厉害了吧？ 学佛人不能随便乱讲话，要守住口业，不要讲不好的 话，讲谎话会被人家看不起的。
The fourth precept is don’t lie. Master is very strict towards his disciples. If you lie in front of him, he will immediately point it out. If you reform yourself and don’t lie anymore, then you’ll be respected. Master asks you, if somebody found out that you lied or boast, wouldn’t they look down on you? There was a robber who went to rob somebody. Robbing is already something unwholesome and unreasonable, but the robber asked the victim, “Do you have any money on you?” The person lied and said, “No, I don’t.” As a result, after the robber searched the victim’s body and found the hidden money, then he felt that he’s in the moral high ground and started to beat the victim up for lying. Now, do you know how bad lying is? Buddhists must not recklessly speak; they have to uphold their verbal precepts. Don’t say unwholesome things, and don’t lie. Otherwise, you’ll be looked down.
第五， 不饮酒。这点大家都做得到。在座的师父的 弟子，如果说守三戒“不杀生、不偷盗、不饮酒”的 话，你们个个都能守，就是另外两个戒“不邪淫、不妄 语”比较难以做到，你们要诚实一点，好好修。 戒的本质就是自我约束。为什么要守戒啊？因为你 守戒的话，你就可以自己约束自己，不做坏事，不做侵犯他人的事情。自我约束，完成自性身口意三业的清 净，这就是守戒的本质，这就是人间的白话佛法。守戒 之后，你发自内心地自我要求“我必须要怎么样”，要 求自己不妄语，要求自己不邪淫、不喝酒，你对自己的 严格要求是做人的基本道德。
The final precept is don’t drink alcohol. This is something that all of you should be able to do. For Master’s disciples, many of them could achieve three of the five precepts, which are ‘don’t kill’, ‘don’t steal’, ‘don’t drink alcohol’. But the other two precepts, which are ‘don’t commit sexual misconduct’ and ‘don’t lie’ are harder to observe. You must be more honest and properly cultivate. The inherent nature of observing precepts is to practise self-restriction. Why should people observe precepts? It’s because if they do, they could restrain themselves, and don’t commit unwholesome deeds or violate other people. Self-restraint is about purifying the karma developed by one’s body, speech and thoughts so that it becomes closer to one’s inherent nature. That’s the nature of observing precepts, that is how Buddhism is used practically in the Human Realm. After one is observing the precepts, they would be self-driven to enforce strict demands on oneself like not to lie, not to commit sexual misconduct, not to drink alcohol. That is also the most basic moral code a person should have.
所以，守戒能够让你遵守做人的基本道德，是伦理 的基本德因，道德的因。伦理是什么？爸爸就是爸爸， 妈妈就是妈妈，孩子就是孩子，你要分得清楚，孩子在 家里就不能做欺负爸爸妈妈等伦理不容的事情，就像人 不能跟狗去做一些事情一样，这就是伦理。一个父亲如果跟女儿发生关系，就叫失去了伦理道德，就会被全世 界的人唾骂。在欧洲有一位父亲跟女儿发生十多年的性 关系，人家就骂他禽兽，而且这种人被关到监狱里后， 会被监狱里的人打死的。因为监狱里的有些人犯错误是 一时的，还有一些人性，他们看见这种人进来，非常愤 恨，大家就会打这种人，这个人很快地就会被打死，因 为他丧失了人性的伦理和道德。所以我们做事情不能不 讲伦理，不能没有道德，因为这些道德和伦理是慈悲心 的体现。
That’s why observing the precepts can help one to uphold the basic moral code and ethics as a fellow human being. What are ethics? The father acts as the father. The mother acts as the mother. The child acts like a child. You have to be very clear about the roles. The child must not abuse their parents, that’s unethical and morally wrong. Just like how humans shouldn’t have sexual relationships with their dog, that’s morals. If a father has sexual relations with his daughter, then that would be immoral conduct, and the whole world would scold him. In Australia, there was a father who had sexual relations with his daughter for over a decade; people call him an animal. Also, when these kinds of people go to jail, they would be beaten up by their fellow inmates. That’s people may go to jail for minor crimes, or if they made minor mistakes, they still have some humanity in them. So they would get very angry at those kinds of people, and they would beat them up. It’s the result of losing their humanity and the most basic moral conduct and ethics. That’s why we mustn’t be immoral or unethical, as both moral and ethics are the manifestation of compassion.