│金山通訊 GMM Newsletter│2005年六月份目錄 Contents - June 2005│

The Manifestation of a Virtuous Character

Talks on Dharma by Venerable Master Hua

Cultivating the Way means to cultivate true morality by not obstructing others and not being afraid of being obstructed by others.

People who are learning and practicing the Buddhadharma are sowing seeds in the ground. Once the seeds have been sown, will they sprout? It depends on various conditions. When all the right conditions are present, the seeds will sprout and grow in due course. If the various aiding conditions are not all present, the sprouts may wither and the seeds may go bad. It also depends on whether we sowed our Bodhi seeds deeply and firmly enough when we made our resolve for Bodhi.

If we sowed them deeply and firmly enough, the seeds will surely take root and sprout in the future. However, if you want to reap the Bodhi fruit, it will take considerable time, and it depends on how well you apply effort. If your cultivation advances well, and you become enlightened, realize the fruition, and accomplish the Way, then you have reaped the harvest.

During the process of taking root, sprouting, growing leaves, flowering, and bearing fruit, a considerable time of care, watering, and adding fertilizer is needed. What is the fertilizer? It is studying morality. Every aspect of cultivation must be based on morality. “Not going against morality” should be our fundamental precept.

A Confucian maxim says: “Virtue is fundamental. Wealth is incidental.” Virtuous conduct is the foundation of a person, while wealth is an insignificant thing.

Cultivators should always be thrifty and avoid wasting money or resources. That way, over the days and months, they can foster their practice of virtue. Then the branches and leaves will grow abundantly, and fruits will accumulate. If you don't add fertilizer, and you make no effort to care for and water the plant, it will be easy for the branches, flowers and fruit to wither and die. Therefore, the foremost precept for cultivators is to place emphasis on virtuous conduct.

Virtuous conduct begins in small places. “Do not think a good deed is too small and fail to do it. “Don't wait around for a big good deed to do, because there aren't that many big good deeds. A mountain is an accumulation of specks of dust. Although each speck is tiny, many specks piled up can form a mountain. Virtuous deeds may be small, yet when many are accumulated, they will form a mountain of virtue.

Not going against what is proper and right is known as virtuous conduct. Not hindering others is morality. In whatever you do, you should make it your obligation to help others. If you hinder others and cannot benefit them in terms of profit, time, culture, wisdom, or any other aspect, you are acting contrary to morality. Therefore, in every move and action, every word and deed, we should always make “not going against morality” our basic rule. If you want to cultivate the Way, you must first foster virtue. Without virtuous conduct, you cannot cultivate. Some people who want to cultivate will encounter demonic obstacles as soon as they start. That is due to a lack of virtuous conduct. So it is said, “Virtue is fundamental. Wealth is incidental.”

Morality is equivalent to the sun and moon, to Heaven and Earth, and to our very life. Lacking morality is equivalent to being without life, without the sun and moon, and without Heaven and Earth. What is morality? Morality means to take benefiting others as most important, and to take not hindering others as our principle. It is fill our minds with humaneness, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness.

1. Humaneness: Having a heart of humane benev-olence, you will not kill.

2. Righteousness: Endowed with common sense, everything you do will be just right, exactly in accord with the Middle Way, neither too much nor too little, and neither too far to the left nor too far to the right. All affairs will be carried out in accord with the Middle Way. If you understand what is right, you will not steal. People who value righteousness will not steal what belongs to others.

3. Propriety: Propriety is a kind of courtesy and etiquette. If you honor the rules of etiquette, you will not be lewd. Stealing and lewdness are phenomena which occur because one is not in accord with righteousness and propriety, and because one is acting contrary to the rules of proper conduct.

4. Wisdom: Wise people will not recklessly drink or take drugs.

5. Trustworthiness: Trustworthy people will not tell lies.

Cultivating the Way means to cultivate true morality by not obstructing others and not being afraid of being obstructed by others. No matter who obstructs you, you should accept it. “When adversity comes, compliantly accept it.” Anyone who is unkind or unreasonable to you is just your Good and Wise Advisor. If you can compliantly accept adversity and calmly handle unexpected or unreasonable situations, then your skill in patience can be seen. Don't be moved because of a single sentence that someone says. Some people think “being unmoved” means to be without shame and remorse, but that's wrong. The kind of “being unmoved” you should cultivate is being able to endure what others cannot endure—that's true skill. Otherwise, you will have to start cultivating all over again.