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宣化上人開示錄(一)
Venerable Master Hua's Talks on Dharma Volume One　

上宣下化老和尚開示 Lectures by the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua

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懺悔就是改過自新

To Repent and Reform Means to Change Our Faults and Turn Over a New Leaf

如果能真正生出懺悔心，也未嘗沒有商量之處。
If one is truly repentant, it can certainly be worked out.

佛之「法力」極大，而眾生的「業力」卻與之相等，所以說凡夫是「業重情迷」，而佛卻是「業盡情空」，所以聖、凡之分，在於「業」是不是已經盡了，「情」是不是已經空了。又說：

覺者，佛也；
迷者，眾生。

 

The Dharma-power of the Buddhas is tremendous, and yet the karma of living beings is equal to it. Thus living beings are said to be “weighed down by karma and confused by emotions,” whereas the Buddhas “have ended their karma and emptied their emotions.” So the difference between a sage and a commoner lies in whether one can end karma and empty out emotions. Another saying goes,

Enlightened, one is a Buddha.
Confused, one is a living being.

就好像上午所說的，眾生因為背覺合塵，被一切塵勞五欲所轉，所以業障愈來愈深，而佛能超脫一切五欲塵勞，不再造業。眾生因為業重的緣故，所以凡是想成佛了道的，必須先要懺悔自己的罪業，如果不生懺悔心就想成佛，這就猶如「煮沙成飯」，雖然煮到恆河沙那麼多的劫，也不可能成功的。

　

As we mentioned earlier, since living beings turn their backs on enlightenment and unite with defilement, being turned by the wearisome defilement of the five desires, their karmic obstacles become deeper and deeper. On the other hand, the Buddhas can transcend the sordid defilements of the five desires and avoid creating additional karma. Because living beings have such heavy karma, one who wishes to become a Buddha and realize the Way must first repent of his karmic offenses. If one hopes to become a Buddha without being repentant, it's like cooking sand and hoping to get rice. You can cook for as many eons as there are sands in the Ganges River, but you'll never succeed.

所謂「懺」，是懺其前愆；對以往所犯的罪業生大慚愧心。「悔」，是悔其後過；立定主意，改過自新，永遠不再犯錯，正如袁了凡居士所說：

以前種種，譬如昨日死；
以後種種，譬如今日生。

　

“Repentance” means repenting of past errors, feeling a great sense of shame and remorse for the transgressions we made in the past. “Reform” means turning away from future errors, resolving to turn over a new leaf, and never making those mistakes again. This is just what the layman Yuan Liaofan said,

Regard everything in the past as
if you died yesterday.
Regard everything in the future as
if you were born today.

　 　

如果我們不勤懺悔，那麼，我們所造的罪業，就會使我們墮落，不知「伊於胡底，莫知所止」了。凡是佛教徒都會記得，在皈依時，把自己的姓名報上後，便懺悔說：

從於無始。以至今生。
毀壞三寶。作一闡提。
謗大乘經。斷學般若。
弒害父母。出佛身血。
污僧伽藍。破他梵行。
焚毀塔寺。盜用僧物。
起諸邪見。撥無因果。
狎近惡友。違背良師。
……

　

If we don't repent with diligence, then the karma from the offenses we committed will make us fall, and who knows when and where we will stop. All Buddhists should remember that when they first took refuge, they stated their full name and then repented by saying the following:

From time without beginning until the present life,
I have slandered the Triple Jewel, been an icchantika,
Slandered the Great Vehicle Sutras,
Cut off the study of Prajna,
Killed my father and mother,
shed the Buddha's blood,
Defiled the Sangharama,
Ruined the pure conduct of others,
Burned and wrecked stupas and temples,
Stolen the property of the Sangha,
Held deviant views, denied cause and effect,
Been intimate with evil friends,
Turned away from good teachers...

　 　

現在，為了重新喚回大家的記憶，我且把這段〈懺悔文〉，很簡單地向大家解釋一下：

　

Now, to refresh everyone's memory, I will very briefly explain this passage of repentance for everyone.

我們從無始劫以來，直至現在，所做的罪業，真是不可勝數。第一，是毀謗佛、法、僧三寶，其中又以毀謗「僧寶」的罪為最大，因為僧人是代表佛陀來傳揚佛法的，所以，謗僧的罪是「不通懺悔」的。什麼叫「闡提」？這是梵語，翻譯成中文是「信不具」或「無善根」；譬如你對這種人說法，他不歡喜聽，甚至於乾脆就說：「我不信！」你說，這是不是把自己的善根都給斷送了呢？

　

From eons without beginning, up to today, the karma from the offenses we have committed cannot be reckoned. First of all, we have slandered the Triple Jewel: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Among these, the offense of slandering the Sangha is the gravest, because the members of the Sangha represent the Buddha in propagating and transmitting the Buddhadharma. Therefore, one is not allowed to eradicate the offense of slandering the Sangha through repentance. What is an “icchantika”? It's a Sanskrit word which means “incomplete faith” and “lacking good roots.” If you try to speak the Dharma to these people, they don't want to listen. They may even tell you straight out,“I don't believe it.” Wouldn't you say they've cut off all their good roots?

　 　

「謗大乘經」，就是誹謗大乘經典；譬如有人說佛經的道理是假的，或者說大乘經是魔王所說的等等，這也是一種「不通懺悔」的罪行。至於「般若」也是梵語，翻譯成中文是「智慧」。般若，又分實相般若、觀照般若、文字般若三種，可是無論哪一種都好，若是斷學（不去學），就會愚癡。愚癡的果報，是會淪為畜生道。

　

“Slandered the Great Vehicle Sutras” means, for instance, saying that the principles in the Buddhist Sutras are false, that the Great Vehicle Sutras were spoken by demon kings, and so forth. This sort of offense cannot be pardoned through repentance.“Prajna” is also Sanskrit and means “wisdom.” There are three kinds of Prajna: Real Mark Prajna, Contemplative Prajna, and Literary Prajna. If you don't study any kind of Prajna, you will be stupid. The retribution of stupidity is that you will fall into the destiny of animals.

　 　

「弒害父母」，這一句包含了殺阿羅漢和殺聖人的罪；譬如，提婆達多殺四果阿羅漢，這就是其中的一個例子。

　

“Killed my father and mother” also includes the offenses of killing an Arhat and killing a sage. One example is Devadatta killing a Fourth Stage Arhat.

　 　

其次，「出佛身血」，也是一種「不通懺悔」的罪過，可是有許多人誤解了，以為這只是指佛在世時，用刀割截佛陀的身體，才算是犯了這條罪行。其實在佛滅度後，凡是有毀壞佛像者，都算在內；譬如故意去剝落佛像的金漆、損毀佛像等都是。雖然，這不是損害佛的肉體，可是，這個罪卻和用刀宰割佛的真身一樣。

　

Next, “shedding the Buddha's blood” is also an offense for which repentance is not accepted. Many people wrongly think this offense only means actually cutting the Buddha's body with a knife when the Buddha was in the world. In fact, after the Buddha entered Nirvana, damaging Buddha images in any way also counts as this kind of offense. This includes peeling the gold paint off the Buddha images, ruining Buddha images, and so forth. Although this does not harm the Buddha physically, it is equivalent to cutting the Buddha's body with a knife.

　 　

「污僧伽藍」，是指褻瀆了寺門梵寺；譬如，在寺廟上住的在家夫婦，若在廟內做出不正當的事，吃肉殺生等等。至於「破他梵行」，是引誘本來清淨不染的出家人破犯戒律，這也是「不通懺悔」的。

　

“Defiling the Sangharama” means profaning the pure temple. An example would be if married couples living on temple grounds engage in indecent activities, eat meat, kill living creatures, and so on.“Ruining the pure conduct of others” means inducing left-home people who were pure and undefiled to break the precepts. Repentance is not allowed for this either.

　 　

「焚毀塔寺」的意義很明顯，就是說焚燒及毀壞寺門佛剎；譬如，昔日馮玉祥火燒白馬寺和少林寺等。「盜用僧物」，就是用不正當的手段來奪取常住的財物，這種人心裏所存的，都是一些邪知邪見，自以為是，常常說著無因果的曲調，於是倒行逆施，無惡不作，無所不為，這樣又怎能不墮落呢？

　

“Burning and wrecking stupas and temples” means setting fire to and damaging Buddhist temples, just as Feng Yuxiang set fire to White Horse Monastery and Shaolin Monastery in the past.“Stealing the property of the Sangha” means using improper methods to seize the wealth and property of the permanent dwelling. The people who do that all hold deviant knowledge and views. They think they are right, and they insist that there is no cause and effect. Acting rebelliously, they stop at no evil. There's nothing they won't do. How can they not fall?

　 　

最後，要說到「狎近惡友，違背良師」了，「惡友」，在儒家稱為「損友」，好像時下的「阿飛」，以及黑社會的人物等，我們都不應該與之為伍，因為這都是惡友之類。有些人交上了這些損友，就漸入歧途，不聽師長的勸告，為非作歹，黑白不分，冠履倒置，你說多麼可憐！

　

Finally, we'll talk about “being intimate with evil friends, and turning away from good teachers.” In Confucianism, evil friends are called “harmful friends.” For example, we should not associate with tramps, gangsters, and so forth, because they are considered evil friends. Some people associate with such harmful friends and gradually stray onto the wrong road themselves. Refusing to listen to their teachers' exhortations, they will do all kinds of evil. They can't tell the difference between right and wrong, and they act in upside-down ways. Wouldn't you say they are pitiful?

　 　

以上所說的這種種罪愆，都是非常要不得，但卻很容易犯的，那麼，若是不幸地已經犯了又怎樣呢？也不要灰心，所謂「彌天大罪，一懺便消。」罪，本來是無形的，如果能真正生出懺悔心，也未嘗沒有商量之處。大家切不可自暴自棄，自甘墮落啊！

　

The various offenses mentioned above are all extremely serious, yet very easy to commit. If one has unfortunately committed them already, what should be done? Don't be disheartened, because “Offenses may fill the skies. Repent, and they disappear.” Offenses have no shape or form, and if one is truly repentant, it can certainly be worked out. No one should give up on himself and be resigned to falling!

　 　
     

一九五八年六月十四日下午開示

　

A talk given on the afternoon of June 14, 1958

　

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