所謂「受苦是了苦，享福是消福。」我們修道人為什麼要修苦行？一天只吃一餐，就為要了苦的緣故。苦了了，便是樂。

A saying goes: "Enduring suffering puts an end to suffering; enjoying blessings exhausts blessings." Why do cultivators of the Way want to cultivate? We eat only one meal each day because we want to end suffering. Happiness remains once suffering is gone.

福，有應享的福和不應享的福。應享的福，是自己工作所得來的代價，能夠住好房子，穿好衣服，吃好東西，坐好汽車，可以享受一番。可是，要知道享完之後，就消福了，而在福報的銀行就沒有存款了。

Blessings come in two varieties: those we should enjoy, and those we shouldn't enjoy. Blessings we should enjoy are those which come as rewards for work we ourselves have done. Such things as living in a nice house, wearing nice clothes, eating good food, and riding in nice cars are blessings we can enjoy. We should recognize, however, that once these blessings have been enjoyed to their fullest, they will be gone, and our bank account of blessings will be all out of capital.

不應享的福，就是在本分之外求享受，由僥倖得來的福。好像強盜，搶人家的錢，自己享受，這是不講道理的享受，必定會受到法律的制裁。在福報銀行的戶頭就透支了。

Blessings we should not enjoy includes things gained by seeking beyond one's rightful share: blessings that come through scheming and trickery, such as money stolen from others. If we enjoy such blessings, then it's unrighteous pleasure, and the law will punish us. We will have overdrawn our bank account of blessings.

應享的福，享完之後，福就消了，何況不應享的福，硬要勉強享受，這不但消福，而且還要虧本。因為這種關係，所以福不可享盡，享盡就沒有福了；苦可受盡，受盡則沒有苦。我們做人要明白這種道理。在困難的環境中，歡喜接受逆境，這樣便無怨恨，也沒有不滿現實的心在作祟。

Once we enjoy all the blessings that are rightfully ours, our blessings will be used up. How much more is it so with blessings that are not rightfully ours? Should we demand to enjoy those as well? Not only will we burn up our blessings that way, we'll even go bankrupt. For that reason, we should not enjoy our blessings to their end, or else, we will have no blessings left. On the other hand, we can endure suffering to its end, for then there will be no more suffering. We should understand this principle, so that when we find ourselves in distressing circumstances, we happily accept the discomfort. In this way, we avoid all resentment and we don't become dissatisfied or discontent.

研究佛法的人，其思想和行為，與世俗人正好相反。世俗人是順著生死去造業，修道人是逆著生死來消業。無論在什麼境界上，處之泰然，心安理得，便不覺得苦。所謂「吃得苦中苦，方為人上人」，這是至理名言。

The thinking and behavior of people who study Buddhism is exactly the opposite of worldly people. Ordinary worldly people flow with birth and death as they create more karma. Cultivators of the Way oppose the flow of birth and death as they wipe out their karma. No matter what situations arise, they calmly endure them, resting securely in their knowledge of the principles; thus suffering does not seem painful to them. A saying goes, "Only one who has tasted bitterness to the ultimate degree can become an extraordinary person." How true it is!

現在講一個受苦的公案，做為參考。明朝最後一位皇帝，名叫崇禎。他雖有皇帝的智慧，可是沒有皇帝的福報。為什麼？因為他的苦沒有受盡。他前生是個沙彌，因為未到受具足戒的時候，就死了，所以還是個小沙彌。他做沙彌的時候，凡是搬柴運水的苦工，都由他來做，任勞任怨，天天做苦工，來護持道場。

I'll now tell you a story of one who endured suffering. The last Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was known as Congzhen ("Noble Portent"). Although he possessed the wisdom of an emperor, he lacked the blessings that an emperor needs. Why was this? Because his suffering had not come to an end. In an former life, he had been a novice monk, but he died before receiving complete ordination as a Bhikshu. Thus he remained a Shramanera (novice). As a novice monk, he had to perform all the menial jobs, such as gathering wood and toting water. He simply endured the toil and swallowed his resentment. Every day he engaged in these strenuous chores in service to the monastery.

有一天，他到房頂修理屋瓦，不慎失足，墜地而死。師兄弟就去報告方丈和尚。老和尚知道前因後果，想成就小沙彌，替他了苦，於是乎，對大家宣布：「這個小沙彌做事不小心跌死，對道場有很大的損失。因為他犯了侵損常住的過錯，要懲罰他。你們用馬把他的屍體拖散為止，免得買棺材埋葬。」大家一聽方丈的話，不以為然，師兄弟們發惻隱之心，不聽方丈的命令，因為不忍心這樣去做。他們於是共議：「我們是師兄弟，同修一場，應該把他安葬，不可以用馬拖屍。」大家就出錢買棺材，把他安葬在荒山中。

One day, he climbed onto the roof of a building to patch tiles, carelessly slipped off, and fell to his death. His Dharma-brothers reported the mishap to the Abbot. Knowing the prior causes and later consequences involved, the Abbot wished to bring the novice to accomplishment and end his suffering. Thereupon, he announced publicly, "This novice was not cautious while working, and he fell to his death. He caused this Way-place a major loss. For this offense of incurring loss to the monastery, he deserves serious punishment. Tie his dead body behind a team of horses and drag him around until he is pulled to pieces! This way we can avoid the cost of buying him a coffin." When the monks heard the Abbot's pronouncement, they simply couldn't carry it out. They pitited their Dharma-brother and decided to disobey the Abbot's order, because they couldn't bear to treat the dead one in such a harsh manner. They talked it over: "We are all brothers, fellow cultivators in the monastery, and by rights we should bury him; don't let horses drag his corpse to bits." Then they chipped in contributions to buy the novice a coffin, and buried him out on the mountainside.

這個小沙彌因為替廟做苦工，積有功德，來生為人，做了皇帝，身為崇禎。可是只做了十六年的窮皇帝，他在位的時候，天下大亂，內有李自成造反，外有清兵侵境，從來沒有過一天好日子，都是在憂患煎迫中度日。這就是被好心的師兄弟害了，使他的苦未能了盡。如果他們當時聽方丈的話，用馬來拖屍，苦便了了，不會害得崇禎在煤山自縊，而為國殉難。

Since the young novice had amassed great merit and virtue by doing menial labor for the monastery, he was able to be reborn as a human, as the Emperor Congzhen, in fact. But his reign lasted only sixteen years and was characterized by disaster. While he ruled, China experienced great chaos; Li Zicheng staged his revolt, and the Qing Dynasty armies invaded from abroad. Not knowing a single day of peace, he passed sixteen years in continuous worry and torment. This was because his well-meaning fellow monks had actually harmed him by not allowing him to endure his suffering to the end. Had they followed the Abbot's instructions and dragged his corpse behind horses, his suffering would have been finished then and there, and Emperor Congzhen would not have been forced to commit suicide on Mei Mountain as a national martyr.