我們佛教徒在沒有成佛之前，應當惜福求慧。惜福能增長福報，求慧能增長智慧。你們看世上的人，有種種不同的環境，有的人有很大的福報，不需要做什麼，便能萬事如意，種種現成，生活富裕，無憂無慮，快樂無窮，這是因為他在往昔修福修得多的緣故，所以得到這種大福報。

Before we Buddhists become Buddhas, we must cherish our blessings and seek wisdom. Fostering blessings increases blessings; seeking wisdom increases wisdom. Look at all the people of the world: they live in different environments. Some, who have great blessings, don’t need to work hard to have everything they wish readily available, to have an affluent, carefree life of boundless happiness. That’s because in the past they cultivated lots of blessings, so now they have this kind of prosperous reward.

有的人記憶力特別強，過目不忘，又聰明又健康，又辯才無礙；說法時，有天花亂墜，地湧金蓮的境界，為什麼他會這樣子？因為他在往昔修慧修得多的緣故。怎麼樣修慧？從什麼地方修慧？先從大乘經典開始，讀誦大乘經典，把三藏研究得非常透徹，到圓滿的程度，口能背誦，心能思惟，朝於斯，夕於斯，把三藏讀透了，就開大智慧，來生一定又聰明，又有辯才。

Some people have extraordinarily keen memories. They can retain anything they have glanced at. They are smart, healthy, and eloquent without any impediments in their speech. When they speak Dharma, a golden lotus sprouts from the ground and flowers fall in luxuriant profusion from the sky. Why is this? Because they cultivated lots of wisdom in the past. Well, how do we cultivate wisdom? Where do we start? You begin with the Sutras of the Great Vehicle. Recite the Great Vehicle Sutras, learn the Tripitaka until you master it perfectly, so that you can recite it with your mouth and contemplate it with you mind. By being mindful day and night, thoroughly penetrating the Tripitaka, you will develop great wisdom. Then you’ll definitely be smart and eloquent in future lives.

我們既然知道惜福求慧的法門，就應該愛物、不糟蹋物質、修橋鋪路、造塔建廟、捨衣施食、救濟貧人，這都是種福田。講經說法、印經流通、翻譯經典、繪畫佛像，這都是修慧的法門。假使你不想有福報，不想有智慧，那就無話可說；若想有福報、有智慧，那麼就趕快修福求慧，不可把福隨便浪費，不可把慧隨便放棄，惜福求慧是佛教徒必行的一件大事。

Since we know this Dharma-door of fostering blessings and seeking wisdom, we should conserve things and not waste anything. Repairing bridges, paving roads, building stupas and temples, giving clothes and food to the poor－these are all acts of planting fields of blessings. Speaking Dharma, printing and circulating Sutras, translating Sutras, making Buddha images－these are ways of cultivating wisdom. If you don’t want blessings or wisdom, there’s nothing I can say. But if you do want blessings and wisdom, then quickly cultivate blessings and seek wisdom. Don’t waste blessings and neglect wisdom in a careless manner. For Buddhists, fostering blessings and seeking wisdom is a most important task.