宁为治时犬，不做乱世人。

“I'd rather be a dog in peaceful times than a man in times of chaos.”

这句话的意思是说，宁可在太平盛世做一只狗，也比在乱七八糟的时代做人好。太平时，没有战乱劫运，也没有小偷强盗，狗就不需要很注意地看门口，它能很清闲自在地守门口。

This saying implies that a dog living in an age of peace and prosperity is better off than a person who lives during chaotic times. When peace prevails, there are no wars and catastrophes, nor thieves or bandits, so a dog does not need to be very alert when guarding the door. It can watch the door in a relaxed way.

但是在乱世的人们，家家户户都安上铁闸，养条狼狗；有钱的人，就请个人为他看门口。虽然防守得如此严密，可是住在屋里边的人，还是战战兢兢，如临深渊，如履薄冰。在这种恐怖的世界，就是做人也没有什么大意思，所以古人说：“宁为治时犬，不做乱世人。”

During times of disorder, however, every household installs metal locks and has a fierce watchdog. Wealthy families hire security guards to watch their doors. Even with such tight security measures, the people inside the house are still nervous and afraid, as if they were walking along the edge of a cliff or across thin ice. In such a frightening world, being human isn't much fun, so the ancients said, “I'd rather be a dog in peaceful times than a man in times of chaos.”

还有，世间的人，多数是颠倒是非，以是为非，以非为是。本来孝顺是最应该、最正当的一条道路，可是他们不去做，反而有人打骂父母亲，或清算父亲、斗争母亲，却自认为很有本领，你看！这世界混乱到什么程度了！简直人味都没有了。再看一看，我们现在的总统（美国总统里根先生），前几年被人行刺，打了好几枪，旁边的人也受伤了，但是凶手居然在法庭被判无罪。杀总统也无罪，这样的判决是不是鼓励人不守规矩呢？是不是鼓励人目中没有法律呢？这我就不知道了。总而言之，这是一件很反常的事，就算不判死罪，就算这个人有精神病，也不应该把他放出来消遥法外；可是现在这个人竟然被无罪释放，岂不怪哉？

Moreover, the majority of the people in the world take what is right to be wrong, and what is wrong to be right. Filiality is the most proper conduct, yet people don't practice it. Instead, some people beat and scold their parents. They publically accuse their fathers and take their mothers to court. This makes them feel powerful. How confused and chaotic this world has become! It is almost inhuman.

Take another look! President Reagan was the victim of an assassination attempt several years ago, yet the court declared the person who shot him and hurt his companions not guilty of a criminal offense. Someone who tried to kill the president is judged not guilty; isn't that simply encouraging people to break the laws? Isn't that encourag¬ing people to ignore the laws and the principles of heaven? I don't know. This is paradoxical. Even if the court didn't want to give him the death sentence, and even if he was mentally imbalanced, he should not have been granted total freedom and immunity from the law. Yet the court released him as not guilty. How strange!

还有，最近在三藩市，有三十多万同性恋者示威游行，无论老壮少幼都这么乱七八糟地胡搞，这就是妖魔鬼怪出世捣乱，教人颠倒糊涂，以是为非，以非为是；拿黑作白，拿白当黑。这些人你看他们像人，其实都是妖魔鬼怪到这个世上，来扰乱世间正常的秩序。一般无知识的人还认为他们是合法，你说可怜不可怜？这是乱到极点了，这种时代真是可悲！若是无知的人，就毫无知觉；可是你若是有正义感的人，必定会痛哭流涕，绝食三日！

Recently more than 300,000 homosexuals held a demonstration in San Francisco. Both the old and the young joined the senseless uproar. These are demonic beings coming to cause disorder in the world, making people so muddled that they turn right and wrong around. They take black to be white, and white to be black. These people appear to be human, but in reality they are demonic beings who have come to the world to disrupt the normal order of things. Most people don't know any better and think they are legitimate. Isn't this pathetic? Anarchy has reached its extreme point, and this age is truly pitiful! Foolish people would not feel that way. However, a person with a sense of righteousness would cry bitterly over the situation and fast for three days!

一九八二年七月一日开示
于万佛圣城