前期提示：……壽千萬歲。休止深山或大海島。絕於人境……
那麼鳥毛都沉底，其他的船或任何東西都不能在那個地方走的，唯有飛仙可渡。這個飛仙從空中飛過去，這可以的。那麼這一些個修仙的人就飛到這個大海島上，在這個永遠都沒有人可以到的這地方住著，絕於人境。
斯亦輪迴，妄想流轉。不修三昧。報盡還來。散入諸趣。
「斯亦輪迴」：可是他雖然活一千歲、一萬歲，但是仍然在這個輪迴之中，還沒有能了生死。他為什麼還在這個輪迴裏頭？就因為他還有所執著。所執著什麼呢？他還想要長生不老，想要活幾千萬歲這樣子。這也是執著，所以就「妄想流轉，不修三昧」：他不修正定，眞正的定力。「報盡還來」：就是他生命完了之後，還來「散入諸趣」。等他壽命盡了還是要散入諸趣。諸趣就是在六道輪迴裏頭，或者作人也不一定，作阿修羅也不一定，作鬼也不一定，到天上也不一定。或者到地獄、轉餓鬼、做畜生，這都不一定的，所以才說散入諸趣。
阿難。諸世間人。不求常住。未能捨諸妻妾恩愛。
「阿難，諸世間人」：所有這一切的世間人。「不求常住」：他不求常住在世上。「未能捨諸妻妾恩愛」：他沒能捨棄他的妻和妾這種恩愛。
於邪淫中。心不流逸。澄瑩生明。命終之後。鄰於日月。如是一類。名四天王天。
「於邪淫中，心不流逸」：怎麼叫邪淫呢？對於不是自己的妻妾，不是自己的太太，有男女的性行為，這就叫淫。要是如果和自己的太太，這不算邪淫，這也不算淫，但是都要少一點比較好，不要太多了。於邪淫中，心不流逸，心不向邪淫這條路上跑的。所以修道，無論你有多大的功德，你必須要把這個邪淫的心斷了；如果你不斷邪淫的心，這修什麼道都不會成功的，不會有所成就的。心不流逸，對於邪淫，心不向這個地方跑。
「澄瑩生明」：心不向邪淫的這一條道路上去跑，所以就清淨了，就生出一種光輝。瑩就是瑩潔，瑩潔而有光輝，有一種光明。人如果在生的時候不和其他的人行淫欲，自己自然就有一種德光。所以說：「萬惡淫為首，死路不可走。」前幾天我不講？你不行邪淫，你自己這個精、氣、神就充足；充足了你就有一種德的光，一種光輝。在生的時候有一種光輝，「命終之後」：等你命終之後。「鄰於日月」：你就和日、月做鄰居。「如是一類」：因為不單是一個人，也說不上有多少人。這個世界不知有多少這種人，所以叫如是一類。
「名四天王天」：這種人就生到四天王天上去。這四天王天在什麼地方呢？就在須彌山的半山，是半山區。有東天王、南天王、北天王、西天王，這四大天王。這四大天王天是最接近我們這個世界的天。這四大天王天的天人，壽命是五百歲。以人間五十年作為四天王天的一晝夜，那麼合起來這是很多的數目了。所以雖然他那兒五百歲，合我們人間的那個年，就很多了。合多少呢？合九百萬年。那麼四天王是和我們這個世界的人最接近的。這種人就生到四天王天上去。
於己妻房。淫愛微薄。於淨居時。不得全味。命終之後。超日月明。居人間頂。如是一類。名忉利天
「於己妻房」：前邊那是四王天的天人，生在四王天的天人不去到外邊去行邪淫，於自己的夫婦間這種情欲還沒有斷，所以他守身如玉。所謂一生不二色，男人就沒有接近過兩個女人，只有一個；女人只接近自己的丈夫，一個男人，沒有第二者，沒有另外再找一個情人。這樣的人他守身如玉，所以生到四王天去。現在這種人於己妻房，於自己的妻房；丈夫對於太太，或者太太對於丈夫，這叫在自己的家庭裏頭。「淫愛微薄」：行這種淫欲的事情，男女做愛這種事情，微薄，很少很少的，甚至於一年也沒有一次，或者甚至於兩三年只有一次，甚至於很久也沒有，所以叫微薄。看男女這種的情欲非常地輕，這種東西看得不重要。
我們人為什麼淫欲心那麼重？情愛心那麼重？就因為業障重；你要是業障輕就不會有這種心了。業障重，它贅著你，就叫你一天到晚都想這個事情，沒有停止的時候，這個業障就重。在這個業障重的時候，你就應該生出一種覺悟心：業障這麼重，就應該要減低這業障。如果你就跟著你業障跑，越造越深，越墮落越深，將來一定跑到變牛、變馬、變豬、變狗去，也不停止。
為什麼呢？你情欲心太重了，一定會墮落的。墮落到什麼畜生裏邊去，這沒有一定的。所以這很危險的。我們無論任何人，如果情欲心重，趕快要把它放下來，不要情欲心那麼重。情欲心重的人，將來一定做畜生。這一點疑問都沒有。「於淨居時」：在淨居的時候。「不得全味」：他沒有得到眞正清淨的這種的滋味，沒有得到眞正清淨裏邊的這個好處。因為什麼？因為他也不會修行。「命終之後」：他這一等人，等命終的時候。「超日月明」：因為他情欲心薄，沒有淫欲心，就有光明。無論哪一個人，沒有淫欲心就有光了，等死了之後就會生到這個天上去。
「居人間頂」：我們頭頂這個天就叫忉利天。「如是一類名忉利天」：像這一種的，名忉利天。忉利天是梵語，翻到中文叫三十三天。這個忉利天的天主就在我們這個頭頂上。怎麼叫三十三天呢？因為東有八天，南有八天，北有八天，西有八天。這四八三十二天，那麼這個忉利天，在四八三十二天的中間，所以它叫三十三天。
他怎麼樣做這三十三天的天主呢？這最初，這三十三天的天主，她是一個窮人，是一個窮女人，很窮很窮的，她看見有一個塔，有一個塔，這個塔毀壞了。「啊！」她說：「這個佛塔毀壞了，我發心把它重修起來。」於是乎她就連各處去乞討，連做工，做了很多年工，賺了很多錢，於是乎她又有三十二個朋友，她們大家就一起商量，開一個會，說是我們大家一人出一點錢，把這個塔造起來它，於是乎這集三十二個人的力量，來把這個塔造成功了。造成功了，於是乎她們死的時候，只有那三十二個人做這三十二個天的天主，這個為首的人，她就做這個三十三天的天主了。所以這是她的來歷。
這忉利天的天人活多少歲數呢？他的壽命活一千歲，以人間一百年作為忉利天的一晝夜。那麼以後每一層天都是加一倍，壽命加一倍。並且他本來這個壽命和身量都有一定的，不過大繁雜了，我們現在就知道這兩個天的壽命。以後若想詳細知道，要自己用功去研究。
待續
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From the last issue: They obtain some special principle of life and can live for thousands or tens of thousands of years. They retire deep into the mountains or onto islands in the sea, cutting themselves off from the human realm....
If even a bird's feather will sink to the bottom, then how much the more would a boat or anything else at all. Nothing can float on the surface of that soft water. Only the flying immortals can cross it, be- cause they fly over. These people who are seeking to be immortals fly across these waters to isolated islands in the sea where no human beings can go. They chose to live on islands where people can never reach.
Sutra:
However, they are still part of the turning wheel, because they flow and turn according to their false thinking and do not cultivate samadhi. When their reward is finished, they must still return and enter the various destinies.
Commentary:
However, they are still part of the turning wheel. Although they may live to be tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of years old, they continue to remain within the cycle of rebirth. They still cannot end birth and death; they are still subject to transmigration. Why is that? It is because they still have an attachment. What attachment? They want to be immortal; they want to live for millions of years. Due to that attachment, they flow and turn according to their false thinking and do not cultivate samadhi. They do not cultivate proper concentration. When their reward is finished, they must still return. When their lives finally end they will return and enter the various destinies. At the end of their lives, they will still have to go into the six paths of rebirth, perhaps to become human beings, perhaps to become asuras, perhaps to become ghosts, perhaps to become gods, or to go into the hells, turn into hungry ghosts, or become animals. They will enter the various destinies.
Sutra:
"Ananda, there are many people in the world who do not seek what is eternal and who cannot yet renounce the love that exists between themselves and their spouses.
Commentary:
"Ananda, there are many people in the world who do not seek what is eternal. They do not want to remain forever in this world, but they
cannot yet renounce the love that exists between themselves and their spouses. They cannot give up the emotional involvement they have with their spouses.
Sutra:
Since they have no interest in deviant sexual activity, they develop a clarity resulting from the purity of their stable relationship. When their lives end, they draw near the sun and moon and are among those born in the Heaven of the Four Kings.
Commentary:
Since they have no interest in deviant sexual activity. Since they have no interest in deviant sexual activity. Having hetrosexual activity with someone other than one's spouse is defined as deviant sexual activity. Maintaining an intimate relationship with one's own spouse is not classed as deviant sexual activity, however, the fewer the interactions the better. It should not be excessive. Deviant sexual activity, then, includes any extramarital relationship. They have no interest in that. In cultivating the Way, regardless of how much merit you amass, you must also cut off any tendencies toward deviant sexual activity. If you don't cut off thoughts and activities related to deviant sex, then you will not succeed in your cultivation of the Way.
They develop a clarity resulting from the purity of their stable relationship. They prevent themselves from entertaining thoughts of deviant sexual activity and so they are relatively pure. That purity gives them clarity; light clusters about them.
When their lives end and they have not been involved in promiscuous sexual relationships, they will naturally have an element of clarity and light about them indicative of their virtue. It is said:
Lust is foremost of all evils;
It is the road to death, so don't go down it!
I spoke about this recently. If you do not engage in deviant sexual activity, then your reproductive energy, your breath (qi), and your spirit will wax full, imbuing you with a clarity and light based upon virtue. That being the case while such people are alive, then after they die,
they draw near the sun and moon. Such people will be reborn in the vicinity of the sun and moon. They
are among those born in the Heaven of the Four Kings. This is not referring to just one person; one knows not how many beings fit this category. These people will be born in the Heaven of the Four Kings.
The Heaven of the Four Kings is located halfway up Mount Sumeru. This heaven is the one closest to our world. The average life span of the gods in the Heaven of the Four Kings is five hundred years. However, fifty years in our human realm is equivalent to one day and one night in that heaven. Based on that equivalent, their life spans are quite long—nine million years if calculated according to our time. The gods residing in the Heaven of the Four Kings are the closest deities to our human realm. People who behave as described above can be born in the Heaven of the Four Kings.
Sutra:
Those whose sexual love for their wives is slight, but who do not yet abide in total purity, transcend the light of sun and moon at the end of their lives, and reside at the summit of the human realm. Such people are born in the Trayastrimsha Heaven.
Commentary:
Those whose sexual love for their spouses is slight. The passage above described the behavior that leads to rebirth as a god in the Heaven of the Four Kings. Those people refrain from any involvement in deviant sexual activity but have not yet severed the emotional relationship with their spouses. They remain sexually faithful to one person throughout their lives. Such men have never been involved with more than one woman; such women have only had a relationship with their own husband. They have never had other lovers. They keep themselves as pure as jade and so they are reborn in the Heaven of the Four Kings.
Now these are people whose sexual expressions of love for their spouses is slight. This discusses the relationship between the marriage partners, the husband's relationship to the wife or the wife's relationship to the husband. The sexual expressions of love are slight. They are so rare that there might not even be one sexual encounter in a year or more. They place very little emphasis on sexual expressions of love; they do not see that as important.
Why are some people burdened with heavy sexual desire? It is because they have heavy karmic obstacles. If karmic obstacles are light, one will not entertain such thoughts. But heavy karmic obstacles pursue some people, causing them to always be indulging in ceaseless sexual activity. When karmic obstacles are heavy, you should wake up and realize that you must do something to lessen your karmic obstacles. If you merely follow your karmic obstacles, you will sink deeper and and lower in the six evil paths to the point that you are bound to become a cow, a horse, a dog or the like. Even then it won't stop because you have too much emotional desire. You will fall into the animal realm. It is very dangerous. Anyone with heavy emotional desire should quickly get rid of it. Don't be so emotional, because emotional people will be reborn as animals. There is no question about it.
Their sexual expressions of love are slight,
but they do not yet abide in total purity. They still have not experienced what true purity is like. They do not yet completely realize the advantages of being pure. That is because they are not yet able to cultivate. These people will
transcend the light of sun and moon at the end of their lives. Because their sexual desire is slight, the light of their own nature shines forth. Anyone who does not harbor thoughts of sexual desire will shine with light. And after you die you will be born in the heavens. They
reside at the summit of the human realm. Such people are born in the Trayastrimsha Heaven.
Trayastrimsha is a Sanskrit word that translates as "Thirty-three." The Lord of the Trayastrimsha Heaven resides above our human realm. It is called Thirty-three because there are actually eight heavens in the east, eight in the south, eight in the west, and eight in the north, making thirty-two. The Trayastrimsha Heaven is located in the center of these and is called the thirty-third heaven.
How did the Lord of the Trayastrimsha Heaven earn that position? Originally the Lord of that heaven was a poverty-stricken woman. One time she saw a stupa in disrepair and said, "I vow to renovate this Buddhist stupa." Gradually over the years that followed, she accumulated a lot of money, both through asking for donations and through working. Eventually she gathered thirty-two friends and then held a meeting about how to proceed with renovation of the stupa. Based on the combined strength of those thirty-two people, she fulfilled her resolve to renovate the stupa. After their deaths, the thirty-two friends became lords of the thirty-two surrounding heavens and the woman became Lord of the thirty-third heaven.
Gods in the Trayastrimsha Heaven have an
average life span of a thousand years. But a hundred years
in the human realm is equivalent to one day and night in
that heaven. Each heaven in sequence doubles in length of
life span. The exact life spans and the physical heights of
the gods can be determined by calculation, but it's rather
tedious. So I've mentioned it for these first two heavens,
but if you want to know more details, you can look into it
yourself.
To be continued |
