我們很幸運的有這個機會來研究藥師經。經由藥師佛深切的悲心、德行、和願力，我們可從這個法門而得到加被。藉著念誦藥師佛名、藥師經，或供養藥師佛，我們也得以避免各種的困厄與災難。
當然，我們是在遇到真正的困難，非自己能解決時，才尋求佛的幫助；但是我們求佛幫助，絕不是只為了要試這個法門。若只試一試，那麼佛知道我們不具信心，而這也是侮辱了佛。記得我有一個朋友，他是很虔誠的基督徒。他告訴我，只要他有任何困難，他就求助於上帝。就算是在家裡做木工時掉了一個螺絲釘，他也會求上帝的幫助。
所有災難，如水災、颶風、和戰爭，都是由共業所造成的。但是其中每個人所受的痛苦，又因個人的別業而異。不論是天災或戰爭還是暴亂的發生，都是因為在過去，我們種下了共同的種子；也就是我們造了的惡業，因此就要受果報。所以當這些問題，不是我們個人能控制時，我們可以試著求助於藥師佛。
做一個佛教徒，在我們有危險和困厄時，有很多方便的法門可以幫助我們。例如我們有觀音菩薩、地藏菩薩、阿彌陀佛等等。但是有些佛教徒，就很滿意這些菩薩在周圍，等著幫助他們。他們呢，卻四處胡作非為，或是破了戒，或是去傷害其他人，造惡業。然後當要受惡業果報時，又去尋求佛菩薩的幫助。
人現有的生命是很短的。我們四處奔波，做些愚癡的事；到最後，要死的時候，才了解到，我們這一生沒做什麼正經的事。從生到死，我們一直在追求。然而，不管有沒有得到，這並不是要緊的；我們只是浪費了這一生的時光。財富、名譽、地位，我們都帶不走，只有業隨身。結果這一生，只剩一場夢。
我們耗盡一生，做了許多的事，也都只得到暫時的滿足。之後，又覺得沒意義、厭倦了。我們看事情、交換看法、暫時的迷戀和滿足。漸漸地，我們又厭倦了這些過去事。事情變得令人厭惡，自己又覺得後悔不安。
人們一生中，所汲汲追求的是什麼呢？沒有別的，就是慾望。有的人就追求領導慾，有的財慾，有的色慾。其他的人呢，追求名譽、認同、和利益等等。看似不同，但事實上，是一樣的。
許多人對停止向外馳求，感覺害怕；他們害怕反觀內在、面對自己。所以他們找各種的事情讓自己忙碌。人們認為一個好的人生，就是由很多的行為活動、刺激的事情、和物質所緊緊的圈著。但實際上，那卻是遠遠與道相背。
舉個例子：我曾經在人事部門工作，室裡另一位同事叫依芙，我們同為人事部的主管。因此我們必須比其他人更了解所有的職員。當週末近了，依芙會去問每一位職員，週末計劃要做什麼？這種閒談，從早早的禮拜三就開始，而實際上是暫用了公司的生產時間。然後在週末結束之後，依芙又再一次各處找員工談，聊他們週末都做些什麼？這又從禮拜一持續到禮拜二，再一次浪費時間於無意義的對話中。
這種交談，我也已經做的太多了。結論是，大部分的人，覺得他們的生活是空虛而無意義。因此他們找來很多的活動，「殺時間」。他們不敢靜靜的坐下來，因為空虛的內在，是令人恐懼，而不願意面對的。他們害怕自己，也害怕生命的事實。
依芙常常會談些她與家人做的事情，來證明他們活得很滿意。人們覺得擁有了物質就是活得好；找樂子和找刺激，訴求於大量活動等等。這樣做，只是餵飽了他們的六根門頭，而這會不停的繼續下去。當他們不滿足時，他們就用藥物來滿足幻想。在獲取的慾望越強烈時，滿足六根的貪欲也就會一天比一天熾盛。同時，對人、事、物的瞋恨和乏味，也分秒地隨之增加。
人生的意義，只在追求這些無意義的事情嗎？當然不是！我們在這個世界上唯一的目的，是從我們所在的夢中醒來。這是一場夢，因為過去的，我們已經忘了。我們今天所做的事，也將變成明日的一場夢；有時變得模糊，有時甚或遺忘。我們無法預測未來，也無法留住現在，我們甚至不能片刻擁有這一切。在這個世界上，沒有一樣東西永遠是我們的。
就連我們的身體也不屬於我們。假如身體真屬於你的，那你應該能控制它，並且能隨心所欲。隨著一天天老去，我們的眼睛壞了，耳朵聾了，牙也掉了。你或許可以帶上眼鏡、助聽器、或假牙；但是這些都是靠著外面的來源，外在的條件，沒有一樣是屬於我們的。
假如這個身體真正屬於我們的，那麼我們應該可以叫它不生病，或不頭痛。但是我們無法操縱我們的身體。這身體只是地水火風的四大假合，不是真的。所以盡其一生，去做瘋狂的事，四處找短暫的歡樂，這是不值得的。如果我們放下這一切的執著，從夢中醒來，自主我們的生活，那麼我們的生命才有意義。而此生最高的目的，就是從這個夢中覺醒，更不再作夢。
我們長遠的目標，應是精進修行，和不再造惡業；這樣，我們就不需要尋求外在的幫忙了。反觀自照，未來佛就在你內裡。 |
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We are very fortunate to have the opportunity to study the Medicine Master Buddha Sutra. Through the profound compassion, virtue, and vows of Medicine Master Buddha, we have received the great blessing of this Dharma door. By reciting Medicine Master Buddha's name, reading the Sutra, or making offerings to him, we are able to avoid various kinds of hardships and disasters.
Of course, we should only seek the Buddha's help in times of real difficulties, and not when we can solve the problems ourselves. But, we should definitely not call for help just to test the Dharma door. If we test, then the Buddha knows we lack faith and that would be insulting the Buddha. I remember a friend who is a devout Christian. He told me that he would call for God to help whenever he had difficulties. Even when he couldn't find a missing screw while doing some carpentry at home, he would call for God's help.
Calamities such as floods hurricanes, and wars are caused by our collective karma, but the degree to which individuals suffer from these events depends on their individual karma. Natural calamities, wars, and riots occur because, collectively, we have in the past sowed the seeds for them to happen. That is, we have created bad karma and then, consequently, receive the effects. When such problems are beyond our individual control, we could try to seek help from Medicine Master Buddha.
As Buddhists, we have quite a few Dharma doors (that is, expedient means) to help us in times of danger or hardships. For example, we also have Guanyin Bodhisattva, Earth Store Bodhisattva, Amitabha Buddha, and many others. But some Buddhists are content just having these Bodhisattvas around to help them. They just go around doing all kinds of crazy things, breaking precepts, harming others and creating bad karma, and then seeking help from Buddhas and Bodhisattvas when confronted with the effects of the bad karma they have created.
This present human life of ours is very short. We run off in all directions, doing stupid things. At the last moment, just when we are about to die, we might realize that we have done nothing to justify having lived this human life. From the time we are born to the time we die, we are always seeking. Whether or not we have obtained it, is of no significance - we have just wasted our time in this life. we cannot take wealth or fame, or achievements with us.
We spend our lives doing many things that give only temporary satisfaction, and which later become meaningless and boring . We look at things, we exchange views, we get momentarily infatuated with things and become contented. Gradually, we get tired of these passing events. Things turn sour and we get remorseful and restless.
In their lifetime, what are people chasing after? Nothing but desire. Some pursue the desire for leadership, some for wealth, some for sex, others pursue the desire for fame, recognition, and benefits, and so on. These pursuits appear different, but, in reality, they are the same things.
Many people are afraid to stop running. They are afraid to look inside and face themselves, so they create activities of all kinds to keep themselves busy. People think that a good life should be cramped with lots of action, thrills, and material things. But that is actually falling far away from the Path.
I'll use an example. I used to be a personnel officer and there was another personnel officer called Eve. Being personnel officers, we get to know more about the employees than most others. As the weekends approached, Eve would walk to every employee asking them what they planned to do on the weekends. This kind of casual conversation would start as early as Wednesday, and was actually stealing company's productive time. Then, after the weekend was over, Eve would again go around talking to the staff about what they did on the weekend, and this would carry on from Monday to Tuesday. Again wasting time on idle conversation.
I overheard lots of this kind of conversation and came to the conclusion that most people find their lives empty and meaningless, and so they create lots of activities just to "kill time". They dare not sit still because it is too scary to face the emptiness inside; they are afraid of themselves and of the reality of their life.
Eve very often would talk of things that she and her family did, just to justify to themselves that they lived satisfactorily. People acquire material things to feel they have lived well; look for fun and thrills; look for lots of action, and so on. In doing so, they are only feeding their six sense organs, and this goes on and on. When they cannot physically find satisfaction, they take drugs to imagine it. The grasping gets stronger. Greed for all these ways to satisfy the sense organs grows stronger day by day. At the same time, hatred and disenchantment with things, people, and events also grows every minute.
Is life meant only for pursuing these meaningless things? No! Our sole purpose on earth is to wake up from this dream we are in. This is a dream because we have forgotten about the past. The things we do today will become just a dream tomorrow - sometines a vague dream and sometimes even forgotten. We can't foresee the future. We can't make the present stay. We don't even have a grasp on any of these things. There is nothing in this world that is ultimately ours.
Even our body doesn't belong to us. If it really belonged to you then you would be able to control it, to make it the way you want. As we grow older each day, our eyes turn bad, our hearing turns bad, our teeth fall out. We may put on reading glasses, wear hearing aids, or use dentures,but then, that is depending on external resources,i.e. external conditions. None of these belong to us.
If this body really belonged to us, then we should be able to tell it not to get sick or the head not to ache. But we have no control over this body of ours. The body is just made up of the four elements; earth, water, heat, and air. The body is not real. So, It is not worth our entire life doing crazy things, running in all directions for those temporary pleasures. If we drop all those attachments, wake up from the dream, and take control of our life, then we will have put some meaning into our life. The highest purpose of this life is to wake up from this dream, and stop all future dreams.
Our long-term purpose should be to earnestly cultivate, and stop creating bad karma so that we don't need to seek external help. Look within, the potential Buddha is within you. |
