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小沙彌果展師：
今晚我想和大家共同研究一些我在誦經時產生的問題，還有我解答這個問題的進展。
最近幾天我們都念《十迴向品》。今天剛念完，很長有十一卷，主要是講發願跟迴向功德。發願跟迴向在《賢首品》、《地藏經較量布施功德緣品》裡面都講到。從這些經典裡我們知道，當我們做一件善事的時候，發願迴向給眾生跟沒發願是不同的。
譬如說我們供花給佛的時候，如果說我們不發願不迴向，將來得到的果報可能是下一生我們有莊嚴的身相，或者是有什麼殊勝的財產。如果說我們供花時像《賢首品》裡面菩薩他們那樣迴向，供養諸佛，利益一切的眾生的話；雖然是簡單的供花，將來的果報是很不可思議的。你布施給一個平凡的眾生，如果你只是把善行迴向給你自己，或者不發願，也許你將來會得到福報成一個國王等等，可是如果你能迴向阿耨多羅三藐三菩提，究竟利益一切眾生的話，光是種這個善因，就可以畢竟成佛。
你知道我們做很多事情，小的事情，我們都可以發願，發很多不可思議的願。可是這個發願的法門，如果沒有經典來指導我們的話，我們不知道到底該怎麼發願。這像一種藝術一樣。所以你想，到底那些菩薩在《十迴向品》、《賢首品》裡發那麼多願，是不是在當了菩薩以後會有一個特別課程，發願基礎班什麼的，教你發願，你才會發願。要不然的話，我們可以做很多事情都不知道如何發願。
我的問題就是這個發願的法門，我們怎麼知道該怎麼發？我們發什麼願才會有成就？如果隨便發願，會有成就嗎？像《梁皇寶懺》裡的閻羅王，他以前當王的時候，他就發願說將來他要掌管地獄，以後就分配到那裡。他將來怎樣我們不知道，但目前好像滿願成就了。所以我們發誓要當什麼，是不是就變成那樣子呢？
第二個問題，《地藏經》裡講迴向功德給某個眾生，那個亡者只能七分裡面獲得一分。那發願迴向功德給一切眾生的時候，是不是每一個眾生也是得到七分中的一分？菩薩那麼慈悲，早就做了不知多少功德迴向給一切眾生，那一切眾生早就應該有很多功德，所以我不知道到底那個迴向的人，他可以得到多少功德？
最後一個聯想到就是「一切唯心造」。一切唯心造，是我們想什麼就是什麼嗎？就是我們想要變成怎樣怎樣，我們的心真的就會把它變出來嗎？我們曾經在課堂上討論過，一切唯心造主要是講因果的道理，所有事情變化出來的這些業果，都是有那個因；這個因是從你意業生出來，或者從你口業跟身業再放出來，所以才說從意業先生出來；因此說一切唯心造，是心先生出來，作了業以後召感而來。譬如說你想變成超人，你並不會就真變成超人，你只是這樣想，你這樣造因，只是一個散亂的妄想的因，並不會得到什麼，只是把自己變得更散亂而已。如果你真要變成超人的話，你可能要好好修行，得到智慧神通，才是真正的超人。所以如果說你沒有正確的困的話，就不會有果出現，這一切唯心造意思是那個樣子。
小沙彌果定師：
諸佛菩薩、師父上人、各位善知識，阿彌陀佛：
今天要跟大家講一講，我在背《十行品》時候的一些小妄想。我剛開始背時，看到裡面講菩薩當眾生來要他們身上的肉吃時，他們來者不拒，還多多益善的，給我那樣的印象。那時候我就想，哇！看！這個世界上沒有人能做得到！可是後來想，對啊！是有類似那樣子的事。
現在我講兩個故事。以前在戰國時代，秦始皇要攻打燕國，燕國因為打不過，就要去和秦國談和。秦國就要燕國幾個城池，到底要幾個我不記得了，還要燕國一個大將軍的頭。後來燕國太子丹就請荊軻，說你可不可以幫我們去刺殺秦王？因為這事情不太可能，但荊軻那時候就說好，他就去跟那個將軍談，說秦王要你的頭，那個將軍就說為了全中國平安，為了人民不受害，他就拔劍把自己頭砍掉了。所以荊軻就把他的頭帶去見秦王，可是沒有刺殺成功。從這個故事可以看到那個將軍他能夠布施他的頭。
另外一個故事是以前我看書看來的，就說有一次阿育王兒子的眼睛被外道挖掉了。阿育王很生氣，就下命令，說有人能殺一個外道把頭帶到王宮來，就賞十兩銀子，所以每個人都爭先恐後的去殺外道。當時有一個很窮的農夫，他聽到這個消息就回家去準備刀子要去殺外道。那時候阿育王的弟弟是一個比丘，剛好到那家去托缽乞飯，那個農夫看到以為他是外道，就跟他太太說，你知道嗎？他們說割一個外道的頭可以去領十兩銀子呢！我要把這外道殺掉。他太太說他不是外道，他是比丘，是佛教徒，你不能殺他。可是農夫說沒什麼啦，跟那些王宮的侍衛說他是一個外道就行了，可是他太太說不行。那時候阿育王的弟弟聽到了，就說如果我的頭能讓你得到十兩銀子，讓你開心的話，你就把它拿去吧！所以農夫就把他的頭砍掉了，拿去王宮領錢。這也是他為了眾生歡喜，而布施他的頭。
（全文完）
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Young Shramanera (Novice) Guo Zhan Shr: Tonight I'd like to share some of the questions that came to me as I was reciting the
Avatamsaka Sutra, and my progress in finding answers. In the past few days we have been reciting the Ten Transferences Chapter and we finished today. It is eleven rolls long and primarily discusses how to make vows and transfer the merit. Making vows and transferring merit are also discussed in the Worthy Leader Chapter and the Chapter on the Comparative Merits of Giving in the
Earth Store Sutra. From these Sutras, we can know that when we do a good deed, it makes a difference whether or not we make vows dedicating the merit to living beings. For example, if we offer flowers to the Buddha without dedicating the merit, we may be rewarded with attractive looks or abundant wealth in the next life. If, however, we emulate the Bodhisattva described in the Worthy Leader Chapter, offering the flowers to all Buddhas and dedicating the merit to the benefit of all beings, the future reward of our simple offering will be incredible. If you practice charity towards an ordinary living being and dedicate the merit to yourself alone or to no one, you may gain a position such as that of a king in the future. But if you dedicate the merit to anuttara-samyak-sambodhi (perfect enlightenment) and to the ultimate benefit of all beings, you will have planted a wholesome cause that will eventually enable you to become a Buddha. Even when we do trivial things, we can make some inconceivable vows. Without the help of the Sutras, however, we would not know how to do this. Making vows is an art. You wonder whether those Bodhisattvas in the Ten Transferences Chapter and the Worthy Leader Chapter, who make numerous vows, took a special course called "An Introduction to the Making of Vows" to learn how to make vows. Without such a course to teach us, we wouldn't know how to make vows for all the things we do. My question is: How do we know how to make vows? What kinds of vows will come to fruition? If we make any vows we want, will we be able to achieve our goal? For example, the Jeweled Repentance of the Emperor of Liang says that King Yama, in a former reincarnation as a king, vowed to rule over the hells in the future and that's where he was assigned. I don't know what will happen in the future, but it seems that his vow has come true so far. Does that mean that if we make a vow to be such and such, that's what will happen? My second question concerns the statement in the Earth Store Sutra that the deceased only receive one seventh of merit dedicated to them. Does that mean that when we dedicate merit to all living beings, each of those beings attains one seventh of the merit? Bodhisattvas, in their compassion, have been dedicating one knows not how much merit to living beings for a long time, so those beings ought to have a lot of merit. I wonder how much merit the dedicator receives. A final related point concerns that idea that 'Everything is created by the mind." Does that mean that whatever we think about and wish for turns into reality, provided we are sincere? We discussed this in class before. The statement "everything is created by the mind" refers to the law of cause and effect. All events are karmic retributions that have causes. These causes are initiated by our mental karma, and later by our verbal and physical karma. That's why we say everything is made from the mind. The karmic cause begins in the mind, and after karma is created, the retribution follows. If, for example, you want to become a Superman, you won't turn into one simply by thinking about. The cause you have created is merely a random, false thought that only makes you more scattered and results in nothing. If you really want to become a Superman, you must cultivate well until you attain wisdom and supernatural powers. If you don't create a proper cause, there will be no result. That's how we should interpret the statement that "everything is created by the mind."
Young Shramanera Guo Ding Shr: All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Venerable Master, and good advisors: Amitabha! Today I'd like to talk about some insignificant thoughts I had while memorizing the Ten Practices Chapter. At the beginning, I read to the part of the chapter describing how the Bodhisattva eagerly gives away his flesh to beings who beg for it to eat. My impression was that his attitude was, "The more I give, the better." I thought, "Boy, I don't know of anyone in the world who can do that!" But then I reconsidered that such things do happen. I'd like to now tell two stories. During the Warring States Period [in China], the Lord of Qin was about to attack the state of Yan. Yan knew that it would lose, so it went to negotiate with Qin. Qin asked for several cities as well as the head of one of the great generals of Yan. Prince Dan of Yan summoned an assassin and asked, "Can you assassinate the Lord of Qin?" It was pretty improbable, but the assassin said yes. The prince then informed the general that the Lord of
Qin wanted his head. The general said that he would cut off his head for the sake of peace in China and for the well-being of the people. The assassin took the head to the Lord of Qin, but failed to assassinate him. The general in this story was able to give away his head. There is another story that I read in a book. The story goes as follows: King Asoka's son had his eyes dug out by externalists (followers of a non-Buddhist sect). King Asoka, in his fury, issued a decree that anyone who killed an externalist and brought his head to the palace would be rewarded with ten ounces of silver. Thereupon people raced out to slay externalists. One poverty-stricken farmer heard the news and went home to get a knife. King Asoka's little brother, who was a Buddhist monk, happened to pass by the farmer's home on his almsround.
Taking the monk to be an externalist, the farmer exclaimed
to his wife, "They say that if you behead an externalist,
they'll pay you ten ounces of silver. I'm going to slay
him!" His wife said, "He's not an externalist; he's a
Buddhist monk. You must not kill him." "It doesn't
matter," said the farmer. "I can simply tell the palace
guards that he's an externalist." But the wife disagreed.
Overhearing their conversation, King Asoka's brother said,
"If my head can bring you ten ounces of silver and make you
happy, you are welcome to take it!" The farmer thereupon cut
off the monk's head and took it to the palace to exchange
for money. That's another example of how someone gave up his
head to make living beings happy. (The End)
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