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……今天講一講吃東西，我相信很多人都歡喜聽的，因為人人都要吃東西。食色性也，我們歡喜吃東西，歡喜看好顏色，這是與生俱來的一種習氣。你看小孩子，一生出來他就先要吃奶；沒有奶吃就哭，有奶吃就不哭了。餓了他又哭，吃飽了他又不哭了，這就是與生俱來的一種性。
可是我們吃東西，必須要知道應該吃什麼東西。我現在發表這個不傳的秘訣給你。本來不願意講，因為在西方人可以說是不瞭解這個道理：不單在西方人不瞭解這個道理，就在東方人瞭解這個道理的也很少。
什麼呢？這個酸、甜、苦、辣、鹹，這是五味，這五位屬五行：酸屬木，苦屬火，辣屬金，鹹屬水，甜屬土。
我們人吃東西，在春天的時候，不應該吃太多的酸的。為什麼呢？春屬木，春天木最旺盛，因為春天萬物發生。酸就屬於木，所以在春天的時候不適於吃酸的，少吃一點可以，不要吃多，這就不是太過；吃多你再加上酸的東西，它更旺盛了。那麼說更旺盛不好嗎？過猶不及，太過了還是和不及是一樣的。
果寶那天說沒有維他命，但是我吃，覺得這個維他命太多了，有點受不了。你看這很奇怪的；他就說沒有，我就覺得多。
夏屬火旺，夏天的時候是火旺；火旺的時候，不要吃多苦的東西。怎麼說苦屬火呢？你看所有飲食的束西，你用火一燒再吃它就是苦的，所以苦就屬於辛。
酸是屬肝，春天的時候，酸的東西吃多了就會傷肝，眼睛看東西就看不清楚了。夏天是火旺，夏天的時候天氣很熱，所以說火性。有人說，「夏天熱，那到澳洲夏天六月是最涼的時候。」那是一個地方氣候的關係，不是講那個普通的。所以夏天不要苦的東西吃太多了，少吃一點可以的。
秋天屬金，不應該吃辣的東西太多：辣的東西吃太多了，在秋天會傷肺。
冬天吃鹹的東西不應該太多了，鹹的東西太多了就傷腎。
你要能自己知道這調和五味這一種的道理，這是一個養生的最好的方法，比你吃多少維他命更有效，更好。所以吃東西，無論吃什麼不要太多了；吃得多了，對人不單沒有益處，而且還有害處。
那麼甜的是在什麼時候吃呢？甜的東西什麼時候都可以吃的，因為甜屬土，土旺於四季；四季就是春夏秋冬，都可以吃甜的。這個甜的東西對人沒有什麼大的害處，但是吃得太多了，也沒有什麼好處。
那麼屬土的東西都是些什麼呢？好像米啊、麵包這都是屬土的，都是有一種甜的味道。所以我們人常常有的吃麵包，有的吃飯，這因為我們人要這個東西。這是講飲食經－－飲食的經。
這個飲食的經，你沒有地方聽去，因為佛沒有說過飲食經。佛說叫你持午，日中一食，要有次序，所以我們人人要知道這種道理。你吃什麼東西不要太過，就會很少生病；很少生病這你身體就健康；身體健康，這就是人生的一種幸福。
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Let's talk about eating today. I believe a lot of you will find this interesting. Everyone has to eat. The most basic instincts of human beings are the desires for food and sex. We like to eat and we fancy beautiful forms. These are our innate tendencies. Have you ever noticed that the first thing newborn babies want is milk; they will cry until they are given milk. They cry when hungry and stop crying when fed; this is their instinctive reaction.
However, when we eat, we should know what we ought to eat. I am going to share with you a secret that I have never passed on to anyone before. I am reluctant to talk about it because Westerners do not understand this— and not only Westerners; Asians may not understand this either.
What am I going to talk about? The five flavors, namely: sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty. They represent the five elements: sour represents wood, bitter represents fire, spicy represents metal, salty represents water, and sweetness represents earth.
One should not eat too much sour food in the spring. Why? Spring corresponds to wood, and wood thrives in the spring, because spring is the time when all living things grow. Sour is associated with wood, and it is not ideal to eat sour food in the spring; a little is fine, but not too much. Eating too much sour food in spring is like pouring oil on the flames and making the fire stronger. Is there something wrong with being strong? Going overboard is as bad as not doing enough; excess and deficiency are the same.
The other day, Guo Bao commented that our food lacks vitamins. I, however, feel that the vitamin content is too high—more than what I need. Isn't it strange? He said there aren't any vitamins and I think there is too much.
Summer represents fire; it's hot in summer, and when it's hot, we should not eat too much. Why is bitter associated with fire? All the food that we eat and drink becomes bitter when burned. Bitter means acrid.
Sour corresponds to the liver. Eating a lot of sour food in the spring hurts the liver and affects the eyesight, causing one not to see clearly. Fire is very strong in summer. The summer heat shows the nature of fire. Some people may claim, "It's hot in summer, but the month of June is the coolest time in Australia." That has to do with the weather of a particular geographical area; we're not talking about ordinary weather. We should not eat too much bitter food in summer, although it's all right to eat a little.
Autumn represents metal. One should not eat too much spicy food in the autumn as this can hurt the lungs.
One should not eat too much salty food in winter, because it is not good for the kidneys.
You should know the principle of balancing the five flavors; it is the best way to lead a healthy life. It is far better and more effective than taking vitamins. Regardless of what you eat, don't eat too much; excessive eating is not beneficial and is actually harmful.
When do we eat sweet food? Food that is sweet [i.e. starches] can be eaten anytime, because sweetness represents earth, and earth prospers throughout the four seasons. That means you can eat sweet food throughout spring, summer, autumn and winter. Sweet food is not harmful to the body, but there's no benefit into eating too much of it either.
What foods are associated with earth? Rice and bread are all considered sweet. We always eat bread or rice, because our body needs them. This is the Sutra of Eating and Drinking.
You won't hear the Sutra of Eating and Drinking anywhere else; because the Buddha did not speak it. The Buddha told us not to eat after noon and to eat one meal a day with proper etiquette. Every one of us needs to know this. No matter what you eat, if you do not eat too much, you will seldom become sick. You will then enjoy good health, which is a blessing in life.
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