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師父上人、各位善知識與大眾：
我是果遜，我要講的是三個朋友每年見面的故事。
其中一個60歲，他對另外兩個說：「我們都老了，不知道明年還能不能再聚會？」
另外一個70歲的人說：「我老了，就快不行了。每天脫了鞋去睡覺，不知道第二天還能不能起床再穿它？」第三個80的歲說：「每次這口氣出去，不知道下口氣還有沒有？」
死神有一次真的近在眼前，我的命就險在呼吸間，那時才12歲。當時美蘇非常敵視彼此。
赫魯雪夫對美國說：「我們要把你們埋了。」他曾是一個農夫，很硬也直接了當。史達林死後，赫魯雪夫因為把他勁敵弄死而在蘇聯得到政權。
美國有核子飛彈對準蘇聯。蘇聯也有核子飛彈對準美國。雙方發展出氫彈比在廣島和長崎所使用過的更具威力。
美方在蘇聯附近的土耳其設置核子飛彈。蘇聯也在美國南邊不到100哩的古巴開始建造飛彈。當美方發現飛彈基地時，甘迺迪總統非常生氣。他下令美軍艦隊圍繞封鎖古巴，控制貨物進出。古巴頭子卡思楚很生氣，寫信給赫魯雪夫勸他快速對美國使用核子武器，即使結果古巴被毀滅殆盡，也在所不惜。
甘迺迪計劃入侵古巴。在古巴飛彈基地的蘇聯軍隊有小型核武，他們受命如果古巴軍隊來侵襲時抵抗用。如果對美軍使用核武，那美國就很可能報復而發射飛彈到蘇聯，蘇聯也會射飛彈到美國。
我住在聖荷西軍火庫和飛機場之間，二者都很可能成為蘇聯的目標，核戰可能使我喪生於幾百萬分之一秒內，彈指間我可能就沒命了。這一刻我還活著，下一刻我的身體可能就塵消灰盡，了無痕跡。
赫魯雪夫後來宣佈蘇聯飛彈自古巴撤離，核子戰爭轉弭無影。
普賢菩薩警眾偈云：
是日已過，命亦隨減。
如少水魚，斯有何樂？
當勤精進，如救頭然。
但念無常，慎勿放逸。
20歲的人設想自己還有50年生命；35歲的或許想自己只過了半生。年近70，這人大概會想自己還有10年歲月。殊不知人壽不定，我們修行應當每天就是最後一日，我們修行應當像下一分鐘就要去見閻王似的，斷欲去愛。
再告訴各位我犯的一個大錯，我得花費好大一番功夫才能修正過來。您猜是甚麼錯誤？是不是車禍？是不是把電腦檔案洗掉了？還是骨頭跌斷了？我的過錯比這些都嚴重，無始以來，我在生死裡輪迴，死了又生，不能掌握自己的命運，也不知道我的佛性，這是我最大的過錯。
 我們都聽過上人的禪七開示，很多次禪七結束時，師父會說誰不怕挨打就站起來，他會用香板打；怕挨打的就可以離開；錄音帶然後就斷了。當時接下來的情形是每個人都站起來，沒有人走，上人從高座下來，慢慢地繞著禪堂，輕輕地用香板打每一個人。
上人打時臉上帶著溫暖的笑容，有時對那些他特別要教化的人會多打幾下。果舟和小沙彌果童，都曾挨過這樣子的香板。
這就是我所懂少少的佛法，大家都要把愛欲完全斷了它！
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Venerable Master, Good Advisors, great assembly: I am Gwo Sun. Here is the story of three men: friends who met together every year.
One was 60 years old. He said to the others, “We are so old now, I don’t know if all of us will be alive next year for this reunion.”
Another was 70 years old. He said, “I am old and death is not far off. Every day when I put away my shoes and go to sleep, I do not know if I will wake up the next day to put on the shoes again.”
The last one was 80 years old. He said, “Death is even closer than that. Every time that I let out a breath of air, I do not know if I will be alive to take in the next breath of air.”
I can talk about a time in my life when death was very near. My life could have ended much faster than the time it takes for one breath. I was only 12 years old. At that time the US and the USSR were very hostile towards one another. Khrushchev, head of the Soviet Union had said to America, “We will bury you.” Khrushchev had been a farmer. He was very tough and direct. After Joseph Stalin died, Khrushchev had attained power in the Soviet Union by having his chief rival, Beria, put to death.
America had nuclear missiles targeted on the Soviet Union and ready to launch. The Soviet Union had nuclear missiles targeted on America and ready to launch. Both sides had developed hydrogen bombs, far more powerful than what was used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The US had put nuclear missiles in the country of Turkey, very close to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union started to construct missile bases in Cuba, which is an island less than 100 miles south of the US. When America found out about the missile bases, President Kennedy was angry. He ordered a blockade of US ships to be set up around Cuba to control what could be shipped into Cuba. Fidel Castro, leader of Cuba was also angry. He wrote a letter to Khrushchev urging him to use the nuclear weapons on the US, even if it meant that Cuba would be completely destroyed as a consequence.
Kennedy planned to invade Cuba. The Russian soldiers who were putting the missile bases in Cuba were armed with small nuclear weapons, and had authorization to use them to defend Cuba in case of invasion. If nuclear weapons were used on the US, it is likely that America would have retaliated by launching its nuclear missiles on the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union would have retaliated by launching its missiles on America.
I lived between the San Jose Armory and Moffet Air Field. Both were likely to be targets of the Soviet Union. Nuclear war could have ended my life in a few millionths of a second. My life could have ended faster than a finger snap. One instant, I was alive, the next instant my body could have been completely vaporized. Gone without a trace left.
Khrushchev made an announcement that the Soviet Union would withdraw its missiles from Cuba. Nuclear war was averted.
Here is the Universal Worthy Bodhisattva’s verse of exhortation:
This day is already done; our lives are that much less.
We are like fish in a shrinking pond.
What joy is there in this?
We should be diligent and vigorous
as if our own heads were at stake.
Only be mindful of impermanence
and be careful not to be lax.
A person of 20 years may think that he has 50 years ahead of him. A 35-year-old may think that his life is only half over. Upon reaching 70, a person might think that he could last for another ten years.
But our lifespans are uncertain. We should cultivate every day as if it was our last day. We should cultivate every minute as if we were right about to face King Yama. Cut off desire and cast out love.
I would like to tell you about a big mistake that I made. It was a really big mistake and it will take a lot of effort to set things right. What do you think this mistake was? Did I get in a car accident? Did I erase the hard disk on a computer? Did I break a bone in my body? What I did was far worse than any of these things. From beginningless time, I have revolved in birth and death, dying and being reborn without any control over my destiny, and unaware of my Buddha nature. That was my big mistake.
We have all heard the Venerable Master’s Chan talks. At the end of many Chan sessions, the Venerable Master told the cultivators that whoever was not afraid to be hit, should stand up and he would hit them with the incense board, but those who were afraid, could leave. The tapes end at this point. Here is what happened after the tape ended: Everybody stood up. No one left. The Venerable Master descended from the high seat and slowly circled the hall, gently tapping everyone a few times with the incense board.
The Venerable Master had a big warm smile on his face while he did this. Sometimes he would single out someone for a few extra taps from the board, someone whom he was working extra hard to teach. David Rounds was the recipient of extra taps on one occasion. Gwo Tung, the young novice and son of Dharma Master Chih was another.
Here is what little I know about the Buddhadharma: We should all completely sever love and desire!
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