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編輯部按：恒定法師在2003年十月十一日早上往生，他出家六十年，世壽八十。第一位發現恒定師往生的居士說，恒定師是坐在船廟殿上往生的。他與日常照顧恒定師起居飲食的何居士，在法師往生之時都見到有孔雀出現。以前船廟的樹上，每日都有喜鵲鳴叫，在恒定師往生之前一段時間，卻不再飛來，恒定師曾提及：他快要走了。2002年尾，恒定師把多年來居士供養全部用來修葺船廟，實在是預知時至，交待清楚。
我是東北遼寧省撫平縣的人，在十幾歲時，我就有了出家的心，但因緣不具足。在瀋陽讀書時，認識了師父，直到我去南華寺才跟隨師父出家。
我在讀書的期間，曾經作了一個夢，夢見一尊千手千眼的觀世音菩薩在山上，我就禮拜，在夢中有人問我：「在沒睡之前，你有知覺。睡覺的時候，你失了知覺，你在夢中見到種種的境界。可是，在你剛睡著，你身體失了知覺，還沒有作夢的時候，你在什麼地方？」我沒有辦法回答，這是我出家以前的事情。
後來我到了南華寺，在那裡沒有住多久，只打了一次禪七，是虛雲老和尚主持的。我因為怕冷，頭頂凍了幾個月，師父每天在我頭頂上念〈大悲咒〉加持。師父的〈大悲咒〉很靈應的，我也一心跟師父學「四十二手眼」。
師父在南華寺佛學院做教務主任，那時有二十多位出家眾，他也教古文，還講了一次經。虛雲老和尚每年都傳戒，師父做過兩次認證師。師父在南華寺住了二、三年，後來在淪陷前，回到東北想把果智帶出來，那時東北北邊尚未解放。但是因為果智他開眼，共產黨為了要果智保共產黨的秘密，不讓他出來；果智當時是個很小的小孩。師父從東北來到南華寺的時候，沒有帶什麼東西，只有那條念珠；到了香港也沒有帶什麼東西，也只有那條念珠。師父的那尊阿彌陀佛是在香港請的，因為師父夢見阿彌陀佛，也夢到去哪個地方請。本來那尊阿彌陀佛是白色的，師父供奉禮拜一年多後，那尊阿彌陀佛就變成是肉色的。
1949年剛受完戒共產黨來了，我就去了香港，在香港跟隨師父八年，先是去雲門，再到東普陀住了九年，以後到觀音洞住，之後又去大嶼山、西樂園、慈興寺住了一年半，我背了一部《法華經》，得到很多境界，在定中見到釋迦牟尼佛，三大比丘，還有一個帶大耳環的梵僧。這三位比丘都不似中國人，身材高大，其中一位帶著大耳環，卷鬚卷髮，貌似達摩祖師，自此加倍精進修禪。在南華寺背了一點《楞嚴經》，到了東普陀背完《楞嚴經》，背了五年，虛老教導的徒弟都要背《楞嚴經》。
到了香港，我隨師父還去過泰國曼谷四個月，本來是去學南傳的，但是手續沒辦好，就回來了。我們去那裡還是一樣穿中國的僧服，也沒有出去托缽。在泰國是住在龍華寺，那裏的出家人都是中國人，講國語；本來泰國是不准中國人建寺廟的，但那個住持很有本事，他念〈大悲咒〉很有感應，所以泰國讓他建龍華寺。
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Editor’s Note: Dharma Master Heng Ding passed away on the morning of October 11, 2003, at the age of 80, having been a monk for 60 years. The first person to discover this was a layperson. According to him, Bhikshu Heng Ding passed away in meditation posture in the Buddha Hall of Boat Temple. This layperson and Upasaka Ho both saw peacocks when the Dharma Master passed away. Upasaka Ho was the person who took care of the Dharma Master’s daily needs. In the past magpies came everyday to Boat Temple to sing in the trees there. However, just before Bhikshu Heng Ding passed away, they stopped showing up. Once, he said that he would pass away soon. At the end of last year (2002), he used all the donations he had received from laypeople to repair Boat Temple. He truly foresaw the time of his death and made preparations for the subsistence of the temple.
I am from Fuping County of Liaoning Province in Manchuria. I brought forth the resolve to leave home when I was a teenager. However, the causes and conditions were not ripe yet. I met Shr Fu (Venerable Master Hua) while studying in Shengyang. I didn’t leave home with him until I visited Nanhua Monastery.
During my time as a student, in a dream I saw the Thousand-eye Thousand-hand Gwan-Yin Bodhisattva on a mountain. I bowed to her. In the dream, someone asked me, “Before you fall asleep, you are conscious. While you are sleeping, you lose consciousness and soon you can see various states in your dreams. However, right when you fall asleep and lose consciousness, but before you start to dream, where are you?” I couldn’t answer this question. This happened before I left home.
Later on, I made it to Nanhua Monastery but didn’t stay there long. I only participated in one Chan session held by Master Hsu Yun. Because I was afraid of the cold, my head was freezing for a couple of months. Shr Fu would recite the Great Compassion Mantra over my head to bless me. The Great Compassion Mantra that Shr Fu recited was very efficacious. I also single-mindedly studied the Forty-two Hands and Eyes with Shr Fu.
At that time, Shr Fu was the Dean of Academic Affairs in the Buddhist Academy of Nanhua Monastery. There were over twenty monastics. Shr Fu also taught classical Chinese and lectured the sutras once. Master Hsu Yun would transmit the precepts every year and Shr Fu acted as the certifying teacher twice. Shr Fu lived in Nanhua Monastery for two or three years. Prior to the communist takeover in Manchuria, Shr Fu wanted to get Guo-Zhi out of there since Northern Manchuria was not liberated yet. Because Guo-Zhi had opened his spiritual eyes, the communists would not let him leave town in order to keep their secrets safe. Guo-Zhi was very young then. When Shr Fu left Manchuria for Nanhua Monastery, he did not bring anything but his recitation beads. When he went to Hong Kong, the only thing he took with him was those recitation beads. Shr Fu had a statue of Amitabha Buddha which he had acquired in Hong Kong because he had had a dream about Amitabha Buddha and where to find that statue. Originally, the statue had been white. After Shr Fu worshipped and bowed to it, the statue turned the color of human flesh.
After I was ordained in 1949, the communists arrived. I left for Hong Kong and stayed with Shr Fu for eight years. We first went to Yunmen (Cloud Gate) and then lived in Easter Potola for nine years. After that, we moved to Guan Yin Cave, Dayu Mountain, Western Bliss Gardens, amd Cixing (Flourishing Compassion) Monastery where I lived for a year and a half. I memorized the Lotus Sutra and experienced many states because of it. In
samadhi, I saw Shakyamuni Buddha and three great monks. These three great monks were tall and didn’t look like Chinese. One of them had curly hair and a curly beard and a pair of big earrings. He looked like Patriarch Bodhidharma. I cultivated more vigorously in Chan after that. I had memorized part of the
Shurangama Sutra at Nanhua Monastery and finished memorizing it at Eastern Potola. It took me five years. Master Hsu Yun asked all of his disciples to memorize the
Shurangama Sutra.
After reaching Hong Kong, I followed Shr Fu to Bangkok where we lived for four months. I was going to learn the Theravada Tradition there; however, I came back due to unfinished legal business. In Bangkok, we stayed at Dragon Flower (Longhua) Monastery, where all the monks were Chinese and spoke Mandarin. There, we still wore the Chinese monastic robes and did not go for almsrounds. Originally, the Thai government would not let Chinese build temples in their country. However, the abbot of the temple had great spiritual skill. He recited the Great Compassion Mantra and obtained many responses. Subsequently, the Thai government gave him permission to build Dragon Flower Monastery.
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上人最早所收的徒弟果能、果舜、果維都受了戒，雖然果文，果佐、果智比我早隨上人出家，但是還沒有受戒；假如按受戒來講我就是師父第四個徒弟，這是恆越法師跟我講的。
我在慈興寺的時候，師父就在印《楞嚴經》、《金剛經》，我是負責校對的，因為我在家就背熟了《金剛經》。
師父在守孝的時候就是念〈楞嚴咒〉、〈大悲咒〉，師父很有本事的，他在觀音洞住的時候，才幾個月的功夫，他的樣子就變了。
觀音洞是人造的山洞所以很潮濕；如果是天然的山洞不會潮濕，是很舒適的。我和師父一共在觀音洞住了兩年，因為在這空氣很不好，山上又有好多垃圾，我的肺也不好，不能入定，所以我就要離開師父，到終南山靜修，從此就再沒有回到師父身邊，搬到船廟，一住四十多年。但是師父後來回香港，有人通知我，他每次回來，我就去看看他老人家。 |
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The earliest disciples the Venerable Master accepted were Guo-Neng, Guo-Shun, and Guo-Wei, all of whom had been ordained. Even though Guo-Wen, Guo-Zuo and Guo-Zhi left home before I did, they were not yet ordained at the time. In order of ordination, I was Shr Fu’s fourth disciple. This was told to me by Dharma Master Heng Yue.
When we were at the Cixing Monastery, Shr Fu was printing the Shurangama Mantra and the
Vajra Sutra. I was responsible for proofreading them since I had memorized the
Vajra Sutra as a layperson.
When Shr Fu had practiced filial piety by staying at his mother’s graveside, he had recited the Shurangama Mantra and the Great Compassion Mantra. He had great spiritual skill. After he had lived in Guanyin Cave for a couple of months, his appearance changed. Guanyin Cave was manmade so it was very damp. If it were natural, it would not had been so moist but rather comfortable. I lived with Shr Fu in the cave for two years. The quality of the air was not good and there was a lot of trash around. My lungs were not functioning well and because of it, I could not enter samadhi. So, I requested to go to Zhongnan Mountain to cultivate. I never returned to where Shr Fu was after that. I moved to Boat Temple and stayed there for forty years. However, every time someone told me about Shr Fu’s return to Hong Kong, I would go visit him. |
