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「你有MSN嗎？以後我們就用MSN聯絡！」、「那個人，好久沒在線上看到他了！不知道他怎麼了？」；老一輩的人，看到這些對話，腦袋一定有著大大的「？」，那是什麼?拜科技所賜，只要會用電腦、網路，人與人就可以在虛擬世界中相互聯繫；不受限時間、無距離的隔閡，無論是熟知抑或是陌生人，皆可透過一台機器和一條電線增進感情，最重要的是可省去昂貴的電話費用。
我也曾是那一族群的一員，每日幾乎全天候上網，從白天一起床使用電腦到晚上。當然，我絕非是做大事業的人，也不是個做研究的學者；單純的只是個大學剛畢業的新鮮人。除了上網交友，我也運用電腦技能，悠遊於虛幻世界中；在那裡，我找到現實社會中無法提供給我的認同與成就感，我流連於那樣的環境中。
一段時間過後，我才警覺自己身心的惡化─不耐煩、無法忍受壓力、脾氣暴躁、漸漸的沉默寡言、逃避...甚至連我的身體也每下愈況，爬起樓梯累的氣喘如牛。於是，我開始思考，這樣的生活是不是我想要的？我的生命，是不是要消失在電腦風扇呼呼的轉動中？怎麼離開「本我」那麼遙遠？空虛和空洞，應該不是我想要的生活，那麼我該如何將生活變得多彩多姿？
當然，這樣的想法無法很快落實在我的生活中；我只是一步一步的轉變。起初，每星期參加法界的共修，平常就在家閱讀上人的書籍。可是自己還是無法專心看書，妄想的紛飛，讓我很困擾。我毅然決然地關掉電視、離開那樣的生活─沒有遙控器的生活，不活在社會的恐懼、價值觀念裡。我過得更好，終於漸漸發現到網路生活才是無聊、耗費時間；所以，我選擇離開，開始正視自己心靈的想法。
當然，考驗接踵而來；朋友非常關心我，到底發生什麼事，怎麼會突然「消失」在網路上？自己偶爾也覺得生活沒有目標...。不過，我實在很願意學習傾聽自己的想法，而不是用網路來閃躲該面對的問題。
現在各界學者也發現，網路族專注力不高、語言表達有障礙、自我意識特別強烈及生活的封閉；所幸我碰到善知識，從那似是而非的環境中被拉出；現在，我願意相信師父所說的佛法，因為那才是生命真正的道路，我可以行走無懼。
我的生活中沒有了電視，依靠電腦的生活型態也漸漸少去；但是，生命卻不因此失色。縱使，網路科技滿足我對各式資訊的需求，或是讓我逃避師長、父母給予我的關心與期望，但到最後還需得誠實面對自己。或許，生活在這個時代的我，並不能完全去掉使用電腦的機會，但我盡量給自己單純的環境；不因電腦的侷限，而能隨時隨地，拿著一本書、一篇文章，徜徉書中的世界，很自在、很喜悅的。隨波逐流並不一定是美好的，走在人煙稀少的山間小路裡，總有柳暗花明又一村的驚喜；我非常願意做個「跳脫電腦時代 」的人。
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“Do you have a MSN account? We can communicate via MSN!? haven seen that guy online for a while! How is he?? Elders must have a big question mark in their minds when hearing those conversations. What is that? Thanks to science and
“Do you have a MSN account? We can communicate via MSN!” “I haven’t seen that guy online for a while! How is he?” Elders must have a big question mark in their minds when hearing those conversations. What is that? Thanks to science and technology, people can communicate with each other in the virtual world as long as they know how to use a computer and the Internet. Old friends and new friends can all become closer through a personal computer (PC) and a wire without the limits of time or distance. The most important thing is that this saves on expensive telephone bills.
I was a member of that group once. It seemed like I was online 24 hours a day, using my PC from morning to night. Of course, I did not have a big career, nor was I a researcher. I was only a new graduate from college. In addition to making friends on internet, I also wandered in the virtual world with my PC skills. It was there that I found a sense of approval and accomplishment. I was addicted to that kind of environment.
After a while, I realized my body and mind were deteriorating. I became impatient, unable to bear pressure, short-tempered, silent, evasive, even my health started declining. I could not catch my breath when climbing stairs. So, I started thinking: is this the life I want? Will my life pass away in the noise of the PC fan? How did I grow so far away from true self? I don’t want this kind of vain and empty life. How can I make my life more dynamic and colorful?
Of course, that kind of wish cannot be realized in a short time. I am changing my life step by step. First, I participate in the group practice at the Dharma Realm Buddhist Books Distribution Society every week. I read the Venerable Master’s books at home too. But I found that I could not focus on the books and my false thoughts were everywhere. I was confused. So, I decided to turn off the TV and leave that kind of life. I am living a much better life without a remote control and the dreads of society. Then, I slowly discovered life on the internet was tedious and a waste of time. Thus, I choose to leave it as well and face the thoughts in my mind.
Of course, tests have come one after another. Friends were concerned about me. What happened to me? How come I suddenly disappeared from the internet? Sometimes I feel I lack goals for my life … however, I am willing to learn and listen to my own thoughts, instead of avoiding problems by going on the internet.
Researchers have now found that people who spend a lot of time on the internet cannot focus, have trouble expressing themselves verbally, are very self-centered, and their lives are stuck. Fortunately, I met a good teacher who pulled me out from the plausible yet not true environment which is not what it seems to be. Now, I am willing to believe the Venerable Master’s teachings on Buddhism, because that is the true path for life and I can walk down that path fearlessly.
My life does not have TV and the PC is fading away too. But, life does not lose its vibrancy because of that. Even though Internet technology satisfied my thirst for information, or enabled me to avoid my parents’ and teachers’ concerns about me, I have to face myself honestly. Maybe, living in this age, I do not have the opportunity to escape the PC entirely. I try to give myself a simple environment. I can pick up a book or an article and read freely and happily and not be limited to just the PC. Going along with the crowd may not be the best choice. Instead, by wandering on small trails in the mountains without the trace of other humans, I may have the pleasant surprise of discovering “another village with willows and flowers”. I very much want to be a person who has escaped from the computer age.
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