Cause and effect is a chain.
Cause and effect are related to "three", not to say that the time has not yet come. The same applies to the present, and the present idea will be rewarded immediately.
Reporter: Xu Yun, an old monk, once said that the doctrine of black grass, in terms of speaking, has two words "cause and effect", and you once said "taking cause and effect as the criterion of belief". Do you think there is a difference between Buddhism and philosophy of science?
Elder Jinghui: Comparatively speaking, the cause and effect of Buddhism is wider and deeper than that of the world. To say "wide" means everything in the world of ten parties, and everything in the world is caused by cause and effect; To say "profound" means that the cause and effect of Buddhism not only starts from the present thought, but also runs through the past, present and afterlife, so-called "three generations of cause and effect".
Reporter: at present, we can understand that, for example, if I lose my temper when I am angry, I will get immediate results. But why is it that "the life of the poor and the good is shorter, and the life of the evil enjoys a rich life"?
Elder Jing Hui: If you have any confusion about your kindness, you'd better put it down first. You should be glad that you are experiencing all kinds of misfortunes now. Because you reported your past bad karma, there will be good karma in the future. Industry leads to the third generation and newspapers lead to the third generation. The causal reason is not as simple as that of soybean sprouts just planted, but also restricted by various conditions.
Reporter: We have no experience of "past life" and "afterlife". How can we believe that? It is said that some scientists have investigated the dead and the living, and their experiences are different.
Elder Jing Hui: We can't be vague on this issue. We must believe in causality. We should believe in the personality of Sakyamuni Buddha, who is a perfect awakened person, and he takes his personality as a theoretical guarantee. We should also believe in the great virtues and predictions of the eminent monks of past dynasties. They have practiced for decades and have a complete and thorough understanding of Buddhism. They are convinced of cause and effect and practice according to the principle of cause and effect. 1987, 95-year-old Liang Shuming was invited to attend the inaugural meeting of China Institute of Buddhist Culture. He also said, "I want to propose to you cautiously that people have this life, past lives and afterlife. Mr. Liang is famous. To tell the truth, he won't lie.
Faith should be implemented in life.
Faith is not for display. Don't let faith stay in words, but always honor it.
Reporter: There are also so-called philanthropists around us who are rich and heartless. What do you think of such people?
Elder Jing Hui: Many people who believe in Buddhism often separate their faith from their life: faith belongs to faith and life belongs to life. These people only have faith when they go to monasteries, Buddhist temples and chanting, which is a great misunderstanding of faith. Faith is not for display. Don't let faith stay in words, but always honor it.
Reporter: Can you say the opposite? You can tell a person's beliefs by looking at his life.
Elder Jing Hui: A person's faith can't be hidden, but it will be revealed. For example, some elderly believers can put 5 yuan and 10 yuan into the merit box when they come to the temple, but they can't do it when they go shopping. If they don't give a bean and a leaf, they will be flushed with others. This is not really believing in Buddhism, this is trying to believe in Buddhism. I haven't believed in Buddhism yet.
Reporter: Believing in Buddhism also needs to start from me, from scratch.
Elder Jing Hui: There is a story. The Buddha and Ananda walked to the seaside together. The Buddha picked up a drop of water from the sea and put it in his hand. Then he asked Ananda, Do you think this drop of water will not dry? The Buddha said, "Put this drop of water into the sea. The strength of individuals is limited, and the strength of the masses is unlimited. Everyone who studies Buddhism actively participates in all good deeds and undertakings that are beneficial to the national economy and people's livelihood, and the construction of two civilizations in society will have greater achievements.
Use wisdom to distinguish everything.
It is wisdom to believe that harmony runs through the world and the cause and effect of the world. Wisdom is the eye of practice.
Reporter: Buddhism says that Prajna is wisdom, and wisdom is rationality. Perhaps this is the reason why Buddhism attracts intellectuals most.
Elder Jinghui: Prajna is wisdom. I emphasize "believing in Prajna" because without Prajna, we have no ability to distinguish things. In Buddhism, there are three procedures for practicing, namely "abstinence, determination and wisdom". Buddhism is wisdom and belief, not superstition, but a rational religion, because it advocates wisdom to distinguish everything. If Buddhism is just a superstition, it is impossible to attract generations of intellectuals.
Reporter: There must be a difference between "Prajna" in Buddhism and worldly wisdom.
Elder Jinghui: The most fundamental point of Buddhist wisdom is to believe or be able to penetrate the fact that there are causes and consequences in the world. Because, if there is no cause and effect in the world, there will be no order and everything will be in chaos. Therefore, only by believing and thoroughly understanding the cause and effect of the world is wisdom.
Reporter: Wisdom always emphasizes theory and practice, inheritance and development. Is Buddhism the same?
Elder Jinghui: There are three kinds of Buddhist wisdom: one is Prajna, the other is Prajna, and the other is Prajna. Three prajnaparamita are three kinds of wisdom. Reality is the true nature of everything. To view the prajnaparamita is to think, understand and correct everything according to its true colors. Prajna paramita refers to the Buddha's words and teachings, and refers to all words and languages that are beneficial to our physical and mental cultivation. Observing Prajna Paramita literally and confirming Prajna Paramita by observing Prajna Paramita literally is a general practice. This process of practice is very similar to the process of acquiring wisdom in the world.
Live in the moment, and you will have a normal heart.
To settle down, we must have a correct value judgment, which, in Buddhism, comes from faith.
Reporter: It is not easy to live in the present. People's thoughts are either in the past or in the future, or it is difficult to stay in the present.
Elder Jing Hui: Living in the present is a realm that can only be achieved through in-depth efforts. If you can live in the present, you can be normal. To enter and live in the present, you must be single-minded. When you observe your heart, you can't always catch it. It is always moving, and often far away from the present, or has returned to yesterday or tomorrow. This is "delusion".
Reporter: In your poem, it is said that "nothing can be born with one thought". Is a cautious start also a method of cultivation?
Elder Jinghui: Buddhism has various ways to tell us to let go of our delusions. This is a way to recite Amitabha, a way to take a deep breath, and a way to observe our own inner ups and downs. There is also a method handed down from ancient times that tells us to stop delusions, which is called "persisting in one thing" and "persisting in one thing and completing everything". This is a very good method, which has spread since Buddhism.
Reporter: What you are talking about is actually a question of value judgment, values.
Elder Jing Hui: All good thoughts and evil thoughts are right and wrong, starting with the next one. The so-called grasp of the present thought is to deliberately let the present thought settle the present life moment along a correct idea. This next idea has a value judgment. No matter which class or group, it has the same effect as human beings. In Buddhism, value judgment comes from belief. The guidance of this belief is the premise of cultivating people's kindness, goodwill and good thoughts.
To change your destiny, you must change yourself.
The past is past and irreversible, but the future is in our own hands. Let go of the past, base yourself on reality and face the future.
Reporter: People always lament the impermanence of fate, but Buddhism has to solve such a most important problem in life.
Elder Jing Hui: For everyone, nothing is more important than fate. In the long history of human civilization, countless sages and philosophers have thought about fate and created many theories about it. Among them, there are three most representative ones: one is that fate is in the hands of the gods and can only be changed by relying on them; The second view is that people's fate has long been predetermined and cannot be changed, so they have to obey it; The third is Buddhism, which holds that human destiny follows the law of cause and effect.
Reporter: As you said, people believe in Buddhism, that is, they believe that their destiny can be changed and try to grasp their destiny?
Elder Jinghui: The Buddha is the highest awakened one. He has perfect wisdom, insight into the laws of the fate of human beings and all sentient beings, and ways to master and change their destiny. Buddhism believes that human destiny follows the law of cause and effect. This law is often expressed as "as you sow, so you reap". As the saying goes, "planting good causes leads to good results, and planting evil causes leads to bad results." Life has a past world, a present world and a future world, and the law of causality runs through these three worlds, which is called "three-life causality". The Buddhist scripture says: "If you want to know the karma of past lives, the recipient in this life is;": Want to know the afterlife, the author of this life is. In this sense, believing in Buddhism is an act that people try to change their own destiny.
Reporter: Many formulations of the "Zen of Life" you put forward are very similar to the ideas we advocate today. Is this the same goal for different routes?
Elder Jinghui: Buddhism is different from other philosophies, but there are also similarities. According to the Buddhist law of cause and effect, we have gained the confidence and courage to master our destiny. Since the past is past and irreversible, but the future is in our hands, what we have to do is to let go of the past, base ourselves on reality and face the future. This is also our only positive attitude towards fate. In the final analysis, our destiny is ourselves. If you want to change your destiny, you must change yourself, your thoughts and behaviors.
Introduction to Elder Jing Hui
Master Jinghui is currently the vice president of the Chinese Buddhist Association and the president of the Hebei Buddhist Association. Born in Xinzhou, Hubei Province, 1933. When he was one and a half years old, his parents sent him to buddhist nun to raise him. At the age of 65,438+04, he studied classics at the Three Buddhist temples in Wuchang. At the age of 65,438+08, he was ordained by a monk in yunmen temple, Guangdong Province, in order to personally serve the old monk Xu Yun, a modern Zen master in China, and become a disciple of Xu Yun. Is the first batch of Buddhist graduate students in New China. Since 1993, "Life Zen Summer Camp" has been held in Berlin Zen Temple every year, advocating life Zen with the purpose of "awakening life and dedicating life", which has had a wide influence in Buddhism and society.