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人間菩提--悲智合一度眾生 Religions explain to us the suffering in life and what we can do to relieve the suffering that people are enduring. (while also sharing with them life's principles) (and inspiring their sense of ethics and morality) So, the humanitarian spirit is all bout raising the dignity and value of human life. So, in learning the Buddha's way, we must strive to relieve the suffering of living beings. So, we must make great vows (to benefit all living beings) However, there are so many living beings and so many different kinds of suffering. In addition to the suffering from the process of birth, aging, illness, and death, There is also poverty, as well as physical and mental impairments, man-made and natural disasters etc. On top of those, there're also people's afflictions. Because of these afflictions, many problems arise between the interactions of people. So, what can we do to help living beings? We need all kinds of Dharma. To go into society and relieve the suffering of living beings, we must understand the relationship between cause, condition, and effect. Of course, one way we talk about it is reaping what one sows--- the relationship of cause and effect and retribution, which is the impact one feels from the effect that has been produced. But more importantly we must mindfully reflect on what "cause", "condition", and "effect" are. We must reflect on this issue with careful consideration and deep thinking. The value of religion lies precisely in such wisdom and insight. If we can take in these insights and learn them. Then, as we dedicate ourselves to benefiting humanity, we will not be dragged down by the many obstacles and challenges we are sure to encounter. How are we to make such great vows to benefit humanity? That requires wisdom and insight. This wisdom can also "beautify" us. Because you have wisdom, those with difficulties will come to you. as you can help solve their problems. With your wisdom and insight, you should dedicate yourself to the community to help solve many problems of others. When you do that, you are like the light in the darkness. So, such wisdom is inherent in all of us. This wisdom is the "cause" . At the same time, we also need the "condition". What provides the condition is our blessings. Where do such blessings come from? From the forming of good affinities with others When we form good affinities with others, we're creating blessings, the condition that will enable cause to lead to effect. So, we must have both wisdom and compassion and practice them at the same time. We see this man in the Philippines Jessie. See how young he is. Why is it that his life has been filled with so much suffering? He was once a college student studying structural engineering and had a girlfriend who became pregnant before they got married. He was to marry her, but three days before their wedding, He suddenly fell from a tree (he was pruning) He had injured his spine and became paralyzed from the waist down. His marriage was also broken off because his fianc�e no longer wanted to marry him. After giving birth, she gave him their child and left him. It was then that this family began to fall into an abyss of hopelessness. At the time, Jessie lived together with his father and his grandmother. His father works five days a week as a laborer for the government, earning 200 pesos a day which is around US$4. See, this father alone has to shoulder the household expenses, pay for Jessie's medial bills. raise his grandson and look after his elder mother that is Jessie's grandmother. We can imagine how hard life is for them. During one of Jessie's surgeries for his spine, the nerves for his left eye got damaged and he lost vision in that eye. Later, a priest learned about his plight. Seeing that his house was very run-down, the priest was very compassionate and wanted to build a safer house for him to live in. Unfortunately before the house could be completed, the priest passed away. So, the house was only halfway constructed and the place he lived in had no electricity. So, he endured much hardship in those few years. Later, his bedsores flared up and he had to be hospitalized. That was the time he came into contact with Tzu Chi in July 2004, when Asst. Supt. Chien went to the Philippines to see a boy under our care, he happened to come across Jessie. So, he went to talk to him. (Because of Asst. Supt. Chien's karmic afficity) (with Jessie) Tzu Chi came to know about him. When we went to visit him, we saw how his place didn't have electricity and the house that the priest built for him wasn't finished yet. So, Tzu Chi volunteers donated building materials. Such as iron & cement, and helped build the house. With that, his house was completed. And our volunteers not only gave him a nice new house to live in, but they also set up a storefront for him to sell rice in the hopes that he could still make use of his life and raise his child. So, now his life has really improved a lot. He has also become more optimistic. First of all, I'd like to thank Master Cheng Yen because if it weren't for her founding Tzu Chi, my dreams which include having a home of my own wouldn't have come true. If it weren't for Tzu Chi volunteers, I wouldn't have been able to complete my surgery or look after my son. Secondly, I want to thank you for continuing to pay for my medical expenses and in particular for my son's schooling fees. I really am very grateful to you. I will remember this debt of gratitude for all of my life. The reason we can help him is all due to karmic affinities. So, in practicing Buddhist teachings, we'll come to witness life's principles everywhere. See that priest. He was also very compassionate, but his karmic affinities with Jessie were short-lived and before the house could be completed. The priest had passed away. Such is the impermanence of life. Though the aim of every religion is to guide people to do good, (and this priest was working to help Jessie,) his karmic affinities with Jessie were such that he couldn't finish building the house for him. In the end, affinities brought Tzu Chi volunteers to Jessie, and, with both wisdom and compassion. They were able to bring aid to Jessie. All in all, there is truly much suffering in life. But it is because there is suffering that we're able to discover so many of life's truths. Living beings all have different desires and wants. That is why there are innumerable ways of teaching. So, we must make use of these innumerable Dharma to rid our afflictions so that we can give rise to both compassion and wisdom as only then can we aid and guide living beings.
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 無常乍臨頓失衡 法緣遙繫難思議 悲智救度脫窘境 人道援輸注溫馨 人間苦難偏多，也因此讓我們看到許多人道精神的展現。2004年，因緣牽引下，大林慈院簡守信副院長到了菲律賓，為患有水腦症的傑博做手術評估，過程中發現一個脊損病患"傑西"因為脊椎的損傷，失去了婚姻，生活上也陷入困境。 慈濟人不只為傑西補助醫藥費，還為他修繕房屋，蓋了個店面讓他可以自力更生。上人在開示中，期許慈濟人用無量法門來斷煩惱、廣度眾生。 2004年為了幫助，患有水腦症多重畸形的傑博，重獲新生，大林慈院簡守信副院長來到菲律賓，做手術前的評估，因為這份善念，也牽起了慈濟人與脊椎損傷的傑西之間的因緣。 證嚴上人開示：「簡副去跟他說話，那才知道他的故事由來就是這樣發生，從樹上摔下來，婚姻毀掉了，還有家庭有阿嬤有父親，生活困難等等，這都已經在那個時候，慈濟人更了解他的家。」 自從傑西摔傷脊椎後，龐大的醫藥費，讓傑西家裡的生活頓時陷入困境，慈濟人適時的介入，不只為他整修房子，還裝修了一個店面，讓他可以自力更生，走出煩惱。 證嚴上人開示：「這份悲智的因緣合一，就幫助到他了，總而言之真的人生苦難偏多，就是因為有苦難，我們才能發現到了那麼多的道理，所以我們要應用無量的法門，來斷我們的煩惱，成就我們的悲智相運，才能廣度眾生。」 世間多苦難，人與人之間，更應該互相關懷。證嚴上人期許，慈濟人立下宏願，以無量法門，度眾生、斷煩惱，成就無上佛道。 |
Regards, Jenny
Today's Jing Si Aphorisms: The behavior of a person during his lifetime, be it good or evil, is accumulated over time.
今日靜思語: 人一生的行為, 不管是善是惡,皆由時間所累積
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