立足點的平等4 Equality of Starting Points 4

立足點的平等4

 

讀者想聽聽，我對佛教慈悲觀點「同體大悲」的看法。

 

乍看「同體大悲」的觀點時，個人是完全接受的，

又或許我是天生的實踐者，

想知道「同體大悲」能做到哪個程度？

所以我常會去測試自我的人性，

測試自己聽起來好像很荒謬，我卻常常執行它，主因是我渴望理解什麼是具體的修行。

 

測試的結果，我自己的人性起了更強烈求生欲與求知欲，

「同體大悲」最高級別要求的是布施都沒有留下自己的生活份量，

就像故事中佛陀割肉餵食老鷹一樣，活生生的人去割肉餵食老鷹？

 

好奇故事內容真假的我，也會試試自己在ㄧ無所有下的感受，之後，可以確認那是虛擬的內容，

但凡是人，都必定在有所依歸的情況下活著，這是肯定的。

 

所以，目前我提供的想法，都是自己經歷過才說或寫出來，絕不寫、說自己沒測試或理解過的思維。

 

當然，虛雲老和尚當年尚在人間時，人在香港，卻自願回中國受難，體現「同體大悲」的氣勢，至今依然感動萬千佛教徒。

 

 

讀者反應說：立足點的平等式，

那中間我們跟虛老的立足點平等是什麼🤔

 

這個是沒有研究過虛老的大德在說的！

他老人家19歲出家，60歲才開悟，而且是夜與繼日的努力，

我也19歲開始修行，卻不能想像熬到60歲的痛苦，

那對我個人而言是恐怖的、不明就裡的無端折磨。

 

設使，虛老看到「四聖果」的修持方法後，是否修行生涯，徹底的不同？

 

再說；虛老被打的死去活來，雖說他可以入定，

但他一旦出定的痛苦跟我們是一樣的，

肉體的痛苦一樣，但精神的痛苦不一樣，

他的肉體痛苦不會導致他精神狂亂，這是道力的加被結果。

 

但如果有其他的路可以選擇，我想連大菩薩都不會去做這種事的。

人體的痛苦一樣，

精神世界的感受不一樣，

但你說肉體不會影響精神嗎？

似乎是不可能的，

最高等級就是精神不會狂亂。

半寄

 

Equality of Starting Points 4

 

Readers would like to hear my thoughts on the Buddhist concept of “compassion that comes from seeing all beings as one”

 

At first glance, I fully accepted this teaching—perhaps because I naturally tend to practice it. I’ve always been curious about how far “Great Compassion as Oneness” can actually be taken. That is why I often test my own humanity. It may sound strange, but I do it regularly because I want to understand what concrete spiritual practice truly means.

 

Through this process, my will to survive and my desire to understand truth have only intensified. The ideal of Oneness-Compassion appears to demand complete self-giving—to the point of leaving nothing for one’s own survival, like the story of the Buddha offering his flesh to an eagle. But could any living person truly perform such an act? My curiosity about the literal truth behind such stories has driven me to experiment with circumstances of having “nothing.” These experiences confirm that the stories are symbolic. As human beings, we inevitably survive with some form of support—this is indisputable.

 

Everything I offer—whether spoken or written—comes from experience. I never discuss concepts that I have not personally tested or understood.

 

For instance, Venerable Master Hsu Yun, when he was still alive, voluntarily returned from Hong Kong to mainland China to face great suffering. His willingness to do so remains profoundly moving for countless Buddhists, even today.

 

 

 

 

Some readers question: “If compassion is founded on equality, "what is the equal footing between us and the Venerable Master Xu Yun?”

 

Such questions typically arise from those unfamiliar with his life. He ordained at nineteen and attained enlightenment until 60—after decades of relentless, day-and-night effort. I also started practicing at 19, but I cannot even imagine enduring that much hardship until 60. To me, it sounds terrifying—an incomprehensible, seemingly endless trial.

 

If Venerable Master Hsu Yun had encountered the cultivation methods associated with the Four Stages of Enlightenment, would his spiritual path have unfolded differently?

 

Furthermore, although he could enter deep meditative absorption even when beaten nearly to death, the pain he felt upon emerging from that state would have been as intense as for any of us. The physical pain was the same; what differed was the mind. His spirit did not collapse—that was the fruit of his spiritual attainment.

 

However, if there had been another path available, I think even a great Bodhisattva would choose to avoid such intense physical suffering. Human bodies experience pain universally, though our inner responses differ. Still, can physical pain truly have no effect on the mind? That seems impossible. At the highest level, the mind simply refrains from falling into chaos.

 

Master Banji