First, the Buddha is a human being, not a god
Looking at all religions in the world, except Buddhism, there is no religious leader who does not pretend to be a superman. This god can call the wind and rain, turn stone into gold; He dominates the fortunes of mankind, and it manipulates the life, death, honor and disgrace of all things. Only by prostrating before him, praising and eulogizing, and attributing all success and glory to Almighty God, can human beings go to heaven only if they believe in him. Those who oppose him only fall into hell, and there is no room for defense and appeal.
Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, said in his first sentence when he came to the world,' Heaven and earth are the only ones who care about me.' What readers should pay attention to here is that the word "I" of "I am the only one" does not refer only to Sakyamuni itself, but to everyone in all mankind. The correct interpretation of this sentence should be: man is indomitable in the universe, and everyone is his own master and decides his own destiny, without having to obey anyone or any god beyond him.
Sakyamuni attributed his consciousness, achievements and accomplishments to people's own efforts and talents. Sakyamuni believes that a person's good fortune, bad luck, success or failure, honor or disgrace depends on his own behavior and hard work. No one can promote me to heaven and no one can push me to hell. Praise and eulogy can't be happy without suffering. Only by down-to-earth cultivation can we purify and sublimate our personality and enjoy the happiness of peace of mind.
Sakyamuni can't turn stone into gold like magic. He advocated that "if you want to harvest something, you must plant something first". He can't make an apple grow from a lotus tree. If you want to harvest apples, you must sow the seeds of apples first. Sakyamuni just tells you how to cultivate it so that you can have a rich harvest in the future, but you still have to do the cultivation yourself.
didn't Mr. Liang Qichao make such a metaphor in the article "The Interest of Learning"? He said that it is comfortable to bask in the sun in winter, but' although the sun is good, you always have to bask in it yourself, but others can't bask in it for you.'
Sakyamuni said that for forty-nine years, he talked about more than 3 meetings (times), which was nothing more than pointing out a' way to become a Buddha' for us-to create the most complete wisdom and personality by himself. But this road is to walk it by perseverance, wisdom and perseverance. So the Buddha said,' You have to do the work yourself, because I only teach you the way to go.'
There is no shortcut to becoming a Buddha, and practice is a little bit of effort.' How can plum blossoms smell fragrant without some cold bones?'
Second, Buddha is a true egalitarian
When I say Buddha is a true egalitarian, I don't mean to talk nonsense. Let's first observe the social background of India at that time: everyone knows that India in Sakyamuni's era was divided into four classes: Brahman, noble, civilian and slave. Seeing the irrationality of social class, Sakyamuni, who is a prince, resolutely raised the banner of equality, advocated abolishing class opposition and advocated all beings.
Please think about it carefully. All revolutions in history require the humble and lowly classes to' improve' and the high-ranking classes to be equal. There is absolutely no one like Sakyamuni who is willing to' lower' his status as a prince and be equal to civilians and slaves. Because of his selfless and inaction style, I say he is a true egalitarian.
At the same time, Buddhism advocates "no mercy" and "great compassion with the same body", and pushes the meaning of equality to a further level.
I think there must be some students who don't know the meaning of "without mercy" and "with great compassion". I should briefly describe it here:
(1) without mercy: Buddhism advocates not only being kind to people who are related to you, such as your parents, relatives and friends; At the same time, I should be kind to people who have no relatives or friends with me, such as people who have never been in contact with me or have never met each other, and care for them as well. In the words of Confucianism,' no mercy' means:' old people and old people; Young people and young people. " That is to say,' not only the relatives, but also the sons and sons,' as mentioned in "The Great Harmony of Rites and Lucks." Meaning of.
(2) empathy: empathy is a kind of spirit in which people are hungry for themselves and people are drowning for themselves, and all beings in the universe are regarded as one person and I, sharing weal and woe with * * * and the same flesh and blood.
Confucianism says:' and yet, while China holds our friendship, and heaven remains our neighbourhood.' He also said,' All men are brothers within the four seas.' It can show the mind of' same body and great sorrow'. And the earth treasure king bodhisattva' I don't go to hell, who goes to hell?' A deep desire for sorrow is the ultimate in the same body's great sorrow.
Finally, I want to explain that the Buddhist concept of equality, which can best show the true equality of Buddhism, is not limited to the human beings. Buddhism opposes the argument that "all animals except human beings are created to feed people". The wailing and wailing of all animals when they die is really terrible, so unbearable to hear, even Mencius will say,' I can't bear to eat its meat when I hear its voice.'
Buddhism further affirms that all these animals that are indiscriminately hunted and killed by human beings who claim to be the spirit of all things have Buddhist nature-a potential to become Buddhas in the future. Even though people are different from other animals in form and wisdom, they are equal in the right to survive. Just like a vicious or ignorant person, he also has "humanity". We should treat him with "humanity" and educate and influence him with "humanity". The ancients said:' Heaven has the virtue of good life.' And he said,' Everything is born with me.' It is an equal thought that regards everything as one. It's just not as thorough as Buddhism.
Third, Buddha is not born knowing
Sakyamuni is an ordinary man. His surname is Gautama, and his name is Siddhartha. He was born in North India in the 6th century BC, which is about 2 kilometers away from the southern border of Nepal and Cadman.
at the age of 29, he gave up the throne that he was about to inherit, became a monk and learned Taoism, seeking ways to get rid of his life's troubles. Six years later, at the age of 35, Sakyamuni gained enlightenment under the bodhi tree beside the Nyirenchan River, and correctly and thoroughly realized the fundamental truth of cosmic life. Since then, people have called Sakyamuni the Buddha, or simply the Buddha. Meaning: the awakening of truth; Or simply: the awakened one.
The main purpose of my brief introduction to Buddha's practice is to tell you that Sakyamuni, like us, is an ordinary person. He can realize the Tao through practice, and all millions of human beings in Qian Qian can follow suit and practice according to the teaching methods he showed.
Sakyamuni-He is one of the countless prophecies of mankind, and we are the ones who know later and feel later. The difference between Buddha and us is not in personality and status, but in the word' sense'. That is, what Han Yu said:' There is a sequence of words.'
Fourth, Buddhism does not admit that there are stubborn and uncivilized people.
According to other religions, their leader or omnipotent Lord, after all kinds of threats and inducements, or after all kinds of pains and exhortations, repents and admits that he is a lost sinner, poor lamb, if he still does not know how to wake up and take refuge under the banner of God.
The ancients said,' The prodigal son never changes his gold.' Parents in the world always keep their doors open, hoping that the prodigal son can turn back, even though their children are criminals. There has never been a pair of parents who want or have the heart to have their children suffer in a dark and hot hell forever.
Buddhism recognizes that human nature is kind. As long as you put down the butcher's knife, you can become a Buddha. Buddha even thinks that the real' prisoner' is not evil, but ignorance, and all evil is caused by ignorance (Buddhism calls it ignorance). Therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the Buddha to earnestly enlighten and inspire all beings day and night. Buddha cares for all beings,' like a mother remembering a child', not only can't bear the suffering of all beings in hell, but also spreads that' hell is not empty, and I swear not to become a Buddha; Bodhi can only be proved when all beings are exhausted. " Vows. (Bodhi means' enlightenment' or' right path', and proving Bodhi means enlightenment or becoming a Buddha. ) What a kindness this is! What a sad wish! This is true fraternity! This is really pity!
Fifth, Buddha is not unique. Everyone can become a Buddha.
In the third point above, I have mentioned Buddha and sentient beings, only in the order of awakening time. Han Yu said,' There is a sequence of stories.' It can be used as an auxiliary explanation.
' Buddha' is just a general term for an enlightened person. Just as we call people who can "preach, teach and dispel doubts" teachers, there is more than one teacher. Everyone can be a teacher and there can be teachers everywhere. By the same token, Buddha is not just Sakyamuni. Everyone can become a Buddha, and there can be Buddhas everywhere, not only in this world, but also on countless planets in the universe. (Of course, there are sentient beings. )
This is also the fundamental difference between Buddhism and other religions. Other religions can only recognize their' unique' gods, but try their best to criticize and deny the gods they teach, calling them' false gods'.
At the same time, under their teachings, no matter how hard human beings struggle, they can never keep pace with God and be in an equal position (always master-servant relationship). Because god is the creator, and man is just one of the' things' created by god.
Sixth, Buddhism does not admit that there is a God who created everything
According to some religions, everything in the universe was created by the Almighty, and their evidence is the' Genesis' in the Old Testament.
In fact, people with a little thought can immediately understand that' God' is also the product of human thought, and human beings make God by their own ideas and images. One of the purposes of man's creation of God is to explain the origin of life in the universe, which Buddhists call the first cause. But where does' God' itself come from? The pagans not only refused to pursue it, but also said with great certainty:' God is omnipotent, and he exists naturally.'
dear friends! If God can "exist by himself", in other words, he can exist by himself without being created by others, then what's the point of the idea that "God created the universe and life"? (Because by the same token, life in the universe can also exist naturally. )
here we list a mathematical formula to illustrate this problem. Although it is not very appropriate, it can help students understand:
Suppose the origin of life in the universe is X. Find x =?
The answer of the pagans is this. They write the answer directly without citing theorems or known assumptions: X = God
But where did God come from? Please look at the following formula: X = God = Y < P > Anyone with a little mathematical concept knows that Y is also an unknown number, in other words, this question has not been answered.
Buddhism totally denies the assumption that' God created everything' and doesn't recognize the first' beginning' of the universe. The so-called' beginning' of one thing is only the' end' of the previous thing. In a series of causal relationships, the disappearance of one thing constitutes the condition for the birth of another.
In his book What is Buddhism? In the book, I once explained this problem as follows:' The concept of "beginning" is due to the "limited" psychology of human beings, and it cannot cover thousands of causal relationships.'
For example, we go to see the third movie "Gone with the Wind", which starts at 7 o'clock and ends at 1 o'clock. But when we think about it carefully, the "start" of the third movie is actually the "end" of the second movie, and the "end" of the third movie is not the "start" of the fourth movie.
So the concept of' beginning' is meaningful only for a specific thing; For the whole complicated and causal universe, it is meaningless. Time is always flowing. Who can find the so-called' now' from it? And say that this is the' beginning'?
In fact, Buddhism is not interested in discussing such problems that are not beneficial to life, because the universe has no beginning and no end, and it will be futile for people to try their best to pursue the' first cause of the universe'. When you struggle to find the' first cause', you are bound to find that there is another' cause' before it. In this cycle, you will never find a fixed' first cause'.
At the same time, life is short and impermanent. If you still want to get to the bottom of it, you may be dead before you get the answer of "the first cause of the universe".
In Buddhist scriptures, there is a wonderful metaphor:
' A man was injured by a poisonous arrow, and his relatives and friends took him to see a surgeon. If the man said, "I don't want to pull this arrow out, I want to know who shot me. Is he a Khetili?" Brahmin species? Vedas? Or sudra? What is his name and clan? Is he tall, short or of medium build? Is his skin black, brown or blond? Which city and town does he come from? I don't want to take out this arrow unless I know what bow I was hit by. What is the bowstring like? What kind of arrow? What kind of hair is the arrow feather made of and what material is the arrow cluster made of? ...... "If this is pursued, this person will be dead before these answers are obtained." In fact, the problem in reality is to pull out the arrow to treat the wound first, so as not to die waiting for the answer. Therefore, Buddhism does not waste space and time, and struggles to pursue the issue of' the first cause of the universe'. Because the pursuit is also useless, but also useless to life, which has nothing to do with people getting rid of the pain of birth, old age, illness and death, and can not make people get quiet and liberated happiness.
The topic is a little off-topic. Now let's talk about Buddhism's view that everything in the universe is created by God, and that everything is' caused by karma'. For example, a mountain in front of us is a product of earth and stone; The lake is made of concave water; Look at the desks and chairs in the classroom, which are made of wood by carpenters. If the earth and stone are scattered, it will no longer become a' mountain'; If the water in the lake is drained, it will become a concave land. Where is the shadow of the' lake'? Dismantle the boards piece by piece. Where are the desks and chairs?
We can call these visible things' color' for short, because they are only' temporary aggregation of karma' and are not real and unchangeable, so we say they are' empty'-there is no eternal entity. This is the simple truth of "color is empty" in Buddhist scriptures.
However, Buddhism says that "color is emptiness", and this word "emptiness" is not emptiness, nor emptiness with nothing, but a kind of vacuum with wonder. How to say this sentence? Let me give you an example to illustrate:
There is a glass of water in front of me. After heating it continuously, it will become steam, and the shadow of water will never be seen again. But this does not mean that water really disappears into' empty', and when water vapor meets cold, it will be reduced to.