平常心 Normality - 人的種類 Some Types Of People

1-2. ABOUT PRIMITIVE BELIEFS傳統信仰

Today, I will give some reflections on fear. We tend to be afraid without reason. This type of people are called stupid people, they lack study in Dhamma, they are primitive people. Primitive people means people that don’t know.

今天，我想談一些有關恐懼的觀點。通常，我們很容易莫名其妙地生起恐懼，這樣的人叫做愚癡的人，他們很少薰習正法，他們是未開化的人。所謂未開化的人就是指那些「不知道(正法)」的人。

1-2-1. SOME TYPES OF PEOPLE人的種類

A person and a human being are not the same. Even though the appearance is similar, there is a difference in virtuous qualities and intelligence. For example, some people do whatever they want to do, say whatever they happen to think of and eat whatever and whenever they feel like eating. These are the ordinary people.

人(person)和人類(human being)是不同的。雖然容貌看似一樣，但是他們在道德質量和心智上是有差別的。例如，有一些人他們想做什麼就做，想說什麼就說，想吃什麼就吃，這些就是未開化的凡夫(ordinary people = person)。

Worse then that are what are called animals. They have human faces but their minds are of an animal, that is, they have no shame just like animals. Meaning, individuals that have never cultivated their own minds any higher.

比這更糟的就叫做野人(animal)，他們是人面獸心，這意思是指他們像野獸一樣沒有羞恥心，也就是說，這些人根本不受教化以提升自己的心靈質地。

As for human beings, it refers to those that try to control their minds, their minds are superior, they have more wisdom than ordinary people, they developed their minds high enough to shift to the level of human being.

至于所謂的人類(human being)，是指那些有在試著調伏自心的人，他們心靈質地較為好，比凡夫更有智慧，他們發展出高尚的心靈，因此提升至人類的層次。

Ghosts are those that speak and do what is bad. They are called ghosts, even monks and novices who are ordained are the same ; when they don’t obey and recognize the Dhamma and discipline, they also, can be called ghosts. Ghost here refers to the state of wickedness, not to a self. And so, some people have the appearance of a man or woman but in the mind there is a ghost. If anybody shifts up to the level of human being, one should recognize ghosts and not be afraid of them. If anybody is still afraid of ghosts, that person is just an ordinary man or woman. Ghosts have to live with ghosts, people cannot live with ghosts ; so people with an inferior mind are ghosts.

所謂鬼是指那些說壞話、做惡事的人，即使是和尚或沙彌也一樣，如果他們不遵守或不認識正法及戒律，他們也一樣可以叫做鬼。鬼，在這里是指邪惡的心態，而不是指某一種個體。所以，某些人雖然有人的外貌，但他內心卻像鬼一樣邪惡。如果任何人能提升心靈質地到人類的層次，就可以認識鬼而不怕他們，而如果有人還會怕鬼，那這個人就只是個凡夫。鬼只能跟鬼(心)在一起，人是不能和鬼(心)在一塊的；所以，一個擁有一顆卑劣之心的人，他不是人而是鬼。

At one time, they invited me to open a meditation retreat at a charnelground-monastery. They burned and buried dead people there. Sometimes a body wouldn’t burn completely and they would bury the remains. If it was a child, they would just bury it. Dogs never have been afraid of corpses or ghosts, they would dig up the buried corpses to eat. This shows that dogs are not afraid of charnelgrounds, not afraid of the dark. So if people are still afraid of ghosts, I understand their minds to be lower than that of a dog, because dogs are never afraid of ghosts ; they never look for an auspicious day, they are not worried what is a good day and what is not. Wherever they go, they just go. They lie down whenever they want, no need to wait for a lucky omen. People who are fearful, wherever they go, they have to figure out an auspicious time ; this shows that their minds are not as good as that of a dog. When speaking the truth like this, people don’t like it, but not speaking the truth is called deceiving people. If one is a human being, one doesn’t have to fear ghosts or angels.

有一次，有人邀我到一間地下納骨塔寺主持禪修，那里是火化及埋葬死人的地方，有時候，尸體沒有完全火化，他們就把剩下的那些埋起來；而如果是個小孩，他們燒都不燒就直接把他給埋了。一般人會害怕這種地方，但是狗從來就不怕尸體或鬼，牠們會把埋葬的尸體挖出來吃，這說明了一點，狗不怕墳場也不怕黑暗，所以如果有人還會怕鬼，我認為他們的心還不如一只狗，因為狗並不怕鬼，牠們也絕不會去挑一個黃道吉日，牠們不會擔心哪天是吉日哪天不是，他們想去哪兒就去哪兒，想怎麼躺就怎麼躺，不需要等什麼良辰吉兆。但是怕鬼的人，不管要去哪里，他都一定要算出個吉時，這就表明了他們的心還不如一只狗，如果一個人是個人類，那他就不必害怕鬼神。像這樣講真話，沒人喜歡聽，但是不講真話那就叫做騙子了。