阿迦曼尊者：建塔的功德来自你的心意和努力..而非宝塔本身。

谷成

摘自：

1. 英译本：《Venerable Acariya Mun Bhuridatta Thera - Spiritual  Biography》by Acariya Maha Boowa Nanasampanno, page 238-242.
2. 中译本：《尊者阿迦曼传》

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"The value you obtain from building a stupa is the merit that you gain from this action...not bricks and mortar."（建塔的功德来自你的心意和努力..而非宝塔本身。）————Acariya Mun Bhuridatta Thera

好几个晚上，当他在禅思的时候，尊者阿迦曼在他的禅境里看到一个小沙弥和一个女孩子，在附近前後走来走去，不能确定他们有什麽用意，他後来问他们要做什麽？他们回答说他们曾经做过一个宝塔，但是在尚未完成以前，他们就已经死了。小沙弥就是那个女孩子的弟弟。他们都深情地执着以前的计画，那就是为什麽他们一直在那个地区附近徘徊了那麽久。他们事实上并没有其它深切的痛苦而是被自己的执着所折磨着，因此才阻碍着他们生到一个较高的境界。

Once while he was meditating, deep in the Chiang Mai mountains, Ãcariya Mun saw a vision of a woman and a small novice walking back and forth through the area, nearly every night in the late hours. Becoming suspicious after a while, he asked why they were there. They told him that they were worried about the fate of an unfinished stupa which they were building together when they died. The small novice was the woman’s younger brother, and they had worked together to construct the stupa. Their concern about the stupa and their regrets at having died before its completion made them feel a strong, persistent obligation to it. Although reborn into a state of anxiety, they were not as tormented by it as might be expected. Still, they could not feel decisive about being reborn into another realm of existence.

知道了这些，尊者阿迦曼给他们说法：「忧虑从前是没有用的，它已经过去了，而且是无法挽回了，无论我们的希望是多麽热切，它都不能成为现在。流连过去只会产生沮丧和失望，未来也是一样，两者都要如实顺其自然。只有现在才是必须善加运用的，因为它才是在我们所能做的能力范围之内。这个真理应该也适用於宝塔的建 上，」他说：「如果它能够顺应你们的希望，你们早就能够完成了。事实是在它完成以前你们就死了，这就向你们显示了它的不可能性。现在你们被自己的遗憾所困扰着，遗憾你们死在它被完成以前。这是你们的第二个错误。而你们时时刻刻的忧虑着它，不顾绝不能完成的事实而想要完成它，这是你们的第叁个错误，这叁重错误的想法，在这里没完没了。结果，它产生了错误的出生和无益的痛苦。所有这些都缘自你们错误的心态，你们为了自己，要改变这错误的态度，不要对不可能的事再存任何希望，这才是明智的。

So Ãcariya Mun advised them: “You should not be concerned about things that have already come and gone, for they are truly irredeemable.No matter how convinced you may be that you can turn back the clock – it’s just not possible. Anyone supposing they can will experience nothing but frustration when their hopes fail to materialize. The future, having yet to come, shouldn’t be clung to either. What has already happened should be let go of as being past. What has yet to arrive should be let go of as its time is not yet ripe. Only in the present is it possible to accomplish something meaningful. “If your dream of building that stupa were meant to come true, then you would have had a chance to finish it first instead of dying unexpectedly. Now you are trying to deny death. Not only that, you still long to complete the stupa even though it is now wholly impossible. So, now you have erred twice in your thinking. If you continue on hoping to fulfill this wish, you will compound your mistake yet a third time. Not only is your thinking affected by this, but your future state of birth and your well-being in that state will also be adversely affected. Such an unreasonable aspiration should not be allowed to continue.

「建造一个宝塔的目的是要从中得到功德，绝不是要你们随身扛着它的砖块、石头或其它的建材。在建造这个宝塔中，属於你们的是功德（你们善良的思想和努力），而不是宝塔本身。任何从它得到的功德，不论是多或少，都是你们合法的财产。为什麽你们要忧虑关於它的砖块和石头？所有做功德的人携带的是他们的功德，绝不是砖块、石头或其它他们已经赠送出去的东西。就想想建 一座寺院、一条路或一个水塔所奉献的钱财或其它各种东西，那些被用来建 或免费地分配的东西，只是用来彰显功德主之动机的工具而已，东西本身不是功德，不是天界的快乐或涅盘。一段时间之後，它们一定会败坏、腐朽和消失。但是从建或捐赠中所得的功德却保留在那些人们的心里，那是心意（不是砖块、石头或其它的物质）感受着功德、道、果和涅盘。

“In building a stupa, we hope to acquire merit and goodness – not bricks and mortar. The value you obtain from building a stupa is the merit that you gain from this action – merit which results from your efforts and which rightly belongs to you. You shouldn’t worry about gross material things like bricks and mortar that can never fulfill your desires anyway. People everywhere who gain merit by doing good deeds take with them only the merit they’ve thus acquired, not the material things they gave away as donations. For example, contributing to the construction of a monastery, a monk’s residence, an assembly hall, a road, a water tank, a public building, or any other offering of material goods, are simply the outward manifestations of the good intentions of those wishing to be generous. They are not the actual rewards of generosity, meaning that material offerings themselves are not merit or goodness or heaven or Nibbãna, nor are they the recipient of such rewards. For, over time, all material things disintegrate and fall apart.  “The spiritual qualities that are gained from the effort and the generosity required to do charitable works are experienced internally as merit and goodness. The inspiration behind the good intentions to make such donations is the heart of each individual donor. The heart itself is virtuous. The heart itself is meritorious. It is the heart that exists as heaven or magga, phala and Nibbãna, and the heart that achieves these attainments. Nothing else could possibly achieve them.

「再也不能从你们未完成的宝塔那里得到任何东西了。忧虑着它就是执着於它，纵使你们所执着的是一个功德的来源，执着本身就是一种不善的心理状态。结果，你们就被钉在它上面，不能出生到适当的境界去感受你们的功德果报。如果你们能够专注於从宝塔所得的功德，而不是宝塔本身，你们现在就会藉着你们的功德而到达善处，因为这是功德本身的特性，它是永久而且不会改变的。这是你们自己的错误，执着於应该放下的事物。你们的遗憾和忧虑是无益的，因为它们是不可能实现的。

“The unfinished stupa that you two were building lacked the conscious capacity to have good intentions for its own spiritual improvement. Your concern for it stems from a covetous mentality that is a hindrance to you even though it is directed at holding on to something good. Clinging to it is not in your best interest. Your procrastination here is retarding your progress to a favorable rebirth. Instead of trying to take the whole thing with you, had you two been satisfied with the merit you made from working on that stupa, you would both have comfortably gone on to a favorable existence long ago – for merit is the mainstay of
a good rebirth. And merit is never transformed into something bad. It remains virtuous forever – akãliko.

如果你们不被自己的执着所延误的话，你们的功德数量是足以生在一个较好的境界里，现在是你们改变心态求生於适当境界的时候了。为了你们的进升，专注於现在真实的功德吧！那是很可惜的，你们已经为自己的进步做了功德，然而又被自己对砖块和石头的执着所阻碍着。这些事物已经阻碍你们的进展好久一段时间了，让它们走出你们的心里，不久你们就自由了。由於你们的功德效力，你们可望生於任何相应的生存境界。」

“It’s a mistake to be unduly concerned for things past. There is no way you can possibly finish that stupa now, so you shouldn’t set your hearts on such a hopeless endeavor. The power of the merit you have made impacts you here in the present. So, don’t waste your time thinking about the past or the future when now you should be reaping the good results of what you’ve already done. Correct your thinking and soon you will be able to pass on, free of anxiety. Turn your attention to the present. It contains all the virtues necessary for magga, phala, and Nibbãna. The past and the future are impediments you must overcome
without wasting any more time.“I feel really sorry for you two. You’ve done some very meritorious work for the sake of a happy future, only to get so bogged down in your attachment to mere bricks and mortar that you can’t freely move on. If you both make the effort to cut these attachments from your hearts, before long you will be free of all binding ties. The strength of your accumulated merit is ready and waiting to take you to the rebirth of your choice.”

然後尊者阿迦曼跟他们解说五戒，还有遵守五戒的利益：「首先，所有的生物都有他们自己存在的价值和意义；不应做出任何事来伤害或毁灭他们的价值和意义，因为罪恶必将降临杀害者身上。第二，每个人的财产对他自己而言都是珍贵的，虽然在别人看起来它们可能是没有价值的。任何意图要破坏那个所有权，不论用什麽作法，都一定会引起敌意和为了保护那些财产的斗争，一个聪明人不应该这麽做。第叁，一个人的配偶或儿女是他掌上的明珠，这种情感必须予以重视，去引诱他们之中的任何人，等於是把他们所属的人，他或她的眼睛给挖出来。第四，说谎是辜负别人对说谎者的信心。没有人，即使说谎的人或动物，都不欢迎任何虚伪，这要予以避免。第五，酒类本质上是一种麻醉剂，它能使一个人神智失常，它使饮者丧失了意识的自制，那些不想被驱向疯癫和损害身心健康的人，应该避免。  

Ãcariya Mun then explained to them the essential meaning of the five moral precepts, a code of conduct applying equally to all living beings. First: Every living being values its own life, so no one should destroy that intrinsic value by taking someone else’s life. This results in very bad kamma. Second: All beings cherish their own possessions. Even if the don’t appear to have much value, the owner values them nonetheless. Regardless of its worth, nothing belonging to another person should be debased by theft or robbery. For such actions debase not only their possessions, but their hearts as well. Stealing is a terrible act – so never
steal. Third: Husbands and wives, children and grandchildren, all love each other dearly. They do not want to see anyone taking liberties with their loved ones. Their personal rights should be respected and their private space should be off limits to others. Spousal infringement is extremely damaging to people’s hearts, and as such is an act of incalculable evil. Fourth: Lies and prevarication destroy other people’s trust, causing them to lose all respect. Even animals abhor deceit, so one should never hurt others by using false, deceitful language. Fifth: Alcohol is by its very nature intoxicating and immensely harmful. Drinking it can cause a perfectly normal person to go crazy and steadily waste away. Anyone wishing to remain a normal, sane human being should refrain from drinking any form of liquor because it damages physical and mental health, eventually destroying people and everyone else around them.

「持守五戒的利益如下：１长寿健康，２财富安稳，３快乐而和谐的家庭生活，４在别人的眼中是永远可靠和值得信任的，获得信赖尊敬，为天神和人们所喜爱，无害於自己和别人。５具备智慧，不会心不在焉。

Each of these five moral precepts has its own special benefits. By maintaining the first one, we can expect to enjoy good health and longevity. By the second, our wealth and property will be safe from criminal attack or other misfortune. By the third, family members will keep faith with each other, and live contentedly without unwanted interference. With the fourth, we will be trusted because of our integrity. When our speech is charming and pleasant, humans and devas alike will respect and cherish us. Honest people pose no threat to themselves or anyone else. And by maintaining the fifth precept, we will be clever, intelligent people who are not easily misguided nor readily thrown into confusion.

「一个持守五戒的人，就是散播快乐和无害的种子给人们和动物们，他不被怀疑，他不诉诸暴力，因为他经常考虑别人的感受，就像他自己的感受一样。一个持守五戒而真实的人，来世一定会进入快乐的境界，因为他由戒德和法义所支持着。这些你们要记在心里，」他说：「不久，藉着你们的功德，你们就会得到应有的庇护了。」

People who maintain moral virtue tend to reassure living beings everywhere by promoting a sense of satisfaction and mutual trust. Immoral people, on the other hand, cause untold suffering by harming people and animals all over the world. Those who value their own existence should understand that all people value themselves similarly, and should, therefore, refrain from harming others in any manner. Due to the supportive, protective power of moral virtue, honest, virtuous people can expect to be reborn into an elevated, heavenly existence. Thus it is vital to maintain high moral standards – the result will surely be a heavenly
destination in the next life. Remember this Dhamma teaching, practice it diligently, and your future prosperity is assured.

说法结束的时候，姊弟都欢喜於法义，并请他授予五戒。他授予五戒满足他们的希求，然後他们离去，立即消失了。由於他们从布施和戒德所获得的功德，他们出生於一个空居天叫做忉利天，而後来偶然地回来听他说法，并表示他们的感激，因为他给了他们有益的忠告。他们说，就是因为他的教导，他们才能从自己的执着中解脱出来—那曾经让他们无用地徘徊於未完成的宝塔。他们现在知道，执着对於心意的开发是多麽危险，它阻碍着一个人的进步，妨碍着他去感受本来应有的快乐与安宁。

By the time Ãcariya Mun finished advising the small novice and his sister, both were delighted by his teaching and requested the five moral precepts from him, which he gave them. Having received the moral precepts, they respectfully took leave of Ãcariya Mun, and immediately vanished. The power of their accumulated merit and the goodness they cultivated from attending to his discourse and taking the five precepts, led the two to be quickly reborn in the Tãvatiÿsa heavenly realm. They then regularly visited Ãcariya Mun to hear his teaching. On their first visit they thanked him for his kind assistance in illuminating the way out of the vicious cycle they were in, allowing them to finally enjoy the pleasure of the heavenly existence they had anticipated for so long. They told him that they now realized the great danger that attachments pose to the heart, and the delay they can cause in moving on to a favorable birth. Having received his compassionate advice, they were able to transcend all their concerns and be reborn in a heavenly realm.

他接着为他们解释，这样的心态对於进步真的是一个很大的障碍。在身体四大分离的时候，一个智者应该照顾他自己的心意，而不是身体或其它的东西。否则心意将会被执着或对外物的恨所笼罩着。愤怒或生气（执着或贪欲的另一方面）不过是自我毁灭的火焰罢了，在危急的时刻，它会把一个人拉进任何一个悲惨的境界里，例如地狱界、饿鬼界、魔界和动物界。这些境界是悲惨的，那里痛苦掌握着一切。那是非常明智的，当一个人有能力这样做的时候，就要训练他的心意，让他在还有时间来自我矫正或自我改善的时候，能够了解他自己的心意作用。在危急的时候，当身体就要分离的时候，已经受过训练和作好准备的心意，就能够，至少若干程度，自己不执着於显现的痛苦；最佳状况下，它会保持一个绝对不执着的观察者，不会被牵涉到世间所有的善恶之中。这是胜过其它所有的修习，至高无上而无以伦比的。

Ãcariya Mun explained the nature of emotional attachments to them, pointing out that they are a hindrance in many different ways. The wise always teach us that at the moment of death we should be careful not to have emotional attachments to anything whatsoever. The danger is that we may recall, then, an infatuation of some kind, or even worse, angry, revengeful thoughts about a particular person. The moment when the citta is about to leave the physical body is crucial. If at that moment the citta latches on to a pernicious thought, it may get burned and end up being reborn into a realm of misery, such as one of the hells, or a world of demons, ghosts, or animals – all miserable, unfavorable existences. So when we’re in a good position to train the citta – when we are in human birth and fully cognizant of ourselves – we must take decisive advantage of it. As human beings, we can realize our shortcomings and quickly act to correct them, so that, later, when our backs are against the wall – at the time of death – we will be fully prepared to fend for ourselves. We need not be worried about falling prey to the destructive forces of evil.

智者，认清了心意的状态或情况，是叁界中最重要的，所以经常下工夫去训练他们的心意，也劝告别人去做同样的努力。那就是心意，它感受着业果的苦乐，它产生得失，在喜乐和悲惨境界中轮回生死。因此，它是最重要的，所以一个人在现在和未来，都要用正确的方法去对待、训练和守护他自己的心意。

The more we train ourselves to sever all emotional attachments, both good and bad, the better our position will be. The wise know that the heart is the most important thing in the whole universe, for material and spiritual welfare are dependent uponthe heart. So, they make a point of training their hearts in the correct way and then teach others to do the same. We live by means of the heart, and experience contentment and dissatisfaction by means of the heart. When we die, we depart by means of the heart. We are then born again according to our kamma – with the heart as the sole cause. As it is the sole source of everything that befalls us, we should train our hearts in the right way so that we can conduct ourselves properly now and in the future.

姊弟现在是忉利天的天使了，被他的开示深深地感动，说他们以前从未听过这样的法。然後，他们就向他告别，右绕他叁匝，一直倒退到他的住区以外，接着腾入空中，就像棉絮被风吹起。

When Ãcariya Mun finished speaking the newly reborn devas were overjoyed by his teaching. Praising it highly, they said they had never heard anything quite like it before. Upon their departure, they circumambulated him three times, then withdrew to the edge of his living area before floating up into the air like wisps of cotton borne by the wind.

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礼敬阿罗汉，愿以分享此文功德，回向一切众生，回向无上菩提，回向四众和合，回向正法久住。Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu

素还真

最好的知识一般少人看少人顶少人理解。心生种种法生，心灭种种法灭。