何謂「內功」與「外功」

何謂「內功」與「外功」

II. What are ” Cultivate internal virtues and external merits”?

 

一、內功：即是修道，就是內心與行為修持的功夫。舉凡

 

去私慾、存天理、改毛病去脾氣、修煉三寶心法、轉十惡

 

為十善等等都是。所謂「十惡」，即是心有三惡(貪、嗔、

 

痴)，口有四惡(妄言、惡口、綺語、兩舌)，身有三惡(偷

 

盜、殺生、邪淫)。吾人修道就是正知正見的實踐，避免造

 

惡因，自不用受苦；生活合乎道，人生自然幸福；啟發良

 

知良能，終能恢復本來面目。

1.   Internal virtues:

Internal virtues means cultivate Dao. It is a process to cultivate our minds. We refine bad temper and remove bad habits as well as selfish desires; furthermore, we polish the heart dharma of the Three Treasures and convert ten wickedness to ten perfections in order to reach heavenly truth.

Ten wickedness can be divided as follows:

A. Three wickedness of heart: greed, anger and stubborn/foolishness.

B. Four wickedness of utterance: lie, gossip, abusive language (talks), and double-tongue.

C. Three wickedness of body: kill, steal and be lecherous/adultery.

We cultivators should practice with true understanding and insight, so that we are able to keep from evil causes and sufferings. Our lives will be happy naturally if we behave on the basis of Dao, similarly (equally), we will recover our true nature if our conscience is inspired.

 

二、外功：即是辦道，就是利益眾生的言行或活動。舉凡

 

修橋鋪路、賑災濟急、助印善書、佛堂幫辦、渡化親友、

 

開荒闡道等都是外功。而外功可分為三類：財施、法施、

 

無畏施。「財施」是以財物幫助眾生，或資助「道務活

 

動」，當以量力而為為宜；「法施」是以語言文字鼓勵成

 

全眾生，啟發眾生的智慧，引導其修道辦道，功德最不可

 

思議；「無畏施」是以親身的參與使眾生免於恐懼，幫辦

 

道務活動、以利他人學道修道。然而布施出去的恩惠能不

 

惦記在心裡，就叫做「無為布施」，此為行功立德最高超

 

的理念。

2.   External merits:

Propagate Dao. We devote ourselves to activities or performances that benefit the public, such as contributing efforts and money to those who are in need, publishing holy books, bringing friends or family to receive Dao or joining Temples affairs, etc. External merits can be parted into three sorts: Financial contribution, Truth sharing and voluntary contribution. Financial contribution is offered to serve people and assist Dao affairs/activities, and it is better depending on respective financial ability. Truth sharing is to share our understanding of Dao with our friends, relatives and colleagues at any time and any where, and we also give Truth sharing to inspire people’s wisdom guiding them to propagate Dao. Voluntary contribution means to be a volunteer and get close to people around us in person to take care of them and release them from fear for life, so that they cultivate Dao and inspire others. The assistance we give should not be clouding our minds. We practice sincerely without attachment, and this is the ultimate purpose to accumulate virtues and merits.