Master Ji Qun's Beliefs and Superstitions

Introduction: At the beginning of the new year, a teahouse named "Xiyuan Tea" quietly opened in saionji, Suzhou. Teahouse is located at the edge of saionji Free Life Pool, which is located in the four halls of its important garden landscape. Rocky, dense trees, winter snow, spring flowers, summer rain and autumn insects, sit down, or pick up a pen to copy scriptures, or listen to quaint music for a while. The bookmark on the desk has the words "going to taste tea" inscribed by Master Ji Qun, and this famous Zen case-solving also adds Zen meaning to the "West Garden Tea Event". In the warm teahouse in winter, we burn incense and wash cups and feel the artistic conception of "tea Zen blindly" Before the interview, Zen wisdom has been so indifferent to people's every move. ...

1, you once said that if China people have no special beliefs, the recognition of traditional beliefs is Buddhism. Many customs around the Spring Festival in China just verified this statement, such as Laba, which just passed. Could you please tell us the true meaning of Laba in detail?

Master Ji Qun: Laba is an important part of China and a Buddhist folklore, especially in the south of the Yangtze River. On that day, many temples will offer Laba porridge to Buddha and distribute it to the public. People will also come to the temple to worship Buddha, burn incense and drink porridge on this day. Judging from the current situation, most people's interest in Laba porridge lies in keeping safe, increasing happiness and seeking good luck. Of course, there is nothing wrong with this, but we must know that Laba Festival also contains a deeper meaning.

The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month is the enlightenment day of Buddha Sakyamuni, and the temple cooks Laba porridge on this day to commemorate the Buddha's hardships and finally enlightenment. Unfortunately, later generations gradually forgot the original intention of this festival, so it is necessary to guide people to know the Buddha through such an opportunity. Therefore, during this year's Laba, Siangji held a series of activities with the theme of "Understanding the Buddha and Commemorating the Buddha". I hope you can take this opportunity to get close to the Buddha and the enlightened people who realized enlightenment more than 2,500 years ago.

Before becoming a monk, the Buddha was a prince of Pure Rice named Siddhartha. Like thousands of ordinary people in the world, he has all kinds of puzzles and troubles, and he is confused and afraid of birth, illness and death. In the end, he chose practice to explore the answer and value of life. His practice and enlightenment represent the process from worry to liberation, and also the sublimation from ordinary people to sages. When we commemorate the Buddha, the key is to realize the significance of the Buddha's life of seeking and achieving Tao to each of us. He found a way for us to confuse all beings.

2. The theory that "Buddha is also a human being" you mentioned will be somewhat novel to many people who don't know much about religious beliefs, because traditionally, the goal of religion is to point to a "god". Doesn't Buddhism make us "believe in God"?

Master Ji Qun: From the perspective of religious belief, the general religion will establish the worship of the dominant God and be redeemed through the belief in God. From the Buddhist point of view, it is our own behavior that determines the development of life. Buddha discovered through practice that every life has the potential power of self-liberation and consciousness, that is, Buddha nature. Therefore, in the eyes of Buddhists who believe in Buddhism, the Buddha is not an ordinary god, but an awakened person, a discoverer of truth, a saint with great compassion, and a guide to pass on the experience of monasticism to us.

When the Buddha became a monk, someone asked him, "Are you a God? He replied: "I am not, I am an awakened person. The word "Buddha" means "Awakened". Before he realized it, he was a man with all kinds of puzzles, just like us. Of course, the practice of Buddha is not only in this life, but also the accumulation of many hardships. It is precisely because of this profound wisdom that he was deeply touched when he saw the pain of birth, illness, death and illness, and resolutely put down his status as a prince to seek liberation and truth as his life goal. This is the difference between him and ordinary people.

The Buddha's experience has brought hope to thousands of lives in Qian Qian, and let us know that everyone has the potential of consciousness. Although every life has its confusion and troubles, there is also hope of liberation.

When it comes to faith, people often associate it with superstition. Even think of fortune telling, fortune telling and the like, which is usually criticized as superstition. So what is superstition?

Master Ji Qun: I am very confused and confused. Faith means believing and obeying. Superstition is blind belief and worship. In other words, any belief that cannot lead people to consciousness, wisdom and truth can be called superstition. From the perspective of the object of belief, if the object itself is still in a delusional state, then the letter based on it is naturally illusory. Usually, we always think that superstition exists only in religious beliefs. In fact, we often fall into superstition without knowing it. For example, people who are greedy for money are money fans, and people who love watching plays are drama fans. Similar examples are too numerous to mention.

From our own point of view, if we are extremely persistent about something, it will also lead to superstitious behavior. Such as fortune telling and fortune telling, can be regarded as a part of China traditional culture, but it is not necessarily nonsense. Because fate does have certain rules to follow, that is, what Buddhists say is "love is like fruit." However, the origin of life is difficult to know, and it also contains many uncertain factors that can be transformed. If we believe in fortune telling and fortune telling too much and think that fate must be like this, we will become mechanical fatalists.

Buddhism aims at pursuing consciousness and wisdom, and it is a belief in wisdom. The purpose of learning Buddhism is to help us open our inner wisdom and relieve everyone's inner confusion, trouble and persistence. In this sense, what Buddhism should do is to get rid of superstition and emancipate the mind.

In such a special festive atmosphere, you will also see many people burn incense, worship Buddha, beg for worship, offer some fruits, and then make many demands on Bodhisattva. How to understand this problem?

Master Ji Qun: We should first understand these phenomena, instead of treating them with a cynical attitude. As ordinary people, it is reasonable to hope for health, peace, wealth and a better life. It can't be realized in real life, so it is understandable to put forward the Great Compassion Bodhisattva out of trust in the Bodhisattva. If you have enough confidence in the Bodhisattva and sincerely pray for it, and your wishes are reasonable, the Bodhisattva will naturally be merciful. But we should know that the real function of Buddhism is not only here, but also to help us change the inner quality of life. By studying Buddhism, you can know the truth of life and the truth of the world. Through understanding, gradually change the concept, adjust the mentality, and finally open wisdom, get rid of troubles, and complete the complete improvement of life. This is the true meaning of Buddhism in the world.