佛法双语工作坊经典连载：佛说四十二章经第31章

法师讲解：31 心寂欲除

Commentary: A tranquil mind dispels lust

To change our behavior, we must tackle it through our mind. If we only concentrate our efforts on the external environment, it will be like suppressing weeds with rocks; we are only treating symptoms and not the root cause. Our bad habitual tendency is the result of repeated impressions occurred from the beginningless past. For every encounter that we have, a karma-seed will be stored in our Eighth Consciousness or Alaya-Consciousness. With the lapse of time, our bad habitual tendency will be shaped. When these karma-seeds are exposed to a certain favorable external environment, they may become activated and thus create more unwholesome deeds. 

我们要改变行为，必须从心下手，如果只是在外境下功夫，那就好比用石头把野草压着，治标不治本。我们的习气都是经过无始以来不断熏习，所产生的结果。我们的每一次经历，都会在阿赖耶识里留下业的种子，久而久之就形成了习气。当这些种子接触到适当外境便有可能被激活，继而再造业。

For example, a person who likes fishing will have a lot of karma-seeds of fishing stored in his Alaya-Consciousness. In his future lives he will still like fishing. If he stays in the urban area, there is no opportunity for fishing, so the karma-seeds will remain dormant. But when he goes to the coast, his karma-seeds of fishing will be activated, and he will naturally go fishing. In that case we will say that his karma-seeds of fishing manifest. Here karma-seeds are the cause, their manifestation is the consequence, and the environment is the condition needed. When the existing karma-seeds manifest, they will in turn promote the formation of more karma-seeds, and thus enhance the fishing habit.   

例如一个经常钓鱼的人，就会在阿赖耶识里种下很多钓鱼的种子，以后生他还是会喜欢钓鱼。若他平时住在城市没有机会钓鱼，这些种子会处于休眠状态，但当他去到海边，受到外缘刺激，爱钓鱼的业种习气就会被唤醒，他自然就会去钓鱼，那我们说他钓鱼的种子起现行，萌芽了。种子是因，现行是果，外缘是诱因。当现在的种子起现行时，又会熏习更多新的种子，更加巩固他爱钓鱼的习气。

Therefore, whenever the karma-seeds manifest, we should switch our mind immediately to avoid developing more karmic causes. When the first instance of unwholesome thought pops up, we can only respond involuntarily as though it is a reflex action. But when the second instance of thought pops up, we can try to tackle it, for example, by chanting the name of Buddha, contemplating the Three Jewels, or by relying on the strength of the discipline so that the growth of karma-seeds can be halted.  

所以每当种子起现行时，我们应当马上转念，免得种下新的业因。当第一念起时，我们就像自然反应一样，无法自持。但第二念起时，我们可以想办法对治它，例如念佛、忆念三宝、或借助持戒的力量等，阻止业种不断增长。

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