What is good? What is true goodness?

⑴The identification of goodness can be explained in detail. Then goodness can be true or false. There is a beginning and a song. There is yin and yang. There is right and wrong. There is bias and there is right. Half full. Some are big and some are small. There are difficulties and there are easy ones. All should be discerned deeply. Do good without being unreasonable. Then it is called conduct and uphold. Do you know how to commit evil? All the hard work was in vain. Useless. The most important thing in practicing kindness is to be sincere and ask for nothing. This is true kindness. Conditional goodness is not only not good, but also creates evil. For example, many people in our world, especially Buddhists, do not understand the Buddha’s teachings on how to eliminate delusions and attachments. They come to Buddhist temples to burn incense and worship because they have something to ask for. If they don’t ask for anything, they will have nothing to do. Don’t go to the Three Treasures Hall." He makes a wish, burns incense and worships in front of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, asking for their blessings. After achieving his goal, he will return his vows and make offerings - negotiate terms and who should the Buddha and Bodhisattva be! Not only are you dishonest, but you also regard Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as the shield of evil forces. Isn’t it a sin? Zhi Li's father is an honorable man, and the prisoner's behavior is tantamount to treating him as a villain. Zhi Li's father was not angry but still helped him. It was really difficult among difficulties! Therefore, the retribution he received was deserved. I gave ten examples before, but now let’s talk about the truth; that is, you must know the things and reasons for accumulating good deeds. Let’s talk about truth and falsehood first – what is truth and goodness? What is hypocrisy? What is true and false. There were several generations of Confucian scholars in the past. Pay a visit to Monk Zhongfeng. "Monk Zhongfeng" was from the Yuan Dynasty, and we should be quite familiar with him, because the "Three Seasons of Thoughts" that we often pray to was edited by monk Zhongfeng. This is a method that specializes in pure land cultivation. At that time, some scholars went to visit Zen Master Zhongfeng. Asked. Buddha on the retribution of good and evil. Like a shadow. Someone is good today. But the descendants are not prosperous. Someone is evil. And the family is prosperous. What the Buddha said is nonsense. Buddhists often say, and Taoists also say: "Retribution of cause and effect is not satisfactory at all." They say, "Someone is good today, but his descendants are not prosperous." This is talking about the current world, and the descendants of good people in the present are not good; "Someone is evil, but his family's descendants are not good." "Prosperity", evil people's "family prosperity". They said: 'What the Buddha said is nonsense! ’ The consequences taught by Buddhism are inconsistent with the facts. Let me ask Zen Master Zhongfeng for advice on this question. Zhongfeng Yun. All emotions are not cleansed. The eyes are not opened. Recognize good as evil. Referring to evil as good. Often there is. Most people are ordinary people with naked eyes - you have worldly sentiments and your heart is not pure; you just have a lot of delusions and attachments, you don't have the eyes of wisdom, and you can't see the truth. "Considering good as evil and pointing out evil as good", good and evil are reversed, which is called confusion and confusion. "There are often such people." Not only do such people exist in the world, but there are also many of them. The Zen Master was polite and didn’t say much, just that there were such people. Don't regret that your right and wrong are reversed. But the retribution for complaining against Heaven should be different. Everyone said. How can good and evil be opposites? He doesn't know how to reflect on his own and doesn't distinguish right from wrong. Instead, he blames others and says God's retribution is unfair. The crowd said: 'How can good and evil be opposites? 'The world is so charming, why do we regard good as evil and evil as good? Zhongfeng ordered me to describe its appearance. One person said that it is evil for strangers to beat others. It is good to show respect to others. Master Zhongfeng asked them to speak for themselves. One person would say, "It is evil to insult others and beat them up"; it is evil to beat and curse others; "It is good to respect others and be polite to them". This is what the students themselves said, and here is their standard of good and evil—swearing and hitting others is evil, and being respectful and polite to others is good. Zhongfeng Yun. Not necessarily. One person said that greed for money is evil. It is good to be honest and disciplined. Zhongfeng Yun. Not necessarily. Everyone said it was like this, and Zhongfeng said it was not the case. Please ask. Zen Master Zhongfeng said: "Your standards are unreliable." Another person said: "It is evil to be greedy for money, but it is good to be honest and disciplined." 'Taking bribes and bending the law is evil, while an honest, disciplined and promising official is a good official. Zen Master Zhongfeng said: "It's not inevitable." ’ ‘Everyone has said this, and most of them say it’s not the case.’ None of these standard Zen masters agree. "Because," everyone asked the old monk, "If you don't agree with our standards, tell us your standards." ⑵The definition of goodness is told by Zhongfeng. It is good to benefit people. It is evil to benefit oneself. Beneficial to people. Then beating people and killing people is a good thing. Benefit yourself. Then it is evil to treat others with courtesy. This is the standard taught by Buddhism. "It is good to hit others and scold them if it is beneficial to others." Beating him and scolding him are both good things. "If it is beneficial to oneself, then respecting others and being courteous to others is bad." This is what is meant by deliberately trying to please, flatter, and flatter others. This is the good deeds of an old friend. Those who benefit others are fair. The public principle is true. Self-interested people are selfish. Private is false. This leads to a true standard, which is to intentionally benefit the general public and benefit all sentient beings. This is goodness. For the benefit of everyone, you have to get a fair reward. This is good mixed with evil - good is not pure. Let’s talk about true goodness and hypocritical goodness first, and then talk about perfect goodness and incomplete goodness mixed together; some are half-full, some are perfect, some are pure, and some are mixed, we must understand them clearly.

Therefore, Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and sages in the world do not think of themselves, but only benefit everyone. That is true and good, and that is perfect goodness. People in the world, let’s not talk about others, we talk about Fan Zhongyan. Fan Zhongyan's good deeds and accumulation of good deeds are truth and perfection, and he is a good example for us. He never thought about himself, nor did he plan for his children. He only cared about benefiting the country and society, and even forgot about his own wealth. When we read his biography, he accumulated good deeds himself, his whole family accumulated good deeds, and his descendants all knew how to do good deeds. He became prime minister himself. Among his five sons, two have been prime ministers and one has been a censor. I can't afford a coffin when I die. Where does the money go? All of it was used for social welfare. Therefore, Master Yinguang praised him and said that his virtue was second only to Confucius. His family remained intact for eight hundred years until the early years of the Republic of China. His children and grandchildren were all good, and they had accumulated a lot of virtue. We do good deeds today and use one or two percent of our strength to do good deeds. We already feel that we are good people! And you have to give up even ten thousand things in return! Everyone comes to Buddhist temples to burn incense and give alms. Why? This is the biggest profit - a huge profit. So I come to Buddhism to burn incense and worship Buddha, thinking that this is a hugely profitable business (give one dollar today, and I will win ten thousand yuan in a lottery ticket tomorrow). With this mentality, I go to Buddhism to give alms and practice good deeds, and I am not wronged! They regard Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as no better than villains. So when many people come to Buddhism, you see that they are very devout in worshiping and chanting Buddha - but they themselves are not good, and their family and future generations are not good. This is the real reason. It seems that he does not intentionally regard the Buddha and Bodhisattva as a bad person or a person who accepts bribes, but he has this mentality intentionally or unintentionally. Although it is not obvious, he still has this mentality. This is a huge mistake! When we work in the public sector, we have to ask for favors and give red envelopes. Therefore, when dealing with Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, we also give red envelopes. Those who accept entrustments are not good people. If Buddhas and Bodhisattvas accept red envelopes and bribes, they are not good people either. This crime is serious. ! And the one who is rooted in the heart is true. The attackers are fake. And doing something without doing anything is true. Those who do something promising are fake. All should be self-study. The "root heart" comes from sincerity, which is "truth and kindness"; when we do what others do, it is not from the sincerity, which is "hypocrisy". "Inaction" means no hope, and good without hope is true goodness; doing good while asking for it is not true goodness, it is "doing something". ‘Everyone should examine themselves’, you have to consider yourself. What is truth and goodness? What is hypocrisy? We must distinguish from the heart to know whether we are doing good deeds. Greed for money and reckless acquisition are evil, but Zen Master Zhongfeng said, "It is not inevitable." If the acquisition is for the purpose of doing good deeds and benefiting sentient beings, this is also good and cannot be regarded as evil. Frequently, some fellow practitioners who are doing business come to me and say, "They cannot abide by the five precepts of not lying; because they lie every day in business, hoping to deceive the money from other people's wallets into their own wallets. What should they do if they don't lie?" Business?" I said, "It's not impossible to truly practice the Bodhisattva way." Modern people, if you try to persuade them to do good deeds, they won't do it; if you try to trick them, they will. What's the problem? Do we have the bodhisattva mind within ourselves? If you use this method (of course it is an extraordinary method) to defraud his money and do good deeds for him, you are practicing the Bodhisattva way; if you defraud his money for your own enjoyment, it is evil. Ordinary people don't know how to do good deeds or do good deeds. It's a good thing that we do good deeds for them and cultivate blessings for them. So just looking at the surface, it is indeed difficult to distinguish between good and evil. Good and evil are in the heart - to accumulate great good deeds and achieve great achievements must be cultivated from the heart. In particular, the Great Bodhisattva does not show any signs of appearance and does not pay attention to details. He is purely interested in benefiting people and benefiting the world, so his views are indeed different from ordinary people. What is Duanqu? Nowadays people see people who are sincere. Kindly call it good and take it. 'Duan' means dignified and upright, and 'qu' means tactful. "Nowadays, when people see people who are sincere, they will be called good and take them." If they see someone who obeys orders and is respectful and obedient - this person is a good person. Nowadays, generally those who are in power and want to employ people like to use this kind of people. Why? He is obedient and does as he is told; he thinks he is a good person and likes to use this kind of person. The so-called willingness to use "slaves" means that slaves are obedient, respectful to you all day long, and serve you comfortably. The sage would rather be mad. As for those who are sincere. Although every town is good. But he must be regarded as a thief of virtue. It is the good and evil of the world. Clearly the opposite of a saint. The great sages and great sages do not employ people according to their hometown wishes or sincere wishes. A person who is willing to live in his hometown is what most people call a good person. Sages use talents, and talents are stubborn, arrogant, and sometimes rude. Why? He has a skill that is worth being proud of, and sometimes he may not be able to follow your wishes; but such a person is capable and can do things. That good old guy (people are good people) can't do things, stick to the rules, and can't do things voluntarily and spontaneously. Therefore, sages 'prefer to be crazy', and crazy people have the courage to make progress and do not stick to trivial matters.

"As for those who are sincere, although they are all good in their hometown, they will be regarded as thieves of virtue." Such good people often do not know the truth and do not distinguish between right and wrong, so they are "thieves of virtue." ‘Virtue’ refers to customs and morals, which are often destroyed by them unknowingly. "The good and evil of the world are clearly opposite to those of the saints." The standards of good and evil of the great saints and great sages are different from the standards of good and evil of the world; even in Buddhism, the standards of good and evil of the Mahayana are different from those of the Hinayana. The Hinayana focuses on things, so the Hinayana people observe the rules very strictly and dare not break them at all; the Mahayana people seem to be informal (The Hinayana people look down on the Mahayana people). The Mahayana precepts are in the mind, and the Hinayana precepts are in the physical appearance. Of the three methods of correction mentioned earlier, Hinayana is about making upward corrections; Mahayana is about making corrections from the heart, which is different. Therefore, the Hinayana is the "people who are sincere in their aspirations", and the Mahayana is the "people who are crazy and stubborn", and their achievements are also different. For example, it seems that the Mahayana does not keep the precepts, but it is not the case - his mind is pure and equal, and the auspicious sign of his death is that he can stand and walk, sit and walk, and not get sick, and the results can be seen. There are indeed many Mahayana practitioners in China throughout the ages who have understood the mind, seen nature, understood life and death, and transcended the three realms! You can see it in "The Biography of Eminent Monks", "The Biography of Divine Monks", "The Biography of Lay Buddhists", and "The Biography of Good Women". "Biography of Good Women" is dedicated to recording the spiritual achievements of laywomen. Therefore, Hinayana does not understand Mahayana because the standards of right, wrong, good, and evil are different. Push this end. All kinds of trade-offs. Nothing is wrong. The blessings, good and misfortunes of heaven and earth, ghosts and gods. They are all the same as the saints. Instead of making choices with the world. This is true goodness and hypocrisy. We can clearly distinguish between it. The standards of heaven, earth, ghosts, gods and saints are the same, not the standards of the secular world. Why? Because the intentions and views of heaven, earth, ghosts, gods and saints are the same. Anyone who wants to accumulate good deeds. Never favor your eyes and ears. But from the hidden source of the heart. Wash in silence. It is Duan who has a pure heart to help the world. If you have even the slightest bit of love for the world, it will be a song. Pure love for others is the best. The slightest bit of cynicism is music. It is a matter of pure respect for others. The slightest hint of cynicism is music. All should be carefully distinguished. We must truly resolve to stop all evil and practice all good. When you decide to save yourself, first of all, you must not be partial to your ears and eyes, that is, you must not be greedy for the five desires and six objects, and you must take it lightly. The five desires and six dusts cannot be ignored, and your selfishness cannot be eradicated! The consciousness of selfishness is the root of evil karma, and all the good things done from the evil roots become evil. This is why Monk Zhongfeng disagrees with the good things people in the world talk about; the root of the disagreement is that you still have selfish motives. All good deeds done selfishly are in the hope of gaining selfish benefits, and this good is not true or pure. Therefore, we must first look down on the five desires and six objects, and then gradually give them up without being disturbed by the five desires and six objects. Only in this way can we start from the "hidden place of the mind" - the place where no one can see and where thoughts are moved. Be aware. "Wash silently", "washing" means washing the heart. It is also said in the "Infinite Life Sutra" that it is easy to cleanse the mind. "Easy" means to change, to change - to change our previous bad behavior. Only when the mind is clean and bright can we be full of wisdom! "The pure intention to help the world is the principle." There is only one thought and one heart, benefiting all living beings and helping all living beings; helping him to understand the truth, helping him to break through confusion and become enlightened. As long as he understands the truth and becomes enlightened, he will naturally know how to stop evil and practice good deeds. Therefore, the greatest merit of Buddhism in the world is to help people understand the truth of the universe and life. You have all recognized that, which of the ten Dharma Realms you want to take, you can do whatever you want. The Buddha will not interfere, and the Buddha will not force you. The Buddha does not say that "Buddha" is good, and you all become Buddhas. The Buddha has no such request! The Buddha wants you to become a Buddha, but he will never force you to do so. If you want to be a human being in the next life, the Buddha will teach you the principles of being a human being; if you want to go to the three evil realms, then engage in greed, hatred, and ignorance and go to the three evil realms. Buddha will not hinder us, nor will he help us. Buddha only teaches people to break through confusion and become enlightened. This is innocence, so this is called ‘Duan’. "If you have even the slightest hint of flattery, it's a song." "Mei", to put it simply, means the desire to please the masses and gain fame and fortune in the world; it means using unfair means for the purpose of seeking fame, fame and fortune. . All the good deeds and good deeds he did were "crooks", not rules. "A pure respect for others is a sign of integrity; a trace of cynicism is a sign of crookedness, and all should be carefully discerned." The attitude towards life should be cautious, and caution means prudence. You must treat people, objects, and things with a cautious and respectful attitude. Cynism is wrong and you must clearly distinguish it. What is yin and yang. Anyone who does good will know it. It is Yang Shan. Do good but people don’t know it. It is Yin virtue. ‘What is yin and yang? ’ This one is also very important. Ancient sages and sages all told us to accumulate Yin virtue. What is Yin virtue?