摩訶布瓦的智慧雋語(三)

以下的內容都將被雋刻在泰國摩訶布瓦紀念館的石牆上。

英譯者/戒寶尊者

中譯者/喬正一

(1)   ͏  在進行佛教禪修的時候，我們必須倚靠禪定與既定的修行法則來支持我們的精進，進而給予「心」在解脫道上每一階段進步所需的心靈力量。就此而言，心的「戒」與「定」的沃土一直相互運作。當精神的修持獲得了適當的養分，心就會在各方面逐漸變好的過程中收割美好的果實。

(2)    世尊從未說過他可以在別人的修行中獲得成果，任何人都必須透過自己去創造正確的因與緣才能獲得成就。因此，成就的品質取決於此人在修行路上的每一個階段如何正確地栽下正確的因。

(3)    脾氣暴躁易怒或異常冷漠之人都不可靠，而且容易犯錯。他們比火與冰更沒用，因為火與冰至少還可以被充分地利用。處處漠不關心的人往往在工作上不認真；而易怒之人則容易將怒火燒到自己與周遭的人。能想清楚有無耐性的利弊得失而明智地表現出情緒的人，可以做出很多好事；他們不輕易犯錯，或讓他人難過困擾，如此謹言慎行之人都是值得信賴的同伴。

(4)    世尊教導我們要留意自己的缺點，這樣才能迅速地改正。只要我們持續這樣的修行，那麼不管我們遭遇甚麼事情，都可獲內心所需的力量。如果有人指出我們的錯誤，我們都應該要反省，不要覺得自己被冒犯了。這樣，我們才能更清楚地明白我們的錯誤。

(5)    請正確地明白什麼才是人們最渴望的；人們都渴望獲得令人歡喜的財產，以及身心的放鬆與舒適。然而這些東西必須具足以下的因緣:有良好的行為，對自己的職責有熱誠，成為誠實、守法的公民，且要有堅定的宗教原則及成功的四個基礎的模範表現。

(6)    不論世間或出世的學問，每一種學問，都應以自我提升及有尊嚴地做人為目標，因為人們都是透過學問與行為來實現尊嚴。越能學以致用，就越能展現出尊嚴。然而，濫用知識的人比起一般人更墮落，社會大眾對此人都退避三舍，沒有人願意與之來往互動。

(7)    說謊不是好的行為，當有人不斷說謊時，此人就被大家視為騙子或壞人。當整個村落的人都持續說謊，整村的人就會被看成是一個沒有誠信的村莊；當整個城市的人都不誠實，就會被人視為是一個不值得信賴的城市；當整個世界的人都持續說謊，那麼它就是一個充滿詐欺、不可信賴及沒有意義的世界。

(8)    你們應該去做那些自利利他的事，比如說孝敬父母、尊敬師長、護持佛教。當你們進入僧團，就該明白僧團對於世界有多麼地重要，應該依法奉行。當你們路過僧團的道場時，應避免說話太大聲。

(9)    善與惡難免因雜染而有灰色地帶，因此，一心向善的人對於與自身有關的事都必須慎選，不僅對心外的事必須慎選，對心內的一切也一樣。例如，對心中生起的念頭必須慎選，因為心是善與惡的根本原因，而不僅僅是外在的事物。我們總是會注意別人犯的錯，但當我們的身口意出現錯誤時，卻幾乎察覺不到。

(10  尋覓一個真正忠貞的配偶是一件非常不容易的事，這等於將兩個人終生緊緊地給綁在一起展開新的生活。如果夫妻關係和諧，對整個家庭就會產生正面的影響。如果關係破碎，就會傷害整個家庭。接著夫妻彼此相互傷害，包括傷及彼此的親族。

        為了要產生「定」與「慧」的成就，你們就必須付諸行動去實修。如果你們不精進去獲證「定」與「慧」，它們就不會生起，生起與否的關鍵則取決於精進實修的人本身。

(12) 觀智是指對於身心的因緣組合都了了分明。觀智不是指日夜都埋首於禪定的修持，不用靠任何的觀照便能自動生起。如果是這樣的話，那麼即使掌握了禪定，觀智也不會出現，因為「止」與「觀」各自執行不同的任務。禪定的工作是使心靜止下來，而觀智則是全然洞悉身心組合的各個層面。

(13) 你們想追隨佛陀及阿羅漢的足跡嗎?又或者只打算停留在原地?如果你們想追隨佛陀，就要做好準備踏上布施、持戒及禪修之旅，毫無疑問的，這都是佛陀曾走過的路。凡走上這條路的人都有望可超越苦，你們不用浪費時間去理會無意義的抱怨，如果抱怨可以斷除繫縛桎梏，那麼大家老早就可以證得涅槃了。

(14) 因修行而獲得好成就的人都肯定是好孩子、好公民、好老師、好學生、好老闆、好員工。如果每一個人都這樣，那麼世上就只有好人。如果沒有人造惡，那麼世人就可以和睦共處，因為每一個人心中都有法。當大家都能相互慈悲與寬恕，當大家都能彼此關愛並有同理心，那麼這個世界自然就是一片極樂淨土。

(15) 不管你們做甚麼，都要顧及生活中的地位及聲譽，不要讓所想要的東西比自身的品德更貴重，不然，你們會傷到自己。不要去追逐慾望，不然，你們會走向毀滅。丈夫與妻子應該一起快樂的生活，彼此相愛並信任對方，都不該將自己的人生與幸福交託給婚外情的外遇對象，因為這種行為猶如寄生蟲會吸乾他們生命中一切的美好良善，在他們陽壽未盡的時候使他們枯槁。

(16) 請明白觀智就是斷除各種無明煩惱的一種善巧，在引導你們擺脫苦的這一件事上，觀智絕不會使人挫敗。雖然止與觀一致運作，但在不同的時間點上可以用來使修行進步順利。請謹記這項忠告並付諸實踐，不要自鳴得意。

(17) 基本自然法則存在與否並非取決於人們的理解或懷疑，人們對於死後是否有來生，存有諸多不同的看法，但不管他們的看法如何，基本自然法則自身仍持續不變。如果有人清楚地理解了這些自然法則，就不會嘗試去干預它們，因此，它們便再也不能束縛此人。已超越生死輪迴的人不會在這個無常的世界中迷失打轉。

(18) 從佛陀證悟到圓寂，乃至直到今時今日，他的教誨都一再強調行為及其結果的重要性，不管出世或入世的領域皆如此。對於在家人來說，意謂著在日常生活中的一切活動都應遵循正道而行，而果報則是從正行中得到不同程度的心靈回報。

(19) 如果你們想在不失去財富的前提下渴望一個恆久的成就感，就必須成為一個以謀取幸福之道而努力的人。如果你們想成為好人，就必須嚴以律己，且不要冥頑不靈。那麼，你們就可望成為在行為上無可指謫的模範富人。

(20) 好孩子的行為因父母及老師的教誨而受到管束，也就是聽從教導，他遵守了一個好孩子必要的行為準則，不去惹事生非。他與父母、朋友及同伴互動時，表現出誠實與正直。他在學業及其他義務方面都表現認真，過著量入為出節儉的生活，不奢侈或浪費。他對於自身的家庭地位與財富不會表現出驕傲自大或炫富。若能修持上述所有的美德，可使年輕人走上一條康莊及正直的行為之道。

(21) 因為年輕就是珍貴與青春美好之源，所以年輕人在維持自己內心的貞潔，應保持警覺，不應過早發生性關係或任意拋棄自己的貞操，不然的話，會很難找到終生的伴侶。年輕人在社交時應保持自制，相見時應保持正念與謹慎，不應盲目地沉迷於夜生活，自以為有足夠的智慧能捍衛自己的貞操，因為當意志力薄弱時，理智將隨之減弱。一旦失去貞潔，心智亦將趨於不穩，很可能在絕望中心碎，然後像一具腐臭的喪屍一般行屍走肉。年輕人都應該認知模範行為的重要性，如果能遵循這一個忠告，其結果就必將是綿延不斷的幸福與昌盛。

(22) 對於已婚的夫妻來說，維繫家庭是一項倫理的義務，他們應設法使家庭越來越穩固，絕不可任由夫妻之緣遭到破裂或瓦解，應留心不可擊倒婚姻的軀幹與根基，不論配偶的一方其才智或社會地位如何，都不應輕視對方。做丈夫的或做妻子的都不應對婚外情感興趣，因為這會在婚姻中造成無法彌補的破裂。已婚並共築家庭的兩人應非常嚴格地遵守當初對婚姻的誓言，猶如他們的生活依止其上。如果能做到這一點，他們就可以幸福快樂地生活在一起。對於彼此真心相愛的夫妻來說，這才是幸福之道。

(23) 步入中年的人都是閱歷豐富之人，能清楚地辨別是非善惡對錯。當他們面臨生命中各種正面與負面的情況時，自有各種有效的方法來處理。中年人已到了迫切在法中尋覓內心庇護的階段，當他們已準備好擺脫長久以來所背負的重擔時，他們便走到了生命中的這一刻，這樣的人不可能魯莽地去背負重擔，因為他們如今已明白自己的侷限性。

(24) 公務員都應廉潔公正，在執行公務時應誠實與正直。如果他們最終淪為貪腐，將無法實現其預定的目的，那麼在公共領域中的工作將造成混亂。相反的，若公務員能誠信地履行其職務，其結果自然將給大眾帶來極大的改善。貪腐肯定是邪惡的，貪腐之人究竟是聰明或愚笨並不重要，不管貪腐之人是上司或下屬，無論是其父母或孩子，也不管貪腐是公開或秘密進行，不管大家知曉與否，貪腐行為的惡果都肯定直接回到貪腐的人身上，這一項法則支配著一切公民社會的運作。

(25) 心有禪定功夫的人能在生命中找到他所期待的喜樂，然而如果只是斷斷續續的定境，就可能來得快也去得快，容易讓人失望，變成一種不穩定的定境之樂。因為這種定境沒有緊貼著心，所以喜樂無法持久。當定境一退散，喜樂也就轉為不樂。

(26) 請保持你們的心平靜與喜樂，猶如你們一直在佛、法與僧之前。只要你們親近佛陀，魔羅就會一直恐慌。凡使自己的心貼近佛、法、僧的人都會避開危險，因為他們的心在宇宙的中心，對自己或他人都沒有惡意，處於和平安詳的狀態。

(27)慷慨是指施予，與之相對的是接受。自世界初始以來，不肯與他人分享的人都不配繼續活在這個世上。當人類踐行了施與受，兩者便密不可分。惠施為人的生活奠定了良好的基礎，因為它直接改善了人們的生活條件，當我們迴避了每日所從事的布施，無異逐漸侵蝕了人類的生存基礎，也就是無法在這個世上維持生命。

(28) 一切對你們自己與他人造成傷害的念想都是使你們受苦的有害思惟。

(29) 自佛陀時代迄今，佛陀的教法已在佛教的修行者心中奠定了堅穩的基礎，這樣的長久狀態源自於從佛陀的法布施中所體驗到的法味，也就是修持布施、遵守戒律及開展禪修。正法以完整的戒德形式代代相傳到了我們這裡，而這也正是我們體認正確行為的一個重要的基石。

(30)當「止」與「觀」能跟得上與「心」有關的一切生滅事物，「心」便能逐漸擺脫它的執著，循序漸進地超脫世俗的顛倒邪見。當一切的執著都已消失及清除，心便證得了徹底的解脫，也就是盡苦邊。

(31) 八正道直指出超越世俗的中道，當中道在法中能恆久穩固，修行有成之人便已超脫了世俗。與此同時，隨之而來的是與解脫之人有關的一切也都超脫了世俗。比如說，當佛陀還在世的時候，他已徹底超脫了一切的世俗，也就是不再有任何會干擾他的世俗妄念生起。

(32) 有因就有果，比如說，不知如何自制就會導致挫折與苦痛。而之所以如此是因人的善行不能與其惡行相互抵銷，從而使心充滿焦慮。

(33) 不管地獄到底多少層，都沒有任何一層地獄比我們一直準備在各處躁動及不斷犯錯的身口意還要令人苦惱。因為身口意不停地蠢蠢欲動，以致於它們具有遭遇如地獄般經歷的潛能。因此，即便我們身處於人間，仍隨時有可能遭受到極嚴重的苦痛。

(34) 缺少布施、持戒與禪修之人都已忽視了身而為人的最高品質，取而代之的是放任自己去跟隨自己的動物獸性。有道德的善行是人類最適當的行為，切不可冒失地做出傷害自己、家人及國家社會的事，這樣做所造成的後患肯定帶來苦痛，因為佛教說善有善報、惡有惡報，善惡都各有相應的果報。

(35) 人類都必須明白倫理道德的價值，只有畜生才不懂什麼是倫理道德，牠們只知道每天找食物填飽肚子，並在錯誤地找尋快樂當中出於原始本能地相互傷害。

(36) 天界是充滿歡樂幸福的境界，是善良正直之輩所往生之處，他們在世的時候，對一切蒼生都滿懷善意、慈愛與慷慨，不會殘酷無情。他們身心安詳，不論身在何處或做甚麼，看起來都相當喜悅。他們不會對任何人構成危險或威脅，他們的心念與言行都始終保持著正面良善的態度。

(1)   When developing Buddhist practice, we must depend on meditation and the established principles of practice to support our efforts, to give the mind the inner strength that it needs to progress at each step of the path. In this matter, the fertile soil of the precepts and the fertile soil of the mind in meditation always work together in unison. When mental cultivation receives the right nutrients, the mind will reap good results as it gradually changes for the better in all respects.

(2)    The Lord Buddha never said that he could bring about good results in another person’s practice. A person must earn those good results by creating the right causes and conditions to get them. For that reason, the quality of the results will depend on how well one cultivates the right causes at each stage along the path.

(3)    Those people who are either unreasonably hot-tempered or unreasonably coolheaded tend to be unreliable and make mistakes. They are worse than fire and ice – at least fire and ice can be put to good use. Those who are coolheaded to the point of indifference tend to have a lazy work ethic. Those who are hotheaded to the point of anger tend to burn themselves and everyone else around them. Those who display their moods wisely, after having thoroughly considered the advantages of showing patience or impatience according to circumstances, can do a lot of good; they do not easily make mistakes or upset other people. Such circumspect people are trusted companions.

(4)    The Lord Buddha taught that we should keep a watchful eye on our shortcomings so that we can fix them quickly. When we keep this practice up we will gain the inner strength needed to confront whatever comes our way. If someone points out our mistakes, we should reflect internally on them and not take offense at our critics. In that way, we understand our faults more clearly.

(5)    Please understand correctly what people most desire; they desire pleasing possessions and physical and mental ease and comfort. These things flow from having good behavior, from being energetic in one’s duties, and from being an honest, law-abiding citizen with firm religious principles and exemplary conduct based in the four foundations of success.

(6)    Every branch of knowledge, whether knowledge of the world or knowledge of Dhamma, should be studied for the purpose of improving oneself and conducting oneself with dignity, because people achieve dignity through their knowledge and their behavior. The more one conducts oneself in line with what one has learned, the more one’s dignity shines forth. However, one who uses knowledge in the wrong way sinks much lower than the average person until he is shunned by society and no one wants to associate with him.

(7)    Lying is not good behavior. When one lies continuously one is known as a liar and a bad person. When whole villages persist in lying, they are known as dishonest villages; when entire towns persist in lying, they are known as unreliable towns; when the whole world persists in lying, it is known as a fraudulent, faithless and meaningless world.

(8)    You should do those things that are compatible with achieving favorable results for yourself and others. Do the same things that a good child would do toward his parents, or a good student would do toward his teachers, or a good Buddhist would do toward his religion. When you enter a monastery, you should be aware of how valuable the monastery is to the world, and you should conduct yourself accordingly. You should avoid speaking too loudly when walking past the monastery grounds.

(9)    Good and evil are invariably mixed up together. Because of that, someone who desires goodness must be selective in all things he is involved with. Not only does he have to be selective in external matters, he has to be so in internal ones as well. For instance, he has to be selective with the thoughts arising in his mind, because the mind is the root cause of good and evil far more than external things. We are always aware of other people’s faults, but we are hardly ever aware when our own thoughts, speech and actions are at fault.

(10) Finding a true and faithful spouse is not a small matter that is easily accomplished. It is equivalent to putting down roots that will bind two people together to the end of their lives. When a husband and wife’s relationship is good, it affects the whole family in a positive way. If their relationship is broken, the whole family suffers. The husband and wife then become poisonous to each other, including each other’s extended families.

(11) You must put samadhi and wisdom into the practice in order to get their results to arise. If you do not make the effort to attain samadhi and wisdom, they will not arise. The factor which determines whether they arise or not is the person who makes the effort to practice them.

(12) Wisdom means being well-versed in the aggregates of body and mind. Wisdom does not mean engaging in samadhi practices day and night, expecting wisdom to arise on its own without any investigation. When it is like that, even though you may have mastery of samadhi, wisdom will not arise because samadhi and wisdom perform different tasks. Samadhi’s job is to calm the mind; wisdom’s job is to thoroughly comprehend every aspect of the aggregates of body and mind.

(13) Are you going to follow in the footsteps of the Lord Buddha and the Arahants, or simply remain as you are? If you intend to follow the Buddha, prepare for the journey by practicing generosity, moral virtue and meditation, which is without a doubt what made up the road that the Buddha traveled. Whoever walks that road can expect to gradually transcend suffering. You don’t have to waste your time with useless complaints. If complaining was really beneficial for cutting off the fetters, we all would have attained Nibbana long ago.

(14) Those who practice Dhamma until they get the right results will invariably be good children, good citizens, good teachers, good students, good employers, and good workers. Were everyone to do this, there would be nothing but good people in the world. When nobody behaves badly, the whole population lives together in harmony because everyone has Dhamma in their hearts. When people sympathize with and forgive each other, when they love each other and feel compassion for one another, the world is naturally a happy place.

(15) Whatever you do, always reflect on your position in life and on your good reputation. Don’t let the things that you desire have more value than your own virtue; otherwise, you will do harm to yourself. Don’t run headlong after your desires; otherwise, you will come to ruin. Husbands and wives should be happy together and love and entrust their lives to each other. They should not entrust their lives and happiness to extramarital affairs which act like parasites sucking all the goodness from their lives, and leaving them dead while still alive.

(16) Please understand that wisdom is the faculty that uproots every kind of kilesa. Wisdom will never disappoint in leading you beyond suffering. Although samadhi and wisdom work in unison, they are used at different times to make the practice progress smoothly. Please remember this advice and put it into practice without being complacent.

(17) Basic natural principles do not exist dependent on one’s understanding or one’s doubts. People have many different opinions about whether there is life after death or not. Regardless of their opinions, natural principles themselves remain constant. When someone clearly understands those natural principles, he makes no attempt to interfere with them. Therefore, theycan never constrain that individual again. Those who have transcended the cycle of birth and death no longer spin around in the world of constant change. 

(18) From the day the Buddha attained Enlightenment to the day he passed away and continuing down to the present day, his teaching always stressed the importance of actions and their results, both in worldly matters and in matters of Dhamma. For lay people, that means following the righteous path of action in all their daily activities. The results are the various degrees of spiritual rewards they receive from their righteous deeds.

(19) If you desire a lasting sense of fulfillment without loss of fortune, you must be a person who acts diligently in ways that give rise to happiness. If you desire to be a good person, you must discipline yourself well and not be stubborn. Then you can expect to be a person of wealth with blameless and exemplary behavior.

(20) A good child’s conduct is governed by the advice of his parents and his teachers, which he follows obediently. He abides by the rules of behavior required of a good child. He does not go looking for trouble. He is honest and upright in his dealings with his parents and his friends and peers. He is conscientious in his studies and in his other duties. He lives modestly within his means without being extravagant or wasteful. He is not arrogant or conceited about the social status or wealth of his family. Practicing all the good qualities mentioned above makes for a smooth and virtuous path of conduct for a young person.

(21) Because youth is a precious and beautiful resource, young people should be vigilant about preserving virtuous qualities within themselves. They should not enter relationships prematurely or give their virtue away cheaply. Otherwise, they will have difficulty in finding a lifelong partner. Young people should always exercise restraint when socializing; they should be mindful and circumspect when they meet each other. They should not be duped into blindly indulging in nightlife entertainment, thinking that they are clever enough to guard their virtue, because when their faculties are dimmed, their good judgment diminishes as well. Then their virtue will be lost, their minds will become unstable, their hearts will break in despair and they will walk around like stinking, living corpses. Young people should recognize the importance of exemplary behavior. If they follow this advice, the result will surely be a life of continuous happiness and prosperity.

(22) For a married couple, maintaining their family is a moral obligation that they should try to make more and more firm. They should never allow the bond they share to break up and fall apart. They should take care not to bring down the trunk and destroy the fundamental roots of their marriage. Regardless of the intelligence or social status of one’s spouse, one should not look down on that person with contempt. Husbands and wives should take no interest in extramarital relationships because these cause irreparable splits in their marriage. Two people who are married and raising a family should maintain their vows very strictly, as though their lives depend on it. When that is the case, they will live happily together. This is the path of happiness for married couples who truly love each other.

(23) People who have reached middle age are people who have sufficient experience of the world to clearly understand the difference between the rights and wrongs and the good and the bad of life in the world. They have devised effective ways to deal with the positive and negative aspects of the situations they have faced in their lives. Middle-aged people have reached the point where they feel a sense of urgency about finding an internal refuge in the Dhamma. They have reached a time in life when they are ready to divest themselves of all the burdensome things that they have been attached to for so long. Such people are unlikely to boldly take on heavy burdens because they now know their own limitations.

(24) Civil servants should follow a righteous path, the path that emphasizes honesty and integrity in carrying out their duties. If they end up being corrupt, they fail to accomplish their intended purpose, and the results of their work create disturbance in the public domain. On the other hand, when civil servants perform their duties with honesty and integrity, the results lead naturally to great improvement for the populace as a whole. Corrupt practices are always bad. It doesn’t matter whether the corrupt person is stupid or smart; whether it’s the boss who is corrupt or his subordinates; whether it’s parents or their children; whether the corruption is done openly or secretly; or whether people know about it or not – the evil consequences of corrupt behavior always falls squarely on the corrupt individual. This principle governs the work of all civil society.

(25) The person whose mind is calm is someone who can be expected to find happiness in life. Calm mental states that are experienced only intermittently, coming on quickly only to fade just as quickly, are disappointing and lead to the kind of happiness that brings a peace of mind that cannot be depended on. Because that calm is not bound closely to the heart, happiness does not last. When the calm goes away, the happiness then changes into unhappiness.

(26) Please make an effort to keep your heart calm and happy, as though you are continuously in the presence of the Lord Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. As long as you remain close to the Buddha, Mara will always be fearful. Those who keep the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha close to their hearts avoid danger. They have no ill will towards themselves or others because their hearts, which are the center of the universe, are at peace.

(27) Generosity means giving, which is paired with receiving. Since the beginning of the world, people who refuse to share with others do not deserve to continue living in the world. When people practice acts of giving and receiving, they remain inseparable. Giving lays a good foundation for one’s life because it directly improves the conditions of one’s existence. When we avoid doing everyday acts of generosity, we undermine the basis of human existence, which is no longer able to sustain life in this world.

(28) All thoughts that cause harm to yourself and other people are thoughts that cause you to suffer.

(29) The Buddha’s teaching has established a firm foundation in the hearts of Buddhist practitioners from the time of the Buddha to the present day. This longevity results from their experiencing the flavor of Dhamma that comes from the gift of the Buddha’s teaching; that is, practicing generous giving, observing moral precepts and developing meditation. The Dhamma has come down to us as an unbroken legacy of moral virtue, which is an important basis for our awareness of right behavior.

(30) When mindfulness and wisdom can keep up with the arising and passing away of things related to the mind, the mind can gradually let go of its attachments. Step-by-step the mind transcends its mundane preoccupations. When all attachments have fallen away and vanished, the mind attains absolute freedom, which is the end of all suffering.     

(31) The middle way of the Noble Eightfold Path points straight to the middle path that transcends the mundane world. When the middle way becomes permanently fixed in the Dhamma, the person who has attained that level of Dhamma has transcended the world of mundane reality. When that is the case, it follows that everything associated with someone who has gone beyond the world has transcended the world as well. For instance, when the Buddha was still living, he was absolutely beyond all mundane reality – no type of mundane reality could arise to disturb his mind.

(32) Causes give rise to effects. For example, not knowing how to exercise restraint in one’s affairs turns into frustration and suffering. This happens because the results of one’s good actions are not enough to compensate for the results of one’s bad actions, causing the mind to be consumed with anxiety.

(33) No matter how many different hell realms there are in existence, none are more worrisome than our own actions, speech and thoughts that are always ready to jump here and there, constantly making mistakes. It’s because body, speech and mind keep jumping about that they have the potential to encounter hellish experiences. For that reason, we can experience severe pain and suffering at any time, even though we are still living in the human realm.

(34) People who lack generosity, moral virtue and spiritual development have neglected the highest qualities of a human being. Instead, have allowed themselves to follow their animal nature. Good moral conduct is the most appropriate behavior for human beings. Don’t heedlessly do things that will harm yourself, your family and your community. The harm that is caused by doing so will definitely lead to suffering, for the teaching says good and bad actions always bring their appropriate results.

(35) Human beings must understand the value of moral virtue. Only animals have no understanding of moral virtue. All they understand is the need to find food to eat each day and the urge to be cruel to each other in the misguided search for their own happiness.

(36) Heaven is a realm of happiness, a place where virtuous people go to live. While living in the human realm, such people are kind, loving and generous towards all beings. They are not cruel and heartless. They are at peace with themselves, and they are clearly very happy wherever they are and whatever they are doing. They do not pose a danger or threat to anyone. This virtuous attitude is constantly maintained in their thoughts and actions.