Bhante Jutipanno visited TBCM office on 15 Feb 2023
Bhante Jutipanno (31 vassa) visit on 15 Feb 2023 to TBCM office for lunch dana and Dhamma sharing. Along with Bhante were Bhante Meng 12 vassa, Bhante Gambhira 8 vassa and friends attended.
Transcript
今天我很高兴受到南传总会邀请我们来这边接受供养，这是一个很难得的机会。这里的理事邀请师父做一些分享。但是真正坦白讲，讲英文师父是很差的，讲没有几句就要停止了。向来师父是以华语来开示，所以假如你叫我以华语开示，没问题。只是坦白讲，会就是会，不会就是不会，不会不要假装会。希望大家能够明白，不是师父不要讲，可以讲的，师父一定做到。假如不可以讲的，讲了等下误导大家更不好。这几天来吉隆坡也是一个巡回演讲开示，到处去几个地方弘法，所以今天打算回去柔佛，回去后要忙着去泰国带团去做布施，所以也是很忙。今天谢谢brother们的邀请来做一个分享，就是这么简单而已没有其他。假如你们有什么疑问可以用华语发问，然后我用华语回答。
问：只是诵经可以达到禅定吗？
答：诵经是可以得到内心的平静，但是要进入真正的禅是不可能的。假如你诵经诵到很喜悦，你可以得到内心的平静。佛陀说，声音是进入初禅的障碍。内心的平静也是一种【定】来的，但是那个不是到禅那的定。定有很多种，当你的内心不会造作，你很专注在诵经，这个也是一种定，不过肯定和禅那不一样，不是‘正定‘。
问：要证得須陀洹果是不是得先得到‘定’?
答：我们要明白，好像 Visakha才七岁而已，佛陀讲法，他就证得須陀洹果。他有定吗？他有禅那吗？在经典里面讲到很多在家居士，他来听法，他之前没有修行过也可以证一果，这是跟他过去的波罗蜜有关。但是要成为阿罗汉必须有正定(禅那)。假如一果二果就不一定。一果二果是‘戒’圆满，不过不需要‘定’圆满与‘慧’圆满。阿罗汉是‘戒定慧’都圆满。
问: （不清晰）
答：如果我们透彻了解八风这个世间的八种现象，你能够接受得也能够接受失去，那减轻你的苦，但不是一定说证得你的果位。因为我们之所以会苦，就是因为事情的发生我们不能够去接受它，我们就陷进去一直造作，造作就带给我们苦。假如你能够接受得，当中你也能接受失的话，得来你不会苦，失去你也不会苦，就减轻你的苦。但是身理上的苦还是有的，我们无明烦恼的苦还是有的。因为我们的苦有两种，一种是我们的错误知见为我们带来的苦，另一种是我们的无明带给我们的苦。假如我们有把邪见转化成正见，就减轻你的苦。好像我们能够接受相聚，也能够接受别离，我们就不会那么苦。你能够接受多少巴仙，你就能够减轻多少巴仙的苦，是这样啦。你能够完全接受接受，你就不会苦。
其实我们人会苦，其中一个原因是来自我们错误的知见。我们以这种错误的知见来过我们的生活，肯定我们就会苦。就好像我们要生，不要死。生是因，苦是果。你不要那个果是不可能的，因存在，你一定会死的。假如你明白生是因，死是果。你能够接受生，也能够接受死的话，你就减轻你的苦。因为我们的苦有两种，一种是来自我们的错误知见，另一种是来自我们的习性烦恼。我们有贪有嗔有痴。假如你的嗔心很重，你的妒忌心很重，肯定我们会苦。嗔心重的人动不动就要生气。妒忌心重的人看到人家好，心里就难受。就好像我们的眼睛，我们的耳朵一听到不合乎我们的心意的东西，我们就生气。你没有sati去看到生气的升起，你随着你的习性去反应去造作，造作就带给我们苦。假如我们没有造作，我们当时有sati，你知道有不满的心感受升起，但是你不要进一步陷进去造作。这个苦升起了一段时间，一分钟两分钟，它就消失啦。不然它变成一个story。所以每一个造作都是苦的。
其实你去看看我们天天会活得很苦，都是和我们造作息息相关的。你一看到，一听到，一嗅到，一尝到，一触到，随着这个不喜欢升起，你陷进去造作，每一个造作都是苦的。这个你可以自己体验，你自己看看是不是。你一造作你就苦。当你能够从这个造作抽离回来，你就没有苦，你的苦当下就在那边切掉。所以这就是佛陀讲的。
问: （不清晰）
答：没有五颜六色的舍利，那是最近几十年才有的。总之不要去迷信这些东西。佛陀都告诉我们了，你跟在他的后面拉着他的袈裟不修行，你还是离他很远。佛陀已经讲得很清楚了，崇拜舍利哪来的功德？你假如不依教奉行，你一直迷信这些舍利，你不会成阿罗汉的。
I am glad for being invited by TBCM to be here for dana offerings. This is a rare opportunity. The EXCO invited me to do dhamma sharing. But to be honest frankly speaking, I am really not good in speaking English and I could just say few sentences. All these while I give talks in mandarin, hence no issue if you request me to talk in mandarin. But I got to be frank for unable to talk in English. Please understand ya. Could be worse if I pretend I could but actually misleading. I have been in KL for several days for dhamma tour and given talks at several places. Going back to Johor today cause after this, I shall be busy in taking devotees to Thailand for dana tours. I appreciate brothers for inviting me here today. Should you have any question please ask in mandarin and I shall answer you in mandarin.
Q: Can one enter stream (attain sotapanna) by chanting solely?
A: By chanting one can get inner peace, but it is impossible if you wish to attain jhana. If you chant where you feel very joyful, you may get peace of mind. Buddha once said, sound is rather an obstacle in attaining first jhana. Inner peace is also a form of concentration, but it differs from that required towards attaining jhana. There are many forms of concentration. When you stop thinking and just focus at chanting, this is also a form of concentration. But definitely it’s not similar to jhana for it’s not samma-samadhi.
Q: In order to reach sotapanna, is samadhi a prerequisite?
A: Not necessary. Take Visakha as example. He attained sotapanna when he was just 7 years old at that time while listening to Buddha’s teaching. Has he had samadhi or jhana at that time? It has been mentioned in sutta that a number of laities who never be a practitioner before, yet attained sotapanna after listening to teachings of Buddha. This is rather a result of their parami (noble character qualities) developed and carried forward from the past. But in order to become an arahant, ones must have samma-samadhi. This may not be the case for Sotapanna and Sakadagami, which require only Perfection in Sila. In contrast, an arahant requires Perfection of all three: Sila (virtue), Samadhi (concentration) and Panna (wisdom).
Q: (not clear)
A: If we thoroughly understand the eight worldly concerns (gain, loss, disgrace, fame, praise, blame, happiness and sadness) where you can accept a gain as well as a loss, this will lessen your suffering then. But it doesn’t mean that you can attain awakening. The reason why we suffer is because we could not accept (dislike) what has happened on us. Hence feelings and thoughts keep on arising in our mind which subsequently lead to suffering. If you can accept both gain and loss, then you won’t suffer regardless of gain or loss and your suffering lessen. Suffering of our physical body still present, which is the same for our suffering due to defilements. There are two kinds of suffering: one caused by our wrong views and another by defilements. If we turn a wrong view into a right view, your suffering gets lesser. We won’t suffer so much if we could accept both meeting and departing (of loved ones). To what extent your suffering could be lesser? It depends on degree of your acceptance towards the eight concerns. Your suffering will totally cease if you can fully accept it.
One of the factors causing our suffering is because we live our lives with wrong views. For example, we just want to see a birth but don’t want to see a death. In fact, birth is the cause whereas death is the effect. It’s impossible for you not to die because you were born which is the cause. If you could understand the relevance between birth and death and accept it, your suffering will be lesser then. Our suffering got two types: due to (1) wrong views, and (2) defilements e.g. greed, hatred and delusion. If you are a person with resentment or jealousy, surely we will suffer. A hatred person will get offended and furious easily. A jealous person feels resent when seeing another person’s success. When our eyes and ears see or hear something which is not to our liking, we get angry. This is because you don’t see the arising of anger. You just respond immediately with thoughts, speeches and bodily actions along with your habit, therefore you suffer. Just watch over your mind with sati (mindfulness) and be aware of feeling of unsatisfactory. Just don’t react straightforward. After some time like one or two minutes, it will disappear. Or else the story never ends and suffering never cease.
Just observe yourself. Everyday we live in suffering, and it’s all relevant to our mind and reaction. You dislike something when you see, hear, smell, taste or touch (body sensations), hence you react with aversion, and every reaction is suffering. You may experience the reality by yourself and see if this is true. Your suffering cease right away when you cut off the reaction. This has been explained by Buddha where ‘sanditthiko akaliko ehipassiko opanayiko paccattam vediidabbo vinnuhiti’.
Q: (not clear)
A: Frankly speaking, I have seen LP Mun’s and others where the color of relics is just same as our bone. There’s no such thing as ‘colorful’. Colorful relics only been discussed in the past few decades. No matter what, don’t be superstitious. Buddha told us that one who does not practice well would still be at a far distance from him even one keep pulling Buddha’s robe behind. Worshipping/admiring relics could never help to accumulate any merit. If you never practice dhamma according to Buddha’s teaching, you’ll never be an arahant by just admiring the relics.
