大家知道做善事可以转为功德，那么我问你们：一个有功德的人，他的功德会否转为善业？告诉你们出家的修行人就可以，他们这一辈子出家修行，如果没有好好地修，下一辈子投胎为人，功德就全部转为福报。比如，念经有口无心，动坏脑筋或做了不好的事情等，这辈子所有积的功德全部转为福报，因为果报是已经投人了，而这辈子就白修了。师父告诉你们这个道理，就是要你们一定要坚持好好修行修心，还有就是要把你做的所有的功德，要不断地加温，才能保持住这个功德。
You all know that the wholesome deeds you performed can be transformed into merit and virtue. Let me ask you: For someone with merit and virtue, could their merit and virtue be transformed into wholesome deeds? Yes, it could happen to ordained practitioners. If they choose the monastic life in this lifetime but do not practise earnestly, in the next life when they are reborn as humans, all their merit and virtue will be converted into blessings. For example, if they recites Buddhist scriptures without heartfelt intention, or harbour malicious thoughts or commit wrongdoing, all the merit and virtue they have accumulated in this lifetime will be converted into blessings. It’s because their karmic retribution has already been determined, and they’ll be reborn as humans, rendering their cultivation in this lifetime futile. I share this principle with you to encourage you to persist in practising Buddhism and cultivating your mind. Moreover, you must continuously nurture all the merit and virtue you have created to maintain it.
我们都在学菩萨，学习菩萨的慈悲精神，师父今天给大家讲“十地菩萨”，师父每次只能给大家讲一地。十地菩萨就是菩萨的十个不同的境界，菩萨的境界是我们要学习的境界，虽然我们现在是在学佛学菩萨，但是你们必须要知道菩萨到底都是怎样的境界。
We are all learning from Bodhisattvas, emulating the Bodhisattvas’ compassionate spirit. Today, I will teach you about the “Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva.” I will explain one ground at a time. The Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva refer to ten different stages in a Bodhisattva’s spiritual advancement. These are the spiritual states that we aim to learn, and even though we are currently studying the way of the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas, you must understand exactly what these spiritual states of Bodhisattva entail.
十地菩萨又称为十圣位，我们学菩萨是学菩萨的境界，而菩萨的境界有十个不同的级别，要知道自己到底修到哪个级别了，也就是说要知道自己修到哪个层次了。师父会把十地菩萨，一地一地的，从字面上分析给你们听，然后用白话把菩萨的十个境界透透彻彻地讲解给你们听，让你们来修学十地菩萨，让你们明白每个不同境界的菩萨到底是怎么回事，怎么样才能做到十地菩萨。
The Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva are also known as the Ten Stages of Sagehood. In learning from the Bodhisattvas, we study their spiritual state, which consists of ten different levels. You need to know exactly which level you have reached in your cultivation, or in other words, understand the depth of your own practice. I will analyse the Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva for you, one by one, and use plain language to thoroughly explain the ten stages of the Bodhisattvas. This will guide your study of the Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva, helping you understand what each different stage truly involves, and how to attain the state of the Ten Grounds of Bodhisattva.
今天给大家讲一地菩萨，即初地菩萨，也叫欢喜地菩萨。欢喜地：始出凡境初登圣境，庆心内融悦情外发，多生欢喜，故名欢喜地，用闻思修慧为加行智，断凡夫我性无明，证遍满功德檀波罗蜜增上。
Today, I will speak about the Bodhisattva of the First Ground. The First Ground is also known as the Ground of Joy. This ground marks the beginning of departure from the mundane and the initial entry into the sage realm. The heart rejoices within, and joy radiates outward, filled with delight, hence the name “Ground of Joy.” Wisdom derived from hearing (learning), contemplation and cultivation is employed as applied intelligence. The Bodhisattva severs the ignorance of the self-nature of ordinary beings, thereby realising the all-encompassing merit and virtue, and excelling in the perfection of giving (Dānapāramitā).
初地菩萨就是刚刚到菩萨的境界。初地菩萨为欢喜地菩萨，始出凡境，“始出”就是刚刚离开人间的境界，到达了圣人的境界，即菩萨的境界。也就是说你刚刚脱离了平凡的境界，凡人的境界，开始走向菩萨的境界。初登圣境，就是你刚刚开始登上圣人的境界。庆心内融悦情外发，就是庆贺，欢悦心，刚刚开始感受到自己内心一种融化到圣境的喜悦，已经把人间繁琐的事情融化到佛的境界上了。悦就是欢喜心，就是我非常欢喜地进入了圣界，进入了菩萨界，已经开悟，认识了这个人生，只不过是因缘和合而成，对什么样的事情都很开心，都能圆融，所有在人间的一切事情都能包容、圆融，然后进入了圣界，而且做什么事情都会有一种喜悦。融悦情外发，就是欢喜心，慈悲喜舍心开始往外发，就是有一种能量体让你往上窜，犹如火箭就是这样，那些启动气体能量往外发，火箭就上去了。因为初地菩萨的每一个事情，都会生出欢喜心，所以称为欢喜地菩萨。欢喜地菩萨做什么事情都是开心，都是欢喜，什么事情都看得穿，什么事情都明白了，只有人才会不开心、忧愁、烦恼。
The Bodhisattva of the First Ground represents the initial arrival at the spiritual state of a Bodhisattva. This First Ground is known as the Ground of Joy, marking the very beginning of departure from the ordinary human condition and entry into the realm of the sage, the realm of the Bodhisattva. In other words, you have just stepped out of the mundane sphere, the realm of the ordinary person, and are starting on the path to the Bodhisattva’s realm.
“The initial entry into the sage realm” signifies that you’ve just begun to ascend to the level of the enlightened.
“The heart rejoices within, and joy radiates outward.” Celebrating within your heart, you start experiencing a profound joy that feels like a melding into the sagehood, transcending the petty concerns of the human world and merging with the Buddha’s realm. “Joy” here refers to a joyous heart, a deep satisfaction in entering the sage realm, the realm of the Bodhisattva, having awakened and realised that this life is but an assemblage of causes and conditions. You find joy in everything, able to harmonise and encompass all matters of human existence, and then enter the sage realm, imbued with a sense of joy in all you do. The external expression of this joyous heart, along with feelings of loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity, begins to radiate outwards, like the propulsion of a rocket, energising your ascent. The Bodhisattva of the First Ground finds joy in every aspect of life, and thus, is known as the Bodhisattva of the Ground of Joy. No matter what the Bodhisattva does, there is happiness and joy. They see through and understand all things; they are free from the unhappiness, worry, and vexation typical of ordinary people.
用闻思修慧，来修你这个智慧，闻就是见闻、耳闻、鼻闻等，这个闻字并不是指你听到的才叫闻，是你的六根接触六尘后的东西都叫闻，就是你所接触到的东西都叫闻，这个闻是一个总体概念。闻思就是当你接触到东西之后，会产生思维，有了思维之后，才能修慧，所以叫闻思修慧。当你在人间所有看到的东西，经过你的大脑过滤，思考的时候，要用菩萨的正见来思考，那个时候就变成修心了，就变成开始启用你的智慧了。
“Wisdom is derived from hearing (learning), contemplation and cultivation.” “Hearing” here doesn’t only mean what you hear with your ears, but encompasses all that is perceived through the contact of the six sense bases and the six sense objects (“six dusts”). Therefore, “hearing” here represents a concept encompassing all that you come into contact with. Upon hearing or learning something, thought and contemplation arises, leading to the cultivation of wisdom. Therefore, it’s referred to as wisdom derived from hearing, contemplation and cultivation. As you engage with everything you encounter in the world, filtering and contemplating through your mind, you must apply the Bodhisattva’s right view. At that moment, you are cultivating the mind, starting to activate your wisdom.
人的智慧是怎么来的？你看见的东西就要学会转化。比如，简体字经过电脑的软件转化后，就变成繁体字了，繁体字也可以转化为简体字。也就是说菩萨的脑子里就像有一个转换器一样，所有的东西进来，经过脑子一过滤，就变成菩萨的东西了，但要加行智，就是你所有的行为、修行，必须要有智慧，这叫加行智。也就是你所有做出来的行为一定要有智慧。比如，与别人吵架，你这个行为有没有智慧？偷人家的东西，语言欺骗人家，你们说这些行为有没有智慧？这些行为就根本没有达到菩萨的境界。初地菩萨所有的行为，包括思维的行为，心里的行为，全部都包含着智慧，这个智慧就是菩萨的智慧。
How does human wisdom arise? You must learn how to transform what you see. For example, simplified Chinese characters can be transformed into traditional Chinese characters through computer software, and traditional Chinese characters can also be converted into simplified ones. It is as if the mind of a Bodhisattva contains a converter; everything that comes in passes through the mind and is filtered, transforming into something that belongs to the Bodhisattva. But this must be combined with the “applied intelligence or wisdom”, meaning that all your deeds and spiritual practices must include wisdom. In other words, every action you take must be imbued with wisdom. For instance, consider quarreling with someone, stealing, or deceiving through words – do these actions possess wisdom? Such behaviours are far from reaching the state of a Bodhisattva. All actions of the Bodhisattva of the First Ground, including mental activities and inner behaviors, are filled with wisdom, and this wisdom is the wisdom of the Bodhisattva.
断凡夫我性，就是一定要断掉无明，我们每一个人都是凡夫俗子，凡夫就是脑子里只想着自己，凡夫就是凡人。 我性就是我自己的本性，是无明的。也就是断掉你的无明，为什么现在会无明，是因为你过去生所做错的事情，使你的心灵染尘，才会成为无明，所以菩萨说要断凡夫我性无明。证遍满功德檀波罗蜜增上，就是你所有证悟的佛法满功德，就是你现在所有的功德，你避开自己的无明习气，也就是你自己所思维的，所讲出的话，所听到的、所做出的事情，全部都是遍满菩萨的智慧；（波罗蜜，就是彼岸）用你的境界再上一层，再上一层。
To “sever the ignorance of the self-nature of ordinary beings” means that one must cut off ignorance. Each of us is an ordinary being, preoccupied only with ourselves. This self-nature is ignorant in essence. To sever this ignorance is to eliminate the defilements caused by past wrongdoings that have clouded our minds, leading to a state of ignorance. Therefore, the Bodhisattva speaks of “severing the ignorance of the self-nature of ordinary beings”.
“Realising the all-encompassing merit and virtue, and excelling in the perfection of giving (Dānapāramitā).” It means realising the Buddha-dharma to the fullest extent of your present merit and virtue, avoiding your own ignorant tendencies. Everything you do, including what you think, say, hear, and undertake, should all be filled with the wisdom of the Bodhisattva; (Pāramitā, meaning reached the other shore) elevating your spiritual state one level higher, and then another level beyond that.
三个地为一个界，到了最后十地菩萨就是圆满的，就是《心经》里的一句话“阿耨多罗三藐三菩提”，即无上正等正觉。《心经》你们都会念，你们知道《心经》的题目是什么意思吗？《般若波罗蜜多心经》，般若就是智慧，波罗蜜就是彼岸，多就是到达了，《心经》的意思就是让你的心 到达你所要求的彼岸，就是到达开悟的境界，是用你的智慧达到了一个彼岸，也就是用你的境界到达了一个更高的境界。师父经常给你们讲般若智慧，释迦牟尼佛讲经说法 49 年，讲的就是般若智慧。人的智慧最重要，因为人有了智慧，才能开悟，才能好好地修，你连智慧都没有，什么都听不懂，如何修行？
Three grounds constitute one realm, and by the time one reaches the Tenth Ground of a Bodhisattva, it is complete. This state is encapsulated in the phrase from the Heart Sutra: “Anuttarā Samyak-Saṃbodhi,” meaning the unsurpassed, complete, and perfect enlightenment. Many of you recite the Heart Sutra, but do you know what its title means? The title of the Heart Sutra is Prajñāpāramitāhṛdaya Sūtra. In Sanskrit, Prajñā means wisdom, and Pāramitā means reached the other shore. The Heart Sutra aims to guide your heart to the other shore you seek, that is, to the spiritual state of enlightenment. It’s about using your wisdom to reach the other shore, or elevating your spiritual state to a higher realm. I often tell you about Prajñā wisdom. Shakyamuni Buddha expounded the Dharma for 49 years, focusing on Prajñā wisdom. Wisdom is paramount to humans. Only with wisdom can a person become awakened and cultivate diligently. Without wisdom, one cannot understand anything, so how can they cultivate?
今天时间关系就先讲到这里，下次师父会讲进入初地菩萨的条件，就是怎样从凡人转换成菩萨，怎样从人界用自己修炼后的意念，然后进入菩萨界，师父用八句心得，劝导众生破迷开悟，速成菩提。
Due to time constraints, we’ll conclude here for today. Next time, I will speak about the conditions for entering the realm of the Bodhisattva of the First Ground. It’s about how to transform from an ordinary person into a Bodhisattva, how to use the intention formed through cultivation to enter the Bodhisattva realm. Here, I share with you my insight using eight verses, hoping to guide and encourage sentient beings to break through delusion and become enlightened, swiftly achieving Bodhi.
世道难成佛，唯有修心伏，
三藐三菩提，戒定慧来依，
破除无明心，忍辱开悟欣，
证得无上法，凡人变菩萨。
It’s hard to attain Buddhahood, on the mundane world’s path,
Only by taming and cultivating the mind can one grasp.
Samyaksaṃbodhi, the complete, perfect enlightenment,
One must rely on precepts, concentration and wisdom.
Break through the mind of ignorance,
Forbearance brings joy in awakening.
Attain the Dharma unsurpassed,
An ordinary person transforms, a Bodhisattva at last.