生日

My Birthday

四十年前的今天，我于草场上的一顶帐篷里呱呱坠地，如今，四十年光阴如同风驰电掣般飞逝，嗷嗷待哺的婴儿时代，天真烂漫的少年时代，血气方刚的青年时代，如同遥远的梦幻一般离去。我永远也忘不了父母的生养之恩，更忘不了大恩上师的谆谆教导，使我能从心底里对三宝生起坚如盘石般的信念。

Forty years ago today in a yurt overlooking a prairie, I arrived in this world with a cry. Now four decades have sped away like a gusting wind or a bolt of lightning: My days as an infant who had to be fed, the naive and carefree boyhood, and the days as a vigorous young man all have disappeared like a hazy dream, an illusion. What remains indelibly in my mind is the kindness from my parents of giving me life and raising me. Moreover, I am fully in debt to my most precious Guru who, with loving tutelage, has cemented in me an unshakable heartfelt faith toward the Three Jewels.

今天，最令我欣慰的是，全国各地的道友，都为我的生日举行了规模不小的放生活动，蒙古、北京等地都放生几万元以上。能令无数的生灵得救，即使别人认为虚张声势也是值得的。

What makes me especially pleased today is that as a celebration for my birthday, many Dharma friends all over the country are carrying out releasing live beings on a considerable scale. In Mongolia, Beijing and other places, tens of thousands of yuan have been pooled together to save various creatures. Numerous lives are thus snatched from the jaws of death; it is a worthy effort, even though some may consider it just a showy gesture.

世间的愚昧众生，为满足自己的饕餮之欲，以自之强，凌彼之弱，涂炭生灵。岂不知水陆飞禽之物，如同你我一样，皆有觉知之心，虽然口不能言，但求生之情与我等无异。戕杀无辜，与禽兽有何区别？如今我们因前世善根而幸得人生，虽因前世业障习气，不能完全戒荤茹素，但也应当厉行戒杀放生之善行。

For the purpose of satiating their palates, deluded humans with mighty power recklessly kill weaker species and plunge them into the abyss of misery. Yet all living creatures—those in the air, on land, or in the water—without exception have feelings and senses, just like you and me. Their desire to live is no different from yours or mine, even though they are incapable of speaking out. Humans who rashly kill other innocent beings are behaving like beasts—is there any difference? Now that we have this precious human existence through our past virtuous deeds, even if we are unable to abstain from meat, we must at least perform the good deed of lifesaving.

如果在将来，谁能见闻我所著、所译的法本，并因此而生起信心，想表达自己感激之意的话，再没有比放生，更能令九泉之下的我深感快慰之事了。这也是我一直想致力于此，但却因个人能力有限而无法成办的心愿。

In the future, should anyone arouse faith after reading my Dharma writings or my translations and wish to express gratitude to me, there is no better way than to release live beings to please my departed soul. This task has always been my earnest aspiration, yet it is still a wish unfulfilled due to my own limited capability.

壬午年六月初四　　
2002年7月14日

4th of June, Year of RenWu
July 14, 2002