女人

On Women

今天是三八妇女节，全世界的妇女都在以自己特有的方式，庆祝这一年一度的节日。电视里、大街上到处都是欢乐的人群。也有一些地方的妇女，选择在今天为她们在平时受到的不公正待遇而举行游行示威活动。

Today is March 8, International Women’s Day. All around the world women are celebrating this annual festival in their own unique ways; throngs of cheery people are seen on the streets or TV news. In some areas, women take this occasion to hold rallies to demonstrate against the unfair treatment usually imposed on them.

忽然想起一位女居士问我的问题，为什么在佛经里老是把女人说得很低贱？比如《念住经》云：“女人祸害根，毁坏现后世，若欲利己者，当舍一切女。”《月灯经》云：“此道无法证菩提，是故切莫依女子，犹如极嗔之毒蛇，一切智者舍弃彼。”奉劝别人行持善法、培植善根时也说“顶礼怙主无量光，闻佛阿弥陀名号，乃至未获菩提间，不转女身转贵族。”很多佛经里几乎对所有刹土的描写都少不了一句“更无女人及女人名”或“若有女人，闻我名字，得清净信，发菩提心，厌患女身，愿生我国。命终化男子，来我刹土。”无垢光尊者也一再奉劝后人：“远离衰损根源之女人。”仿佛女人成了万恶之源，衰损之根。这种说法是否有点不公平？

A question from a female lay practitioner came to my mind: In Buddhist scriptures, women have always been described as low and degraded. Why is that? For example, in Satipatthana Sutra, it says: “Women are sources of disasters, they ruin this and future lives. Should you want to save yourself, stay away from all women.”

In The Moon Lamp Sutra it says: “This is not the way to attain enlightenment, therefore, never place any reliance on women. Like poisonous snakes with extreme venom, they should be avoided by all wise people.”

While promoting people to do good deeds and accumulate merits, it is also stated: “I pay homage to the protector Buddha of Infinite Light; by hearing the holy name of Buddha Amitabha, until I reach enlightenment, may I always be reborn in noble bodies rather than in female forms.”

In many sutras, the description of all Buddha’s Pure Land include the following: “There are no women per se, or the names of women,” or: “Any woman, having aroused pure faith and bodhichitta upon hearing my name and feeling disgusted with the female body and wishing to be reborn to my Land, will arrive in my Land in a male body when she dies.”

Longchenpa has also repeatedly advised future generations: “One should avoid women; they are the sources of decadence.” It sounds like women have become the sources of all evils as well as the roots of deterioration. Isn’t this statement a little unfair?

其实，这都是因为她对佛经了解不够而产生的误会，经书中的某些教言，只不过是针对女人嫉妒心强等特征而宣说的。有关远离女人的教言，是针对不能消除贪心的男人而言。同样，不能消除贪心的女人，也要远离衰损根源之男人。《中观宝鬘论》在罗列女身之不净后说道：“如于自或他，粪秽起厌恶，自他不净身，云何不厌恶？如女身不净，汝自身亦然。”可见男身与女身是具有同等过患的。

In fact, these are misunderstandings due to insufficient knowledge of the Buddhist scriptures. Some statements in the sutras are taught specifically for women with a strong propensity for jealousy only.

The teachings on staying away from women are given specifically to men who are unable to eradicate their covetous minds.

Similarly, for a woman incapable of eliminating her lust, she should also stay away from men who are the roots of deterioration.

In A Great Treatise on Jewel Garland of the Middle Way, there is a long list of uncleanliness of the female body followed by: “If you loathe the excrement and filth from yourself or others, why wouldn’t you be repulsed with the grimy body of yours or others? Your own body is just as unclean as the female body so described.”

如果一个女人具足信心、慈悲心和智慧，她将远远胜过不知取舍因果的男人。在藏传佛教史上，曾涌现过无数的伟大女修行人，如：益西措嘉空行母、玛吉拉准空行母等等，她们为后世众生作出了难以估量的贡献，世间的男子们，又有谁能同她们比肩呢？

It is obvious, therefore, that the male and female bodies are equal in having the same flaws and shortcomings.

As long as a woman has strong faith and possesses wisdom and compassion, she is much superior to any man who knows not how to act in accordance with the principle of cause and effect.

In the land of Tibet, there have arisen many great female Buddhist practitioners, such as Dakini Machig Labdron, Dakini Yeshe Sogyal, and others. They have left inconceivable legacies for future generations; how could any ordinary male in the world be on par with them?

《木兰辞》里也说：“雄兔脚扑朔，雌兔眼迷离，双兔傍地走，安能辨我是雄雌？”兔子跑起来时，不能辨别它的雄雌。一个女人真正地发菩提心，精进修行时，她与男修行人所获得的功德是同样的。

In Ballad of Mulan, it also says: “The he-hare’s feet go hop and skip, the she-hare’s eyes are muddled and fuddled. Two hares running side by side close to the ground, who can tell if I am a he or a she?”

When a rabbit runs, no one can tell if it’s a he or a she.

Any woman who has cultivated genuine bodhichitta and practices the Dharma diligently will attain exactly the same level of quality as a male practitioner does.

壬午年正月二十五日　
2002年3月8日

25th of January, Year of RenWu

March 8, 2002