English
English version: ‘Daoist of the Middle Way’. When Buddhism was first introduced to this land, monks were called Daoists, hence the name. ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ (Sì Tiānwáng) refers to the four deities, such as Vaishravana (Píshāméntiānwáng), who protect the world. ‘Four Manifestations of Righteousness and Ability’ refers to the Four Heavenly Kings manifesting the righteous Dharma and possessing ability. ‘It is necessary to rely on the majestic power of the Sangha of the ten directions to attain liberation’. The Tripitaka Master said: ‘A single thread cannot subdue an elephant; it must rely on the combined strength of many threads. One person cannot eliminate karmic obstacles; they must rely on the merits of the multitude.’ Now, analyzing the preceding and following texts in detail, with the opposition of evil and righteousness, one and many, we can derive four situations: First, righteousness without multitude, which cannot save, hence the previous statement ‘What can you do alone?’ Second, multitude without righteousness, which also cannot save, namely the deities, demons, heretics, and so on mentioned earlier. Third, both multitude and righteousness, which can save, namely the Sangha of the ten directions. Fourth, neither multitude nor righteousness, which is obviously impossible, hence not mentioned in the scriptures. Fifth, permission to offer a method of salvation. ‘I will now speak of the method of salvation, so that all who are in difficulty may be free from sorrow and suffering’. ‘I will now speak’ is precisely the word of permission. ‘Method of salvation’ is the matter permitted. ‘So that all, etc.’ is like a thousand-catty crossbow, not only triggered for a vole. The Honored One of the Three Realms, would he only favor your mother to be free from suffering? Sixth is to show the right Dharma. Showing the right Dharma is divided into two parts: first, teaching the method of offering by a filial son, and then teaching the rituals for the Sangha to receive offerings. First, there are five points: first, determining the auspicious time; second, generating auspicious intention; third, setting up auspicious offerings; fourth, praising the auspicious field of merit; and fifth, obtaining auspicious benefits. The Pravāraṇā day is the auspicious time, like the spring sunshine; filial piety is the auspicious intention, like selected fresh seeds; the hundred flavors and five fruits are the auspicious offerings, like plowing with good oxen; the virtuous sages who can cultivate are the auspicious field of merit, like fertile land; the surviving and deceased parents, six kinds of relatives, and even seven generations can be freed from suffering and ascend to heaven, which is the auspicious benefit, like the autumn harvest and winter storage of thousands of boxes and ten thousand bushels. Is not the meaning and momentum of the scriptures like this? The wise will consider it in detail, like looking at their own palm. First, teaching the method of offering by a filial son (five points). First, determining the auspicious time. ‘The Buddha told Maudgalyāyana, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when the Sangha observes the Pravāraṇā’. The Sanskrit word ‘Sangha’ (Sēngqié), here translated as ‘harmonious assembly’. If the Sangha is not harmonious, like a group of merchants, a group of officials, or an army, it cannot be called a Sangha. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
名僧宝。若和而不众。如二人同心之类。亦非僧宝。众而和合为福之因。方名僧宝。和合者。此有六种。谓身和同。事语和同。默意和同。忍戒和同。修见和同。解利和同均也。儒说小人君子。或和或同。今释子比丘和而同也。今云十方者。法无限局岂隔亲疏。众僧者。唐梵重标译人之拙。七月十五日者。前三月夏安居竟故可自恣。自恣有三日。或十四十五十六。今举中间也。此剩僧字。去之又句阙。亦是译人之失也。何不云共自恣时。自恣者。自己之过恣他所举。谓一夏安居九旬加行。不阶四果亦得四禅。佛设教门本意如此。正像末法僧等皆然。虽后五百岁。亦有持戒修福者故。然将超苦海谨护浮囊。犹恐当局者迷。必藉旁观得失。纵不断惑证果。还希罪灭福生故。褊袒于众中白大德长老。或见我过。或闻我罪。或疑我犯。恣任所举。哀愍语我。我当忏悔。如此则身心清净。犹如琉璃。禅定解脱或有之矣。供养此者力用可知。岂不拔济先亡资熏现在。故三藏云。比丘受岁之日。大众自恣之时。僧多获道于四果。故能济厄于七代。二发胜意。 当为七世父母及现在父母厄难中者 当为者。能救之心。七世下所救之境。约境明心故云胜也。七世者。所生父母。不同儒教取上代祖宗。厄难中者。通于存殁。殁则地狱 现代汉语译本：真正的僧宝，需要具备和合的僧团，如果只是和睦而不成僧团，比如两个人同心，也不能称为僧宝。只有既是僧团又和合，才能成为产生福报的因，才能称为僧宝。所谓和合，有六种：身和同（行为一致），事语和同（事务和言语一致），默意和同（沉默和心意一致），忍戒和同（安忍和戒律一致），修见和同（修行和见解一致），解利和同（理解和利益均等）。儒家讲小人和君子，有的是和，有的是同。而佛教的比丘是和而同。这里说的‘十方’，是指佛法没有局限，不分亲疏。‘众僧’，是唐朝梵文翻译时重复标注，显得译者不够精炼。‘七月十五日’，是因为前三个月的夏季安居结束，所以可以自恣。自恣有三天，分别是十四、十五、十六，这里取中间一天。这里的‘僧’字是多余的，去掉后句子又不完整，也是译者的失误。为什么不直接说‘共自恣时’呢？自恣，就是自己有过错，任由他人指出。意思是经过一个夏季安居九十天的修行，即使没有证得四果，也能得到四禅。佛陀设立这样的教法，本意就是如此，正法、像法、末法时代的僧人都一样。即使在后五百年的末法时代，也有持戒修福的人。因此，要像保护漂浮的囊袋一样谨慎地守护自己的修行，仍然担心当局者会迷惑，所以必须借助旁观者来指出得失。即使不能断除迷惑证得果位，还能希望罪业消除，福报增长。所以在众人中袒露右肩，对大德长老说：‘或许你们看到我的过错，或许听到我的罪行，或许怀疑我犯戒，请随意指出，可怜我，告诉我，我应当忏悔。’这样，身心就能清净，犹如琉璃。禅定解脱或许就能得到。供养这样的人，力量和作用可想而知。岂能不拔济已故的亲人，资助现在的修行？所以三藏经中说，比丘受岁之日，大众自恣之时，僧众大多能证得四果，所以能够救济七代亲人的厄难。这是发起殊胜的意念。 应当为七世父母及现在父母在厄难中的人（做功德）。‘应当为’，是指能救度的心。‘七世’以下，是指所救度的对象。通过所救度的对象来阐明能救度的心，所以说是殊胜的。‘七世’，是指所生的父母，不同于儒家取上代的祖宗。‘厄难中者’，包括已故的和在世的。已故的，则在地狱中。
English
English version: The true Sangha Jewel requires a harmonious Sangha community. If there is only harmony without a community, like two people being of one mind, it cannot be called the Sangha Jewel. Only when it is both a Sangha community and harmonious can it become the cause of generating blessings and be called the Sangha Jewel. Harmony has six aspects: physical harmony (一致的行动), harmony in affairs and speech (一致的事务和言语), harmony in silence and intention (一致的沉默和心意), harmony in forbearance and precepts (一致的安忍和戒律), harmony in practice and views (一致的修行和见解), and harmony in understanding and benefits (一致的理解和利益). Confucianism speaks of petty people and gentlemen, some being harmonious and some being the same. But Buddhist Bhikkhus are both harmonious and the same. 'Ten directions' here means that the Dharma has no limitations and does not distinguish between close and distant. 'Sangha community' is a redundant annotation in the Tang Dynasty Sanskrit translation, which shows that the translator was not refined enough. 'July 15th' is because the three-month summer retreat has ended, so one can perform the Pravarana (自恣). There are three days for Pravarana, namely the 14th, 15th, and 16th, and the middle day is taken here. The word 'Sangha' here is superfluous, and removing it makes the sentence incomplete, which is also a mistake by the translator. Why not just say 'at the time of the joint Pravarana'? Pravarana is when one has faults and allows others to point them out. It means that after ninety days of practice during the summer retreat, even if one has not attained the Four Fruits (四果), one can attain the Four Dhyanas (四禅). The Buddha established such teachings with this intention, and it is the same for the Sangha in the Dharma-Ending Age. Even in the last five hundred years of the Dharma-Ending Age, there are those who uphold the precepts and cultivate blessings. Therefore, one must carefully guard one's practice like protecting a floating bag, still worrying that those involved will be confused, so one must rely on observers to point out gains and losses. Even if one cannot cut off delusions and attain the Fruits, one can still hope that sins will be eliminated and blessings will increase. Therefore, one bares the right shoulder in the assembly and says to the virtuous elders: 'Perhaps you see my faults, perhaps you hear my sins, perhaps you suspect that I have violated the precepts, please point them out at will, have mercy on me, tell me, I should repent.' In this way, the body and mind can be purified, like crystal. Samadhi (禅定) and liberation (解脱) may be attained. The power and effect of making offerings to such people is conceivable. How can it not deliver deceased relatives and support present practice? Therefore, the Tripitaka (三藏) says that on the day the Bhikkhus receive their age, at the time of the Pravarana of the assembly, the Sangha can mostly attain the Four Fruits, so they can save the calamities of seven generations of relatives. This is to generate a supreme intention. One should (do merit) for the parents of seven lifetimes and the present parents who are in calamity. 'One should' refers to the mind that can save. 'Seven lifetimes' and below refer to the objects to be saved. By explaining the mind that can save through the objects to be saved, it is said to be supreme. 'Seven lifetimes' refers to the parents who gave birth to us, which is different from Confucianism taking the ancestors of the previous generations. 'Those in calamity' includes the deceased and the living. The deceased are in hell. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
鬼畜。存则病痛枷禁。皆名厄难。七世父母虽似转疏。皆是生我修道之器。既蒙鞠育岂负深恩。故三藏云。天地覆载。既无惮于劬劳。幽显沉沦。理合答于罔极。三设胜供。 具饭百味五果汲灌盆器香油锭烛床敷卧具。尽世甘美以着盆中供养十方大德众僧 具饭百味者。总标也。如人盛馔盘筵邀命宾客唯云吃饭。故饭为总统于百味。百者大数非定一百。五果者。一核果。如枣杏桃李等。二肤果。如瓜梨柰椹等。三壳果。如胡桃石榴等。四糩果。如苏荏等。五角果。如菱豆等。上皆舌所尝也。汲灌盆器者。沐浴等所用。并下床敷卧具。皆身所觉也。香者鼻所嗅也。油锭烛者照燎等。用眼所见也。亦可香油涂身。亦属身摄。西域如此。尽世甘美者。亦属舌也。上来于五欲境中唯阙声也。尽世之言。详其意趣。有二种尽。谓富贵则尽世所有。有即须求。贫贱则尽力所及。及则须觅。即知不定少多之物。但在竭尽其心。亦类彼享于克诚馨于明德也。着盆中者。译经讹错。如何床等可置盆中。应云着盂兰盆供会之中也。供养二句者。正明行也。据经本意。但以可受用物。供养大德之僧。不必雕镂金玉剪割缯彩高耸栏架等也。故三藏云。汝须物华四事盆美八珍。历十方而运想。澄一心而供养。四赞胜田。 当此之日一 现代汉语译本：堕入鬼道和畜生道，活着的时候就会有病痛和枷锁刑禁加身，这些都叫做厄难。去世的七世父母虽然看起来关系疏远了，但他们都是让我得以出生的修道之缘起。既然蒙受了他们的养育之恩，怎么能辜负这深厚的恩情呢？所以三藏法师说，天地覆盖承载，尚且不辞辛劳，那么对于处于幽冥和沉沦中的父母，理应报答这无尽的恩情。因此要多次设置殊胜的供养。 准备饭食，各种美味佳肴，五种水果，汲水用的盆器，香油，灯烛，床铺卧具，用世间所有美好的东西放在盂兰盆中，供养十方有高尚品德的众僧。准备各种美味饭食，这是总的标示。就像人们准备丰盛的宴席，邀请宾客时只说吃饭一样，饭是各种美味的代表。‘百’是多数，不是一定指一百种。五果包括：一是核果，如枣、杏、桃、李等；二是肤果，如瓜、梨、柰、椹等；三是壳果，如胡桃、石榴等；四是糩果，如苏、荏等；五是角果，如菱、豆等。以上都是舌头可以品尝到的。汲水用的盆器，是沐浴等所用的，以及床铺卧具，都是身体可以感觉到的。香是鼻子可以嗅到的。油灯和蜡烛是照明用的，是眼睛可以见到的。也可以用香油涂身，这也属于身体的感受。在西域就是这样做的。‘尽世甘美’也属于舌头的感受。以上在五欲的境界中只缺少声音了。‘尽世’这两个字，详细考察它的意义，有两种‘尽’。对于富贵的人来说，就是用尽世间所有的东西，没有的就要去寻求。对于贫贱的人来说，就是用尽自己所能及的力量，没有的就要去寻找。由此可知，供养的物品不一定有多少，关键在于竭尽自己的心意，也类似于祭祀时竭尽诚心，美好的德行会感动上天。‘放在盆中’，这是翻译时的错误。怎么能把床等东西放在盆中呢？应该说放在盂兰盆供养法会之中。‘供养’这两句，是真正说明所要做的行为。根据经书的本意，只要用可以受用的物品，供养有高尚品德的僧人就可以了，不必雕刻金玉，剪裁绫罗绸缎，搭建高耸的栏杆等。所以三藏法师说，你需要用美好的物品和四事供养，用盂兰盆盛放美味的八珍，历经十方而运想，澄净一心而供养，赞美殊胜的福田。 就在这一天