下载掌阅APP，畅读海量书库
立即打开
13 |
佛教
|
背景介绍
相传公元前6—前5世纪中，佛教由古印度迦毗罗卫国王子悉达多·乔答摩（即释迦牟尼）所创。基本教理有四谛、五蕴、十二因缘等，以断除烦恼而成佛为最终目的。
情景对话
Dalila: Sometimes I think life is so hard! It seems like there's one problem after another… When does it all stop?
Jeremy: If you asked a Buddhist that question, he would likely have a good answer for you.
Dalila: Huh? What do you mean?
Jeremy: Well, according to the Buddhist religion, the purpose of life is for all of us sentient beings to end our suffering, or dukkha , through the elimination of ignorance, called avidya . We can do this by understanding and realizing our origin and eliminating desire, or tanha . If we do this, we can attain the end of all suffering, known as the sublime state of nirvana .
Dalila: So that's what nirvana is… I have heard of that. But Buddhism is kind of confusing to me…
Jeremy: That's OK… It might be confusing to someone with a Western background. Buddhism is an Eastern religion that originated in the Indian subcontinent. There are a lot of different beliefs and practices in Buddhism, and they are mostly based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama.
Dalila: Siddhartha Gautama? Who was he?
Jeremy: Maybe you haven't heard of him by that name… He is commonly known as the Buddha, which means the awakened one . He is thought of by Buddhists as an enlightened teacher who taught the people the way to overcome suffering. He lived and taught in India many, many years ago— about 500 years before Christ.
Dalila: Wow, so it's a really old religion…
Jeremy: Yes, it is. But even though it is very old, it is still very popular, especially in Asia and India. There are two main branches of Buddhism — Theravada and Mahayana. Theravada is practiced by many people in Southeast Asia.
Dalila: Like Cambodia?
Jeremy: Yes, as well as Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar. Many people in East Asia, including China , Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, practice Mahayana Buddhism.
Dalila: Sounds like most of the places that are Buddhist are all in Asia…
Jeremy: It's true that Buddhism is most popular in that part of the world, but it is one of the fastest growing religions on the earth.
Dalila: If that's true, maybe I can find one to help me deal with all these problems!
达莉拉： 有时候，我觉得生活是如此艰难！仿佛一个问题接着一个问题 …… 什么时候才是尽头啊？
杰里米： 如果你拿这个问题问佛教徒，他可能会给你一个很好的答案。
达莉拉： 啊？为什么呢？
杰里米： 根据佛教的信仰，生命的意义就是让我们这些有灵性的生物摆脱无知，结束苦难。我们可以通过理解和认清我们的起源、消除欲望来实现觉知。我们如果做到这些，便能结束苦难，实现涅槃的至上境界。
达莉拉： 涅槃是这个意思呀 …… 我听说过这个词。不过佛教对我来说是深奥难懂的 ……
杰里米： 没关系 …… 对于以西方文化为背景的人来说，佛教可能有点难以理解。佛教是一种东方的宗教，源于印度次大陆。佛教有许多不同的信仰和教义，而这些主要都是以悉达多·乔答摩的教义为基础。
达莉拉： 悉达多·乔答摩？他是谁呢？
杰里米： 你可能没有听说过这个名字 …… 他就是大家都知道的佛陀，也就是“知者”。佛教徒将他奉为教人摆脱苦难的启蒙老师。他在印度生活并传播佛法，那是许多年以前的事了——大概是在公元前500年。
达莉拉： 哇，那真是古老的宗教啊 ……
杰里米： 是呀。佛教虽然非常古老，但现在仍然非常受欢迎，尤其是在亚洲及印度。佛教有两个主要的派系——小乘佛教和大乘佛教。东南亚的许多人信奉小乘佛教。
达莉拉： 比如柬埔寨？
杰里米： 对，还有老挝、泰国和缅甸。在东亚，包括中国、韩国、日本、越南，许多人信奉大乘佛教。
达莉拉： 听起来，信奉佛教的人大多都是在亚洲 ……
杰里米： 佛教的确是在亚洲最为盛行，不过它也是世界上发展速度最快的宗教之一。
达莉拉： 如果你说的是真的，那么或许我可以找到一个人来帮助我解决所有这些问题！
词汇注解
|
eliminate |
消除，排除 |
|
suffering |
苦难 |
|
nirvana |
涅槃 |
|
enlightened |
启蒙的 |
|
Theravada |
小乘佛教 |
|
Mahayana |
大乘佛教 |