A Dharma Talk Given by Dharma Master Heng Chih at Gold Buddha Monastery on December 20, 2016 Compiled by the Early Bird Translation Group
恒持法師2016年12月20日講於金佛聖寺 晨瑛譯組整理 VBS 601
The greatest function of this mantra is to help preserve the balance among the constellationsin the universe.
這〈消災吉祥神咒〉最大的作用就是幫助宇宙星象保持平衡。
In Mahayana Buddhism, we recite ten small mantras every morning (as a part of our morning ceremony). Today, I would like to lecture on the second of these ten mantras, the Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness. [Editor: Also referred to as the Disaster Eradicating Auspicious Spirit Mantra in the Daily Recitation Handbook]This mantra comes from The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Auspicious Dharani of Blazing Light Awesome Virtue for Quelling Disasters, which was translated by Dharma Master Amoghavajra, which translated as “Great Wisdom” (705-774 CE).
在大乘佛教裡，每天早上我們要念十小咒。今天我要講十小咒的第二個小咒〈消災吉祥神咒〉。這個咒是從《佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經》出來的，翻譯的是叫大廣智不空法師。
The Buddha proclaimed this sutra in the Pure Abode Heavens. The Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness was also spoken in the Pure Abodes Heavens. According to what I know, very few sutras were spoken in those heavens. We humans live below the Desire Heavens. If we imagine the dimensions vertically above us, then we know that there are the heavens of the Form Realm, and above the heavens of the Form Realm are the heavens of the Formless Realm. These are what we know as the Three Realms. We (people) are stuck within the Three Realms, revolving among them—sometimes we are reborn in the Form Realm, sometimes in the Formless Realm, and sometimes in the Desire Realm. We are unable to transcend these Three Realms.
佛陀是在淨居天講這部經，〈消災吉祥神咒〉就是在淨居天宮裡說的。據我所知，很少有經是在這裡宣說的。我們人類在欲界天之下，如果你用垂直線來想像，欲界天上面就是色界天，色界天的上面就是無色界天。這就是我們所說的三界。我們就是受困在這三界裡面，不斷地輪迴，有時生在色界，有時在無色界，有時在欲界，無法從三界裡出離。
We are currently under the heavens of the Desire Realm. If you are proficient in meditation, you may be able to reach the heavens of the Form Realm. There are four levels of heavens there: three First Dhyana Heavens, three Second Dhyana Heavens, three Third Dhyana Heavens, and three Fourth Dhyana Heavens. The Venerable Master said, “Furthermore, above these four Dhyana Heavens are the Five Non-Return Heavens of Anagamins. These five heavens are where third-stage Arhats reside.
我們目前是在欲界天之下，如果你打坐有功夫，可能會到達色界天去。色界天裡有三層天，這個是初禪的境界；二禪也有三層天，三禪也有三層天，四禪也有三層天。上人說：復有五種「阿那含天」即不還天，是三界(果)聖人寄居之處。
The Venerable Master said that these sages dwell in the Three Realms (that is, in the Five Non-Return Heavens) because they want to stay to help living beings. When their physical bodies can no longer function well, the sages will leave them and go back to the Five Non-Return Heavens for a period of time before being reborn again so they can return to help us. These Five Non-Return Heavens are where the Buddha proclaimed The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Auspicious Dharani of Blazing Light Awesome Virtue for Quelling Disasters — a sutra in which the Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness was taught.
上人說的三界寄居是指這些聖人願意待在三界裡幫助我們。當他們的身體不堪使用了，他們會離開那個色身回到五不還天去一段時間，然後再出生來幫助我們。這個五不還天就是佛宣說《佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經》的地方，也就是提到〈消災吉祥神咒〉的經。
[An excerpt from this sutra]: The Buddha said to the wandering celestial beings in the heavens, including devas associated with the nine mutually-attracted celestial bodies1, devas associated with the twenty-eight constellations, spirits of the twelve palaces of the zodiac, and the multitude of sages.
[經文]：爾時釋迦牟尼佛在淨居天宮告諸宿曜遊空天眾九執大天1。及二十八宿十二宮神一切聖眾。
From this paragraph, we see that the Buddha spoke this sutra in the Heavens of the Form Realm. He was not proclaiming the sutra to us humans but to those celestial beings who are in charge of the stars and constellations. First of all, there are devas
associated with the nine mutually-attracted celestial bodies. (see diagram.) Such a rendering was perhaps how the Indians or the translators envisioned these nine planets. The Buddha spoke this sutra to those devas in charge of the sun, the moon, and the twenty-eight constellations.
從這段經文可以看出，佛陀是在色界講這部經，但並不是對我們說的，而是對著管理天上星宿的神所說的。首先，是九曜遊空天眾。這個可能是印度人或翻譯者對九執星的翻譯。所以佛是跟管理太陽和月亮的神，還有管理二十八星宿的神宣說這部經。
This picture is from Japan. On the outer rim are the gods whom are the guardians of these twenty-eight constellations. In the center is the Buddha proclaiming the sutra to the gods in charge of the constellations, while those on the outer rim are the guardian gods protecting them.
這幅圖是日本人畫的，外邊這一圈的神是在保護裡邊二十八星宿的神，中間是佛陀在對這些管理星宿的神說法。
When we read this sutra, we know that it was not spoken for us humans. The Chinese zodiac signs are arranged by year, whereas the Western zodiac signs are arranged by month. No matter whom these devas were, they were the audience to whom the Buddha spoke this sutra — The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Auspicious Dharani of Blazing Light Awesome Virtue for Quelling Disasters. Within this sutra, the Buddha also spoke the Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness. The greatest function of this mantra is to help preserve the balance among the constellations in the universe.
當我們看到這部經，我們知道佛不是講給我們聽的。中國依年份排列的十二生肖，還有西方依月份排列的星座，不管哪一個掌管星宿的神，都是佛說這部《佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經》的對象。佛還講了〈消災吉祥神咒〉，這個〈消災吉祥神咒〉最大的作用就是幫助宇宙星象保持平衡。
We know that the five planets are Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn. When these planets cross each other, Mercury looks like it is orbiting in retrograde. When stars and planets move in such a manner, it means something is about to occur. Mercury usually indicates anger or declining fortune. When Mercury is seen to orbit in retrograde, something bad may happen.
我們知道五大行星：金星，木星，水星，火星，土星。當這幾顆星運行在交錯的時候，水星看起來好像是反向運行。當星星在移動的時候出現反向的情形，這個時候就表示有事情要發生。水星表示憤怒的情緒或是運勢走下坡，當水星反向運行的時候，就會有壞事發生。
Two or three days ago, I should have arrived in Canada on Sunday morning, but I could not board the plane because the person accompanying me didn’t have a visa (she never needed it before). According to the new rule, she is required to have a visa for entering Canada. It was never required in the past. At SFO (San Francisco International Airport), it was quite a chaotic situation, because many passengers could not board the plane — the passengers and their children were stuck in the airport with all their luggage. We were forced to stay at the airport for two whole days before we were able to board the plane. When we arrived in Canada, our luggage wasn’t there. Why not? It must be because Mercury is in retrograde, which may have caused the breakdown in the baggage handling conveyor system at SFO. The luggage had to be carried down manually by SFO staff and workers. Because they didn’t handle all the luggage fast enough, the plane took off before they could finish processing it, leaving about thirty passengers’ luggage stuck at SFO. This is an example of the strange things that can happen when Mercury is in retrograde.
兩三天前，我本來應該星期天早上到加拿大，但是我上不了飛機，因為同行的居士需要簽證。新的規定是她需要簽證才能入境加拿大；但是以前她來加拿大，從來都不需要簽證。舊金山機場相當的混亂，非常多的旅客因為沒有簽證上不了飛機，帶著行李和他們的孩子被迫滯留在機場。所以我們在機場待了整整兩天才上了飛機。當我們抵達加拿大的時候，行李並沒有跟著一起來。為什麼呢？因為水星反向運行的關係，舊金山機場的行李輸送帶故障了。所以機場工作人員只好用人力的方式運送這些行李到機上，因為作業不及，大約有三十個乘客的行李還沒送到機上，飛機就起飛了。這就是一個水星反向運行會發生怪事的例子。
Rahu and Ketu are two of the nine planets, and they affect and attract each other. These two do not have any substance but are just shadows.
羅睺（Rahu，天首星）和計都（Ketu，地尾星）是九執星中的其中兩顆，它們都是互相影響，互相吸引的。羅睺（Rahu）和計都（Ketu）沒有實體，只是餘氣。
Rahu is mentioned in the Candima Sutta and the Suriya Sutta in the Pali Canon. In these two sutras, Rahu is about to devour the Sun Deva and Moon Deva. The Sun Deva and Moon Deva recite this short mantra to express their reverence for the Buddha. [Hearing their recitation, the Buddha intervenes to rescue them.] The Buddha asks Rahu to release these two devas. Eventually, because of its protective power, this mantra was adopted into the Buddhist ceremonies.
在巴利文的南傳經典中明確提到羅睺（Rahu）。在《月經》和《太陽經》中，羅睺即將吞食日神和月神。日神和月神誦了一段簡短的咒文表達對佛陀的崇敬。因此，佛就要求羅睺釋放日神和月神。這段唸誦的經文已經被納入佛教儀式，成為具有保護力的咒語。
Let’s take a look at these planets, Rahu and Ketu. In Hinduism, there are many people who know these two planets, which they believe to have the power to influence the course of many events in the human world.
現在我們來看羅睺（Rahu）和計都（Ketu）這兩顆星。在印度教裡，很多人知道這兩顆星，因為這兩顆星可以左右人間很多事。
When an inauspicious event is about to happen, what should you do? First cleanse your body, then find a quiet place and sincerely recite the Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness — then you might be spared from the calamity.
當不吉祥的事情快要發生的時候，該怎麼辦？首先，你要淨身，然後找一個安靜的地方，如果你很誠心地念誦〈消災吉祥神咒〉，也許就能避開災難。
When the planets in the universe are in conjunction, they influence each other, and there will be major events happening in the world; for us, this means a “destructive event” will cause harm to our social structure and order.
當天上的行星在軌道上相互接近影響，就會有大事發生，對我們的影響就是我們的社會結構和秩序被破壞。
For the guardian spirits of Mars, Venus, and Great Dipper, the Buddha spoke this sutra — The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Auspicious Dharani of Blazing Light Awesome Virtue for Quelling Disasters. The Buddha told them what would happen and instructed them to recite this mantra.
佛是對著管理火星，金星和北斗七星的神說《佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經》，佛告訴他們會發生什麼事，並且教他們誦這個咒。
The Great Bear Constellation in the West is just the Great Dipper. Some people can see one of them, some can see two. According to this drawing done in the Song Dynasty, these female guardian spirits of the Great Dipper were among those to whom the Buddha spoke this sutra — The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Auspicious Dharani of Blazing Light Awesome Virtue for Quelling Disasters. If one day, in the sky above where you live, you see Venus and Mars together in Sagittarius (Chinese constellation: Southern Dipper), that is called Shatru. Every morning we recite the mantra, and this can help maintain the power balance of the constellations.
西方的大熊星座就是北斗七星，有些人可以看到其中一顆星，有的人可以看到兩顆。宋朝描繪管理北斗七星的女神，她們就是佛宣說這部《佛說熾盛光大威德消災吉祥陀羅尼經》的對象。如果有一天，你在住處仰觀星象，看到太白星（金星）和熒惑星（火星）一起走到南斗六星（二十八星宿中的斗宿）那兒，就叫做「冤家」(shatru)。我們每天早上都要念這個 消災吉祥神咒，這可以讓星象保持平衡。
The Venerable Master told us that when a demonic star appears, society will fall into chaos. Some nonhumans will take on human form and stir up trouble. When peace prevails in the world, these bad omens will not appear; but, whenever there is a major social change, these nonhumans will show up and cause trouble.
上人告訴我們當妖星出現的時候，社會就會出現亂象，有些非人就會以人的形象現形來擾亂這個社會。在太平盛世的時候這些亂象不會出現，但是在社會動盪的時候，那些非人就會出來擾亂。
Whenever Rahu and Ketu appear, there will be drastic social changes or turmoil. Right now we’re in the kind of environment described by the sutra regarding the appearance of a demonic star. If you take a look at the news about the US, you’ll find that the American political situation is chaotic and disorderly. Regardless of whether it’s the president, senators, or representatives, they’re all hard-liners who are extremely tough. This is totally different from previous American presidents. Class and race discrimination permeate our present society. All of these were brought about by political changes.
羅睺（Rahu）和計都（Ketu）出現的時候就會出現社會動盪的現象。我們現在處的環境就像經文所描述的妖星出現，如果你看美國的新聞就會發現政壇非常的混亂，不管是總統、參議員或是眾議員，都是屬於強硬派；現任總統和他之前的總統作風完全不同。現在社會中充滿階級和種族歧視，這都是因為政治的變遷而引起。
When we see Rahu and Ketu appearing, one appears in the south and the other in the north, and they move along the orbits of the sun and the moon. The Buddha spoke this sutra to those guardian spirits of the stars and constellations in the hopes of maintaining balance in the motion of the stars. The Buddha asked these guardian spirits to help bring order to the world. So I hope that during this special period of time, we can recite the Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Bringing Auspiciousness in order to help stabilize the present disorder.
這裡我們看到羅睺（Rahu）和計都（Ketu）是一南一北在月亮和太陽運行的軌道上。佛陀就是跟這些星宿神說這個咒，希望一切星宿的運行可以平衡。佛陀要看管星宿的神幫忙恢復世間的秩序，所以這段時間我們可以持誦這個〈消災吉祥神咒〉來幫助消弭亂象。
Sometimes we may ask why these misfortunes befall us. Mental problems have to do with people’s past karmic forces and are probably caused by our karmic debtors, to whom we did wrong or were unjust; they may also be caused by the karma our ancestors created. In our past lives, we may have committed some karmic offenses, maybe because of our ignorance; or our ancestors may have made mistakes — which is why we put up paiweis (rebirth plaques) in the Rebirth Hall. When we encountered our Venerable Master, who was a sage, he told us that the karma our ancestors made in the past may affect us and the people who come after us.
有時我們會問，為什麼不好的事情會發生在我身上？有精神上的問題可能都和業力有關，可能是宿世冤家引起，也可能是祖先造的業。因為我們在過去生中可能造了惡業，或是因為我們的無知而造罪。也有可能是我們幾代前的祖先犯下的錯誤，這就是為什麼我們要在往生堂為祖先立牌位。我們遇到師父，他是一位聖人，師父告訴我們過去祖先造的業可能會影響我們以及後代子孫。
I remember a Bhikshuni. When she was still a laywoman, she had a happy and wealthy family, and she herself had a dignified appearance. She had a few daughters, and one of them was attending university. One day, this daughter suddenly turned into another person—a very slow, simple person who was unable to think normally. They went to the Venerable Master to seek counsel. The Venerable Master said, “Two generations ago, your great-grandfather caught and killed a snake while he was laying the foundation of a house. This snake was no common snake but one with quite some foundation in cultivation, and was about to be reborn as a human being.” The Venerable Master said that plants or animals who have lived for a long long time and have some cultivation can be reborn as humans. This snake was on the verge of becoming a person when it was caught and killed. You can imagine how much hate and vengeance it must have harbored. Something that happened twenty years beforehand could affect this young woman.
記得以前有一位比丘尼，她還是在家人的時候，有一個美滿、富裕的家庭，人長得也莊嚴。她有幾個女兒，其中一個很聰明的女兒在讀大學。有一天，這個正在念大學，二十幾歲的女兒突然變成另一個人，頭腦簡單，反應緩慢，無法正常的思考。他們就去請示上人，上人說：「這個要追溯到兩個世代以前，當曾曾祖父在蓋房子打地基的時候抓到一條蛇，而且把這條蛇殺了。這不是一條普通的蛇，而是一隻有修行，已經準備投胎做人的蛇。」師父說，當動物或植物已經活得很久並且有修行，牠們就可以投生做人。這條蛇已經準備要當人了，卻被殺了，可以想像這個蛇的瞋恨報仇心。這是二十幾年前的事情，卻發生在小女兒身上。
In the late1970s, two of the Venerable Master’s disciples who had followed the Master since the early days planned to go on a summer vacation. However, the Venerable Master advised against their plan when he was lecturing in the Buddha Hall, saying, “It’s best that you don’t go on this vacation.” At that time, CTTB’s weather was very hot; besides, they had already planned their trip. So nevertheless they set out with their children for vacation — they were going to visit a volcano: Lassen National Park. Their daughter was about two or three years old. By the time they got back, the daughter was no longer able to move, and even worse, she was having nightmares. Being worried, they brought their daughter to see the Venerable Master so they could ask for help. The first sentence they heard from the Venerable Master was, “Why did you still go on vacation?… Your daughter encountered fire dogs who gathered together at the volcano caves. These fire dogs were very fond of your daughter and hoped that she could go back to the volcano and stay there with them.” That was why the daughter was haunted by dreams; all of the dreams were about these fire dogs. It was only after several years that the daughter regained the ability to walk normally.
在七零年代晚期，上人的兩位在家弟子，他們很早就跟著上人了。有一年的夏天他們計畫去度假，但是上人在佛殿講法的時候就當眾勸誡他們「不要去度假」。當時聖城非常熱，他們也已經計畫好假期，所以他們還是出發了。他們帶著孩子去了美國南方的雷森峰火山國家公園。他們的女兒，當時大概兩三歲，從火山回來之後就無法走路，晚上還會做惡夢。他們焦急地帶著女兒去見上人，上人開口說的第一句話是「為什麼你們要還是去度假？你們的女兒遇到了火性眾生（火狗)，牠們都聚集在那個火山洞裡。這些火性眾生(火狗)非常喜歡你們的女兒，希望她能夠回去火山裡跟牠們在一起。 」 所以小女孩的夢境裡都是這些駭人的火性眾生(火狗)。大概花了好幾年的時間，他們的女兒才有辦法正常走路。
So be aware how terrifying our karmic retributions can be! Sometimes we encounter some karmic obstacles from killing such as a snake, or from committing an offense due to our ignorance, as in the previous instance of the parents who brought their delicate daughter to such a dangerous place like the volcano — a place they shouldn’t have visited at all. Take a look at it and you can see how horrible the consequence was!
Now we will go back to the sutra texts. We prepare offerings of incense, flower, and fruit to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in hope that we may be blessed with auspiciousness.
所以，有時我們遇到一些業障，像是殺了蛇或是因為無知而犯錯，像是我們帶著脆弱的孩子去了一個危險，不該去的地方。看看結果多麼可怕！
現在，我們再回到經文。我們準備香、花、水果來供養佛菩薩，讓我們得到吉祥加被。♦
The Mantra for Quelling Disasters and Brining Auspiciousness
Na Mo San Man Duo Mu Tuo Nan
E Bo La Di
He Duo She
Suo Nang Nan
Da Zhi Tuo
Om
Chue Chue
Chue Xi
Chue Xi
Hong Hong
Ru Wa La
Ru Wa La
bo La Ru Wa La
bo La Ru Wa La
Di Sai Cha
Di Sai Cha
Shai zhi Li
Shai zhi Li
Suo Pan Ja
Suo Pan Ja
Shan Di Jia
Shi Li Ye
Sa Wa He
消災吉祥神咒
曩謨三滿跢沒馱喃
阿鉢囉底
賀哆舍
娑娜喃
怛姪他
唵
佉佉
佉呬
佉呬
吽吽
入嚩囉
入嚩囉
鉢囉入嚩攞
鉢囉入嚩攞
底瑟姹
底瑟姹
瑟致哩
瑟致哩
薩普吒
薩普吒
扇底迦
室哩曳
娑嚩賀