“慈风普扇”的文化内涵

　　“慈风普扇”的文化内涵

　　——传喜法师与美国大学生参访团交流开示

　　这是一把具有中国古典文化意境的扇子，现在给大家每一位发一把，上面四个字是我题写的——“慈风普扇” 。

　　“慈风普扇”，其实是昨天我们交流的一个话题的答案，这个话题就是：为什么中国人在世界文明的交流当中，总是会把自己好的东西、积极的思想文化输出给别人？大家考虑过这个问题吗？

　　两千多年前，孔子《礼记》中说道：“大道之行也，天下为公，选贤与能，讲信修睦，故人不独亲其亲，不独子其子，使老有所终，壮有所用，幼有所长，鳏寡孤独废疾者皆有所养”。影响了中国两千多年的儒家思想里，孔子“天下为公”、“天下大同”的最高精神境界，奠定了中国人历朝历代的社会理想——老吾老及人之老，幼吾幼及人之幼。

　　所以说，中国的文化是家的文化，是追求世界大同的文化。中国人历来就认为“四海之内皆兄弟”，不仅中国人是一家人，中国人也认为这个地球上的所有人都是一家人。

　　所以，请问如果是自己家里妈妈给小孩子吃葡萄，她是把好的葡萄给出去，还是把坏的葡萄给出去？答案当然是肯定的、不容置疑的。

　　“慈风”的“慈”，就是妈妈这颗深沉仁爱的心，也是上帝宽广博爱的心，因为上帝爱所有世人。实际上我们每个人都拥有一颗母爱之心、一颗慈爱之心。我们希望我们自己的这颗爱心，如同慈风一样吹遍这个世界，让沙漠变成绿洲；让哭泣的面容转为笑脸、流浪的孩子找到家、饥饿的人获得饱足；让争战的人放下武器，拥抱自己的仇敌。

　　只有像妈妈一样的慈心充遍这个世界，这个世界才有真正的文明，真正平等的交流，这是商业往来和外交谈判的基础，人类才可以自由平等地享受各个民族文化的财富。

　　中国人习惯把好的给别人，这是一种高度的精神境界，意味生而为人，中国人就在一种良好的文化氛围里，学习怎样去除自私的心态，怎样培养一种奉献的、帮助别人的生命观。中国丰富的文化内涵，不仅是指高超的烹饪、好吃的食物，实际上中国文化本身就是丰富深厚的“大餐”。在这个地球上，我们人类文明当中有中国文化，可以说是整个人类的一种奢侈品。

　　所以这四个字的意思是很深的——慈风普扇，希望大家手里握着这把扇子的时候，思维这个“扇”字，和慈善的“善”，代表爱心的那个“善”是一个谐音字；而这个风，它不仅是物理的风，也是我们人类文明的风，当我们扇到这个风的时候，我们要从中感受到妈妈的爱，上帝的爱，也是佛陀的慈悲的爱。

　　谢谢大家，阿弥陀佛！

　　Spray the Compassion Wind Everywhere

　　  ——Communications with American Students from Appalachian State University

　　This is a Chinese style fan, which is supposed to be given to everyone here with my handwriting: Spray the Compassion Wind Everywhere.

　　This is also an answer to one of the questions you asked me yesterday, why Chinese people always give away our best quality of everything. Have you ever thought about this question? Why do Chinese do that? 

　　Two thousand years ago, Confucius once described an ideal society in The Book of Rites : When the Great Way is practiced, the world is for the public. Those with virtue and those with ability are chosen and used.People value trustworthiness and cultivate harmony with each other.Thus people do not treat only their parents like parents, nor do people treat only their sons like sons.That makes the aged have the appropriate last years, those in their prime have the appropriate employment, and the young have the appropriate growth and development.Elderly men with no spouses, widows, orphans, elderly people without children or grandchildren, the handicapped, the ill – all are provided for.

　　The core principle in the Confucianism is that the world is like a common wealth shared by everyone equally and a Great Unity to all. And this highest spiritual realm laid the foundation for an ideal society in history---Everyone loves and respects his or her own parents and children, as well as the parents and children of others. 

　　So the Chinese culture is really the culture about family. All Chinese belong to one big family, a big family in which all on this planet are brothers and sisters.

　　Could you answer me this question that when your mum tries to feed you a grape , which one she will give to you, the best or the worst? (The answer is, of course,  the best. )

　　The compassion wind actually stands for the tender heart of our mother, the heart of God, because God loves everyone. What is the heart of God ? Our mothers' tender heart is the heart of God. Inside of everyone's body there is a loving, kind, compassion and tender heart; we hope that we could love everyone, care about everyone, just like our mother, the God. May this mild compassion kind wind spray to every corner in this world! May the wind turn the desert into oasis, give shelter to the homeless people, turn a crying face into a big smile face and satisfy all the hungry people! With the compassion wind spraying, all enemies would lower their weapons and hug each other.

　　Once the loving tender heart is fullfilled all over our world, it will bring civilization to our world, it will bring equality to  merchandise trading, to diplomatic negotiations. 

　　As a Chinese, through the very beginning of our education, we were imbued with how to get rid of our selfishness, how to develop the value of life to offer as a tribute to help the others, no matter of what.

　　The Chinese culture has profound meanings, which is more than the food culture. To the Chinese culture itself, it is a feast indeed. And on this planet the existence of Chinese culture is a luxury to the human civilization. 

　　So these four Chinese characters are very meaningful. Ci Feng Pu Shan ---  Compassion Wind Spray Everywhere. The pronunciation of fan is also the pronunciation of charity in Chinese. So it's not only providing the physical wind when you're using this fan. It  also stands for the wind of human civilization. The wind of our mothers' love and God's love and the love form the Buddha.

　　（The script of translation is based on live broadcasting）