這個世界上特別的事情很多，是人想像不到的。雖然想像不到，可是，什麼事情一半是天造的，一半是人為的。天造的，人若不為，也不會成功；人若為，而天不造，也是沒有一個根本。因此世間的事情都是對立的，有善就有惡，有陰就有陽，有是就有非，有好也就有壞，這是一種對待法。

In this world, there are many unusual things beyond our imagination. These things are created partly by people and partly by heaven. If people have no part in them, they cannot happen. If people contribute to them, but they don't follow the will of heaven, they cannot happen either. Everything in the world is relative: if there is good, then there is evil; if there is yin, then there is yang; if there is right, then there is wrong; if there is good, then there is bad. These are all dualities.

這個對待法，你若會做的，壞又可以變成好；不會做的，好也可以變壞。會用功的人，陰氣最盛的，也可以把它調和得有一點陽氣。陽氣太盛的，也可以把它調和得有一點陰。陽是屬動，陰就屬靜；陽是屬剛，陰就屬柔。好壞是由人而養成的，因此說

Those who know how to work with dualities can turn bad into good. Those who are inept turn good into bad. Intelligent people can regulate themselves and keep their yin and yang energies balanced. Yang is characterized by movement and hardness, yin by stillness and softness. People develop good or bad characters over time.

近朱者赤，近墨者黑，
染於蒼則蒼，染於黃則黃。

Getting close to rouge, one turns red.
Drawing near ink, one is stained black.
If you dye something blue, it becomes blue;
If you color it yellow, it turns yellow.

因為這個，所以在中國有個孟子，他是亞聖。這聖人，小的時候就沒有爸爸了，只有媽媽帶著他過日子。最初他們的鄰居是個殺豬的屠宰場，因此這個小孩子天天就學殺豬，學屠宰的這種事情。他媽媽一看，啊！這不可以讓他自由發展，不可以教他學殺豬，做屠宰的這種事情，所以就趕快搬家。 一搬嘛，又搬到一個墳場的旁邊，這個孟子當時就學挖地造墳，祭祀這一類的事情。小孩在那兒擺上個碗，祭祀祖先；看人家到那兒燒香化紙，他也在那兒燒香化紙。他媽媽一看說，這個不得了，若由他自由發展，這小孩子長大了，會變成一個埋墳的人，這有什麼用啊！唉，趕快搬家！趕快搬家！不能由他自由發展，因為「近朱者赤，近墨者黑」。

An example of this principle is Mencius, the “second sage” of China after Confucius. Mencius' father died when he was very young, and he was raised by his mother. At first they lived near a slaughterhouse. When Mencius' mother saw him imitating the butcher, she thought, “I shouldn't let him follow his inclinations and learn to slaughter animals.”

Then they moved next to a cemetery, and the young boy learned how to dig graves and make offerings to the deceased. He watched people place offerings on the altar for ancestors, light incense, and burn paper money, and he soon learned to copy them. His mother thought, “This will never do! If I allow him to develop freely, he'll end up doing these kinds of things when he grows up. How will that help him? We'd better move, or else this environment will be a bad influence on him.”

於是又搬家了，搬到一個學校的旁邊。那麼這學校的學生上學向聖人鞠躬，放學也向聖人鞠躬，回到家裡向父母也行禮，在學校也好好讀書。孟子家裡沒有錢，雖然沒有錢，但是他有學習的能力。他看人家怎麼樣，他就模仿模仿，怎麼樣去讀書識字，進退有禮，禮儀如一，他就學這個。孟母一看，這回我要在這兒住下來了，這個孩子一學，學好一點，不要由他自由發展。

They moved again, this time next to a school. At the beginning and the end of the school day the students bowed to the sages. They studied hard at school, and bowed to their parents when they got home. Although Mencius' family was poor, he turned out to be a good student. Following the others, he learned to read and study, and he learned the rites and rules of propriety. Mencius' mother was pleased. “I'm going to stay here. My boy is learning and becoming a better person. I will raise him carefully.”

那麼在這兒一住，以後孟子學啊學，時間一久，他又討厭了，就不讀書，又淘氣，又調皮。孟母那時候織布，看兒子不讀書了，就把織布機割斷，布也不織了。孟子一看織布能賣錢，維持家庭生活，那麼母親不織布了，生活的來源斷了，怎麼辦呢？就請問媽媽，為什麼把這個機和線都弄斷了，不織布？媽媽就對他說：「你現在不讀書了，就等於織布機斷了線一樣，不能再織了。」孟子一想，原來我不讀書，就等於織布機斷了線一樣，這是不行的。於是以後就用功讀書，終於成了一個大聖人。

After Mencius studied for some time, he became bored and wanted to quit school. He was naughty and mischievous. His mother made a living by weaving cloth. When she saw her son quit studying, she cut the cloth on her loom and stopped weaving.

Mencius knew this was their only source of income, and he wondered what to do. When he asked his mother why she'd cut the cloth and stopped weaving, she answered, “If you don't study, it's just like cutting the cloth on the loom so that it cannot be woven anymore.” Mencius reflected, “Oh, I'd better not play hooky anymore.” After that, he studied hard and became a great sage.

所以，我並不是在反對這個國家，但是你任小孩子自由發展太過，也是一種錯誤的觀念。由於小孩子就像一棵小樹似的，長得很多枝枝枒枒，你若想它成一個材料，必須要把這些橫枝都斬去，留一個正的根，這樣才能夠成為一個棟樑之材。所以，小孩子若是對的，當然由他自由發展去；如果他不對，應該教他改過一點。在這個國家，我發覺很多小孩子都是左撇子，寫字、吃飯，做什麼都用左手，這是不太方便的。右手屬於柔順，左手是屬剛強，所以左撇子是不太好的。每一個家庭，如果有小孩子是左撇子，最好還是教他在學習的時候就能轉過來，用右手寫字、拿筷子等，這是好一點。因為向右是順序，順著次序去的。好像我們繞佛都是向右轉的，這一切一切都是向右的。右手就比較靈活一點，也方便寫字、吃飯，一切一切的都很順利。所以我向有左撇子小孩的家庭做這樣建議。說是這樣說，不過你們若是一定教小孩子自由發展，那將來不聽話，也是自由發展發來的。因為他說我要自由發展，我不聽你的，你講什麼我也不聽。所以到大了就做嬉皮，或者就做很多不合理的事情。從電視上會 讓人學得很壞的，你若是教他看電視，那不也是自由發展嗎？這都是一種影響力影響了他！所以若真自由發展，要怎麼樣呢？就要到山裡頭，電話也沒有，電視也沒有，什麼都沒有，完全與世界隔絕了。他在那個地方自由發展，好像山裡頭的樹木和世人離開，那可以自由發展。因為它沒有人了嘛！那地方沒有人，你不自由發展也不行。若在社會上，有人在這兒，我們則應該維持一般的智慧、常識和行動。

I am not opposed to this country's methods, but I think it's wrong to give children too much freedom in their development. Children are like young trees with many shoots. If you want the tree to be useful, you have to prune the shoots so the tree will grow straight and tall. Then the tree can serve as a pillar. If a child is on the right path, then of course we can give him independence. If he is doing something wrong, we should give him some guidance to help him change. For instance, I've found that many left-handed American children write, eat, and do everything with their left hand. But being left-handed is sometimes inconvenient. The right hand is associated with gentleness, the left hand with obstinacy. That is why being left-handed is not very good. If a child shows a tendency to be left-handed, his or her parents should help him or her to learn to write and eat with the right hand. Going to the right (i.e. clockwise) is the natural order. We circumambulate the Buddha and do everything else in clockwise fashion. The right hand is more active, and thus more convenient for writing, eating, and other activities. This is my suggestion to parents of left-handed children.

If you allow your children to develop freely, they may not listen to you in the future. They will say, “I want to do as I please. No matter what you say, I won't listen.” When they grow up, they become hippies or do unprincipled things. From television, people can learn to be very bad.

You think you're letting your children develop freely by letting them watch TV? Actually, TV influences them too. To really let them develop freely, you should take them deep into the mountains, away from telephone and television, so that they are totally cut off from the world. Then they can develop freely, like the trees in the mountains, totally isolated from human influence. When there are no other people, they will develop freely whether they want to or not. But as long as we live in society, we should use wisdom and common sense, and maintain a certain standard of behavior.

我並不是反對左撇子，不過這左撇子的人，有的時候好像古里古怪，有一點不聽話似的，這都是自由發展的關係。這個國家的小孩子，說讓他自由發展，那麼你們查一查，詳細研究研究，在這些自由發展的小孩子裡，有多少個是出來做總統的？是不是他自由發展，每一個都可以做總統？若可以這樣子的話，那這個國家個個完全都變成總統了。如果不是這樣子，那還是應該幫助他一點。幫助他一點，就是：對的，就讓他自由發展；不對的，就應該告訴他不要那樣子。

I am not against left-handed people, but they sometimes stand out as a bit unusual. Often they are not very obedient, because they were allowed to go their own way. Americans like to give their children a lot of freedom. Maybe we ought to do a survey and see how many children who are raised this way go on to become President. If children who receive a free upbringing can become President, we would have a nation full of presidents! If this is not the case, then we should give our children a little guidance. If they are on the right track, we can give them freedom. If not, we should correct them.

一九八三年三月二十日中午開示
於萬佛聖城