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上人當年雖身居香江，心裏常常惦念著，不要說北俱盧洲，單這娑婆世界，已經有很多地方的眾生都沒有聽聞佛法。他的願力，就是要把佛法的種籽散播到每一個角落。
一九六一年，上人不怕預期的困難艱苦，決定到佛教尚未萌芽的澳洲去弘法。他到過雪梨和墨爾本。那時澳洲認識佛法的人很少，更不要說佛教寺院，只有一小規模的澳洲佛教會；釋迦牟尼佛誕那一天，他們邀請上人出席演講，由雪梨大學學者劉季寧居士代為翻譯。上人在澳洲逗留了一年，雖然機緣沒有成熟，未能有大發展；但是由於上人平日的威儀舉止，已給當地的華人和部份澳洲人留下良好印象，對這位來自中國的出家人深為欽佩，種下了未來佛教在澳洲發揚光大的因緣。
今天是五月十一日，為澳洲雪梨佛教徒慶佛誕的日子，是很隆重的一個大典禮。度輪今能躬逢其盛，又蒙主席及各位護法居士等誠懇的邀約出席，作通俗的演講，以結法緣。而面對現前這麼多的來賓、各界參加人士，山僧感覺非常榮幸；更得雪梨大學的學者劉君季寧先生贊助大會，俯應眾望，在百忙中慨任翻譯英語，山僧尤表感謝之至。
溯我佛教發源於印度，流佈於全球。教主釋迦牟尼佛出生皇家，為淨飯國王的太子，名曰悉達。以遊四門，見生、老、病、死，感到生死無常，而憂悲苦惱、精神不安。遂棄國城、妻子，與榮華富貴、娛樂幸福、人生享受，至雪山修行。修了六年苦行，每日祇食一麻一麥，以延續生命。後坐於菩提樹下，夜睹明星而悟道，三嘆「奇哉」，謂「一切眾生皆有如來智慧德相，但以妄想執著，不能證得。」於是先說《大方廣佛華嚴經》，教菩薩法；而法身大士，聞法開悟，信解行證，各得其益。惟二乘人如聾若啞，所謂「有眼不見盧舍那佛，有耳不聞圓頓教義」。世尊乃為實施權，屈就二乘根性，說「阿含經教」。
闡「四諦」苦集滅道，說「十二因緣」：無明緣行、行緣識、識緣名色、名色緣六入、六入緣觸、觸緣受、受緣愛、愛緣取、取緣有、有緣生、生緣老死。說「六度波羅蜜」：1.布施──A）財施、B）法施、C）無畏施。2.持戒──A）沙彌、B）比丘、C）菩薩。3.忍辱──A）生忍、B）法忍、C）無生忍。4.精進──有身精進、心精進。5.禪定──有四禪八定、九次第定等。6.般若──A）文字、B）觀照、C）實相。循序漸進，說「方等教」；迴小向大，說「般若教」。
至「法華涅槃教」時，則開權顯實、純圓獨妙。如來出世本懷，於茲始暢，不留餘義，和盤托出。演教菩薩法，佛所護念，名為真實究竟了義，第一之妙法。最後單傳，直指人心，見性成佛。世尊拈花，迦葉微笑，領悟妙旨。世尊乃印證曰：「吾有正法眼藏，涅槃妙心，實相無相，教外別傳，已咐囑摩訶迦葉矣！」自是祖祖單傳、心心相印，乃為禪宗的開始。傳至西天第二十八代祖師，菩提達摩尊者乃東來震旦，折蘆渡江，法流中國，是為初祖。衣缽傳授與二祖神光，賜名慧可。乃傳至六祖慧能大鑑禪師，一華開五葉，是為中國禪宗傳承之源流。
今日縱觀世界佛教，不外兩大派：1）大乘教菩薩法。「菩薩」譯為「大道心眾生」，又名「覺有情」。是以鳩摩羅什、唐玄奘等法師所譯經教為依據，盛傳至中國各地、日本、朝鮮、星加坡、馬來亞、檳城、馬尼拉、印度、越南、高棉、印尼、泰國、緬甸、美國、巴西等處，遍播大乘種子，將開無量菩薩花朵，結無量諸佛果實。2）二乘教羅漢法 。「羅漢」有三義： 1.應供、2.殺賊、3.無生。是以《阿含》等經教為依據，現盛行於錫蘭、緬甸、泰國、印度、尼泊爾、巴基斯坦等處。
然此兩者，原為一體，後世教徒妄生葛藤，論大論小，自相排斥；實乃頭上安頭、相中求相，良堪嘆息！惟由來大可容小，小則決難包大，乃世所公認的真理。我數年前在緬甸發表談話時，曾言及「佛徒眼光要看全世界，心志要包法界性，推行固有具體佛教，使教乘統一，大小歸元。願人人同登彼岸，個個見性成佛。」今亦如是！希望諸位現前快樂，將來成佛，普化同倫，皆成正等菩提！
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Even though the Venerable Master lived in Hong Kong, he always thought of the many places in Saha world, not to mention Uttarakuru, where people had not heard the Buddhadharma. He wished to spread the seeds of Dharma to every corner of the world.
In 1961, the Venerable Master, undaunted by the prospect of hardship, decided to lecture in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, where Buddhism was virtually unknown. Since very few Australians were familiar with Buddhism, there was no monastery, only a small scale Australia Buddhist Association. On the Buddha’s birthday, the Venerable Master was invited to speak. His speech was translated by a scholar, Mr. Ji-Ning Liu of the University of Sydney. The Venerable Master remained in Australia for a year. Although the conditions were not ripe for Buddhism to develop significantly then, the Master’s dignified deportment impressed and won the respect of the local Chinese and some Australians, thus planting a seed for the future flourishing of Buddhism there.
Today is May 11th, a ceremonial day during which Buddhists in Sydney, Australia will celebrate the Buddha’s birthday. To Lun [Venerable Master’s Dharma name] can be a part of this grand event and was invited sincerely by the Chairman and all of you Dharma-protecting laypeople to speak and create Dharma affinities with the many guests. This rustic monk feels very honored. This rustic monk is particularly grateful to Mr. Jin Ning Liu, a scholar at the University of Sydney, who sponsored the ceremony and agreed to translate the lecture into English despite his tight schedule.
Buddhism began in India and has spread all over the world. Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder, was born into a royal family. He was the son of King Suddhodana and was named Siddhartha. Upon passing through the four gates of his palace, Siddhartha witnessed birth, old age, sickness and death. He recognized the impermanence of life, with its worries and suffering, and became uneasy. Consequently, he renounced his kingdom, wife, glory, riches, and pleasures, and went to Himalayas to cultivate the Path by practicing austerities for six years. Each day he ate only one grain of wheat and one sesame seed. Later, one night while sitting under the Bodhi Tree, he saw a star and became fully awakened. He then exclaimed, “Strange indeed! Strange indeed! Strange indeed! All living beings have the wisdom and virtue of the Thus Come One, yet because of their idle thoughts and attachments, they fail to realize it.” He first spoke the
Flower Adornment Sutra to teach the Dharma of Bodhisattvas. Upon hearing it, all the great heroes of the Dharma Body [Bodhisattvas] became enlightened and attained benefit according to their faith, understanding, practice, and realization. However, those of the Two Vehicles were as if deaf and dumb. “They had eyes, but failed to see Vairochana Buddha; they had ears, but did not hear the Perfect Sudden Teaching.” The World Honored One spoke provisional teachings for the sake of disclosing the true teaching, and thus spoke the Agama Sutras for those of the Two Vehicles.
The Buddha expounded the Four Noble Truths of suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the Path that leads to the cessation of suffering, as well as the chain of Twelvefold Conditioned Arising: ignorance, karmic formation, consciousness, name and form, the six involvements, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, old age and death. He taught Six Paramitas: (1)
giving, which includes the giving of wealth, Dharma, and fearlessness; (2)
moral precepts, including the Shramanera, Bhikshu, and Bodhisattva precepts; (3)
patience, including patience with arising, patience with dharmas, and patience with nonarising; (4)
vigor, both physical and mental; (5) samadhi, including the four dhyanas, eight levels of
samadhi and nine sequential samadhis; (6)
prajna wisdom, including literary prajna, contemplative
prajna, and the prajna of reality. He gradually advanced and spoke the Vaipulya Sutras, and then he turned from the small to the great and spoke the Prajna Teaching.
When speaking the Dharma Flower and Nirvana teachings, he expanded the provisional and revealed the ultimate true teaching in all its wonder and perfection. The Thus Come One’s intention in coming to the world was thus fully and completely revealed. The teaching for Bodhisattvas, protected by the Buddhas, is called the true and ultimate meaning, which is foremost and wonderful. It was transmitted from one individual to another, by pointing directly to the mind so that one sees one’s nature and becomes a Buddha. When the World Honored One held up a flower, Venerable Kashyapa smiled and understood the wondrous principle. The World Honored One certified his understanding, saying, “I have the Right Dharma Eye Treasury, the wondrous mind of nirvana, the reality beyond appearance. The Dharma-door of mind to mind transmission, which is outside of the teachings, has been entrusted to Kashyapa.” This mind-to-mind seal was transmitted from one patriarch to another, and thus the Chan School began. When the transmission reached the 28th Patriarch, Venerable Bodhidharma, he came to China, crossing the river on a reed. He took the Dharma to China and became the first patriarch there. He bestowed the robe and bowl to the second patriarch Sheng Guang, also named Hui Ke. When the Dharma was transmitted to the Sixth Patriarch, Dhyana Master Hui Neng; a five-petaled flower bloomed, symbolizing the transmission lineages of the Chan School in China.
There are two major schools of Buddhism worldwide. One of them is Mahayana Buddhism, which teaches the Dharma of Bodhisattvas. A Bodhisattva is ‘a being who has a great mind for enlightenment’ and ‘an enlightened sentient being’. Mahayana teachings, based on the Sutras translated by Dharma Masters Kumarajiva and Xuanzang, which have been widely disseminated in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaya, Penang, Manila, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, United States, Brazil, etc. The seeds of Mahayana Buddhism were widely spread, causing limitless Bodhisattva flowers to bloom and bearing countless fruits of Buddhas. The second major school is the Two Vehicles [Ed. Note: also known as Theravada or Hinayana] which teaches the Dharma for Arhats. Arhat has three meanings: a) worthy of offerings, b) killer of thieves, and c) unborn. This school is based on the Agama teaching which prevails in Ceylon, Burma, Thailand, India, Nepal, Pakistan, etc.
However, these two schools came from the same substance. Buddhists in later generations discriminated between great and small, creating complications and mutually rejecting each other. Such superfluous pursuits and excessive discrimination is truly pathetic. People only think that the great contains the small, while the small can never contain the great. Several years ago when I spoke in Burma, I said, “Buddhists should consider the whole world and their hearts should encompass the Dharma Realm; we should promote an intrinsic and concrete Buddhism, uniting the teachings of great and small and bringing them back to their source. May every being reach the other shore, see their original nature and become a Buddha.” In the same way, may all of you here be happy, and in the future, may you all become Buddhas and teach all beings to realize enlightenment together!
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