總監修／星雲大師

文／黃武忠（1950～2005）

「會爭的人，無意中失去了很多朋友；不爭的人，卻常獲得友誼。交一個好朋友，勝過耕一區好田。」這是高中時代，父親叮嚀我的一句話語。

古人有云「國之將亡必亂」，而「亂」之根源在於「爭」，歷史上有所謂「黨爭」、「政爭」，無不因爭強鬥勝、爭名奪利而起。日常生活裡，也常因爭風吃醋，而釀造紛爭，衍生許多不幸，無一不是為了「爭」字。

與人「爭」，常傷和氣；與己「爭」，可以轉化激發潛能的動力，而成為爭氣的人。父親所謂不爭的人，其「不爭」，指的是不與人爭的修己功夫。

──選自《人間有味是清歡》

Cultivate Merits in

Your Heart's Field (Excerpt)

Huang Wu-chung (1950~2005)

English translation: Venerable Miao Guang

“Those who struggle with others will unknowingly lose many friends; those who do not, will often win many friends. Making a good friend is worth more than cultivating a good field paddy.”

This was an advice given by my father during my high school days. As the ancient saying goes, “When on the verge of destruction, a nation is thereby destined for chaos.” In other words, the origin of chaos lies in struggle. Throughout history, there have been factional and political struggles, all of which are caused by fights to be the victor, as well as for fame and profit. In our daily lives, people also frequently quarrel out of jealousy, creating conflicts that eventually lead to misfortunes, all of which are caused by struggles.

The act of struggling with others often destroys harmony, but a struggle against oneself can be turned into a motivation to bring out our potential for success. What my father meant by “those who do not struggle,” is not to struggle with others but an art of self-cultivation.

── from Renjian Youwei Shi Qinghuan

(That Flavorful Taste of Simplicity)