戒、定、慧三學有其次第與深度，我們學佛只期待迅速得到想要的結果，殊不知我們定義的結果是虛妄的，因為價值觀完全錯誤。 師父上人說他現在沒有煩惱，也為我們分享每一段生命的體悟，隨之命運也難以想像的好轉，從小病弱的身體、出社會困窘的經濟狀況逐漸變好，體解到沒有慾望減輕了煩惱是真正的快樂，在藝術裡面也得到完滿的受用。周遭的人事物也一一印證 師父上人所了解的真理。
Contemplation
In
the article “Titbits of Zen Art Lecture”, I read a description of a painting by
Master Hong Sheng, named Contemplation. It took him four years to finish this work of
art.
Contemplation is
a painting of a human body. It took from
1996 to 2000 to paint. Master spent four
years finishing it, working on it for between four and eight hours every day. It had been a process of cultivating Samadhi.
At
a young age, Master did not have any concept or idea of Samadhi or tranquility. As
he grew up he gained a competitive attitude which had him in a quandary for
over a week. However, Master realised
the holism of the universe as he learned art.
He let go of the idea of competition immediately, transcended the
obstacle of time and space, realised the existence of multiple dimensions, and
became aware that art beautifies life and that he, the creator and artist,
would be the first to benefit. Based on
this attitude and understanding, the artwork would contain an amazing positive
energy.
It
is unbelievable but true that Master spent four years continuously working on
one work of art. In this painting, the
human body, which is the main subject, gradually melts into the other objects,
fusing with the chair and the background.
They are combined together in harmony, the same as the nature of the
whole universe.
Master
realised that true love is based on anatman (non-self) and selflessness, and finally understood that love is unconditional. We
need to treat others and everything else as we treat ourselves. No wonder that Master is far beyond us, as we
love others only with sentimentality and emotion; we only know the literal
meaning of love rather than really understanding the Truth of the
universe. This painting is a result of
the continuous contemplation by Master.
We just see the painting itself; we hardly gain an insight into the
implications of it. Through Master’s
explanation we have heard the process, but we still have no idea what it is all
about. In the end, we need to fathom it
out by ourselves.
