佛教常识答问(一）

  问：什么是佛教？

Q: What is Buddhism?

答：佛教，广义地说，它是一种宗教，包括它的经典、仪式、习惯、教团的组织等等；狭义地说，它就是佛所说的言教；如果用佛教固有的术语来说，应当叫做佛法（Buddha Dharma）。

A: Buddhism,in a general sense,is a religion with its canonical literature, rites,customs,Sangha Order (congregational organization）etc.More specifically, it is the Buddha's teachings,and with this specific meaning it should be termed the Buddha Dharma.

问：“法”是什么意思？

Q: What is "Dharma"?

答：“法”字的梵语是达磨（Dharma）。佛教对这个字的解释的是：‘任持自性、轨生物解。’这就是说，每一事物必然保持它自己特有的性质和相状，有它一定轨则，使人看到便可以了解是何物。例如水，它保持著它的湿性，它有水的一定轨则，使人一见便生起水的了解；反过来说，如果一件东西没有湿性，它的轨则不同于水的轨则，便不能生起水的了解。所以佛教把一切事物都叫做‘法’。佛经中常见到的‘一切法’、‘诸法’字样，就是‘一切事物’或‘宇宙万有’的意思。照佛教的解释 ，佛根据自己对一切法如实的了解而宣示出来的言教，它本身也同样具有‘任持自性、轨生物解’的作用，所以也叫做法。

A: "Dharma" in Sanskrit ("Dharma" in Pali) means "retaining one's own nature so that it can be recognized". That is to say, everything has its own attributes and appearance and maintains its own properties, by which people can perceive it as what it is. For instance, water maintains its property of wetness and acts according to its fixed track, so people recognize it as water when they see it. Conversely,when something is devoid of wetness and obey different rules from water,there then can be no conception of water.Therefore, Buddhism views everything as "dharma". The terms"all dharmas", "each dharma" appearing in Buddhist cannons indicate "all things" or "universal existence". According to this interpretation, the discourses delivered by the Buddha based on his own empirical comprehension of dharmas are also "Dharma" since they hold true to the principle of "retaining its own nature, so that it can be recognized.