“因果”二字大家都很熟悉，但认识并深信因果，却不是容易的事。

Everyone is familiar with the term “Cause and Effect,” but it’s difficult to truly understand and firmly believe in it.

通常，我们总是将因果简单理解为“种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆”。可佛法告诉我们：众生业力不可思议，果报亦不可思议。作为万物存在的基本规律，因果法则远非我们以为的那么机械而单一。

Usually, we interpret it with the saying, “You reap what you sow.” However, the Dharma says, “Sentient beings’ karma is inconceivable, and the retribution is also inconceivable.” As the fundamental law governing the existence of all things, the Law of Cause and Effect is far from being as mechanical and simplistic as we might think.

认识因果，首先要相信有善有恶，明确什么是善的行为，什么是恶的行为;

To understand the Law of Cause and Effect, we should, first and foremost, be convinced that there are wholesome and unwholesome actions and be clear about what they are.

其次要相信有业有报，即善的行为形成善业，恶的行为形成恶业，所谓“善恶到头终有报，只争来早与来迟”;

Secondly, we should believe that there are different karmic consequences. Wholesome actions can lead to good karma, and unwholesome actions can lead to negative karma. Whether karmic consequences come sooner or later, we will eventually reap the good or negative karma we have created.

第三，要相信有前生后世，生命是相续不断的，今生仅仅是其中一个环节，它还有着无穷的过去和无尽的未来，而因果正是贯穿其中并连接三世的纽带;

Thirdly, we should believe in past and future lives, and life is a continuous process with a beginningless past and an infinite future, in which this present life is merely a chapter, and the Law of Cause and Effect is the link that runs through all episodes.

最后还要相信有圣有凡，即生命层次有高低之分。生命是能改造的，它既会因为道德净化而升华，也会因为烦恼炽盛而堕落。正因为命运具有可塑性，我们付出的努力才有价值。倘若生命不能转化，不会延续，那么不论流芳千古还是遗臭万年，究竟有什么不同？

Finally, we should believe that there are saints and ordinary people. That is, there are high and low levels of life. Life is malleable; it can be uplifted through moral purification or degraded by the deepening of afflictions. This potential for change renders our efforts meaningful. After all, if our lives were unchangeable or concluded entirely at death, what significance would there be in our actions, whether good or bad, in this world?

因果揭示了生命延续的规则。但对于不信因果的人来说，眼前利益是至高无上的，他们不会进一步考虑未来果报。只有在正确认识因果的前提下，我们的眼光才会更长远，才能通过积极努力来改造命运。

The Law of Cause and Effect reveals the underlying rules governing life. However, those who don’t believe in this law prioritize immediate interests over anything else rather than considering future consequences. Only by correctly understanding cause and effect can we have a long-term vision and change our fate through continuous efforts.

摘自《生命的痛苦及其解脱》

版权所有：济群法师

Excerpted from:

Life’s Suffering and Its Liberation

By Master Jiqun