英文原文
Seva: The Dharma of Volunteering – Insight Meditation Center
Seva: The Dharma of Volunteering
Seva: The Dharma of Volunteering
Posted December 7, 2024
by
Gil Fronsdal
Some years ago, early in IMC’s growth, I asked if anyone was interested in volunteering for our center. To my surprise, many people expressed a strong interest. While I was happy with the reply, I was troubled that we did not have enough volunteer roles to meet the big interest. I knew from personal experience that volunteering at a Buddhist center can be a significant form of Dharma practice and a means for a deeper connection to a Dharma community. I was sorry we could not provide the opportunity to all of those who were interested. Since then, IMC has grown in many ways and many directions. Today we have some 150 volunteers and an over-abundance of volunteering opportunities.
In the context of a Buddhist community, volunteering is a freely given gift of one’s time and labor that supports people’s ability to learn and practice the Dharma, and develop supportive practice relationships with others in the community. The Buddhist word for “volunteering” is seva, meaning “support,” “service,” and “assistance.” The English word, “volunteering” reminds us how we serve, i.e., freely from generosity. The Buddhist word, “seva” emphasizes that volunteering is for the sake of benefiting others selflessly.
There is a dynamic interplay between developing one’s wholesome qualities as a volunteer and volunteering in unselfish ways. This interaction makes volunteering an invaluable arena for Dharma practice. The selfless part of volunteering does not mean we can’t personally benefit; it means we learn to let go of unhealthy attachments and unwholesome motivations while growing in wholesome inner qualities and healthy forms of community kinship. Growing in joy, happiness, goodwill, wisdom, and freedom are some of the personal benefits of volunteering.
Often, wholesome and unwholesome motivations for volunteering coexist. Genuine goodwill, gratitude, and generosity can be entangled in perfectionism and performance anxiety, attachments to productivity, and the need to prove one’s worth. The joy of service can be eclipsed by concerns with praise or blame. Selfless service can be accompanied—almost invisibly—by expectations of rewards.
One reason mindfulness, while volunteering, brings great benefit, is revealing these mixed motivations. By seeing them clearly, we can appreciate and participate with what is wholesome and learn to understand, put aside, or let go of the unwholesome. It is unnecessary to dwell on shame or embarrassment for our unwholesome motivations; their presence can inspire us to be mindful with honesty, wisdom, and non-reactivity. Surprisingly, non-reactive mindfulness of what is unwholesome supports the growth of what is wholesome.
Mindfulness can also reveal when volunteering becomes stressful. Viewing stress with careful and caring mindfulness allows us to question its value. Is it necessary? What do we believe to be true that raises stress? Can volunteering tasks be done with ease?
It is best not to view stress as bad; it is much better to view it as an avenue for understanding ourselves better. What emotions underly stress? What fears fuel it? What shifts when we acknowledge and bring stress under the gaze of mindfulness? If the stress is strong enough, it can be invaluable to take time to meditate. Meditation might allow us to settle sufficiently to touch into a sense of ease, generosity, and kindness. To return to volunteering with this ease is an essential part of Buddhist practice.
Giving time and expression to our wholesome states of mind and heart is one way these states grow. Acting on wise generosity can spread the warmth of generosity throughout our being. Allowing goodwill to accompany volunteering is good for our own heart. Having the wisdom not to participate in stress strengthens our wisdom. When volunteering is seen as a form of Buddhist practice, volunteers might benefit more than those they serve.
Volunteering for a Dharma center can provide many opportunities to learn from the way other practitioners serve the community. Witnessing how others can be kind, compassionate, caring, and easeful in their volunteer work can teach us how we can do the same. Observing practitioners respond wisely and non-reactively to challenging situations can inspire us to see challenges as practice opportunities from which we should not shy away. Watching how more experienced practitioners communicate with respect, friendliness, and mindfulness can teach us to do the same. Being a volunteer provides many opportunities to learn from other community members.
A Buddhist community is not made up only of angels. Because those of us who are not angels need the Dharma, they should be welcomed into the community. This means that not all social interactions in the community will be easy or pleasant. Sometimes, these interactions can be challenging. However, they are invaluable for our practice. If we only volunteer when everyone is on their best behavior, we won’t learn about our reactivity and how to become free of our reactivity. We will be shortchanging ourselves in the practice. While challenging interactions will occur in a Buddhist center, hopefully, the center’s culture helps us feel safe enough to practice with the challenges.
Even if we make mistakes in these interpersonal challenges or with our volunteer tasks, mistakes are an occasion to learn; they are not for self-recrimination. We can learn what contributed to our mistakes and how to do better in the future. In a sense, Buddhism is forward-looking, so we are not weighed down by what was done in the past, whether an hour ago, a week ago, or years ago. We focus on past events just enough to learn from them so we can focus on moving forward with more wisdom and less reactivity.
By meditating every day, or at least before volunteering, we can learn how to start fresh with each volunteering occasion. If we volunteered poorly yesterday, that belongs to yesterday. Today can provide the delight of getting to try again. Approaching each volunteer task as another inspiring chance to grow in the Dharma can add meaning and purpose to every task. It can inspire us to discover how to find our inner freedom in whatever we do.
By offering seva, or “support,” in community with other practitioner-volunteers, we can experience the joy of being in the company of people who are doing their best to live the Dharma, i.e., to live with the values, purpose, and fruit of Dharma practice. Perhaps the greatest gift of a volunteer is their example of doing their best to practice with whatever circumstances bring; perfection is not needed
Volunteering at IMC
Everyone is welcome to volunteer at IMC in any way they can, however small or large, for as long as it works for them. It is a rewarding way to become more deeply connected to the IMC community. If interested, you can fill out a volunteer form on the volunteer page of IMC’s website or by emailing IMC.VolunteerDirector@gmail.com
中文翻译
Seva：志愿服务的佛法 – 内观禅修中心
Seva：志愿服务的佛法
Seva：志愿服务的佛法
发布于2024年12月7日
作者
Gil Fronsdal
几年前，在IMC早期发展时，我问是否有人有兴趣为我们的中心做志愿者。令我惊讶的是，许多人表达了强烈的兴趣。虽然我对回复感到高兴，但我困扰于我们没有足够的志愿者角色来满足这种大兴趣。我从个人经验中知道，在佛教中心做志愿者可以是一种重要的佛法修行形式，也是与佛法社区建立更深连接的手段。我很抱歉我们无法为所有感兴趣的人提供机会。从那时起，IMC在许多方面和方向上成长了。今天，我们有大约150名志愿者和丰富的志愿者机会。
在佛教社区的背景下，志愿服务是自愿奉献时间和劳动，支持人们学习和实践佛法，并与社区中的他人发展支持性的修行关系。佛教中“志愿服务”的词是seva，意为“支持”、“服务”和“协助”。英语词“volunteering”提醒我们如何服务，即出于慷慨而自愿。佛教词“seva”强调志愿服务是为了无私地利益他人。
作为志愿者发展自己的善巧品质与以无私方式志愿服务之间存在动态互动。这种互动使志愿服务成为佛法修行的宝贵领域。志愿服务的无私部分并不意味着我们不能个人受益；它意味着我们学会放下不健康的执着和不善的动机，同时增长善巧的内在品质和健康的社区亲情。增长喜悦、幸福、善意、智慧和自由是志愿服务的一些个人益处。
通常，志愿服务的善巧和不善动机共存。真诚的善意、感恩和慷慨可能被完美主义和表现焦虑、对生产力的执着以及证明自己价值的需要所纠缠。服务的喜悦可能被对赞扬或责备的担忧所掩盖。无私的服务可能伴随着——几乎看不见的——对回报的期望。
正念在志愿服务中带来巨大益处的一个原因是揭示这些混合动机。通过清晰地看到它们，我们可以欣赏并参与善巧的部分，并学会理解、放下或放弃不善的部分。没有必要为我们的不善动机而陷入羞耻或尴尬；它们的存在可以激励我们以诚实、智慧和非反应性的方式保持正念。令人惊讶的是，对不善的非反应性正念支持善巧的增长。
正念还可以揭示志愿服务何时变得有压力。以仔细和关怀的正念看待压力，让我们质疑其价值。它必要吗？我们相信什么导致压力？志愿服务任务能否轻松完成？
最好不要将压力视为坏事；将其视为更好地理解自己的途径要好得多。压力下隐藏着什么情绪？什么恐惧助长了它？当我们承认并将压力置于正念的注视下时，会发生什么变化？如果压力足够强，花时间冥想可能是无价的。冥想可能让我们足够安定，触及轻松、慷慨和善良的感觉。带着这种轻松回到志愿服务是佛教修行的重要组成部分。
给予时间和表达我们心灵和内心的善巧状态是这些状态增长的一种方式。基于智慧的慷慨行动可以将慷慨的温暖传播到我们的整个存在。让善意伴随志愿服务对我们自己的心有益。拥有不参与压力的智慧增强了我们的智慧。当志愿服务被视为一种佛教修行形式时，志愿者可能比他们服务的人受益更多。
为佛法中心做志愿者可以提供许多机会，从其他修行者服务社区的方式中学习。见证他人在志愿者工作中如何善良、慈悲、关怀和轻松，可以教会我们如何做同样的事。观察修行者如何明智和非反应性地应对挑战性情境，可以激励我们将挑战视为不应回避的修行机会。观看更有经验的修行者如何以尊重、友好和正念沟通，可以教会我们做同样的事。作为志愿者提供了许多从其他社区成员学习的机会。
佛教社区不仅由天使组成。因为我们这些不是天使的人需要佛法，他们应该被欢迎进入社区。这意味着社区中并非所有社交互动都会轻松或愉快。有时，这些互动可能具有挑战性。然而，它们对我们的修行是无价的。如果我们只在每个人都表现最佳时才做志愿者，我们将无法了解我们的反应性以及如何摆脱反应性。我们将在修行中亏待自己。虽然挑战性互动会在佛教中心发生，希望中心的文化帮助我们感到足够安全，以应对挑战进行修行。
即使我们在这些人际挑战或志愿者任务中犯错，错误是学习的机会；它们不是为了自责。我们可以学习是什么导致了我们的错误以及未来如何做得更好。在某种意义上，佛教是前瞻性的，所以我们不会被过去所做的事所拖累，无论是小时前、一周前还是几年前。我们只关注过去事件足够从中学习，以便我们可以专注于以更多智慧和更少反应性向前迈进。
通过每天冥想，或至少在志愿服务前冥想，我们可以学会如何在每个志愿服务场合重新开始。如果我们昨天志愿服务做得不好，那属于昨天。今天可以提供再次尝试的喜悦。将每个志愿者任务视为另一个在佛法中成长的鼓舞人心的机会，可以为每个任务增添意义和目的。它可以激励我们发现如何在所做的一切中找到内在自由。
通过与其他修行者-志愿者一起提供seva或“支持”，我们可以体验到与那些尽力活出佛法的人为伴的喜悦，即活出佛法修行的价值观、目的和果实。也许志愿者最大的礼物是他们尽力在无论什么情况下修行的榜样；完美并不需要
在IMC做志愿者
欢迎每个人以任何方式在IMC做志愿者，无论大小，只要适合他们。这是一种更有深度地连接到IMC社区的回报方式。如果有兴趣，您可以在IMC网站的志愿者页面填写志愿者表格或通过电子邮件联系IMC.VolunteerDirector@gmail.com
文章概要
本文探讨了佛教视角下的志愿服务（seva），强调其作为佛法修行和社区连接的重要形式。文章从个人经验出发，讨论了志愿服务的无私本质、善巧与不善动机的共存、正念在揭示和转化这些动机中的作用，以及如何将挑战性互动视为修行机会。它还突出了志愿服务对个人成长和社区学习的益处，并鼓励以轻松和智慧的态度参与。
高德明老师的评价
用12岁初中生可以听懂的语音来重复翻译的内容
这篇文章讲的是在佛教中心做志愿者的事情，就像帮忙打扫教室或者组织活动一样。作者说，做志愿者可以让我们学习佛法，交到好朋友，还能让自己变得更开心、更聪明。有时候，我们做志愿者时可能会有一些不好的想法，比如想得到表扬或者怕做错事，但通过保持正念（就是注意自己的感受和想法），我们可以学会放下这些，专注于帮助别人。即使遇到困难或者和别人吵架，这也是学习的好机会，让我们变得更强大。每天冥想一下，可以帮助我们以轻松的心情去做志愿者，享受这个过程。
佛学的各个宗派视角评价，突出《显密圆通成佛心要集》的视角
从佛学宗派视角看，本文体现了大乘佛教的利他精神，强调志愿服务作为菩萨行的实践，与《显密圆通成佛心要集》中“显密圆通”的理念相契合。该经典主张显宗（如禅宗、净土宗）与密宗（如准提法）的融合，志愿服务可视为显宗的布施波罗蜜，通过无私服务积累福德资粮，同时密宗准提法强调心性修炼，志愿服务中的正念与放下执着，正对应准提法“心佛众生三无差别”的智慧，促进显密双修。从显宗视角，志愿服务是六度万行的具体应用，培养慈悲与智慧；从密宗视角，它可融入准提咒修持，净化业障，加速成佛。准提法的优点在于简便易行，志愿服务作为日常实践，能深化准提法的“即身成佛”目标，使修行生活化。
在修行实践上可以应用的和可以解决人们的十个问题。
在修行实践上，志愿服务可以应用于培养慈悲心、减少自我中心、增强社区归属感、提升正念能力、转化负面情绪、学习人际智慧、积累功德资粮、实践佛法教义、促进身心健康、实现生命意义。它可以解决人们的十个问题，如孤独感、压力过大、自我怀疑、人际关系紧张、缺乏目标感、修行懈怠、烦恼增多、智慧不足、福德欠缺、生活枯燥，通过志愿服务，人们能在服务中体验法喜，连接佛法社区，找到修行动力，实现内在自由与成长。