英文原文
I would like to reflect on Buddhism and our sense of humor. I think that having a sense of humor is not just a healthy thing for us, mentally and physically, but I think that one could say that a Buddhist life is one of having a sense of humor. Especially if we can laugh at our own foolishness, that is a very Buddhistic quality to have. Over the years, some of my favorite ministers to listen to all had an acute sense of humor. Rev. Tetsuo Unno and Rev. Mas Kodani used to give Dharma talks that sometimes had everyone rolling in laughter, but their talks also had great depth and meaning to them as well. They were not just entertaining talks. I will never forget one funny story that Rev. Tets shared in a talk. He recalled when he was a young minister first starting to serve at the Seattle Betsuin. I believe it might have been the first funeral that he participated in. He had to wear the formal robes for a funeral service, which consists of a garment called a “hakama” that is worn underneath our robes. A hakama is like a pair of very baggy pants. Rev. Tets put the hakama on, but mistakenly put both of his legs into one leg of the hakama. When he had to go up to the altar, he had to walk like a penguin. It is hilarious just to picture that in one’s mind. Many years ago, I was outside in front of the Hondo after the Orange County Buddhist Church (OCBC) Sunday service talking to people. One of our members came up to me and said, “Sensei, I need to talk to you.” He pulled me off to the side of the Hondo and I thought that maybe he was going to ask for counseling or had something personal to discuss with me. When we were away from everyone, he said to me, “Sensei, your zipper is down.” I looked down and my zipper was wide open! Talk about not being able to see yourself. Something so close to me and I couldn’t even see it. How kind that member was to pull me off to the side to tell me my zipper was down. If we can laugh at ourselves and at our own foolishness or even be able to laugh at our own ego-centeredness, I think that is a very healthy quality to have and very Buddhistic. If you can’t laugh at your own foolishness, then how else would you react? Maybe you might react angrily or defensively and miss the opportunity to really see yourself. One of the favorite sounds that I loved to hear at our festivals at OCBC was the sound of laughter coming from the members. We would all be working so hard at the festivals, in the heat, in the busyness of the festival, but I could always hear laughter from members working and talking together and having a good time. It was a real joy to hear. Sometimes it came from the Jr. YBA kids. Sometimes it came from the ABA group making the chicken. Throughout the day and into the evening, laughter could be heard. I can’t cite any quotations from sutras or Shinran Shonin that actually state that one should maintain a sense of humor, but that is how I see and interpret Buddhism in our modern context. We can laugh with others. We can laugh at funny stories in Dharma talks. We can laugh at ourselves. Once I went to a buffet restaurant with my wife and I noticed this lady who had a huge pile of food on her plate. I whispered to my wife, “Look at that lady’s pile of food on her plate!” I then looked at my own plate and it was piled just as high as that lady’s plate. How easy it is to see others, and how hard it is to see ourselves. We also might find that we can easily laugh at the foolishness of others, but it is harder to laugh at ourselves. We must laugh at ourselves first and foremost.
中文翻译
我想反思佛教与我们的幽默感。我认为拥有幽默感不仅对我们的身心健康有益，而且可以说，佛教生活就是拥有幽默感的生活。特别是如果我们能嘲笑自己的愚蠢，那是一种非常佛教化的品质。多年来，我最喜欢听的一些法师都有敏锐的幽默感。Rev. Tetsuo Unno和Rev. Mas Kodani过去常进行法谈，有时让所有人都捧腹大笑，但他们的谈话也很有深度和意义。它们不仅仅是娱乐性的谈话。我永远不会忘记Rev. Tets在一次谈话中分享的一个有趣故事。他回忆起他年轻时刚开始在西雅图别院服务的时候。我相信那可能是他参加的第一次葬礼。他必须穿正式的袈裟参加葬礼服务，其中包括一件叫做“袴”的衣服，穿在我们的袈裟下面。袴就像一条非常宽松的裤子。Rev. Tets穿上了袴，但错误地把两条腿都穿进了袴的一条裤腿里。当他必须走上祭坛时，他不得不像企鹅一样走路。光是想象那个画面就很有趣。许多年前，我在橙县佛教教堂（OCBC）周日礼拜后，在本堂外与人交谈。我们的一位成员走到我面前说，“老师，我需要和您谈谈。”他把我拉到本堂的一边，我以为他可能要寻求咨询或有私事要和我讨论。当我们远离所有人时，他对我说，“老师，您的拉链开了。”我低头一看，我的拉链大开着！真是看不到自己。离我这么近的东西，我甚至看不到。那位成员多么善良，把我拉到一边告诉我我的拉链开了。如果我们能嘲笑自己和我们自己的愚蠢，甚至能嘲笑我们自己的自我中心，我认为这是一种非常健康的品质，也非常佛教化。如果你不能嘲笑自己的愚蠢，那么你还会如何反应？也许你可能会愤怒或防御性地反应，错过了真正看到自己的机会。在OCBC的节日中，我最喜欢听的声音之一就是成员们的笑声。我们都会在节日中努力工作，在炎热中，在节日的忙碌中，但我总能听到成员们一起工作、交谈和玩得开心的笑声。听到这真是一种喜悦。有时笑声来自Jr. YBA的孩子们。有时笑声来自ABA组做鸡肉的时候。从白天到晚上，都能听到笑声。我无法引用任何经文或亲鸾上人的语录来实际说明一个人应该保持幽默感，但这就是我在现代背景下看待和解释佛教的方式。我们可以与他人一起笑。我们可以笑法谈中的有趣故事。我们可以嘲笑自己。有一次我和妻子去自助餐厅，我注意到一位女士盘子里堆了一大堆食物。我低声对妻子说，“看那位女士盘子里的食物堆！”然后我看了看自己的盘子，它堆得和那位女士的盘子一样高。看到别人是多么容易，看到自己又是多么困难。我们也可能发现，我们可以轻易嘲笑别人的愚蠢，但嘲笑自己更难。我们必须首先嘲笑自己。
文章概要
本文探讨佛教与幽默感的关系，强调幽默感对身心健康的重要性，并认为佛教生活应包含幽默感，特别是能嘲笑自己的愚蠢。文章通过两位法师的幽默法谈和个人轶事（如穿错袴裤、拉链未拉）说明幽默如何帮助自我觉察和减轻自我中心。作者分享在佛教节日中听到笑声的喜悦，并反思现代佛教实践中幽默的价值，指出嘲笑他人容易但嘲笑自己更难，而佛教修行鼓励首先嘲笑自己，以促进内在成长和快乐生活。
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：这篇文章说，佛教不只是严肃的，它也可以很搞笑！就像我们有时候会做傻事，比如穿错裤子或者忘记拉链，如果能笑一笑自己，而不是生气，那会让我们更开心、更健康。佛教老师讲课时也会讲笑话，让大家笑，但笑话里也有大道理。在佛教活动中，大家一边忙一边笑，声音听起来很欢乐。文章提醒我们，看到别人的错误容易，看到自己的错误难，所以要多笑自己，这样生活会更轻松。
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，幽默感在大乘佛教中可视为一种方便法门，帮助破除我执和烦恼。显宗如禅宗强调“平常心是道”，幽默能助人放下执着，回归本心；净土宗注重念佛往生，幽默可缓解修行压力，增强信心。密宗如准提法，通过咒语和观想净化身心，幽默作为一种轻松心态，能辅助修行，减少障碍。《显密圆通成佛心要集》倡导显密圆融，幽默在此框架下可视为一种智慧展现，促进显宗的慈悲与密宗的方便结合，使修行更圆通无碍。准提法的优点在于其简易性和包容性，幽默感能融入日常修持，帮助修行者在忙碌生活中保持喜悦，加速成就。
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，幽默感可应用于日常禅修、法会互动和个人反思中，帮助解决以下十个问题：1. 减轻压力与焦虑，通过笑声释放负面情绪；2. 增强自我接纳，笑对错误而不自责；3. 改善人际关系，以幽默化解冲突；4. 提升修行动力，使佛法学习更愉悦；5. 破除我执，嘲笑自我中心倾向；6. 培养慈悲心，理解他人过失而不苛责；7. 促进身心健康，笑声有益生理平衡；8. 增强社区凝聚力，共同欢笑加深连接；9. 应对中年危机，幽默提供新视角看待生活挑战；10. 加速灵性成长，轻松心态利于智慧开启。