佛教的平等觀與人間佛教

Equality in Buddhism and Humanistic Buddhism

張文良(Zhang Wenliang)

《《人間佛教叢書》2019星雲大師人間佛教理論實踐研究》 2019 (2020/05) Pp. 182-197

摘要

佛教中的「平等」包含作為教義的「平等」和作為社會理念的「平等」兩方面的內涵。前者指一切法自性寂靜，無生無滅，超言絕相，畢竟平等；而後者則指菩薩平等地看待一切眾生，平等地救度一切眾生，以及一切眾生在法性或佛性的層面上平等無差別。總之，佛教的「平等」與「差別」都與佛教修行體驗結合在一起，具有特定的含義。它們與社會上存在的諸如貧富差別意義上的「差別」以及消除這些差別而達成的「平等」是不同層次的概念。儘管如此，佛教提倡的男女平等觀念、無情佛性觀念等，對我們思考當代的平等問題和生態倫理問題等皆有啟發。而星雲大師從佛教同體共生的立場對世界和平的論述，是我們思考佛教平等觀的現代意義的典範。

關鍵字

平等觀 ； 人間佛教 ； 同體共生

並列摘要

＂Equality＂ in Buddhism comprises two aspects: equality as a doctrine and social concept. The former refers to the self-nature of all phenomena as absolutely equal, in that it is tranquil, non-arising, non-ceasing, and beyond words and forms. The latter refers to equality without discrimination, such as a bodhisattva who treats and aids all beings equally, with no difference in terms of the Dharma-nature and Buddha-nature of all beings. Basically, ＂equality＂ and ＂discrimination＂ in Buddhism are incorporated into Buddhist practices and experiences, with their specific significance. Such concepts differ from the ＂equality＂ achieved by eliminating the discrimination between rich and poor found in society. Nevertheless, concepts advocated in Buddhism such as the equality between men and women, including the concept that even insentient things have Buddha-nature, inspire us to think about contemporary issues like equality, ecology, and ethics. Moreover, Venerable Master Hsing Yun's exposition on world peace from the Buddhist aspect of ＂oneness and coexistence＂ is a model for us to reflect on the modern significance of the concept of equality found in Buddhism.

並列關鍵字

view on equality ； Humanistic Buddhism ； oneness and coexistence