As technology advances, people’s hearts become more lost; as material civilization progresses, morality declines; as the mind becomestainted, public safety deteriorates. How can we save the hearts of the world? How can we reduce crime? How can we seek our own blessings? How can we avert disasters? Ultimately, how can we achieve national peace, favorable weather, an end to wars, and world peace? These are undoubtedly the most concerning and worrying issues for modern people.
However, despite these concerns, the solutions to worldly chaos and natural disasters seem ineffective, and the problems are worsening; the results of people seeking their own blessings often turn into seeking their own misfortunes. The root cause of this is that modern people are overly superstitious about science, lacking a clear understanding of the standards of good and evil, and the principles of cause and effect; they even misunderstand them deeply. Therefore, the result of going against the grain naturally leads to seeking blessings but instead inviting disasters and suffering; this is the fundamental reason for the decline of human hearts, the surge in crime, and the chaos in the world!
The book “Compilation of the Sensory Chapter” is profound and extensive, capturing the principles of reversing misfortune and promoting good, sparking earth-shattering discussions about what is good? What is evil? What rewards come from doing good? What punishments come from doing evil? It can insightfully discern the roots of these issues, allowing readers to thoroughly understand the principles of cause and effect regarding good and evil, realizing that selfishness leads to great loss and great misfortune; thus, everyone encourages themselves to do good in hopes of gathering blessings and averting disasters. Therefore, the benefits of this book to the hearts of the world have a far-reaching impact. The Qing Dynasty official Peng Ningzhi inscribed this book as a “must-read for the wise,” stating, “It is not that reading this book guarantees one will become a top scholar or minister; rather, a top scholar or minister must not neglect to read this book.” Peng’s statement is extremely insightful; Master Yinguang said, “Ultimately, this book leads to becoming an immortal; if one practices with a great bodhi mind, one can transcend the ordinary and enter the sacred, escape life and death, and achieve Buddhahood.” Master Yinguang dedicated his life to promoting this book, and Master Jingkong encouraged Buddhist disciples to regard this book as a precept to read, recite, and uphold, even naming it the “Path to Gather Blessings and Avert Disasters,” which holds profound significance.
Our association deeply understands the principle that “all phenomena are empty, but cause and effect are not empty,” thus we are fully committed to promoting the education of cause and effect to enlighten people’s hearts; following the organization of “The Four Teachings of Liao Fan,” we now have the translation of this plain language edition, which embodies this concept. We express our gratitude to our mentor Master Jingkong for his encouragement and supervision, to Mr. Zheng for his long-term patient guidance in the translation work, to Mr. Zhong for his suggestions and proofreading, and to Mr. Ruan and many professors for their assistance in verifying the materials, which has enabled the successful completion of this book for the benefit of all. We sincerely hope that everyone who reads this book can deeply believe in cause and effect and diligently practice cutting off evil and cultivating good; once this atmosphere is established, naturally, courtesy and harmony will flourish, disasters and conflicts will cease, and the people will live in peace, leading to world peace!
January 25, 2000
Preface by the Liao Fan Dharma Association