The Poor and the Rich Are Equal
人世間不論貧富貴賤，每個人都有追求真理與堅守信仰的權利。世人按照自己的觀念把人分成三六九等，富人看不起窮人，惡官歧視平民。然而，從生命的本質上來 講，富人與窮人並沒有任何差異。一個人即使窮得一無所有，只要他志氣尚在，不自暴自棄，就算前途艱難曲折也能走向成功；窮人如果有求道之心，上天決不會嫌 棄他的貧困，只要他一心向佛，就如泥中蓮花，必能修到功成圓滿。
In this human world, everyone has the right to pursue the truth and stick to his or her belief, regardless of whether they are rich or poor. People classify others into various ranks. The rich look down upon the poor and evil officials treat common citizens with contempt. But there is no disparity between the rich and the poor based on the essence of life. Even if a person who does not own a thing in the world, as long as he or she has aspiration and does not give up hope, he or she will head for success even the passage is difficult. With respect to a poor person, as long as he has the desire for the righteous Fa, heaven will not abandon him because he is poor. As long as he wholeheartedly seeks Buddhahood, he will be able to reach consummation, just like lotus flowers grow in the mud.
以前在巴西里約熱內盧的一個貧民窟裡，有一個貧窮的男孩。他非常喜歡足球，但是又沒 有錢去買。於是他只好踢塑料盒、汽水瓶以及從垃圾箱揀來的椰子殼。他經常一個人在找到的空地上踢來踢去，當他在一個乾枯的水塘裡猛踢一隻豬膀胱時，恰好被 一位足球教練看見了，他覺得這個小男孩很可憐，就主動提出送給他一個足球。小男孩得到足球之後踢得更努力了，不久他就能準確的把球踢進遠處隨意擺放的一隻 水桶裡。他很想和城裡的孩子們一起踢球，但是那些有錢人的孩子都對他不屑一顧，故意疏遠他。終於有一天，那個送給他足球的教練慧眼識真金，把他帶回到自己 的訓練場去了。三年之後，這位十七歲的小男孩在第六屆世界足球錦標賽獨進21球，為巴西第一次捧回金盃。一個原來不為世人所知的名字--球王貝裡，隨之傳 遍全世界。
There was once a boy who lived in a slum in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. He was unusually fond of soccer, but he couldn't afford to buy a soccer ball. He kicked plastic boxes, soft drink bottles, or coconut shells taken from a garbage can. He often found an open space to kick these things. One day when he was kicking a pig bladder on a dry pond, a soccer coach caught sight of it and gave him a soccer ball. The boy tried very hard to play soccer. Soon he was able to kick the ball accurately into a bucket placed some distance away. He was eager to play soccer with boys in the city, but those rich kids looked down upon him and willfully distanced him. Finally, the coach who had given the boy the soccer ball recognized the boy's extraordinary ability and brought him to his training camp. Three years later, this seventeen year old boy scored 21 goals during the sixth world soccer championship games and helped Brazil to win the gold cup. This boy who was once unknown to the world became the king of soccer.
在古代的日本，耕田的農民被貴族們視為賤民，連出家當和尚的資格都沒有。有一個叫無三的孩子出身賤民，只好隱姓埋名進了寺院。後 來他勤奮修行，被眾人擁戴為住持。可是就在舉行就任住持儀式的那天，突然有個人從大殿中跳出來，指著法壇上的無三大聲嘲弄道：「出身賤民的和尚也能當住 持，這怎麼能行啊？」眾僧在莊嚴隆重的儀式上，都被這突然發生的事態弄得不知所措，也無法阻止剛才的那個人說話，只好屏息噤聲，注視著事態的發展。儀式被 迫中斷，場上靜得連一根針掉在地上都能聽得見。面對突如其來的發難，無三微開雙目，從容的微笑著回答：「泥中蓮花。」這是一句絕妙的對答！在場的人頓時喝 彩叫好，那個發難的人也無言以對，不得不佩服無三的精湛回答。就任儀式繼續進行，眾人反而因為他以前的賤民身份更加擁護他了。
In ancient Japan, peasants were considered as the underclass by aristocrats and they couldn't even qualify to become monks. An underclass boy named Wusan entered a monastery without revealing his status. He cultivated diligently and was nominated later to be the abbot. But during the ceremony, a person came out and pointed at Wusan and said with scorn: "How can an underclass person become an abbot?" None of the monks knew what to do with this situation in this solemn ceremony and couldn't stop the person from speaking. They just kept silent and waited. The ceremony was interrupted. It was so quiet that even the sound of a needle falling on the ground could be heard. Faced with this sudden attack, Wusan answered with smile: "Lotus flower in the mud." It was an ingenious reply. All people present cheered. The person had nothing to say and couldn't help but admire Wusan's exquisite answer. The ceremony continued. People respected him even more for his underclass status.
其實人世間貧富貴賤的身份就如流水一樣，每時每刻都在發生著變化。不為外表所迷，看透貧富貴賤的本質，才能平等看待天下眾生。在生老病死等人生必須面對的大難之前，人世間的所謂富貴也是蒼白無力的，高尚的心靈與道德才是珍貴的生命之光。
The status of being rich or poor is like a flowing stream. It changes every moment. Only without being deluded by outer appearances and seeing through the essence of rich or poor and eminent or humble, can we treat sentient beings equally. The rich and powerful are powerless in dealing with the catastrophes in life such as becoming old, getting ill, and dying. Nobility of mind and morality is the most precious in life.
