【亲近善知识 Relying on The Excellent Teacher】摄彼等义亲近善知识 A summary of the meaning of relying on the teacher

【摄彼等义】

下面要叮嘱几件事情，你道理虽然懂了，你虽然去做了，要殷重地去修，不是马马虎虎。所以说：
【若一二次，修所缘境，全无所至。】
假定你虽然修了，修了一趟、二趟，没有用！「所缘境」就是我们所修的对象，我们心里面一定有一个所缘的对象，你念阿弥陀佛，就念阿弥陀佛，现在我们所缘的什么啊？贪、嗔、痴相，这是我们所缘的，不知不觉当中，所以叫无明嘛！所以叫大无明，所以叫痴相，就是这个。你真正去做的时候，你清楚很明白。当眼前好吃东西摆在那里，眼睛瞪得大大的，心眼啊比这个眼睛瞪得更大，那就是我们心缘这个东西的时候。反过来，有一个冤家对头在眼前的时候，尽管你的面孔上还带着三分的笑，你这个眼睛也瞪得这么地大，那时候你心里就缘着这个东西。
现在我们缘什么？缘这个「法」─ 怎么依靠善知识，所以，这个时候就是我们修的时候，次第就是照着前面告诉我们，他不是说一趟二趟。一趟二趟都不够，何况是我们：「啊，懂了、懂了，听懂了!」书本一合，这个不够的。

来源 SOURCE：

日常师父法语22A 16’57”手抄稿第三册 P188LL2

22A 16’57”Vol 3 of Master Jih-Chang’s Discourse P188LL2
English Lamrim Volume 1, pg 91

【A summary of the meaning of the previous five parts】

And then there are a few more things that he wishes to advise and urge us. Though you have understood the principles, and you have tried to practice it, but you must practice it earnestly instead of carelessly. Therefore,

【Yet, you will get nowhere by training in an object of meditation for just a single session. 】

Suppose you have been training, but to train for one or two sessions is of no use! "The object of meditation" is the object we are training in. Our mind will definitely have an object that we focus on. [For example,] if you recite the Amitabha's name, then it is Amitabha's name. But what does our minds focus on currently? The characters of attachment, hostility and ignorance are what our minds focus on, without us being aware. That is why it is called ignorance! This is why it is called great ignorance. This is why it is called foolishness. This is it. When you truly put the teachings into practice, it will be very lucid and clear to you. When delicious food is placed in front of you, your eyes are widely open. But the eyes of your mind are even more widely open than your actual eyes. That is when our minds are focusing on this thing. On the contrary, if an enemy comes before you, even though you may still be half smiling, your eyes are also that widely open. At that time, your mind is focusing on that.
So what do we focus on now? We focus on this "teaching" – how to rely on the excellent teacher. So this is the time that we should practice this. The stages of the practice are as explained earlier. It is not enough to train for one or two sessions. It is not even enough to train for one or two sessions, not to mention our attitude towards the subject, "Ah, I understand, understand. I've heard it and understood it!" And then you close the book. This is not enough.