By Venerable Master Hsing Yun
Founder of Fo Guang Shan
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Please listen to these words from our hearts.
The rumbling of war between nations,
The clamor of discord between people,
The roar of greed in the rapids of craving,
The growl of hatred among races.
These sounds are
Like tidal waves storming against our hearts!
These sounds are
Like hurricanes pounding against our hearts!
As we observe all of this,
We realize that all human suffering
Originates from our self-conceit, prejudice, and delusion.
As we contemplate all of this,
We realize that all worldly turmoil
Is caused by our attachment to things, Dharma, and relationships.
Disagreement between different people
Has caused so many arguments;
Discrimination between different races
Has caused so many disasters;
Intolerance between different religions
Has caused so many misfortunes;
Conflict of interests between different nations
Has caused so much chaos and upheaval.
Living in this kind of world,
Every day we live in fear, with no ease;
Every day we live in senselessness, with no peace.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Please listen to our sincerest prayer.
We sincerely wish that, in this world, there will be:
No jealousy, only admiration;
No hatred, only harmony;
No greed, only generosity;
No harm, only achievement.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Let people of different ages
Live in harmony;
Let people of different social status
Have mutual respect;
Let people of different professions
Work in cooperation;
Let people of different religions
Practice with tolerance.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
You once said,
“The mind, Buddha, and all sentient beings
Are no different from one another.
You, I, and others are all equal.”
We need to learn from you the wisdom
To close the distance between self and others;
We need to learn from you the selflessness
To eliminate all of our attachments;
We need to learn from you the truth
To resolve the confrontations between races;
We need to learn from you the compassion
To reconcile the conflicts between nations;
We need to learn from you the Buddha light
To illuminate the darkness of the world.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Please hear our sincerest prayer!
Please bestow peace upon the world!
Please bless all sentient beings with harmony!
Oh great, compassionate Buddha,
Please accept our sincerest prayer!
Oh great, compassionate Buddha,
Please accept our sincerest prayer!
(Excerpted from “A Prayer for World Peace (為世界和平祈願文)” from Pearls of Wisdom: Prayers for Engaged Living II by Venerable Master Hsing Yun)