張允芸居士講於2024年6月27日萬佛聖城大殿

諸佛菩薩、宣公上人、諸位法師與各位善知識，我是來自台灣的張允芸，今晚想和大家談談我的母親李芳欣居士的一些小故事。

我母親已經在去年9月11日往生。她是我家第一位吃素的人，也是第一位長期誦念《地藏經》的人。這要感謝我父親得了癌症，當時我家沒有明顯的宗教信仰，只是自稱是信佛的，但是大魚大肉照吃，酒照喝。

因為業力現前，我父親不停地被誤診，1990年，發現時已是腎臟癌末期，癌細胞也已擴散，醫生說父親不會超過半年的壽命。那時候因為對佛教沒有甚麼清楚的概念，也不知道該對誰發願，我母親就在心裏面說:「我願意一輩子吃齋，希望我先生的病可以好。」於是開始吃全素。父親和我並無任何作為，飲食照舊。

後來我從台北帶了一本《地藏經》回高雄，告訴母親說：「聽人家說，念《地藏經》很好，妳要不要幫爸爸念一念？」然後我就跑了。於是乎媽媽從每星期一部經，然後每個月十部，很快的就變成每天誦一部《地藏經》。後來回醫院檢查，醫生很驚訝的說，癌細胞不見了。我父親延壽一紀，十二年後去世。

2002年8月8日，台灣的爸爸節，傍晚我打電話回家祝爸爸父親節快樂。電話響了很久，媽媽才來接電話並很平靜地告訴我「妳爸爸躺在地上不會動了。」我就說「那趕快打119叫救護車啊，我手上接了我們部門有史以來最大的案子，我回不去，妳要和我保持聯絡啊。」 放下電話後，我手和嘴完全不受我的控制，自動作業了，竟然打了電話給幾位同事，交代了案子的進度和檔案所在，說家裏出事了，必須趕回家。

當晚搭飛機回到高雄，我打算一家醫院一家醫院的去找，很幸運的在第一家醫院的急診室就找到躺在擔架上的爸爸，和坐在旁邊念著《地藏經》的媽媽。那時媽媽只看了我一眼說：「妳怎麼知道妳爸爸昏倒了？別吵我，今天的經還沒念完。」

後來我才知道，爸爸當時在家昏迷、醒了，掙扎起來又昏到摔下去，反覆很多次，所以滿頭的瘀血。媽媽當時以為爸爸死了，就一頭撞牆想要同歸於盡，所以夫妻的感情千萬不要太好。

把爸爸送進加護病房後，媽媽卻頭疼到無法呼吸，原來媽媽的顱內出血，比爸爸的更嚴重。醫生說以媽媽的出血量，根本就一定是深度昏迷，怎麼可能很客氣打電話叫救護車被拒絕後，自己跌跌撞撞的跑到馬路上叫計程車。我家在郊區，很少有車輛經過，那天居然被媽媽招到了計程車，司機還願意把爸爸從二樓揹下來送醫。即便如此，媽媽依然沒有忘記隨身帶上《地藏經》。

2002年底媽媽隨我在台北安居，後來在法界皈依並受持五戒，每日專心誦經、念佛、讀上人開示。有一天照顧媽媽的看護打電話到辦公室給我哭著說，家裏院子有一條毒蛇，好害怕。我立刻請假跑回家，同時打電話請119來抓蛇，因為故宮附近，台灣五種最毒的蛇都有。等我跑到家，找不到蛇。才知道86歲的媽媽去跟蛇說話:「蛇啊、蛇啊，我沒有害你的心，你不要害怕。但是如果被鄰居看到你，會打壞你喔。你不要怕啊，我帶你出去。」就拿著掃把那條蛇掃到畚箕帶到山邊放走。我問媽媽:「萬一被咬了怎麼辦？」媽媽語氣堅定地說：「不會的，師父說，只要我們沒有害牠的心，牠會知道的，不會咬的。」我聽了很無語，不知道是媽媽運氣好還是我對上人的教誨不夠信心。

媽媽重聽很嚴重，上人在《開示錄》說〈大悲咒〉很好，於是媽媽自己查字典學發音，來唸〈大悲咒〉，越念越順，調子居然和上人誦唸類似。

媽媽沒有吃素之前，喜歡吃魚、吃雞腦、雞翅膀還有雞腿上面那一塊骨頭。在媽媽生命的最後20年，健康狀況沒有很好，曾經半年內動了兩次頭部手術，跌斷手2次、大腸癌三期、跌斷髖關節。後來我們找到一位非常好的中醫來調理，但是那位中醫說葷藥非常對治媽媽的病體，如果還是堅持用純植物性的藥，改善有限。最後他堅持要用一味的動物性藥，媽媽只是淡淡說：「這個恐怕不太好喔，我們是吃齋的。」

在媽媽生命的最後7年，失智了，忘記了爸爸還有我—她唯一的孩子。她的身心退化明顯，但是仍然每天努力念一部《地藏經》、一部《阿彌陀經》、〈大悲咒〉21遍、佛號無數聲，最後的一年已經虛弱到無法專心念經；如果專心念經，體力不堪負荷，會像孩子似的鬧，所以後來就只是一天一部《阿彌陀經》和念佛。然後就是玩3歲以下兒童的玩具、吃棒棒糖、出去曬曬太陽。97歲過世。

在媽媽最後的14天，開始不吃不喝，拒絕任何飲食，但是一天願意吃一根他喜歡的棒棒糖或一顆巧克力。在媽媽過世前一天，以前在我家工作的專業長照服員突然來家裏看媽媽，並主動幫無法起床的媽媽在床上洗頭洗澡，洗好後，媽媽的表情是很舒服的。

在9月11日凌晨零時15分，媽媽喘了一口大氣後，睜眼離世，眼角有一滴眼淚，嘴是張開的，面部表情平靜。

在媽媽死亡之後15個小時，花蓮慈濟醫院的居家安寧護理師來幫媽媽擦拭身體，換衣服，並且協助開立死亡證明書，很驚訝地發現，媽媽的身體怎麼這麼柔軟，她從來沒有遇過這種情形。媽媽身上的睡衣是解釦子脫下，而不是把衣服剪破脫下，然後換上一件件媽媽喜歡的衣服，最後穿上海青。當時媽媽眼睛半闔，面部表情歡喜，明顯笑得很開心 。

媽媽對我最大的影響是，她謹記上人教誨，並於日常中運用，毫無違和。也因為念佛的底子打得好，晚年失智嚴重(已達中重度)，忘夫忘女，不忘念佛，對我的鼓勵很大。媽媽用行為告訴我，要堅信佛法、堅信上人的教導，要堅持念佛。阿彌陀佛！

Buddhas、Bodhisattvas, venerable masters Hua, Dharma Masters and good advisers, I am yunyun from Taiwan, this evening i would like to talk about something about my mother- laywoman LI,FANG-SHIN

My mother passed away on September 11, 2023. She was the first person in our family to become a vegetarian and also the first to regularly recite the Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva. This change was inspired by my father being diagnosed with cancer. At that time, our family didn’t have a clear religious belief; we claimed to be Buddhists but eat large amounts of meat and drink alcohol.

Due to the manifestation of karmic effects, my father was repeatedly misdiagnosed. By the time the correct diagnosis of kidney cancer was made in 1990, it was already at the terminal stage, and the cancer cells had spread. The doctor said my father had no more than six months to live. At that time, we had little understanding of Buddhism and didn’t know whom to pray to. My mother made a vow in her mind: “I am willing to become a lifelong vegetarian if my husband’s illness can be cured.” Thus, she began to eat a completely vegetarian diet. My father and I made no changes and continued with our usual eating habits.

Later, I brought a copy of Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva， from Taipei to Kaohsiung (by the way, I work in Taipei city, my parents dwelling in Kaohsiung.)and told my mother, “I’ve heard that reciting this Sutra is very beneficial. Would you like to recite it for Dad?” Then I left. Subsequently, my mother started by reciting the sutra once a week, then ten times a month, and very quickly it became a daily practice. Later, when they returned to the hospital for a check-up, the doctor was astonished and said that the cancer cells had disappeared. My father lived an additional twelve years and passed away after that.

On August 8, 2002, which is Father’s Day in Taiwan, I called home in the evening to wish my father a happy Father’s Day. The phone rang for a long time before my mother answered. She calmly told me, “Your father is lying on the ground and isn’t moving.” I responded, ” hurry up  call 911 for an ambulance! I’m handling the biggest project our department has ever had, and I can’t come back. You need to keep me updated.” After hanging up the phone, my hands and mouth acted on their own. I ended up calling several colleagues, informing them of the project’s progress and the location of the files, and explained that there was an emergency at home and I had to go back.

That night, I flew back to Kaohsiung, planning to search from one hospital to another. Fortunately, I found my father on a stretcher in the emergency room of the first hospital I visited, with my mother sitting beside him reciting the Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva. When she saw me, she just glanced at me and said, “How did you know your father had faint? Don’t disturb me; I haven’t finished reciting the sutra.”

Later, I learned that my father had repeatedly fainted and regained consciousness at home, standing up and faint and fall again multiple times, which resulted in severe bruising on his head. My mother thought he was dead and, in her grief, tried to end her own life by banging her head against the wall. This experience taught us that the bond between spouses should not be overly intense.

After admitting my father to the ICU, my mother experienced severe headaches that she could hardly breathe. It turned out that her intracranial bleeding was even worse than my father’s. The doctor said that with the amount of bleeding she had, she should have been in a deep coma. It was impossible that she could have politely called an ambulance and, after being refused, stumbled to the road to hire a taxi. My Parents’ house in a remote area with very little traffic, but that day, she managed to flag down a taxi, and the driver was even willing to carry my father down from the second floor and take him to the hospital. Despite everything, my mother still remembered to bring the Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva with her.

At the end of 2002, my mother moved to Taipei to live with me. She took refuge and the Five Precepts, at Dharma Realm Buddhist Books Distribution Society.  She dedicating herself daily to reciting sutras, chanting the Buddha’s name, and reading Venerable Master Hua’s teachings.   One day, the caregiver who was looking after my mother called my office, crying and saying that there was a poisonous snake in the yard, and she was very frightened. I immediately took leave from work and rushed home, while also calling 911 to come and catch the snake. Since we lived near the National Palace Museum, all five of Taiwan’s most poisonous snakes could be found in the area.

When I arrived home, I couldn’t find the snake. Then I learned that my 87-year-old mother had spoken to the snake: “Snake, snake, I will not hurt you, so don’t be afraid. But if the neighbors see you, they might hurt you. Don’t be afraid, I’ll take you out.” She then used a broom to sweep the snake into a dustpan and released it under the foot of the mountain .

I asked my mother, “What if it had bitten  you?” She firmly replied, “It won’t. The Master said that as long as we have no intention of harming it, it will know and won’t bite.” I was speechless, not sure if my mother was just lucky or it’s me lacked enough faith in the Master’s teachings.

My mother had severe hearing loss, but when she read in Master Hua’s teachings that the Great Compassion Mantra was very good, she decided to learn it on her own. She looked up the pronunciations in the dictionary and began to recite the mantra. As she practiced, her recitation became increasingly fluent, and her intonation even began to resemble that of Master Hua’s chanting.

Before my mother became a vegetarian, she liked to eat fish, chicken brains, wings and the bone on the chicken thighs. In the last 20 years of her life, my mother’s health was poor. Within six months, she underwent two head surgeries.  She broke her arm twice, had stage three colon cancer, and fractured her hip. Eventually, we found an excellent traditional Chinese medicine doctor to help regulate her health. However, this doctor said that non-vegetarian medicine would be very effective for her condition, and if she insisted on purely plant-based medicine, the improvement would be limited. Then he insisted on using one particular animal-based ingredient.  My mother simply replied, “This might not be appropriate; we are vegetarians.”

In the last seven years of my mother’s life, she developed dementia and forgot my father and me—her only child. Her physical and mental decline was evident, yet she still made a daily effort to recite the Sutra of the Past Vows of Earth Store Bodhisattva once, the Amitabha Sutra once, the Great Compassion Mantra 21 times, and countless repetitions of the Buddha’s name. In the last years of her life, she became so weak that she couldn’t concentrate on chanting; focusing on chanting would exhaust her to the point of tantrums like a child. Therefore, she eventually only recited the Amitabha Sutra once a day and chanted the Buddha’s name. Besides that, she played with toys meant for children under three, ate lollipops, and enjoyed basking in the sun and past away at the age of 97.

During the last 14 days of my mother’s life, she began refusing any food or drink, except for a lollipop or a piece of chocolate that she liked. One days before she passed away, a professional caregiver who used to work at our house suddenly came by to see my mother. She kindly helped my bedridden mother wash her hair and take a bath while still in bed. My mother seemed very comfortable and relaxed.

In the early morning of September 11, my mother took a deep breath, opened her eyes, and passed away. A tear fell from the corner of her eye, her mouth was open, and her facial expression was peaceful.

Fifteen hours after my mother’s death, the home care nurse from Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital came to help clean her body, change her clothes, and assist with issuing the death certificate. The nurse was surprised to find my mother’s body still so soft. she had never seen anything like this。 She unbuttoned and removed my mother’s pajamas without cutting it, then dressed her in clothes she liked, and finally, in a black ceremonial robe. At that moment, my mother’s eyes were almost closed, and her facial expression was joyful, clearly showing a happy smile.

My mother showed me through her actions to have steadfast faith in Buddhism and to firmly believe in the teachings of the venerable masters. She demonstrated the importance of persistently chanting the Buddha’s name.

The greatest influence of mother on Yun Yun is that she faithfully remembered and applied the teachings of the Master in her daily life without any incongruity. Because of her solid foundation in chanting the Buddha’s name, even though she suffered from severe dementia in her later years (reaching moderate to severe levels), forgetting her husband and daughter, she never forgot to chant the Buddha’s name, which greatly encouraged Yun Yun.  Mother’s actions taught me to firmly believe in Buddhism, trust the teachings of the master, and persist in chanting the Buddha’s name.