麥成輝（1958年—），香港資深傳媒人、出版人、香港皇冠出版社董事總經理、青馬文化出版社出版人。畢業於國立臺灣大學文學院外文系，曾在美國愛荷華大學新聞傳播系研究所進修，後來在香港中文大學哲學系碩士畢業。曾主持香港電台清談節目「講東講西」，又曾擔任電視部「傳媒春秋」主持人。九十年代也曾任「號外」雜誌總經理及聯席出版人。2011年，創辦「香港流行圖書協會」，為創會會長。
This time I want to talk about a very small issue that most people don’t care about, but is very meaningful.
Several years ago, I participated in a weekly meditation retreat at an ashram. The environment there is good, the monks are amiable, the volunteers are friendly, and because of the international background, there are occasionally foreign monks giving lectures, and the content is relatively fresh.
I started participating in the summer and have been feeling good. But when winter comes, problems arise. One evening during my meditation practice, I was gradually entering a quiet state when I was suddenly awakened by a slap on my shoulder.
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"You need to take off your hat."
"I have relatively thin hair and the air outlet of the air conditioner is on my head. If I don't wear it, I will feel very cold."
"No one wears a hat here. Look, even the wizard doesn't wear one. You'll get used to it. You're disrespecting the wizard by wearing one."
"But I'm really afraid of catching a cold." I really couldn't stand the cold wind on my head.
After walking around and asking for instructions, the volunteer directed me to a corner and said, "There is no air conditioning here. You can sit here, but you cannot wear a hat."
After that I participated one more time, but I knew I couldn’t adapt, so I didn’t go again.
A few years later, another example appeared that was almost the opposite.
I participated in a meditation activity at another temple in the winter. The fellow practitioner who was in charge was very caring and kept reminding me to wear more clothes and wrap my body with a towel more often, especially the back of my neck, lower back, and knees. If your head needs to be warm enough, there is certainly nothing wrong with wearing a hat.
"Cold is a very powerful thing. It will get in if there is a crack. Once it gets in, it will turn into an illness that is very difficult to get rid of." He reminded this more than once.
However, several months later, in the summer, he still reminded us the same thing, and he himself still wrapped himself up and meditated like he did in the winter, which was a little strange.
"Don't let the cold air get into your body..."
One of my senior sisters who practiced at the same time said humorously, "I originally thought that the more I practice, the healthier I should be and the less afraid of cold winds. Why do I seem to be more afraid of cold winds the more I practice?"
I guessed at the time that this might be the influence of the old abbot of the Taoist temple. He was in poor health, so it was normal for him to be afraid of catching a cold. However, others followed his advice and carried it out.
Ten years ago, I returned to Dharma Drum Mountain to participate in meditation. Before the activity started, I asked the counselor Yue Zhong anxiously: "Excuse me, can I wear a hat?"
"Of course you can. Look, the weather is so cold, but the wizard is wearing one too." I also felt relieved when I saw the wizard entering the venue wearing a warm hat.
For newcomers who have just participated in religious activities, the words of senior volunteers often represent the sacredness of a certain religion. Even very small things can become big things in people's hearts, which can easily cause people to doubt.
The meaning of spiritual practice is to correct our habits of thoughts, words and behaviors. The power of habits is so strong that if we are in the temple and still respond to what we see and hear with our usual habits, then the purpose of practicing is lost.
Living in the present, we do not dwell on the sorrow and glory of the past. However, looking back, there is still a clear trajectory in spiritual practice. We should always reflect on ourselves and carry forward the past.
