Help me with my translation on Buddhism

I am a Buddhist practitioner of Frosheng Buddhism in , and was asked by my teacher to translate his preaching from Chinese to English. Therefore I resort to this forum to modify my first piece of translation. Thanks a lot.



Q: If a person made up his/her mind to practice Buddhism, would it be better for him/her to become a monk/nun?



Answer

If you really want to practice Buddhism, there is little to do with being a lay practitioner or a monk/nun. To be or not to be a monk/nun arises dependently on the conditions of time and space you stay. For instance, it was common for Buddhists to take part in a monastic community during the time of Sakyamuni Buddha; however, there was also exceptions at that time- lay practitioner Vimalakirti.was such an example Each person’s causes and conditions are different.



I personally more identified with the way of lay practice. Since it is extremely difficult to attain Buddhahood, it is better to face myriads of challenges of worldly sufferings than none before attaining Buddhahood, such as marriage, job, childbirth, relations among family members, colleagues and so on. If you are a monk/nun, there will be no chance for you to come across these tests.



For us, the practitioners of Forshang Buddhism who are lay persons, not only have to face the above- mentioned challenges, but also have to deal with these problems in a thorough and harmonious method. That is one of the major parts Forshang Buddhism is different from other traditional Buddhist sects.