2010/09/21 Wed, sunny, outdoor 36-28°C The Wheel of Time:Tales of Power (6)
‧Their reason makes them forget that the description is only a description, and before they realize it, human beings have entrapped the totality of themselves in a vicious circle from which they rarely emerge in their lifetimes. (p. 136)
我們忘了,或者說,我們的理性忘了描述只是描述,使我們的完整自我陷人一種惡性循環中,一輩子不得脫身。」(《力量的傳奇》p. 126)
‧Human beings are perceivers, but the world that they perceive is an illusion: an illusion created by the description that was told to them from the moment they were born.
So in essence, the world that their reason wants to sustain is the world created by a description and its dogmatic and inviolable rules, which their reason learns to accept and defend. (p. 137)
「我們是知覺者,但是我們所知覺的世界是一個幻象。它是由一個描述所造成的,這個描述是我們生下來後便一直被灌輸的。
所以,基本上(本質上),你的理性所想維持的世界是一個由描述所創造的世界,它具有神聖而不可侵犯的規則,理性加以接受並是它的保護者。」(《力量的傳奇》pp. 126-127)
‧The concealed advantage of luminous beings is that they have something which is never used: intent. The maneuver of shamans is the same as the maneuver of the average man. Both have a description of the world. The average man upholds it with his reason; the shaman upholds it with his intent. Both descriptions have their rules; but the advantage of the shaman is that intent is more engulfing than reason. (p. 138)
「明晰生物的秘密(secret)在於,他們擁有另一個從未使用過的力量之環(ring of power),也就是意願。巫士的策略(trick)也像普通人的策略,兩者都有一個描述。普通人用理性來支持他們的描述,巫士則用意願支持他們的描述。兩種描述都有可知覺的規則,但是巫士的優勢(advantage)是,意願要比理性更具有包容力。(《力量的傳奇》p. 127)
唐望給卡斯塔尼達的建議是:「從現在起,你要讓自己去知覺出這個世界是由你的理性造成的,還是由你的意願造成的。我覺得這是把你的日常世界當成挑戰、用來聚集個人力量,達到完整自我(totality)的唯一方法。」(p. 127)我恐怕自己的世界都是 reason 造成的,我還沒有意願之力,也就是願力。
‧Only as a warrior can one withstand the path of knowledge. A warrior cannot complain or regret anything. His life is an endless challenge, and challenges cannot possibly be good or bad. Challenges are simply challenges. (p. 139)
‧The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is that a warrior takes everything as a challenge, while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or as a curse. (p. 140)
「只有成為戰士,才能承受得起知識的道路(path)。一個戰士不會為任何事抱怨或後悔。他的生活是一場永無止境的挑戰,而挑戰沒有好壞之分,挑戰就只是挑戰。」(《力量的傳奇》p. 136)
「普通人與戰士之間的基本差別是,戰士把一切事物都當成挑戰,而普通人把事情當成上天的恩賜或災禍。」《力量的傳奇》p. 138)
The path of knowledge 南開師也經常說:
‧我們的真實本性如何?處於那樣的狀態,就成為「道」(path)。真實的「道」是透過它即可以處於真實本性中。」(2010/06/14)
‧即便有些眾生沒有上師及法教,他們也可以自然的知識(natural knowledge),關於大圓滿的狀態,所以不是只有教法傳達,但是僅有這樣自然的知識,他們無法解釋與發展太多。除了自然知識,我們還有所有眾生本具的大圓滿狀態,除此,還有一些方法可以達到此狀態,所以你應該要精確地追尋修道(path)。(2010/07/13)
這一章說的是要達成相信,資深佛友說我想當法行人,事實上應該要當信行人,他說:「秋竹仁波切所講的信行人和法行人,你的習慣驅使自己做法行人,但法行人不是那麼易做;不是智商的問題,而是思維習慣特別是內觀習慣的問題。實很多人跟著大寶法王的師父竹青嘉措禪修,發現個人在證得和進步速度上,還是信心最重要。一旦認準了師父,願意全部交付自己的身家性命,傻乎乎地聽和做,往往是最快的,因為遮止了所知障(obstacle of knowledge)。」但是秋竹師也說一般人只是迷信,這應該不是所謂信行人的特徵。秋竹仁波切向來以瘋智不羈的行止與不甚講究的衣著,來破除台灣人對活佛的迷信。
唐望則說光相信太容易:
‧The trump card of the warrior is that he believes without believing. But obviously a warrior can't just say he believes and let it go at that. That would be too easy. To just believe without any exertion would exonerate him from examining his situation. A warrior, whenever he has to involve himself with believing, does it as a choice. A warrior doesn't believe, a warrior has to believe. (p. 141)
「也就是說,戰士的秘密是他不相信地相信。但是戰士顯然不能只說他相信就算了,那樣太容易了。只是相信會使他不去檢視他的處境;當戰士必須要相信時,他當成一項選擇,當成他最熱愛的表現。
(A warrior, whenever he has to involve himself with believing, does it as a choice as an expression of his innermost predilection 內心深處的偏愛. )
戰士不只是去相信,戰士必須達成相信(has to believe)。」(《力量的傳奇》p. 139)
這個「達成相信」是魯宓自己翻譯的新詞,應該是「必須相信」(has to believe),而不是相信(believe),我不大懂在英文上如何有「達成」這兩個字。要「達成相信」確實不是很容易,但如何當成「最熱愛的表現」?檢視處境,examining one’s situation,南開師經常說 work with / deal with circumstance 因應環境行事,或 be aware of our condition 覺知自己的處境。
‧我們生活在時間中,時間每天變化,佛陀在 2500 年前,如何能跟我們當今處境相應?天氣每天不同,這就是情況,還有不同文化、不同國家等,唯一規則就是相應於自身情況,大圓滿原則就是保持覺知,總是相應於自身情況。我們教育小孩等小孩問為什麼,這就是教育的最好時機。小孩長大有他們自己的情況、他們自己的顯現,你也要給予尊重。大圓滿上師總是告誡學生,要覺知、不分心、視情況行事,這就是指導原則。應該根據環境行事(Should work with circumstance),因為情況瞬息萬變。(2010/05/30)