Mindfulness In Plain English - Chapter 5: The Practice

Mindfulness In Plain English

佛教禪修直解

by Mahathera Henepola Gunaratana

德寶法師著作 梁國雄居士譯

Chapter 5: The Practice

第五章 禪修的實踐

Although there are many subjects of meditation, we strongly recommend you start with focusing your total undivided attention on your breathing to gain some degree of shallow concentration. Remember that you are not practicing a deep absorption or pure concentration technique. You are practicing mindfulness for which you need only a certain degree of shallow concentration. You want to cultivate mindfulness culminating in insight and wisdom to realize the truth as it is. You want to know the working of your body-mind complex exactly as it is. You want to get rid of all psychological annoyance to make your life really peaceful and happy.

可用的禪修對象很多，但我們仍強烈推薦你由呼吸開始，透過專注呼吸來達致某程度的基本定力。請記住，這麼做並不是說，你在修習一種可達致深定的純粹止禪技巧，你在修習靜觀(留意覺察)，你只須適度的基本定力即可。你想培育和發展覺察力，希望最後能獲得洞悉諸法實相的內觀智慧。你想確切地如實了解自己的身心組合，你想消除所有內心煩惱，令生命達到真正的安寧與快樂。

The mind cannot be purified without seeing things as they really are. “Seeing things as they really are” is such a heavily loaded and ambiguous phrase. Many beginning meditators wonder what we mean, for anyone who has clear eye sight can see objects as they are.

若未能如實地看到事物真相，心意是無法清淨的。「如實地看到事物真相」是一個那麼意味深長而又含糊不清的術語，以致初學者可能摸不著頭腦，不明白我們的意思，因為視力正常的人不是本來就能如實地看清事物嗎？

When we use this phrase in reference to insight gained from our meditation, what we mean is not seeing things superficially with our regular eyes, but seeing things with wisdom as they are in themselves. Seeing with wisdom means seeing things within the framework of our body/mind complex without prejudices or biases springing from our greed, hatred and delusion. Ordinarily when we watch the working of our mind/body complex, we tend to hide or ignore things which are not pleasant to us and to hold onto things which are pleasant. This is because our minds are generally influenced by our desires, resentment and delusion. Our ego, self or opinions get in our way and color our judgment.

可是，當我們用此術語來描述從禪修所獲得的內觀智慧時，並不是指用肉眼來表面地看事物，而是指以智慧看到事物本身的真相，「以智慧看到」的意思是：看到以身心組合框架范圍內的事物，當中沒有因貪瞋痴而起的成見或偏見。平常地，當我們觀察身心組合時，總傾向忽略不可愛的東西，而去執取可愛的東西，這是因為我們的心經常受著貪瞋癡的影響，我們的自我、私心、個人見解等都會闖進來左右我們的判斷。

When we mindfully watch our bodily sensations, we should not confuse them with mental formations, for bodily sensations can arise without anything to do with the mind. For instance, we sit comfortably. After a while, there can arise some uncomfortable feeling on our back or in our legs. Our mind immediately experiences that discomfort and forms numerous thoughts around the feeling. At that point, without trying to confuse the feeling with the mental formations, we should isolate the feeling as feeling and watch it mindfully. Feeling is one of the seven universal mental factors. The other six are contact, perception, mental formations, concentration, life force, and awareness.

當我們留意觀察自己的身體感覺時，不要誤以為它們是一些心行(Mental Formations)[1]，因為身體感覺是可以完全不依賴心意而生起的。例如：我們舒服地坐著，不久之後，背部或腿部可能會出現不舒服的感受，我們的心立即感到不適，並且環繞著那感受生起很多想法。那時，不可把感受與心行活動混為一談，我們應把感受脫離出來，獨立地進行留意觀察。感受是七個普遍的心理因素之一，其余六個是：接觸、想(知覺)、作意(注意)、定、生命力與心行(有意圖的思維活動)。

At another time, we may have a certain emotion such as, resentment, fear, or lust. Then we should watch the emotion exactly as it is without trying to confuse it with anything else. When we bundle our form, feeling, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness up into one and try to watch all of them as feeling, we get confused, as we will not be able to see the source of feeling. If we simply dwell upon the feeling alone, ignoring other mental factors, our realization of truth becomes very difficult. We want to gain the insight into the experience of impermanence to over come our resentment; our deeper knowledge of unhappiness overcomes our greed which causes our unhappiness; our realization of selflessness overcomes ignorance arising from the notion of self. We should see the mind and body separately first. Having comprehended them separately, we should see their essential interconnectedness. As our insight becomes sharp, we become more and more aware of the fact that all the aggregates are cooperating to work together. None can exist without the other. We can see the real meaning of the famous metaphor of the blind man who has a healthy body to walk and the disabled person who has very good eyes to see. Neither of them alone can do much for himself. But when the disabled person climbs on the shoulders of the blind man, together they can travel and achieve their goals easily. Similarly, the body alone can do nothing for itself. It is like a log unable to move or do anything by itself except to become a subject of impermanence, decay and death. The mind itself can do nothing without the support of the body. When we mindfully watch both body and mind, we can see how many wonderful things they do together.

其他時候，某一情緒，例如憎恨、恐懼或愛欲等也許會出現，那時，我們就應確切地如實觀察著那個情緒，不可與其他東西混淆在一起。當我們把色、受、想、行、識等五蘊[2]捆扎為一並視之為感受時，我們就會困惑起來，因為這樣做令感受生起的原因變得含糊不清。如果我們只單單安住于感受本身，沒有把它從諸蘊獨立地分開出來，要體證真理就變得很困難了。

我們希望能親自洞悉無常，以克服自身的苦惱與無明(Ignorance)：對苦惱的深入了解可克服造成苦惱的貪欲，領悟「無我」可克服由「我想」引起的「無明」。欲達到這些內觀智慧，我們不但要懂得分辨身與心，還要看到它們的相互聯系狀態(Interconnectedness)。隨著內觀變得敏銳起來，我們也會越來越明白五蘊身心一起協同運作的事實，知道沒有一蘊是可以不依余蘊而能獨存的。于是，我們了解到那個著名的盲人與跛子故事的真正寓意── 兩個人單獨來看，都是能力有限的，可是，當盲人背著有視力的跛子和聽從跛子的指導時，兩人才可一起踏上旅途，輕易地達到他們的目標。身與心也是一樣，身體不能單獨為自己做到什麼，它好像一塊木頭，本身不能走動或做到什麼，只能陷于無常、腐壞與死亡。心靈沒有身體的支持也做不了什麼，可是，當我們留心地觀察著身心時，亦即是當身心一起合作時，我們就可以看見很多奇妙的事情了。

As long as we are sitting in one place we may gain some degree of mindfulness. Going to a retreat and spending several days or several months watching our feelings, perceptions, countless thoughts and various states of consciousness may make us eventually calm and peaceful. Normally we do not have that much time to spend in one place meditating all the time. Therefore, we should find a way to apply our mindfulness to our daily life in order for us to be able to handle daily unforeseeable eventualities. What we face every day is unpredictable. Things happen due to multiple causes and conditions, as we are living in a conditional and impermanent world. Mindfulness is our emergency kit, readily available at our service at any time. When we face a situation where we feel indignation, if we mindfully investigate our own mind, we will discover bitter truths in ourselves. That is we are selfish; we are egocentric; we are attached to our ego; we hold on to our opinions; we think we are right and everybody else is wrong; we are prejudices; we are biased; and at the bottom of all of this, we do not really love ourselves. This discovery, though bitter, is a most rewarding experience. And in the long run, this discovery delivers us from deeply rooted psychological and spiritual suffering.

在一個地方坐禪，我們可以修得某程度的靜觀力。能參加密集禪修，用幾天、乃至幾個月時間去留意觀察自身的感受、知覺(想蘊)、數不清的想法(行蘊)、以及各種意識狀態等，是可以最終令我們得到平靜與安寧的。可是，我們通常並沒有那麼多時間在一個地方持續修習，因此，應找個方法，把靜觀運于于日常生活之中，以應付每天無法預測的突發事件。每天遇上什麼都無法預知，事情的發生是由許多因緣(條件)所決定的，因為我們都活在一個受條件制約與無常的世界里。靜觀是我們的隨身求生包(Emergency Kit)，隨時候命為我們服務。當我們要面對一個令我們憤怒的場合時，如果能仔細審察自心，就會發現一些難以接受的、與自己有關的事實，例如：我們是自私自利的、以自我為中心的、執著自我的、自以為是的、我對他錯的、有成見的、有偏見的等等。說到底，我們並不喜歡自己。這發現雖然難于接受，卻是十分有益的一個體驗，而且，長遠來說，這發現可令我們從根深柢固的心理與心靈的痛苦中解脫出來。

Mindfulness practice is the practice of one hundred percent honesty with ourselves. When we watch our own mind and body, we notice certain things that are unpleasant to realize. As we do not like them, we try to reject them. What are the things we do not like? We do not like to detach ourselves from loved ones or to live with unloved ones. We include not only people, places and material things into our likes and dislikes, but opinions, ideas, beliefs and decisions as well. We do not like what naturally happens to us. We do not like, for instance, growing old, becoming sick, becoming weak or showing our age, for we have a great desire to preserve our appearance. We do not like someone pointing out our faults, for we take great pride in ourselves. We do not like someone to be wiser than we are, for we are deluded about ourselves. These are but a few examples of our personal experience of greed, hatred and ignorance.

內觀禪修是百分之一百忠于自己的練習。當我們觀看自己的身心時，會發現某些東西是我們不喜歡知道的，既然不喜歡，我們就會抗拒它們。什麼東西是我們不喜歡的呢？我們不喜歡與所愛的東西分離，我們不喜歡與所惡的東西在一起。這些東西不但包括人、地和物，也包括意見、觀念、信仰與決定等。我們不喜歡會自然發生在我們身上的東西，例如：我們不喜歡變老、生病、衰弱或公開自己的年齡，因為我們想青春常駐；我們不喜歡接受別人的指責，因為我們相當自負；我們不喜歡別人比我們賢明，因為我們沒有自知之明。以上所述，只不過是貪瞋癡的一些個人可以經驗到的例子而已。

When greed, hatred and ignorance reveal themselves in our daily lives, we use our mindfulness to track them down and comprehend their roots. The root of each of these mental states in within ourselves. If we do not, for instance, have the root of hatred, nobody can make us angry, for it is the root of our anger that reacts to somebody’s actions or words or behavior. If we are mindful, we will diligently use our wisdom to look into our own mind. If we do not have hatred in us we will not be concerned when someone points out our shortcomings. Rather, we will be thankful to the person who draws our attention to our faults. We have to be extremely wise and mindful to thank the person who explicates our faults so we will be able to tread the upward path toward improving ourselves. We all have blind spots. The other person is our mirror for us to see our faults with wisdom. We should consider the person who shows our shortcomings as one who excavates a hidden treasure in us that we were unaware of. It is by knowing the existence of our deficiencies that we can improve ourselves. Improving ourselves is the unswerving path to the perfection which is our goal in life. Only by overcoming weaknesses can we cultivate noble qualities hidden deep down in our subconscious mind. Before we try to surmount our defects, we should what they are.

當貪瞋痴在我們的日常生活中顯露時，我們要用靜觀力去追捕它們和充分了解它們的根源。那些心態的根源都在我們里面，舉例來說：如果我們沒有瞋，是沒有人可令我們憤怒的，就因為有瞋，才令我們對別人的說話、行動或表現生起反應。如果能及時覺知，就可運用智慧，堅持不懈地向內觀察自心。如果我們內心沒有瞋恨，便無需介意別人的挑剔或指責，反而要多謝那位提醒我們要留心過失的人。我們應十分明智地、小心地感謝那位揭露我們過失的人，因為他幫了我們踏上自我改善之路。我們大家都有盲點，那個人就像一面鏡子，令我們可用智慧看到自己的過失。我們應視那位指出我們過失的人為恩人，因為他為我們揭開自己不知不覺的寶藏。只有了解自己的缺點與不足，才能著手改善自己，而改善自己是達致圓滿的正道，那正是我們的人生目標。在我們試圖超越自身的缺點前，應首先知道它們是什麼，然後，通過克服那些缺點，才有可能開發潛在的高貴品德。

If we are sick, we must find out the cause of our sickness. Only then can we get treatment. If we pretend that we do not have sickness even though we are suffering, we will never get treatment. Similarly, if we think that we don’t have these faults, we will never clear our spiritual path. If we are blind to our own flaws, we need someone to point them out to us. When they point out our faults, we should be grateful to them like the Venerable Sariputta, who said: “Even if a seven-year-old novice monk points out my mistakes, I will accept them with utmost respect for him.” Ven. Sariputta was an Arahant who was one hundred percent mindful and had no fault in him. But since he did not have any pride, he was able to maintain this position. Although we are not Arahants, we should determine to emulate his example, for our goal in life also is to attain what he attained.

請如此地思維：如果我們有病，就應找出病因，只有如此，我們才能得到治療。如果明知有病，我們仍偽稱沒有病，那是無法得到治療的。同樣地，如果我們認為自己沒有這些過錯，那是無法清除修行道路上的障礙的。如果我們對自己的缺點無知，便需要別人為我們一一指出來。當他們指出我們的缺點時，我們就應感謝他們，就像尊者舍利弗所說：「即使有七歲的小沙彌指出我的錯誤，我也會欣然接受，並對他十分尊敬。」尊者舍利弗已經是一位百分百具足靜觀力(正念)的人(暗指阿羅漢)，他並無過失，也沒有我慢，所以他能堅持這種做法。雖然我們不是阿羅漢，我們也應仿效他的做法，因為，我們的人生目標也是要達致阿羅漢所達致的成就。

Of course the person pointing out our mistakes himself may not be totally free from defects, but he can see our problems as we can see his faults, which he does not notice until we point them out to him.

當然，指出我們錯誤的人本身也非毫無缺點，可是，他看到我們的問題，就好像我們看到他的缺點一樣。我們不當面向他指出，他同樣是不會注意到自己的過失的。

Both pointing out shortcomings and responding to them should be done mindfully. If someone becomes unmindful in indicating faults and uses unkind and harsh language, he might do more harm than good to himself as well as to the person whose shortcomings he points out. One who speaks with resentment cannot be mindful and is unable to express himself clearly. One who feels hurt while listening to harsh language may lose his mindfulness and not hear what the other person is really saying. We should speak mindfully and listen mindfully to be benefitted by talking and listening. When we listen and talk mindfully, our minds are free from greed, selfishness, hatred and delusion.

指出他人的缺點與回應他人的指責時都應留心地去做，如果有人不留心地指出別人的缺點，用上不友善的粗言惡語，對于他和被他指出缺點的人來說，都是有害無益的。一個懷著惡意說話的人，是不能留心地與清楚地表達自己的；因聽到粗言惡語而感到不快的人亦會分神，無法聽到對方說話的真正內容。我們應留心地說話和留心地聆聽，才可得到說話與聆聽的好處。當我們留心地說話或聆聽時，我們的心當下就可免受貪欲、自私、瞋恨與愚癡的影響了。

Our Goal

我們的目標

As meditators, we all must have a goal, for if we do not have a goal, we will simply be groping in the dark blindly following somebody’s instructions on meditation. There must certainly be a goal for whatever we do consciously and willingly. It is not the Vipassana meditator’s goal to become enlightened before other people or to have more power or to make more profit than others, for mindfulness meditators are not in competition with each other.

身為禪修者，我們都應有一個目標，因為，如果沒有目標，並且跟著別人的禪修指示去做，我們只不過像瞎子摸象，在黑暗中摸索而已。無論我們樂意地或自覺地做什麼，總應該有一個目標的。內觀禪修者的目標，不是要比別人更快開悟、更有力量或得到更多利益，內觀禪修者是不會為了靜觀力而互相競爭的。

Our goal is to reach the perfection of all the noble and wholesome qualities latent in our subconscious mind. This goal has five elements to it: Purification of mind, overcoming sorrow and lamentation, overcoming pain and grief, treading the right path leading to attainment of eternal peace, and attaining happiness by following that path. Keeping this fivefold goal in mind, we can advance with hope and confidence to reach the goal.

我們的目標，是要令潛在之高貴與良善品德都能達致完美。這目標有五個元素：清淨自心、克服憂愁與哀傷、袪除苦楚與悲痛、踏上可導致究竟安寧(涅槃)之正道，以及跟隨正道所得的快樂。我們若能謹記此五重目標，便可滿懷希望與信心地前進了。

Practice

禪修的實踐

Once you sit, do not change the position again until the end of the time you determined at the beginning. Suppose you change your original position because it is uncomfortable, and assume another position. What happens after a while is that the new position becomes uncomfortable. Then you want another and after a while, it too becomes uncomfortable. So you may go on shifting, moving, changing one position to another the whole time you are on your mediation cushion and you may not gain a deep and meaningful level of concentration. Therefore, do not change your original position, no matter how painful it is.

一旦坐定後，姿勢就不可任意改變，直至預定的時間結束為止。假設你因為不舒服而改變姿勢，不一會兒，新的姿勢也會令你感到不舒服的，于是你又想再次改變，但是不久之後，你還是會不舒服的。于是，在整個禪修時段里，你都會不停地在坐墊上移動與改變姿勢，那麼，你是無法獲得深刻而有意義的定力的。因此，你必須盡一切努力不改變原來的姿勢，至于如何應付坐禪時生起的疼痛，我們會在第十章中討論。

To avoid changing your position, determine at the beginning of meditation how long you are going to meditate. If you have never meditated before, sit motionless not longer than twenty minutes. As you repeat your practice, you can increase your sitting time. The length of sitting depends on how much time you have for sitting meditation practice and how long you can sit without excruciating pain.

欲避免改變坐姿，最好能在坐禪前預先決定你想坐多久。如果你是新手，開始時可用不超過二十分鍾來嘗試坐著不動，之後，你可逐漸增加坐禪時間。坐禪時間的長短，全取決于你有多少時間，以及你有多大的坐禪忍痛能力。

We should not have a time schedule to attain the goal, for our attainment depends on how we progress in our practice based on our understanding and development of our spiritual faculties. We must work diligently and mindfully towards the goal without setting any particular time schedule to reach it. When we are ready, we get there. All we have to do is to prepare ourselves for that attainment.

我們不必有一個達標的時間表，因為，我們的成就全取決于我們的禪修進展，而禪修的進展又依賴我們對五根(指信、精進、念、定、慧等五種助道因緣)的了解與發展。我們應努力地與謹慎地向目標推進，而無須設置任何特別的達標時間表。當我們準備妥當，就自然可以達標。我們所要做的，應該是為達標而好好地準備自己。

After sitting motionless, close your eyes. Our mind is analogous to a cup of muddy water. The longer you keep a cup of muddy water still, the more mud settles down and the water will be seen clearly. Similarly, if you keep quiet without moving you body, focusing your entire undivided attention on the subject of your meditation, your mind settles down and begins to experience the bliss of meditation.

坐定之後，就要閉上眼睛。我們的心有如一杯泥水，你令那杯泥水安置不動越久，就有較多的泥漿沉澱下來，而水也會越來越清澈。同樣，如果你能保持默然不動，專心致志地留意著你的禪修對象，你的心就會安定下來，並開始體驗到禪修之樂。

To prepare for this attainment, we should keep our mind in the present moment. The present moment is changing so fast that the casual observer does not seem to notice its existence at all. Every moment is a moment of events and no moment passes by without noticing events taking place in that moment. Therefore, the moment we try to pay bare attention to is the present moment. Our mind goes through a series of events like a series of pictures passing through a projector. Some of these pictures are coming from our past experiences and others are our imaginations of things that we plan to do in the future.

我們做達標的準備時，應保持自心于當下此刻，但當下瞬間飛逝，草率的觀察者根本注意不到它的存在。每一刻都有事件發生，沒有任何掠過的一刻是空白無事的。我們不可能在留意某一刻時，注意不到該刻內正發生的事件的。因此，我們要留意觀察的時刻就是現在當下此刻。我們的心像經過投影機的影片一樣，經常有一串串的影片經過，一些與過去的經歷有關，一些與我們計劃著將來想做的幻想有關。

The mind can never be focused without a mental object. Therefore we must give our mind an object which is readily available every present moment. What is present every moment is our breath. The mind does not have to make a great effort to find the breath, for every moment the breath is flowing in and out through our nostrils. As our practice of insight meditation is taking place every waking moment, our mind finds it very easy to focus itself on the breath, for it is more conspicuous and constant than any other object.

如果沒有一個對象，心意是無法集中的。因此，我們要給心意一個對象，而那對象在任何時刻皆可輕易得到的。我們的呼吸就是這類對象之一，心無需費力即可找到它，因為氣息在每一刻都會在鼻孔內流出流入。由于我們的內觀禪實踐都是在清醒的時刻進行，而呼吸又比其他對象較為明顯和持續，因此，心意輕易地就能令自己集中到呼吸上來。

After sitting in the manner explained earlier and having shared your loving-kindness with everybody, take three deep breaths. After taking three deep breaths, breathe normally, letting your breath flow in and out freely, effortlessly and begin focusing your attention on the rims of your nostrils. Simply notice the feeling of breath going in and out. When one inhalation is complete and before exhaling begins, there is a brief pause. Notice it and notice the beginning of exhaling. When the exhalation is complete, there is another brief pause before inhaling begins. Notice this brief pause, too. This means that there are two brief pauses of breath–one at the end of inhaling, and the other at the end of exhaling. The two pauses occur in such a brief moment you may not be aware of their occurrence. But when you are mindful, you can notice them.

如上述般坐好後，與眾生分享你的慈心，然後深呼吸三次，深呼吸三次之後，回復正常的呼吸，讓氣息自由地、毫不費力地流出流入，然後開始專心留意鼻孔末端邊緣，簡單地注意著氣息進出時的感覺。在吸氣結束與呼氣開始之間會有一短暫停頓的，要注意此短暫停頓與呼氣的開始，在此呼氣結束與下一個吸氣開始之間也會有一短暫停頓的，同樣要注意這一短暫停頓。換言之，在一呼一吸間會有兩個短暫停頓，一個在吸完之後，一個在呼完之後。這兩個停頓極為短暫，你可能覺察不到，但是，如果留意，你是會知道的。

Do not verbalize or conceptualize anything. Simply notice the in-coming and out-going breath without saying, “I breathe in”, or “I breathe out.” When you focus your attention on the breath ignore any thought, memory, sound, smell, taste, etc., and focus your attention exclusively on the breath, nothing else.

不可概念化或以言語表述任何感受。只須簡單地注意著氣息的進出，不必同時說：「我正吸入。」或是：「我正呼出。」當你專心注意著呼吸時，不要理會任何思想、記憶、聲音、香臭、味道等，只須一心一意地注意著呼吸即可。

At the beginning, both the inhalations and exhalations are short because the body and mind are not calm and relaxed. Notice the feeling of that short inhaling and short exhaling as they occur without saying “short inhaling” or “short exhaling”. As you remain noticing the felling of short inhaling and short exhaling, your body and mind become relatively calm. Then your breath becomes long. Notice the feeling of that long breath as it is without saying “Long breath”. Then notice the entire breathing process from the beginning to the end. Subsequently the breath becomes subtle, and the mind and body become calmer than before. Notice this calm and peaceful feeling of your breathing.

開始時，由于身心尚未安靜與放松，吸氣與呼氣都很短暫，注意那短暫吸氣與短暫呼氣時的感受，不用說「短的入息」或「短的出息」。由于你持續地注意著短暫的吸氣與短暫的呼氣感受，你的身心會變得較為平靜，跟著你的呼吸也會變得長些，要如實地注意那個長的呼吸感受，不用說「長的入息」或「長的出息」，然後，由頭到尾地注意整個呼吸過程。之後，呼吸會變得較為微細，而身心亦會比前較為平靜，注意你呼吸時這種平靜與安寧的感受。

What To Do When the Mind Wanders Away?

當心意跑開時怎麼辦?

In spite of your concerted effort to keep the mind on your breathing, the mind may wander away. It may go to past experiences and suddenly you may find yourself remembering places you’ve visited, people you met, friends not seen for a long time, a book you read long ago, the taste of food you ate yesterday, and so on. As soon as you notice that you mind is no longer on your breath, mindfully bring it back to it and anchor it there. However, in a few moments you may be caught up again thinking how to pay your bills, to make a telephone call to you friend, write a letter to someone, do your laundry, buy your groceries, go to a party, plan your next vacation, and so forth. As soon as you notice that your mind is not on your subject, bring it back mindfully. Following are some suggestions to help you gain the concentration necessary for the practice of mindfulness.

不管你怎麼努力把心意安住于呼吸之上，心意還是會跑開的。它會跑到過去的經驗里，突然間你會發覺，自己回憶起以前去過的地方、遇見過的人、久未謀面的朋友、一本很久之前讀過的書、昨天吃過的食物味道…… 等等。當你察覺時，你的心意已不在呼吸上了，要立即留心地把心帶回來，重新固定在呼吸之上。然而，很快你又再分心，想著繳交賬單的方法、打電話給朋友、寫一封信給別人、清洗衣服、買雜貨、參加舞會、計劃下次假期活動……等等。一旦你發覺心不在焉，要立即留心地把它帶回來。下面的一些建議，可幫你提高足夠的定力來修習觀禪。

1. Counting

(1) 數息

In a situation like this, counting may help. The purpose of counting is simply to focus the mind on the breath. Once you mind is focused on the breath, give up counting. This is a device for gaining concentration. There are numerous ways of counting. Any counting should be done mentally. Do not make any sound when you count. Following are some of the ways of counting.

像這樣的情況，數息會有幫助。數息的目的是要把心意集中在氣息之上，一旦心意集中在氣息之上，就可停止數息，這是一種提升定力的技巧。數息有很多種，任何一種都是用心去數的，不可用口發聲來數。以下是數息的一些方法：

a) While breathing in count “one, one, one, one…” until the lungs are full of fresh air. While breathing out count “two, two, two, two…” until the lungs are empty of fresh air. Then while breathing in again count “three, three, three, three…” until the lungs are full again and while breathing out count again “four, four, four, four…” until the lungs are empty of fresh air. Count up to ten and repeat as many times as necessary to keep the mind focused on the breath.

(a) 當吸氣時，數「一、一、一、一……」，直至肺部吸滿空氣為止，當呼氣時，數「二、二、二、二……」，直至肺部呼盡空氣為止，跟著再吸氣，數「三、三、三、三……」，直至肺部再吸滿空氣為止，然後呼氣時數「四、四、四、四……」，直至肺部呼盡空氣為止，如此地從一數至十，再不斷地重複，直至心能集中在氣息之上。

b) The second method of counting is counting rapidly up to ten. While counting “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten” breathe in and again while counting “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten” breathe out. This means in one inhaling you should count up to ten and in one exhaling you should count up to ten. Repeat this way of counting as many times as necessary to focus the mind on the breath.

(b) 第二種數息方法是快速地從一數至十。即一面數著「一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八、九、十」時，一面吸氣，然後再一面數著「一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八、九、十」時，一面呼氣。換言之，在一次吸氣中你要數至十，在一次呼氣中你也要數至十。如此地不斷重複，直至心能集中在氣息之上。

c) The third method of counting is to counting secession up to ten. At this time count “one, two, three, four, five” (only up to five) while inhaling and then count “one, two, three, four, five, six” (up to six) while exhaling. Again count “one, two, three, four fire, six seven” (only up to seven) while inhaling. Then count “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight” while exhaling. Count up to nine while inhaling and count up to ten while exhaling. Repeat this way of counting as many times as necessary to focus the mind on the breath.

(c) 第三種數息方法是由一數至五，然後順序地遞增至十。開始時，一面吸氣，一面數「一、二、三、四、五」(只數至五)，然後一面呼氣，一面數「一、二、三、四、五、六」(只數至六)。接著，再一面吸氣，一面數「一、二、三、四、五、六、七」(只數至七)，然後一面呼氣，一面數「一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八」(只數至八)。接著，在吸氣時數至九，在呼氣時數至十。如此地不斷重複，直至心能集中在氣息之上。

d) The fourth method is to take a long breath. When the lungs are full, mentally count “one” and breath out completely until the lungs are empty of fresh air. Then count mentally “two”. Take a long breath again and count “three” and breath completely out as before. When the lungs are empty of fresh air, count mentally “four”. Count your breath in this manner up to ten. Then count backward from ten to one. Count again from one to ten and then ten to one.

(d) 第四種數息方法是在深長的吸氣或呼氣之後才數。當肺部吸滿空氣後，在心里數「一」，然後呼氣，當肺部的空氣呼盡了，在心里數「二」。接著再深吸氣，至吸滿時數「三」，然後呼氣，至呼盡時用心數「四」。如此地呼吸，由一數到十，然後由十倒數至一，再由一數到十，又由十倒數至一。

e) The fifth method is to join inhaling and exhaling. When the lungs are empty of fresh air, count mentally “one”. This time you should count both inhalation and exhalation as one. Again inhale, exhale, and mentally count “two”. This way of counting should be done only up to five and repeated from five to one. Repeat this method until you breathing becomes refined and quiet. Remember that you are not supposed to continue your counting all the time. As soon as your mind is locked at the nostrils-tip where the inhaling breath and exhaling breath touch and begin to feel that you breathing is so refined and quiet that you cannot notice inhalation and exhalation separately, you should give up counting. Counting is used only to train the mind to concentrate on one point.

(e) 第五種數息方法是把呼吸結合起來數。每次都在呼盡氣時數。即是在一吸一呼之後才數「一」，再一吸一呼之後才數「二」，如此地只數到五，然後再由五倒數至一，如此地不斷重複，直至你的氣息變得微細與安靜。請記住，你無需用全部的禪修時間去數息，一旦你的心被鎖定在鼻孔末端與氣息接觸的地方，感到氣息微細與安靜，乃至分辨不出吸氣或是呼氣時，就要停止數息。數息只是用來訓練心意集中在一個對象上而已。

2. Connecting

(2) 連接

After inhaling do not wait to notice the brief pause before exhaling but connect the inhaling and exhaling, so you can notice both inhaling and exhaling as one continuous breath.

吸滿氣後，不用等注意到短暫的停頓才呼氣，而是把吸氣與呼氣連接起來，好讓你在吸氣與呼氣時只感到一個連續的氣息。

3. Fixing

(3) 固定

After joining inhaling and exhaling, fix your mind on the point where you feel you inhaling and exhaling breath touching. Inhale and exhale as on single breath moving in and out touching or rubbing the rims of your nostrils.

把吸氣與呼氣連接起來之後，就要把你的心固定在吸氣與呼氣時接觸鼻孔末端的那個感覺點上，讓吸氣與呼氣有如一個氣息般進進出出，接觸著或磨擦著你的鼻孔末端邊緣。

4. Focus you mind like a carpenter

(4) 像木匠一樣集中你的心

A carpenter draws a straight line on a board and that he wants to cut. Then he cuts the board with his handsaw along the straight line he drew. He does not look at the teeth of his saw as they move in and out of the board. Rather he focuses his entire attention on the line he drew so he can cut the board straight. Similarly keep your mind straight on the point where you feel the breath at the rims of your nostrils.

在鋸木前，木匠一般都會在要鋸的木板上劃上一條直線，然後才用鋸子沿著那條直線鋸下去，他不會一面鋸一面看著鋸子上的鋸齒，而是把注意力完全集中于他所劃的線上[3]，這樣才能把木板切割得正直。同樣地，要把自心一直保持在你感到氣息與鼻孔末端邊緣的接觸點上。

5. Make you mind like a gate-keeper

(5) 令你的心像一個看門人

A gate-keeper does not take into account any detail of the people entering a house. All he does is notice people entering the house and leaving the house through the gate. Similarly, when you concentrate you should not take into account any detail of your experiences. Simply notice the feeling of your inhaling and exhaling breath as it goes in and out right at the rims of your nostrils.

看門人是不會重視進入屋子里的人的細節的，他只會注意經過屋子門口進入與走出的人們。同樣地，當你集中時，不應重視經驗上的任何細節，只須注意呼吸時氣息進出鼻孔末端邊緣的接觸感受即可。

As you continue your practice you mind and body becomes so light that you may feel as if you are floating in the air or on water. You may even feel that your body is springing up into the sky. When the grossness of your in-and-out breathing has ceased, subtle in-and-out breathing arises. This very subtle breath is your objective focus of the mind. This is the sign of concentration. This first appearance of a sign-object will be replaced by more and more subtle sign-object. This subtlety of the sign can be compared to the sound of a bell. When a bell is struck with a big iron rod, you hear a gross sound at first. As the sound faces away, the sound becomes very subtle. Similarly the in-and-out breath appears at first as a gross sign. As you keep paying bare attention to it, this sign becomes very subtle. But the consciousness remains totally focused on the rims of the nostrils. Other meditation objects become clearer and clearer, as the sign develops. But the breath becomes subtler and subtler as the sign develops. Because of this subtlety, you may not notice the presence of your breath. Don’t get disappointed thinking that you lost your breath or that nothing is happening to your meditation practice. Don’t worry. Be mindful and determined to bring your feeling of breath back to the rims of your nostrils. This is the time you should practice more vigorously, balancing your energy, faith, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom.

當你繼續練習時，你的身心會變得很輕盈，感到自己好像漂浮在空氣之中或水面之上一樣，你甚至感到身體向空中升起。當出入息的粗重感消失後，微細的出入息就會出現，這個微細的氣息就是你心的專注對象，這是定境的徵狀，而這個最初的徵狀會被隨後陸續出現的、更加微細的徵狀對象所替代。徵狀的微細性質，可用鍾聲來作比擬，當一個鍾被一根粗鐵桿敲擊時，你會首先聽到厚重的聲音，隨著聲音漸漸消失，它會變得非常微細。同樣地，出入息的初期是粗重的，當你繼續單純地注意著它時，這徵狀亦會越來越微細的。然而，心識仍然完全集中在鼻孔末端的邊緣上【譯者注：這是你的主要或基本禪修對象】，隨著徵狀發展，其他禪修對象【譯者注：這是你的次要禪修對象】也會變得越來越清楚，而氣息亦會因而變得越來越微細的。由于這微細性(的不斷增加)，你可能察覺不到氣息的存在，不要因此失望，以為你失去了氣息、或以為禪修練習沒有任何進展。別擔心，要繼續留意覺察與下定決心找回在鼻孔末端邊緣的接觸感受。這個時候，你要更加積極地精進修習，平衡你的信、精進、念(觀、靜觀、留意覺察)、定、慧等五根或五力。

Farmer’s simile

農夫的譬喻

Suppose there is a farmer who uses buffaloes for plowing his rice field. As he is tired in the middle of the day, he unfastens his buffaloes and takes a rest under the cool shade of a tree. When he wakes up, he does not find his animals. He does not worry, but simply walks to the water place where all the animals gather for drinking in the hot mid-day and he finds his buffaloes there. Without any problem he brings them back and ties them to the yoke again and starts plowing his field.

假設有一位農夫，他以水牛來幫助他耕田。每當工作到中午時分，他感到有些疲倦時，他會解開耕牛的系繩，自己就在樹蔭下休息。當他醒來時，發覺耕牛不見了，他一點也不擔心，只逕自走到所有動物在炎熱的正午會聚在一起喝水的地方，在那里就可找到他的耕牛，輕易地把水牛帶回，重新套上牛軛，繼續耕作他的農田。

Similarly as you continue this exercise, your breath becomes so subtle and refined that you might not be able to notice the feeling of breath at all. When this happens, do not worry. It has not disappeared. It is still where it was before-right at the nostril-tips. Take a few quick breaths and you will notice the feeling of breathing again. Continue to pay bare attention to the feeling of the touch of breath at the rims of your nostrils.

同樣地，當你繼續此練習時，你的氣息會變得很微細與精煉，令你好像全然覺察不到它。當這樣的事發生時，不用擔心，氣息並沒有消失，它仍然在鼻孔末端這個老地方。只要你快速地呼吸數下，就會再次注意到氣息的感覺了。繼續單純地注意著呼吸時氣息在你鼻孔末端邊緣上的接觸感受。

(禪修進一步發展時的徵狀)

As you keep your mind focused on the rims of your nostrils, you will be able to notice the sign of the development of meditation. You will feel the pleasant sensation of sign. Different meditators feel this differently. It will be like a star, or a peg made of heartwood, or a long string, or a wreath of flowers, or a puff of smoke, or a cob-web, or a film of cloud, or a lotus flower, or the disc of the moon or the disc of the sun.

當你繼續集中心意于鼻孔末端邊緣上時，就能注意到禪修進一步發展時的徵狀，其中之一是：你會有一種愉悅的感覺。對此體驗，不同的禪修者都會有所不同，它可能像一顆星星、一顆圓形寶石、一粒珍珠、一粒棉花種子、一根木釘、一條長繩、一個花環、一陣輕煙、一個蜘蛛網、一片云霧、或是一朵蓮花、或像月輪、或像日輪等。

Earlier in your practice you had inhaling and exhaling as objects of meditation. Now you have the sign as the third object of meditation. When you focus your mind on this third object, your mind reaches a stage of concentration sufficient for your practice of insight meditation. This sign is strongly present at the rims of the nostrils. Master it and gain full control of it so that whenever you want, it should be available. Unite the mind with this sign which is available in the present moment and let the mind flow with every succeeding moment. As you pay bare attention to it, you will see the sign itself is changing every moment. Keep your mind with the changing moments. Also notice that your mind can be concentrated only on the present moment. This unity of the mind with the present moment is called momentary concentration. As moments are incessantly passing away one after another, the mind keeps pace with them. Changing with them, appearing and disappearing with them without clinging to any of them. If we try to stop the mind at one moment, we end up in frustration because the mind cannot be held fast. It must keep up with what is happening in the new moment. As the present moment can be found any moment, every waking moment can be made a concentrated moment.

你之前的修習是以入息與出息為禪修對象，現在你是以上述的徵狀為你的第三種禪修對象。當你集中心意在這第三種對象時，你的心已達到相當的定力水平，足以用作內觀禪的練習了。這徵狀明顯地存在于你的鼻孔末端邊緣，你要精通、熟練和完全地掌控它，以便在需要時，能隨時得心應手，把心意與當下可得的徵狀合而為一，並且讓心意隨著每一個相續的瞬間(剎那)流動。當你單純地注意著它時，你會發覺那徵狀本身也是不斷在轉變。讓你的心與轉變著的每一刻保持同步，同時要察覺到：心只可集中于當下此刻。心與當刻這樣子的結合被稱為「剎那定/瞬間定」(Momentary Concentration)，隨著每一刻的不停流走，心要與它們同步，與它們一起轉變，與它們一起出現和消失，不執取任何一刻【譯者注：指不斷改變心的注意對象為剛到達的當刻】。如果我們試圖讓心在某一刻停下來，只會招致挫敗，因為心是無法被握緊的，它一定會保持與新一刻發生著的事情同步。既然當刻可以在任何一刻找到，醒著的每一刻皆可成為有定力的一刻。

To unite the mind with the present moment, we must find something happening in that moment. However, you cannot focus your mind on every changing moment without a certain degree of concentration to keep pace with the moment. Once you gain this degree of concentration, you can use it for focusing your attention on anything you experience–the rising and falling of your abdomen, the rising and falling of the chest area, the rising and falling of any feeling, or the rising and falling of your breath or thoughts and so on.

為了將心與當刻結合，我們必須在當刻找到一些正在發生的事情，可是，沒有一定程度的定力與當刻同步，你是無法集中心意于每一個變動著的當刻的。一旦達致那種定力程度，你便可運用它來集中注意任何體驗── 腹部的起落、胸部的起伏、感受的生起與消失、氣息的升降、或思想起伏等。

To make any progress in insight meditation you need this kind of momentary concentration. That is all you need for the insight meditation practice because everything in your experience lives only for one moment. When you focus this concentrated state of mind on the changes taking place in your mind and body, you will notice that your breath is the physical part and the feeling of breath, consciousness of the feeling and the consciousness of the sign are the mental parts. As you notice them you can notice that they are changing all the time. You may have various types of sensations, other than the feeling of breathing, taking place in your body. Watch them all over your body. Don’t try to create any feeling which is not naturally present in any part of your body. When thought arises notice it, too. All you should notice in all these occurrences is the impermanent, unsatisfactory and selfless nature of all your experiences whether mental or physical.

欲想內觀禪修有所進展，你必須有此「剎那定或瞬間定」。內觀禪所需要的(定力)，就是如此而已，因為，你的每一個體驗都只能活一個片刻(剎那)。當你把這種有「剎那定」的心意集中于身心的轉變時，你會發覺，氣息屬物質部分，而氣息的感受、對此感受的意識與對于徵狀的意識等等皆屬精神部分。在你注意著它們的時候，你也會察覺到它們都在一直轉變。除了呼吸的感受外，你可能有各種各樣的不同感覺在你身體內出現，遍身的感覺都要觀察，不要試圖捏造任何不是自然呈現在你身上的感覺，但要注意在體內生起的任何感覺。當思想生起時，也要馬上注意到它。在這些事件的出現中，你所應注意的是：你所有有關物質的、或精神上的體驗，皆有無常、苦(不能令人滿意)和無我【譯者注：不可控制、非獨一無二、無實自性】的本性。

As your mindfulness develops, your resentment for the change, your dislike for the unpleasant experiences, your greet for the pleasant experiences and the notion of self hood will be replaced by the deeper insight of impermanence, unsatisfactoriness and selflessness. This knowledge of reality in your experience helps you to foster a more calm, peaceful and mature attitude towards your life. You will see what you thought in the past to be permanent is changing with such an inconceivable rapidity that even your mind cannot keep up with these changes. Somehow you will be able to notice many of the changes. You will see the subtlety of impermanence and the subtlety of selflessness. This insight will show you the way to peace, happiness and give you the wisdom to handle your daily problems in life.

隨著靜觀或留意覺察力(Mindfulness)的發展，你對改變的怨恨、對不愉快經歷或感受的嫌惡、對愉快經歷或感受的貪戀，以及自我的概念等，將會被無常、苦與無我等較深層的覺知所取代。你體會到的這種現實智慧，會幫你培養到一種較為平靜、安寧、以及成熟的對自己生命的態度。你會明白到，以前認為永恆不變的東西實在變化神速，甚至連心也無法跟得上這些改變。無論以何方式，你總會察覺到很多改變的，你會明白無常與無我的微妙之處，這洞悉將為你指出導致安寧與快樂之道，也會帶給你處理日常生活問題的智慧。

When the mind is united with the breath flowing all the time, we will naturally be able to focus the mind on the present moment. We can notice the feeling arising from contact of breath with the rim of our nostrils. As the earth element of the air that we breathe in and out touches the earth element of our nostrils, the mind feels the flow of air in and out. The warm feeling arises at the nostrils or any other part of the body from the contact of the heat element generated by the breathing process. The feeling of impermanence of breath arises when the earth element of flowing breath touches the nostrils. Although the water element is present in the breath, the mind cannot feel it.

當心與氣息流動能一直保持結合時，我們自然能集中心意于每一個當刻，我們能注意到氣息與鼻孔末端邊緣接觸時生起的感受。當呼吸時空氣的「地大(Earth Element)」[4]接觸到鼻孔的地大時，心就會感到空氣的氣流在進進出出。當呼吸時空氣的「火大( Heat Element)」接觸到鼻孔或身體的其他部分時，溫暖的感受就會生起。當呼吸時空氣的地大接觸到鼻孔時，呼吸的無常感受就會生起。雖然「水大(Water element)」存在于氣息之中，但心無法感受到它。

Also we feel the expansion and contraction of our lungs, abdomen and low abdomen, as the fresh air is pumped in and out of the lungs. The expansion and contraction of the abdomen, lower abdomen and chest are parts of the universal rhythm. Everything in the universe has the same rhythm of expansion and contraction just like our breath and body. All of them are rising and falling. However, our primary concern is the rising and falling phenomena of the breath and minute parts of our minds and bodies.

此外，隨著呼吸時的新鮮空氣進出肺部，我們會感到胸部、腹部與小腹的膨脹與收縮，胸部、腹部與小腹的膨脹與收縮是整個宇宙律動的幾個組成部分，宇宙間的任何事物均有相同的膨脹與收縮律動，就和我們的氣息與身體一樣，它們全部都會生起和消失。不過，我們關注的重點是：氣息與我們身心微細部分的生起與消失現象。

Along with the inhaling breath, we experience a small degree of calmness. This little degree of tension-free calmness turns into tension if we don’t breathe out in a few moments. As we breathe out this tension is released. After breathing out, we experience discomfort if we wait too long before having fresh brought in again. This means that every time our lings are full we must breathe out and every time our lungs are empty we must breathe in. As we breathe in, we experience a small degree of calmness, and as we breathe out, we experience a small degree of calmness. We desire calmness and relief of tension and do not like the tension and feeling resulting from the lack of breath. We wish that the calmness would stay longer and the tension disappear more quickly that it normally does. But neither will the tension go away as fast as we wish not the calmness stay as long as we wish. And again we get agitated or irritated, for we desire the calmness to return and stay longer and the tension to go away quickly and not to return again. Here we see how even a small degree of desire for permanency in an impermanent situation causes pain or unhappiness. Since there is no self-entity to control this situation, we will become more disappointed.

吸氣的同時，我們會感到少許平靜，若未能在片刻間呼氣，這少許平靜就會轉變為緊張(壓力)。隨著呼氣，這緊張又會得到舒緩。呼氣之後，如果仍然停著不吸進新鮮空氣，我們又會感到不安。這意味著：每次肺部吸滿空氣後就要呼氣，每次肺部呼盡空氣後就要吸氣。當我們吸氣時，就會感到少許平靜，當我們呼氣時，也會感到少許平靜的。我們渴望平靜與舒緩緊張，不喜歡緊張與呼吸困難的感受。我們希望平靜能停留久一點，緊張能早一點消失。但往往事與願違，緊張未能如我們所希望的那麼快離開，平靜也未能如我們所希望般停留得那麼久。于是，我們再次激動與生氣，因為我們渴望回到平靜與希望它能停留久一點，並希望緊張能趕快消失，永遠不要再回來。在這里，我們可以看到：在這種無常的情況下，就算是少許的渴望永恆(常)，也會產生苦痛與苦惱的。由于根本沒有一個自我實體去操控這種情況，我們將會變得更為失望。

However, if we watch our breathing without desiring calmness and without resenting tension arising from the breathing in and out, but experience only the impermanence, the unsatisfactoriness and selflessness of our breath, our mind becomes peaceful and calm.

不過，如果我們觀察呼吸時，沒有渴望平靜，也沒有憎惡呼吸時生起的緊張，而是只體驗著呼吸時的無常、苦與無我，我們的心就會變得平靜與安寧。

Also, the mind does not stay all the time with the feeling of breath. It goes to sounds, memories, emotions, perceptions, consciousness and mental formations as well. When we experience these states, we should forget about the feeling of breath and immediately focus our attention on these states–one at a time, not all of them at one time. As they fade away, we let our mind return to the breath which is the home base the mind can return to from quick or long journey to various states of mind and body. We must remember that all these mental journeys are made within the mind itself.

心是不會由始至終與呼吸在一起的，它有時也會跑去留意聲音、記憶、情緒、知覺、意識與心行(Mental Formations)。當我們經歷到這些狀態時，應暫時停止感受呼吸，馬上將注意力集中于這些狀態上── 一次一個，不是同時一齊做。當它們消退時，再讓心回到呼吸上來，那是心的基地，無論心往身心的任何狀態旅游多久，它總會返回這個(呼吸)基地的。我們必須記住，所有這些心靈之旅都是在自己的心中進行的。

Every time the mind returns to the breath, it comes back with a deeper insight into impermanence, unsatisfactoriness and selflessness. The mind becomes more insightful from the impartial and unbiased watching of these occurrences. The mind gains insight into the fact that this body, these feelings, various states of consciousness and numerous mental formations are to be used only for the purpose of gaining deeper insight into the reality of this mind/body complex.

每次心意返回呼吸上時，它都會帶著對無常、苦與無我更深入的洞悉回來的。通過對這些事情之不偏不倚的觀察，心會變得更為有洞察力，它了解到一個事實：這個身體、這些感受、各種各樣的意識與無數的心行，只不過是用來獲得對身心綜合體實相之較深入的洞悉而已。

【注釋】

[1] 心行(Mental Formations)：佛教多簡稱為「行」，泛指內心的作用、狀態或思想情緒等活動。有時候特指有意圖的思維活動。

[2] 五蘊：佛教術語。亦作五取蘊，五陰或五取陰。英譯為(Aggregates of form, feeling,perceptions, mental formations and consciousness)。指構成眾生身心的五堆具有不同功能的聚合物，分別為色蘊(物質性的身體)、受蘊(感受)、想蘊(知覺)、行蘊(心理作用、狀態與活動。即「心行」)與識蘊(意識作用)。色蘊相當于我們所稱的身體，其他四蘊則相當于我們所稱的心理或精神。佛教所稱的「名色」相當于「身心」，「名」指「心」，「色」指「身」。

[3] 把注意力完全集中于他所劃的線上：意思是，把注意力完全集中于他所劃的線與鋸齒接觸之點上。

[4] 地大(Earth Element)：四大種之一。佛教之元素說，認為世間一切有形物質(色法)皆由地大、水大、火大、風大等四大要素(四大種)所構成。地大以堅硬為性，水大以潮濕為性，火大以溫暖為性，風大以流動為性。例如：人體的毛髮爪牙、皮骨筋肉等是堅硬性的地大；唾涕膿血、痰淚便利等是潮濕性的水大；溫度暖氣是溫暖性的火大；一呼一吸是流動性的風大。