靜止的流水 Still, Flowing Water
Still, Flowing Water
靜止的流水
by Ajahn Chah
阿姜查
Now please pay attention, not allowing your mind to wander off after other things. Create the feeling that right now you are sitting on a mountain or in a forest somewhere, all by yourself. What do you have sitting here right now? There are body and mind, that’s all, only these two things. All that is contained within this frame sitting here now is called “body.” The “mind” is that which is aware and is thinking at this very moment. These two things are also called “nama” and “rupa.” “Nama” refers to that which has no “rupa,” or form. All thoughts and feelings, or the four mental khandhas of feeling, perception, volition and consciousness, are nama, they are all formless. When the eye sees form, that form is called rupa, while the awareness is called nama. Together they are called nama and rupa, or simply body and mind.
現在，請你用心聽，不要允許你的心追隨其他事物而迷失。想像這種感覺──當你獨自地坐在山上或森林的某個地方，坐在這里，當下，有什麼呢？只有身和心這兩樣東西，如此而已。現在這個坐在這里的外殼里所含藏的一切叫做「身」。而在每一刻中覺知和思考的則是「心」。 這兩樣東西也叫做「名( nAma )」和「色( rUpa )」。「名」，意思是指沒有「色」或形體。 所有的念頭和感覺，或受、想、行、識四種精神上的蘊( khandha )，都是「名」，它們沒有形體。當眼睛見到形體時，那個形體叫做「色」，而那時的覺知叫做「名」。它們總稱為「名」和「色」，簡單地說就是身和心。
Understand that sitting here in this present moment are only body and mind. But we get these two things confused with each other. If you want peace you must know the truth of them. The mind in its present state is still untrained; it’s dirty, not clear. It is not yet the pure mind. We must further train this mind through the practice of meditation.
要了解：當下這個時刻坐在這兒的，只有身和心。 可是，我們常把這兩樣東西給互相混淆了。 如果你想得到平靜，就必須知道它們的真相。目前，心的狀態仍是未訓練的──污穢而不清明，還不是清淨的心。我們必須透過修習禪坐來進一步訓練這顆心。
Some people think that meditation means to sit in some special way, but in actual fact standing, sitting, walking and reclining are all vehicles for meditation practice. You can practice at all times. Samadhi literally means “the firmly established mind.” To develop samadhi you don’t have to go bottling the mind up. Some people try to get peaceful by sitting quietly and having nothing disturb them at all, but that’s just like being dead. The practice of samadhi is for developing wisdom and understanding.
有些人認為， 禪坐的意思是以某些特殊的方法坐著，可是，事實上站著、走著和臥著都是禪修的工具，你可以在一切時中修習。 「三摩地( samAdhi，定)」，字面上的意思是「穩固地建立起心」。 要增長三摩地，並不必要去壓抑心。有些人試圖以靜靜地坐著，完全不讓任何事物干擾他們，來得到平靜，但是，這就如死了一般。 修習「三摩地」是為了增長智慧和理解。
Samadhi is the firm mind, the one-pointed mind. On which point is it fixed? It’s fixed onto the point of balance. That’s its point. But people practice meditation by trying to silence their minds. They say, “I try to sit in meditation but my mind won’t be still for a minute. One instant it flies off one place, the next instant it flies off somewhere else…How can I make it stop still?” You don’t have to make it stop, that’s not the point. Where there is movement is where understanding can arise. People complain, “It runs off and I pull it back again; then it goes off again and I pull it back once more…” So they just sit there pulling back and forth like this.
「三摩地」是堅固的心──心一境性。 它專住在那一境上呢？它專住在平衡的一境上，那就是它的境。 但人們試圖以安靜他們的心來修習禪坐。他們說：「我試圖禪坐，可是我的心連一分鍾都無法靜下來； 一下子飛到這兒，一下子又飛到其他地方去……，我怎樣才能使它停止下來呢？」你不必去停止它，重點也並不在這里。 有移動的地方就是理解生起的地方。 有些人抱怨說：「它跑掉了，我把它拉回來；它又跑掉，我就再一次把它拉回來……」因此它們就坐在那兒拉來拉去。
They think their minds are running all over the place, but actually it only seems like the mind is running around. For example, look at this hall here…“Oh, it’s so big!,” you say … actually it’s not big at all. Whether or not it seems big depends on your perception of it. In fact this hall is just the size it is, neither big nor small, but people run around after their feelings all the time.
他們以為自己的心在到處亂跑，實際上，它只是看起來好像在四處亂跑。 舉個例子，看看這間講堂……，你會說：「噢，好大啊！」事實上它根本不算大。 它看起來是大或小，都是憑著你對它的感覺。 實際上，這間講堂的大小只是它的大小，非大也非小，但人們總是跟隨他們的感覺跑。
Meditating to find peace…You must understand what peace is. If you don’t understand it you won’t be able to find it. For example, suppose today you brought a very expensive pen with you to the monastery. Now suppose that, on your way here, you put the pen in your front pocket, but at a later time you took it out and put it somewhere else, such as the back pocket. Now when you search your front pocket…It’s not there! You get a fright. You get a fright because of your misunderstanding, you don’t see the truth of the matter. Suffering is the result. Whether standing, walking, coming and going, you can’t stop worrying about your lost pen. Your wrong understanding causes you to suffer. Understanding wrongly causes suffering…“Such a shame! I’d only bought that pen a few days ago and now it’s lost.”
以打坐來尋找平靜……，你必須了解平靜是什麼。 如果你不了解，就無法尋獲它。 例如：你帶枝非常昂貴的筆到寺院來，而在你來這兒的途中，你將筆擺在前面的口袋，但你拿出來後，卻將它放在後面的口袋罷！現在，當你伸進前面的口袋時…… 筆不在那兒了！你嚇了一跳。 你會嚇一跳是因為你的誤解，你沒見倒事情的真相，所以結果是苦。 不論站、行、來和去，就是不能停止對遺失筆而產生的苦惱。你錯誤的理解因而造成你受苦。理解錯誤會造成苦…… 「真是太可惜了！我幾天前才買了那枝筆，現在遺失了。」
But then you remember, “Oh, of course! When I went to bathe I put the pen in my back pocket.” As soon as you remember this you feel better already, even without seeing your pen. You see that? You’re happy already, you can stop worrying about your pen. You’re sure about it now. As you’re walking along you run your hand over your back pocket and there it is. Your mind was deceiving you all along. The worry comes from your ignorance. Now, seeing the pen, you are beyond doubt, your worries are calmed. This sort of peace comes from seeing the cause of the problem, samudaya, the cause of suffering. As soon as you remember that the pen is in your back pocket there is nirodha, the cessation of suffering.
但後來你想起：「噢，當然啦！我去洗澡的時候，將筆放在後面的口袋了。 」當你一記起這事時，即使還沒看到筆，便已經覺得好多了。 你了解嗎？你快樂了，也可以停止對你的筆的耽憂。 現在，你已經確定了，因此當走路時，會將你的手伸進後面的口袋，而筆就在那兒。 你的心一直在欺騙你，而憂慮來自你的無知。現在，看到筆，疑惑也就消失了， 憂慮也平息了下來了。 這種平靜來自于看見問題的起因──「苦的起因(samudaya，集諦)」； 在你記憶中，筆就在你後面的口袋，那一剎那，就有了「苦的息滅(nirodha，滅諦)」。
So you must contemplate in order to find peace. What people usually refer to as peace is simply the calming of the mind, not the calming of the defilements. The defilements are simply being temporarily subdued, just like grass covered by a rock. In three or four days you take the rock off the grass and in no long time it grows up again. The grass hadn’t really died, it was simply being suppressed. It’s the same when sitting in meditation: the mind is calmed but the defilements are not really calmed. Therefore, samadhi is not a sure thing. To find real peace you must develop wisdom. Samadhi is one kind of peace, like the rock covering the grass…in a few days you take the rock away and the grass grows up again. This is only a temporary peace. The peace of wisdom is like putting the rock down and not lifting it up, just leaving it where it is. The grass can’t possibly grow again. This is real peace, the calming of the defilements, the sure peace which results from wisdom.
所以，你必須思惟，為的是要找到平靜。 一般人通常以為平靜就是指單單地使心平靜下來，而不是使煩惱也一起平靜下來。 煩惱只是暫時地被壓抑著而已，如同被一塊石頭壓著的小草，三、四天之後，你將小草上的石頭移開， 不就之後，它就會再長回來。小草並沒有真的死去，它只是被壓制住而已。 這跟禪坐時一樣：心是平靜的，然而，煩惱並沒有真的平定下來。 因此，「三摩地」並不是很確定的。要找到真正的平靜，就必須增長智慧。 三摩地是一種平靜，就如石頭壓著小草般……，幾天之後，將石頭移開，小草就會再長回來，這只是一種暫時的平靜。 智慧的平靜就好像將石頭放下後，就不去移開它，而讓它在原處。 小草不可能再長回來時，這才是真正的平靜──煩惱的平息，來自于智慧的穩定平靜。
We speak of wisdom (pa and samadhi as separate things, but in essence they are one and the same. Wisdom is the dynamic function of samadhi; samadhi is the passive aspect of wisdom. They arise from the same place but take different directions, different functions, like this mango here. A small green mango eventually grows larger and larger until it is ripe. It is all the same mango, the larger one and the ripe one are all the same mango, but its condition changes. In Dhamma practice, one condition is called samadhi, the later condition is called pa but in actuality sila, samadhi, and pa/i> are all the same thing, just like the mango.
我們說「智慧(般若，pannA 」和「三摩地」是分開來的東西。 但是，本質上，它們是同一的，相同的。 智慧是三摩地活動的作用，三摩地是智慧不動的相貌，它們從同一個地方生起，可是有不同的趨向、不同的功用。 就如同此處這棵芒果樹一樣，小的芒果會愈長愈大，直到成熟；雖然它們同是一個芒果，但卻有不同的情況。 小芒果，大芒果和熟透的芒果都是同一顆芒果，只是它的狀況改變而已。 在佛法的修行里，有一種情況稱做「三摩地」，而稍後的情況稱做「般若」。 但是，實際上，「尸羅( s ｛ la，戒)」、「三摩地(定)」和「般若(慧)」都是一樣，就如芒果一般。
In any case, in our practice, no matter what aspect you refer to, you must always begin from the mind. Do you know what this mind is? What is the mind like? What is it? Where is it?… Nobody knows. All we know is that we want to go over here or over there, we want this and we want that, we feel good or we feel bad… but the mind itself seems impossible to know. What is the mind? The mind hasn’t any form. that which receives impressions, both good and bad, we call “mind.” It’s like the owner of a house. The owner stays put at home while visitors come to see him. He is the one who receives the visitors. Who receives sense impressions? What is it that perceives? Who lets go of sense impressions? That is what we call “mind.” But people can’t see it, they think themselves around in circles…“What is the mind, what is the brain?” … Don’t confuse the issue like this. What is it that receives impressions? Some impressions it likes and some it doesn’t like… Who is that? Is there one who likes and dislikes? Sure there is, but you can’t see it. That is what we call “mind.”
任何情況下，在我們的修行中，不論你是從什麼樣的角度來說，都必須從心開始。你知道這顆心是什麼嗎？心是什麼樣子？它是什麼？它在那里？沒有人知曉。 我們只知道我們想去這里或那里， 想要這個，想要那個，我們覺得好或不好……，可是心本身似乎不可能知道。 心是什麼？心沒有任何形相。那個領受善和惡的法塵的，我們稱做「心」。 如同一間房子的主人，主人待在家里，當客人來訪時，它就是接待客人的人。是誰領受法塵的呢？ 那個知覺的是什麼呢？是誰放下法塵的呢？那就是我們所謂的「心」。 但是人們看不到，他們反覆地打轉：「心是什麼？心是什麼？」別把問題給搞混淆了。 那個領受法塵的是什麼？心喜歡某些法塵，而有些則不喜歡。那是誰？有一個喜歡和不喜歡的人嗎？當然有，但是你看不到，那就是我們所謂的「心」。
In our practice it isn’t necessary to talk of samatha (concentration) or vipassana (insight), just call it the practice of Dhamma, that’s enough. And conduct this practice from your own mind. What is the mind? The mind is that which receives, or is aware of, sense impressions. With some sense impressions there is a reaction of like, with others the reaction is dislike. That receiver of impressions leads us into happiness and suffering, right and wrong. But it doesn’t have any form. We assume it to be a self, but it’s really only namadhamma. Does “goodness” have any form? Does evil? Do happiness and suffering have any form? You can’t find them. Are they round or are they square, short or long? Can you see them. These things are namadhamma, they can’t be compared to material things, they are formless…but we know that they do exist.
在我們的修行中， 並沒有必要談「奢摩他( samatha， 止)」或「□婆奢那(vipassanA，觀)」只要稱它做佛法的修習就夠了，然後從你的心著手。什麼是心？心就是那個領受和覺知法塵的。 有些法塵有喜歡的反應，有些法塵的反應則會是不喜歡的。那個接受法塵的人帶領我們進入快樂、痛苦、對與錯之中。可是它沒有任何形相。 我們認為它是我，但它實在只是「名法( nAmadhamma )」而已。 「善」有任何形相嗎？「惡」呢？「樂」與「苦」有任何形相嗎？這些都是「名法」， 不能拿來跟物質的東西比較，它們是沒有形相的……可是我們知道它們存在。
Therefore it is said to begin the practice by calming the mind. Put awareness into the mind. If the mind is aware it will be at peace. Some people don’t go for awareness, they just want to have peace, a kind of blanking out. So they never learn anything. If we don’t have this “one who knows” what is there to base our practice on?
因此，我們說：要由平定心來開始修行。 將覺醒放在心中，如果心是覺醒的話，它將安住于平靜之中， 有些人不去覺醒，而只想要平靜──一種空白，所以他們永遠學不到任何東西。假使我們沒有這個「覺知者」，我們的修行要以什麼做為根基呢？
If there is no long, there is no short, if there is no right there can be no wrong. People these days study away, looking for good and evil. But that which is beyond good and evil they know nothing of. All they know is the right and the wrong – “I’m going to take only what is right. I don’t want to know about the wrong. Why should I?” If you try to take only what is right in a short time it will go wrong again. Right leads to wrong. People keep searching among the right and wrong, they don’t try to find that which is neither right nor wrong. They study about good and evil, they search for virtue, but they know nothing of that which is beyond good and evil. They study the long and the short, but that which is neither long nor short they know nothing of.
如果沒有長，就不會有短；如果沒有對，就不會有錯。 現代人一直在學息，尋求善和惡，但他們對超越善和惡之外的，卻一無所知。 他們知道的只是善和惡：「我只要取善的。 關于惡的，我都不想知道，我何必呢？」假如你只取善的，在短時間內，它會再犯錯。 對會導致錯，人們只是不斷地在對與錯之間尋找，而不試圖去尋求非對也非錯。他們學習對和錯，他們尋求功德，但對于超越善、惡之外的， 卻一無所知，他們學習長和短，可是對于非長亦非短的，他們什麼也不知道。
This knife has a blade, a rim and a handle. Can you lift only the blade? Can you lift only the rim of the blade, or the handle? The handle, the rim and the blade are all parts of the same knife: when you pick up the knife you get all three parts together.
這把刀子有刀鋒、刀背和刀柄。 你可以只拿起刀鋒嗎？或只拿起刀背或刀柄？刀柄、刀背和刀鋒這些部位都在同一把刀上； 當你拿起刀時，這三個部份都同時被一齊拿起。
In the same way, if you pick up that which is good, the bad must follow. People search for goodness and try to throw away evil, but they don’t study that which is neither good nor evil. If you don’t study this there can be no completion. If you pick up goodness, badness follows. If you pick up happiness, suffering follows. The practice of clinging to goodness and rejecting evil is the Dhamma of children, it’s like a toy. Sure, it’s alright, you can take just this much, but if you grab onto goodness, evil will follow. The end of this path is confused, it’s not so good.
同樣的道理，你拿起善的，惡的就必定相隨。 人們尋求善而試圖將惡給扔掉，可是他們卻不學習非善與非惡，如果你不學習這點的話，就不會有圓滿。 如果你取善，惡便隨至；如果你取樂，苦必隨至。 執取善而拒絕惡的修行，是小孩子的佛法，有如玩具一樣；肯定的，這不會有什麼問題。 可是，假使你握持善，惡將會隨至，這條路的尾端是混淆不清的，並不很好。
Take a simple example. You have children – now suppose you want to only love them and never experience hatred. This is the thinking of one who doesn’t know human nature. If you hold onto love, hatred will follow. In the same way, people decide to study the Dhamma to develop wisdom, studying good and evil as closely as possible. Now, having known good and evil, what do they do? They try to cling to the good, and evil follows. They didn’t study that which is beyond good and evil. This is what you should study.
拿個簡單的比喻來說：現在，假使你有小孩子，而你只是希望去愛他們， 卻永遠不經歷憎惡，這是不懂的人性的人的想法。 如果你握持愛，憎惡就會追隨。同樣的道理，人們要隹決心要學習佛法以增長智慧，就會盡可能地仔細學習善與惡。 現在，認識善與惡了，他們做什麼呢？他們試圖去執著善，而苦亦隨至， 他們不去學習超越善與惡之外的，而這才是你們應該學習的。
“I’m going to be like this,” “I’m going to be like that,”… but they never say “I’m not going to be anything because there really isn’t any ‘I’”…This they don’t study. All they want is goodness. If they attain goodness, they lose themselves in it. If things get too good they’ll start to go bad, and so people end up just swinging back and forth like this.
「我要成為這樣子」、「我要成為那樣子」……， 但是他們從不說：「我什麼都不做，因為實際上根本沒有『我』」……，他們不學習這點，而只扛想要善。 如果他們達到善，他們就迷失在其中。 如果事物太美好了，它們就會開始敗壞。所以，他們最後就這樣反反覆覆地下去。
In order to calm the mind and become aware of the perceiver of sense impressions, we must observe it. Follow the “one who knows.” Train the mind until it is pure. How pure should you make it? If it’s really pure the mind should be above both good and evil, above even purity. It’s finished. That’s when the practice is finished.
為了平定心和清楚知道領受法塵的人， 我們必須去觀察，追隨「覺知者」，訓練心直到它清淨為止。 你應該使它清淨到甚麼程度呢？假如是真正清猙的話，心應該超越善與惡，甚至超越清淨，這就結束了，這就是修行結束的時後。
What people call sitting in meditation is merely a temporary kind of peace. But even in such a peace there are experiences. If an experience arises there must be someone who knows it, who looks into it, queries it and examines it. If the mind is simply blank then that’s not so useful. You may see some people who look very restrained and think they are peaceful, but the real peace is not simply the peaceful mind. It’s not the peace which says, “May I be happy and never experience any suffering.” With this kind of peace, eventually even the attainment of happiness becomes unsatisfying. Suffering results. Only when you can make your mind beyond both happiness and suffering will you find true peace. That’s the true peace. This is the subject most people never study, they never really see this one.
人們所謂的坐禪只是一個暫時性的平靜。 可是，即使在這種的平靜之中仍是會有經驗產生的。 如果一個經驗生起，就必須要有人去覺知它，有人去洞查它、質問它和審視它；如果心只是空白一片，那是沒什麼用處的。 你也許會見到有些人看起來非常嚴謹，以至于會認為他們很平靜， 但是，真正的平靜並不只是心平靜而已，也並不是說：「願我快樂而絕不經驗任何痛苦」的那種平靜。 這種的平靜，最後連達到的喜悅都會變成不滿足───苦的結果。 唯有當你能夠使你的心超越樂與苦時，才會尋找到真實的平靜，那才是真正的平靜。 這是絕大多數的人所不學習的學科，他們從來沒有真正地看到這一點。
The right way to train the mind is to make it bright, to develop wisdom. Don’t think that training the mind it simply sitting quietly. That’s the rock covering the grass. People get drunk over it. They think that samadhi is sitting. That’s just one of the words for samadhi, but really, if the mind has samadhi in the sitting posture, in the walking posture, in the standing and reclining postures. It’s all practice.
訓練心的正確方法，是使心光明、增長智慧。 別認為只是靜靜地坐著就是訓練心，那就有如石頭壓住草一般。 人們迷醉在這里面，認為「三摩地」就是坐。那只是「三摩地」的一個名詞， 但實際上，假使心有「三摩地」，那麼行就是三摩地，坐也是三摩地……。坐有三摩地、行有三摩地、住有三摩地、臥也有三摩地，這些都是修行。
Some people complain, “I can’t meditate, I’m too restless. Whenever I sit down I think of this and that… I can’t do it. I’ve got too much bad kamma. I should use up my bad kamma first and then come back and try meditating.” Sure, just try it. Try using up your bad kamma…
有些人抱怨說：「我無法禪坐， 因為我太煩躁了， 我只要一坐下來， 就想這想那……，我辦不到。我的惡業太重了，應該先消完我的惡業後，再回來禪坐。」沒問題，去試試看，去試圖消完你的惡業……。
This is how people think. Why do they think like this? These so called hindrances are the things we must study. Whenever we sit, the mind immediately goes running off. We follow it and try to bring it back and observe it once more…then it goes off again. This is what you’re supposed to be studying. Most people refuse to learn their lessons from nature…like a naughty schoolboy who refuses to do his homework. They don’t want to see the mind changing. How are you going to develop wisdom? We have to live with change like this. When we know that the mind is just this way, constantly changing…when we know that this is its nature, we will understand it. We have to know when the mind is thinking good and bad, changing all the time, we have to know these things. If we understand this point, then even while we are thinking we can be at peace.
這是一般人的想法。 他們為何這麼認為呢？這些所謂障礙的東西，是我們所必須研究的。 只要我們一坐下來，心就立即向外跑。我們也去追隨它，試圖將它帶回來，再做審察……，然而，它又跑走了；這才是你們應該學習的。 絕大多數人都拒絕從自然中去學習……，就如同一位拒絕作功課的頑皮學生。 他們不希望看到心的變遷，這樣你怎能增長智慧呢？你必須和變遷同住。 當我們知道心就是如此──不斷地變遷，一旦認識這是它的本性，我們就會明了。 我們必須知道那時後心在想善和那時後在想惡，它一直在變遷，我們必須認識這些事情。 假如我們了解這點，那麼，即使我們在想的時後，一樣能安住于平靜中。
For example, suppose at home you have a pet monkey. Monkeys don’t stay still for long, they like to jump around and grab onto things. That’s how monkeys are. Now you come to the monastery and see the monkey here. This monkey doesn’t stay still either, it jumps around just the same. But it doesn’t bother you, does it? Why doesn’t it bother you? Because you’ve raised a monkey before, you know what they’re like. If you know just one monkey, no matter how many provinces you go to, no matter how many monkeys you see, you won’t be bothered by them, will you? This is one who understands monkeys.
譬如說：假設你家有只小寵物──猴子。 猴子無法長時間靜止不動，它們喜歡到處亂跑亂跳、抓東抓西的，猴子就是這樣的。 現在，你到寺院里來，看見這里的猴子，這只猴子一樣靜不下來，一樣到處亂跑。 可是它干擾不到你，對不對？它為何干擾不到你呢？因為你以前也養過猴子，所以了解猴子是什麼樣子的。 假使你認識一只猴子，無論你走過多少省分、看過多少猴子， 都不會被它們所干擾，對不對？這就是一位了解猴子的人。
If we understand monkeys then we won’t become a monkey. If you don’t understand monkeys you may become a monkey yourself! Do you understand? When you see it reaching for this and that, you shout, “Hey!” You get angry…“That damned monkey!” This is one who doesn’t know monkeys. One who knows monkeys sees that the monkey at home and the monkey in the monastery are just the same. Why should you get annoyed by them? When you see what monkeys are like that’s enough, you can be at peace.
如果你了解猴子，那麼，你就不會變成一只猴子； 假使你不了解猴子，你自己可能就會變成一只猴子！了解嗎？ 當你看到它伸手抓這抓那時， 會喊： 「嘿！」你很生氣……，「那只該死的猴子！」這是一位不了解猴子的人，知道家里的猴子和寺院里的猴子都是一樣的，你為何要受它們干擾呢？一旦認識猴子是如何的時候，那就夠了， 你便可以安住于平靜。
Peace is like this. We must know sensations. Some sensations are pleasant, some are unpleasant, but that’s not important. That’s just their business. Just like the monkey. all monkeys are the same. We understand sensations as sometimes agreeable, sometimes not – that’s just their nature. We should understand them and know how to let them go. Sensations are uncertain. They are Transient, Imperfect and Ownerless. Everything that we perceive is like this. When eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind receive sensations, we know them, just like knowing the monkey. Then we can be at peace.
平靜就像這樣。 我們必須去認識感覺，有些感覺是愉快的，有是不愉快的，但那樣不重要，那是它們的事，就如猴子一樣，所有的猴子都是一樣的。 我們明了感覺有時是愉快的，有時則否──那是它們的本然。 我們應該了解它們，並知道如何放下它們。感覺是不穩定的，它們是變異(無常)、不圓滿(苦)和無主(無我)的。 一切我們所知覺的，都是如此。 當眼、耳、鼻、舌、身和意(心)領受感覺時，我們知道它們，亦如認識猴子一般。如此一來，我們便可以安住于平靜。
When sensations arise, know them. Why do you run after them? Sensations are uncertain. One minute they are one way, the next minute another. They exist dependent on change. And all of us here exist dependent on change. The breath goes out then it must come in. It must have this change. Try only breathing in, can you do that? Or try just breathing out without taking in another breath … can you do it? If there was no change like this how long could you live for? There must be both the in breath and the out breath.
當感覺生起時，覺知它們。 你為何去追逐它們呢？感覺是不穩定的，一下子這樣，一下子那樣，它們是依賴變異而存在的。 我們這里所有的人，一樣都是依賴變異而存在。 氣呼出之後就必然會再吸進，它勢必要有這樣的改變。試著只吸，你做得到嗎？或者只試著呼出而沒有吸進……， 你辦得到嗎？假使沒有這樣的變更，你可以活多久？吸進與呼出必須一定都有。
Sensations are the same. There must be these things. If there were sensations you could develop no wisdom. If there is no wrong there can be no right. You must be right first before you can see what is wrong, and you must understand the wrong first to be right. This is how things are.
感覺也是一樣。這些東西都必定要有。 如果沒有感覺，你就無法增長智慧；如果沒有錯，也就沒有對可言了，在你可以看見什麼是錯的時候，你必須要先看見正確的； 你要正確之前，必須先了解錯，事情就是如此。
For the really earnest student, the more sensations the better. But many meditators shrink away from sensations, they don’t want to deal with them. This is like the naughty schoolboy who won’t go to school, won’t listen to the teacher. These sensations are teaching us. When we know sensations then we are practicing Dhamma. The peace within sensations is just like understanding the monkey here. When you understand what monkeys are like you are no longer troubled by them.
對一位真誠修行的學生而言，感覺越多越好。 但有很多禪修者卻逃避感覺，不想要解決它們，這就好像不去上學、不聽老師的話的頑皮學生。 這些感覺正在教導我們，當我們認識感覺的時候，我們才算是在修習佛法。 在感覺中能保持平靜就如同了解這里的猴子一樣──一旦你了解猴子是如何時，你便不會再被它們所煩惱了。
The practice of Dhamma is like this. It’s not that the Dhamma is very far away, it’s right with us. The Dhamma isn’t about the angels on high or anything like that. It’s simply about us, about what we are doing right now. Observe yourself. Sometimes there is happiness, sometimes suffering, sometimes comfort, sometimes pain, sometimes love, sometimes hate…this is Dhamma. Do you see it? You should know this Dhamma, you have to read your experiences.
佛法的修習也是如此。 佛法並非遙不可及，而是與我們同在的。佛法不是關于天上的天使或這類東西，而只是很單純地關系著我們，關系我們當下的所做所為。 觀照你自己， 有時快樂，有時痛苦，有時舒適，有時悲痛，有時愛，有時恨……，這就是佛法。你看到了嗎？你應該認識這個「法」，你們必須閱讀自己的經驗。
You must know sensations before you can let them go. When you see that sensations are impermanent you will be untroubled by them. As soon as a sensation arises, just say to yourself, “Hmmm…this is not a sure thing.” When your mood changes…“Hmmm, not sure.” You can be at peace with these things, just like seeing the monkey and not being bothered by it. If you know the truth of sensations, that is knowing the Dhamma. You let go of sensations, seeing that they are all invariably uncertain.
在你能夠放下感覺之前，你必須先認識它們才行。 當你看清感覺都是無常的時候，就不會被它們所干擾。只要感覺一生起，只需告訴自己：「嗯…… 不穩定。」你可以與這些感覺在一起，而住于平靜，就如同看見猴子，就不被它所干擾一樣。 假如你知道感覺的真相，那就是知道佛法。你放下感覺，並且看清它們都絕對是不穩定的。
What we call uncertainty here is the Buddha. The Buddha is the Dhamma. The Dhamma is the characteristic of uncertainty. Whoever sees the uncertainty of things sees the unchanging reality of them. That’s what the Dhamma is like. And that is the Buddha. If you see the Dhamma you see the Buddha, seeing the Buddha, you see the Dhamma. If you know aniccam, uncertainty, you will let go of things and not grasp onto them.
我們在這里所說的不穩定，就是佛陀。 佛即是法，法即是無常性。不論誰見到事物的無常，就是見到它們不變的真理。 這就是法，而這也就是佛。如果你見到了法，你就見到了佛；見到了佛，你就見到了法。如果你見到「無常( aniccam )」，就會去放下事物，而不去執著它們。
You say, “Don’t break my glass!” Can you prevent something that’s breakable from breaking? If it doesn’t break now it will break later on. If you don’t break it, someone else will. If someone else doesn’t break it, one of the chickens will! The Buddha says to accept this. He penetrated the truth of these things, seeing that this glass is already broken. Whenever you use this glass you should reflect that it’s already broken. Do you understand this? The Buddha’s understanding was like this. He saw the broken glass within the unbroken one. Whenever its time is up it will break. Develop this kind of understanding. Use the glass, look after it, until when, one day, it slips out of your hand… “Smash!” … no problem. Why is there no problem? Because you saw its brokenness before it broke!
你說： 「別打破我的杯子！」你能夠阻止會破碎的東西不破嗎？如果它現在沒有破，它未來也會破； 如果你不去打破它，別人也許會；如果別人不打破它的話，也許雞會啊！佛陀說，去接受這個事實，他洞澈了這些事物的真相，視這個杯子如已破碎了。 不論你何時使用這個杯子，都應該反觀它已經破碎了。 你了解這點嗎？佛陀所了解是：他在尚未破碎的杯子中，看見已破碎的杯子，一旦它的時間到了，就會破碎。 增長這種的了解，利用這個杯子，好好照顧它，直到有一天它從你手中脫掉…… 「碎了」，沒事。為什麼沒事呢？因為在它還沒破碎之前，你已看到它碎了。
But usually people say, “I love this glass so much, may it never break.” Later on the dog breaks it…“I’ll kill that damn dog!” You hate the dog for breaking your glass. If one of your children breaks it you’ll hate them too. Why is this? Because you’ve dammed yourself up, the water can’t flow. You’ve made a dam without a spillway. The only thing the dam can do is burst, right? When you make a dam you must make a spillway also. When the water rises up too high, the water can flow off safely. When it’s full to the brim you open your spillway. You have to have a safety valve like this. Impermanence is the safety valve of the Noble Ones. If you have this “safety valve” you will be at peace.
可是，通常人們會說：「我很喜歡這個杯子，希望它永遠不會破。 」後來狗把它打破了，「我要殺了那只瘋狗！」你恨那只狗打碎你的杯子。 如果你的小孩打碎了它，你也會憎恨他。 為什麼會這樣子呢？因為你將自己給堵起來了，所以水無法流出去。你建了一個沒有疏水道的堤， 堤只會暴裂開來，對不對？當你築堤的同時，也要造一個疏水道，當水漲得過高時，水才能安全地流出去。 當水漲到邊緣的時候，就打開你的疏水道，你必須要有一道類似這種的安全措施。 「無常」就是聖者們的安全措施，如果你有這道「安全措施」，你就能安住于平靜。
Standing, walking, sitting, lying down, practice constantly, using sati to watch over and protect the mind. This is samadhi and wisdom. They are both the same thing, but they have different aspects.
行、住、坐、臥， 不斷地修行，以「念」來觀照和守護心，這就是「三摩地」和智慧。它們兩者是同一個東西，可是卻有不同的相貌。
If we really see uncertainty clearly, we will see that which is certain. The certainty is that things must inevitably be this way, they cannot be otherwise. Do you understand? Knowing just this much you can know the Buddha, you can rightly do reverence to him.
如果我們真正清楚地洞察無常，就會見到所謂的常。 所謂的常是事物不可避免的，都必定會如此，不可能有例外，你了解嗎？只要知道這麼多， 你就能夠認識佛，就能夠真誠地恭敬他。
As long as you don’t throw out the Buddha you won’t suffer. As soon as you throw out the Buddha you will experience suffering. As soon as you throw out the reflections on Transience, Imperfection and Ownerlessness you’ll have suffering. If you can practice just this much it’s enough; suffering won’t arise, or if it does arise you can settle it easily, and it will be a cause for suffering not arising in the future. This is the end of our practice, at the point where suffering doesn’t arise. And why doesn’t suffering arise? because we have sorted out the cause of suffering, samudaya.
只要你不要將佛陀拋掉，就不會痛苦。 一旦你拋掉佛陀之後，你就會經驗到苦；一旦你丟棄對無常、苦和無我的反觀，就會有苦。 假使你能夠修行這麼多，那就夠了，苦就不會生起； 或者，如果它升起，你也可以輕而易舉地平定它，並且，它將是在未來不會升起的原因。 這就是我們修行的終點──苦不會再升起的境地。而為何苦不再升起呢？因為我們已經找出苦因了(samudaya，集)。
For instance, if this glass were to break, normally you would experience suffering. We know that this glass will be a cause for suffering, so we get rid of the cause. All dhammas arise because of a cause. They must also cease because of a cause. Now if there is suffering on account of this glass here, we should let go of this cause. If we reflect beforehand that this glass is already broken, even when it hasn’t, the cause ceases. When there is no longer any cause, that suffering is no longer able to exist, it ceases. This is cessation.
比方說，如果這個杯子破了，通常你會經驗到苦。 我們知道這個杯子將會是苦的起因，所以我們要從「因」中解脫出來。 所有的法(此指六塵中的法塵)的生起，是因為「因」的原故，而它們也必定會因為「因」而消滅。 現在，假使「苦」是因為這個杯子的緣故，我們就應該放下這個「因」。 如果我們事前就能反觀這個杯子已經破了，即使它還沒破，「因」已經熄滅了。 一旦不再有任何「因」時，苦也就不能再生存，因為它熄滅了。這就是「滅」。
You don’t have to go beyond this point, just this much is enough. Contemplate this in your own mind. Basically you should all have the Five Precepts [21] as a foundation for behavior. It’s not necessary to go and study the Tipitaka, just concentrate on the Five Precepts first. At first you’ll make mistakes. When you realize it, stop, come back and establish your precepts again. Maybe you’ll go astray and make another mistake. When you realize it, re-establish yourself.
你不需要再超越這點，只要這樣就夠了，在你自己的心理思惟這點。 基本上你們都應該持五戒，以做為一個行為的基礎。 首先不必要去研究三藏，只要先專心在五戒上就可以了。 剛開始你會犯戒，但當你覺察到時，馬上停止，再回來建立起你的戒，也許你又會脫離軌道，以致于再犯另一個錯。當你覺察到時，將自己從新再建立起來。
Practicing like this, your sati will improve and become more consistent, just like the drops of water falling from a kettle. If we tilt the kettle just a little, the drops fall out slowly …plop!…plop!…plop!…If we tilt the kettle up a little bit more, the drops become more rapid … plop, plop, plop!!… If we tilt the kettle up even further the “plops” go away and the water flows into a steady stream. Where do the “plops” go to? They don’t go anywhere, they change into a steady stream of water.
修行是這樣子的：你的「念」會增進而變得更持續， 就如同壺里滴出來的水滴一樣。 如果我們將水壺傾斜一點點，水滴會慢慢地滴出來，…… 滴！…… 滴！……滴！如果我們將水壺再傾斜一點， 水滴會滴得更快，滴！滴！滴！如果將水壺再傾斜的話，「水滴」消失了，而水會像穩定的河水般流出。 「水滴到那里去了？」它們那里也沒去，只是改變成為一條穩定的流水罷了。
We have to talk about the Dhamma like this, using similes, because the Dhamma has no form. Is it square or is it round? You can’t say. The only way to talk about it is through similes like this. Don’t think that the Dhamma is far away from you. It lies right with you, all around. Take a look … one minute happy, the next sad, the next angry … it’s all Dhamma. Look at it and understand. Whatever it is that causes suffering you should remedy. If suffering is still there, take another look, you don’t yet see clearly. If you could see clearly you wouldn’t suffer, because the cause would no longer be there. If suffering is still there, if you’re still having to endure, then you’re not yet on the right track. Wherever you get stuck, whenever you’re suffering too much, right there you’re wrong. whenever you’re so happy you’re floating in the clouds…there…wrong again!
我們必須藉由譬喻來談佛法，因為佛法沒有任何形相。 它是方的還是圓的？你說不上來，唯一的方法就是透過譬喻來說明。 不要以為佛法離你很遠，它到處都與你同在。仔細看……， 一下子快樂，一下子悲傷，一下子又生氣……，這都是佛法，去觀察和理解它。 無論是什麼造成苦你都應該去對治，如果苦還存在的話，就是因為你還沒清楚地了解它，所以再觀察一下。 如果你能夠清楚地了解，就不會痛苦，因為「因」不再存在了。 如果苦還存在，如果你還必須忍耐，那麼，那麼，你還沒有上軌道。不論你卡在那里，不論你那時候有多麼痛苦，當下你就錯了； 不論你何時多快樂，你飄浮在云端……，你看……，又錯了。
If you practice like this you will have sati at all times, in all postures. With sati, recollection, and sampaja self awareness, you will know right and wrong, happiness and suffering. Knowing these things, you will know how to deal with them.
如果你如此修行的話，在任何時間、任何姿勢里，你都有「念」。 有了正念和正知，你會知道對和錯，樂和苦。知道這些以後，你就會知道該如何去對治它們了。
I teach meditation like this. When it’s time to sit in meditation then sit, that’s not wrong. You should practice this also. But meditation is not only sitting. You must allow your mind to fully experience things, allow them to flow and consider their nature. How should you consider them? See them as Transient, Imperfect and Ownerless. It’s all uncertain. “This is so beautiful, I really must have it.” That’s not a sure thing. “I don’t like this at all” … tell yourself right there, “Not sure!” Is this true? Absolutely, no mistake. But just try taking things for real…“I’m going to get this thing for sure” … You’ve gone off the track already. Don’t do this. No matter how much you like something, you should reflect that it’s uncertain.
我是這樣教坐禪的：是坐禪的時候，就去坐。 這並沒有錯，你也應該修習坐禪，可是， 禪坐並非只是坐而已，你必須允許你的心去經驗感覺，隨它們去流動並思考它們的本然。 你應該如何去看待它們呢？視它們如無常、苦和無我，一切都是不穩定的。「這好美啊！我一定要擁有它。 」那是不穩定的東西。「我一點也不喜歡這個」……，當下就告訴自己：「不問定。 」這是真的嗎？完全正確，毫無疑問。但是試試將事物拿來當真……。 「我一定要得到這個東西。」你已經脫離正軌了，別這麼做。無論你有多喜歡某件東西，你都應該反觀它是不穩定的。
Some kinds of food seem so delicious, but still you should reflect that it’s not a sure thing. It may seem so sure, it’s so delicious, but still you must tell yourself, “not sure!” If you want to test out whether it’s sure or not, try eating your favorite food every day. Every single day, mind you. Eventually you’ll complain, “This doesn’t taste so good anymore.” Eventually you’ll think, “Actually I prefer that kind of food.” That’s not a sure thing either! You must allow things to flow, just like the in and out breaths. There has to be both the in breath and the out breath, the breathing depends on change. Everything depends on change like this.
有某些食物看起來似乎很可口，但是，你依然應該反觀它是不穩定的事。 也許能確定， 它很好吃，可是你仍然必須告訴自己：「不穩定！」假使你想測驗一下確定與否，嘗試每天去吃你最喜愛的食物。 每天吃，想想看，最後你會抱怨說：「這道食物不再那麼好吃了！」最後你會認為：「實際上，我比較喜歡那道食物。 」那也是不穩定的啊！你必須讓事物隨它去，就如出入息一樣，吸入與呼出一定都要有，呼吸依賴于交替； 而一切的事物也依賴于這樣的交替變化。
These things lie with us, nowhere else. If we no longer doubt whether sitting, standing, walking, or reclining, we will be at peace. Samadhi isn’t just sitting. some people sit until they fall into a stupor. They might as well be dead, they can’t tell north from south. Don’t take it to such an extreme. If you feel sleepy then walk, change your posture. Develop wisdom. If you are really tired then have a rest. As soon as you wake up then continue the practice, don’t let yourself drift into a stupor. You must practice like this. Have reason, wisdom, circumspection.
這些事物就與我們同在，沒別的地方了。 如果，無論行、住、坐或臥，我們都不再疑惑，我們將會安住于平靜中。 「三摩地」不是只坐著，有些人坐到他們掉進昏迷的狀態中，分不清南和北，倒不如死了算了。 別這麼極端！如果你覺得昏昏欲睡，就經行，改變１下你的姿勢。 增長一些智慧吧！如果你真的很累，那就去休息一下，只要你一起床，就繼續修行。別使自己掉進昏沉里。你必須這樣修行，有理性、智慧、謹慎。
Start the practice for your own mind and body, seeing them as impermanent. Everything else is the same. Keep this in mind when you think the food is so delicious…you must tell yourself…“Not a sure thing!” You have to slug it first. But usually it just slugs you every time, doesn’t it? If you don’t like anything you just suffer over it. This is how things slug us. “If she likes me, I like her,” they slug us again. You never get a punch in! You must see it like this. Whenever you like anything just say to yourself, “This is not a sure thing!” You have to go against the grain somewhat in order to really see the Dhamma.
修行，從你自己的心和身開始，視它們如無常，其他的一切事物也都如此。 當你認為食物可口時， 就記住這點，你必須告訴自己：「不穩定的事！」你必須先打擊它才行。 可是，通常每次都是它打擊你，是不是？如果你什麼都不喜歡，你會因此受苦，事物就是這樣來打擊你的。 「如果她喜歡我，我也喜歡她。」它們又再次打擊我們，我們從來沒機會反擊回去。 你必須這樣來看待它：不論你何時喜歡任何東西，只要告訴你自己：「這不是穩定的事！」為了真正地見到佛法，你必須違反自己的意願。
Practice in all postures. Sitting, standing, walking, lying…you can experience anger in any posture, right? You can be angry while walking, while sitting, while lying down. You can experience desire in any posture. So our practice must extend to all postures; standing, walking, sitting and lying down. It must be consistent. Don’t just put on a show, really do it.
在一切的姿勢中修行。 行、住、坐、臥……。你在任何姿勢中都可以經驗到嗔怒，對不對？你在走的時候、坐的時候、臥的時候，都可以生氣； 在任何姿勢中都可以經驗欲望。 因此，我們的修行必須擴大到所有的姿勢──行、住、坐和臥，而且必須定期的做。別光做表面工夫，真實地去做！
While sitting in meditation, some incident might arise. Before that one is settled another one comes racing in. Whenever these things come up, just tell yourself, “not sure, not sure.” Just slug it before it gets a chance to slug you.
坐禪的時候，有些事物可能會生起，一波未平，一波又起。 不論這些東西何時升起，只需告訴自己：「不是確實的，不是確定的。 」在它抓著機會打擊你之前，先打擊它。
Now this is the important point. If you know that all things are impermanent, all your thinking will gradually unwind. When you reflect on the uncertainty of everything that passes, you’ll see that all things go the same way. Whenever anything arises, all you need to say is, “Oh, another one!”
現在，這一點是相當重要的。 如果你知道所有的事物都是無常的，你的一切思想，就會逐漸清晰， 當你反觀一切流失的事物的不穩定時，你會明了一切事物都是一樣的。無論任何東西何時升起，你只需要說：「噢！又來了一個！」
Have you ever seen flowing water?…have you ever seen still water?…If your mind is peaceful it will be just like still, flowing water. Have you ever seen still, flowing water? There! You’ve only ever seen flowing water and still water, haven’t you? But you’ve never seen still, flowing water. Right there, right where your thinking cannot take you, even though it’s peaceful you can develop wisdom. Your mind will be like flowing water, and yet it’s still. It’s almost as if it were still, and yet it’s flowing. So I call it “still, flowing water.” Wisdom can arise here.
你曾看過流動的水嗎？你曾看過靜止的水嗎？如果你的心是平靜的， 它會猶如靜止的流水。 你曾經看過靜止的流水嗎？你看！你只見過流動的水和靜止的水，對不對？可是，你從未見過靜止的流水。 它就在那兒，就在你的思想無法帶你到達的地方；即使心是平靜的，你仍然可以增長智慧。 你的心將如流動的水，但卻是靜止的。心幾乎完全靜止，不過卻依然在流動。因此，我稱它做「靜止的流水」。智慧可由此生起。
Note:
- The basic moral code for practicing Buddhists: To refrain from intentional killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying and imbibing of intoxicants.
《阿姜 查 簡介》
阿姜 查,泰國東北著名法師.生于西元一九一八年,一九九二年元月圓寂.幼年入道,年輕時研究過基礎佛法,戒律,以及經典,後隨當地禪定大師修習.他依苦行僧的傳統方式生活數年,曾和本世紀偉大的禪師阿姜滿度過一段開悟性的時光.他的教導方式簡明,涵意卻深遠.他善用日常周遭事物引出佛法實意,令弟子們開解;也因此,吸引了不少的西方人從他受教.