《终极自由之路》12.带着问题去冥想

星空

翻译：小粒子儿大天体



The prime purpose of meditation is to quiet the mind. When we hold one thought with interest, as we hold it, other thoughts keep dropping away. Thoughts of the day,-what he did to me, what she did, what I should have done, etc., all these thoughts are active on a subconscious level. As we hold to one thought, these subconscious thoughts quiet; they become still. They drop into the background, and that quiets the mind.

冥想的主要目的是让头脑安静下来。当我们对持住一个念头有着强烈的兴趣，待在那个念头里时，其它念头就会离开。我们一天当中会有很多念头，比如他对我做了什么、她做了什么、我本应该做什么等等，所有这些念头都活跃在潜意识里。当我们持住一个念头，这些潜意识念头就会安静。它们落入背景中，这样就能让头脑安静。

Now, the most important thing in quieting the mind is interest. When you are very interested in something, you'll override all other thoughts. Likewise, if, with intense interest, you want to know: What am I? What is this world? What is my relationship to it? If there's a real burning desire to get the answer, then all other thoughts drop away and the mind becomes extremely concentrated. Then the answer shows itself. It comes from within. The answer is there all the time. The quieting of the thoughts allows us to see it, to see the answer that was there all the time, there in the realm of Knowingness, the Self.

让头脑变得安静，最重要的是要有兴趣。当你对某事非常感兴趣时，你就能忽略其它所有念头。同样地，如果你对以下问题有强烈兴趣，比如“我是什么”、“这个世界是什么”、“我跟它有什么关系”等，心急火燎地想要得到这些问题的答案的话，那么其它所有念头就会离开，头脑因此变得极为专注。接着答案就会自行呈现。它来自内在，一直都在内在。念头的安静让我们有机会看见它，看到它一直在那里，在全知的层次，在真我里。

The starting point should be a strong desire for the answer. When that desire is strong we get the answer. That's why mans extremity is Gods opportunity. Extreme adversity causes in us a desire to get out of it with such intensity that we concentrate our mind and discover the answer.

起点应该是对答案的强烈渴望。欲望足够强烈，我们方能得到答案。这就是为什么说“人类的极限，上帝的机会”。绝境让我们产生想要摆脱它的强烈渴望，正因为如此，我们才能让头脑专注，并最终发现答案。

When I started my quest I thought thinking would give me the answers. I had a mind that was as active as any mind could be. But I was at the end of the line. I had had a second heart attack and they told me I was finished, that I had only a short time to live, and so I had to have the answers. And even though my mind was far more active than the great majority of minds, the intensity of the desire for the answers caused me to hold to one question at a time, obliterating all else. This concentration did it!

当我开始探索时，我以为思考会带给我答案。我有一颗和其他人一样活跃的头脑。但当时我的生命已经走到了尽头。我第二次心脏病发作，医生告诉我我完了，活不了多久了，所以我必须要找到答案。尽管我的头脑要比大多数人的活跃，但是对答案的强烈渴求让我每次都能专注在一个问题上，忘记了其它问题。正是专注让我得到了答案！


I started seeking with no knowledge of metaphysics, no knowledge of the way. In fact 1 was anti all religion and all metaphysics; I thought it was nonsense, for the weak-minded, for people who believed in fairy tales.

当我刚开始探索时，我对形而上学或觉醒之路一无所知。实际上当时我反对所有宗教，所有形而上的东西，我认为这些都是胡扯，只有弱智或相信童话的人才相信这些。

But it was only because of the intensity of the desire to get the answers, I had to have the answers, that they began to come, and they came relatively quickly. Over a period of three months time I went from an extreme materialist to the opposite extreme: the material is nothingness and the spiritual is the All.

但是正因为对得到答案的强烈渴望，让答案在相对较短的时间内自动呈现。仅仅过了三个月，我从一个极端的唯物主义者走到另一个极端。物质什么都不是，灵性才是一切。

The wish to get the answer was so strong, that in spite of my mind being one of the noisiest of minds, the answers began to come. I automatically fell into things (I knew no words for them) like samadhi. I would concentrate on a question with such intensity that I would lose awareness of the world, lose awareness of this body, and then I would be aware of just a pure thought, the thought itself would be the only thing existing in this universe. That's absorption when the thinker and the thought become one. One loses consciousness of everything but that one thought. That's a very concentrated state of mind and the answer is always discovered right there.

对得到答案的渴望如此强烈，以致于即使我的头脑不是一般的吵闹，答案也依然到来。我自动地进入所谓的三摩地（当时我并不知道有相应的词汇）。我会专注在一个问题上，对答案的强烈渴望让我忘记了这个世界，忘记了这具身体，我只知道这一个念头，这个念头是这个宇宙唯一存在的东西。专注能让思考者与念头合二为一。你失去了对一切的意识，只意识到那一个念头。这对头脑来说是非常专注的状态，你会发现答案就在那里。

I started with What is happiness? What is life? What do I want? How do I get happiness? I discovered that happiness depended upon my capacity to love. At first I thought it was in being loved. I reviewed my life and saw that I was very much loved

by my family and friends and yet I was not happy. I saw that was not it. Continuing, I realized that it was my capacity to love that gave me happiness.

我从“幸福是什么”、“生命是什么”、“我想要什么”、“如何才能得到幸福”开始。我发现幸福取决于爱的能力。一开始我以为幸福是被爱。但当我回顾我的一生，看到即使我被我的家人朋友们爱着，我也依然不幸福。我知道幸福不是被爱。于是我继续，直到意识到正是我爱的能力才让我幸福。

The next question was What is intelligence? I persisted until Ah! I saw it! There is only one intelligence in the universe and we all have a direct line to it.

下一个问题是“智力是什么”。我探索着，直到“啊！我明白了”！这个宇宙只有一个智力，我们每个人都有一根线通往它。

Then I worked on responsibility and discovered that I was responsible for everything that happens or happened to me. Creation was something I created!

接着我开始探索责任，发现我对一切发生在我身上的或者已经发生过的都负有责任。我就是那个创造者。

Finally, I held the question What am I? until the answer presented itself.

最后，我专注在“我是什么”这个问题上，直至答案自行呈现。

And this went on and in a matter of three months time I believe I saw the entire picture, went all the way, only because of the concentrated approach. I knew nothing about the subject; I knew nothing about the direction, the way, the path, but I wanted to know: What am I? What is this world? What's my relationship to it?

我持续地探索着，大约三个月后，我想我看到了整幅画面，已经走完全程，仅仅是因为专注。我对这个课题一无所知，对灵性道路、目的一无所知，只是想知道“我是什么”、“这个世界是什么”、“我跟它有什么关系”。

You discover that the whole world is nothing but you, that there never was anything but you all along, because there's only One and you are It! But that isn't the final state. You come out of it and there's still a certain amount of mind left. So you go back into the meditative quest until there is no more mind controlling you. When you've eliminated all the habits of thought, all the tendencies of mind, you are free; then you can use your mind and you are the master and director of it. It no longer determines you, you determine it.

你发现这整个世界只是你，从来都只是你自己，因为只有“一”，而你就是“一”。但是这并不是最后阶段。你从那出来，发现还有一些头脑剩下。所以你继续回到冥想中探索，直到再也没有头脑能够控制你。当你消除了念头的所有惯性、头脑的所有倾向，你就自由了。你就可以使用你的头脑，你成了头脑的主人和指挥。头脑再也无法控制你，而是由你来控制它。

At present we are over 90% of the time controlled by the unconscious mind.

目前我们90%的时间都是由潜意识头脑控制。

Q: That's the conscious and unconscious mind both?

问：你是指显意识和潜意识头脑都能被控制？

Lester: Well, the conscious mind is easily controlled. The subconscious is not because it is not easily seen. It's a mechanism we set up of not looking at our thoughts. of making them operate automatically. We did it to our entire body; it's all automatic now. And then we did it to all thoughts but the thought we're interested in at the moment.

答：显意识头脑比较容易控制。而潜意识之所以难以被控制是因为不容易被看到。这是我们自己设立的机制，为了不去看我们的念头，为了让它们自动运转。我们对自己的身体也是这样的，所以身体现在是自动运转的。然后我们也这样对待自己的念头，除了此刻我们感兴趣的念头，其它一概无视。

Q: Why is it that we did it to all thoughts except the one we're interested in at the moment?

问：为什么我们这样对待自己的念头？

Lester: Because we don't want the thoughts in the first place. so we push them away to the background. We are happiest when there are no thoughts. Sometimes, when you work with your hands, youre very happy, right? Why? The thoughts are quiet.

答：因为我们不想让念头出现，所以把它们推到背景里。没有念头时我们会很高兴。有时当你看自己的手时，你会感觉愉快，不是吗？为什么？因为念头安静了下来。

Q: Then your mind is quieted at that time, or is it operating on the subconscious level?

问：那时你的头脑是安静的，或者是在潜意识层面活跃着？

Lester: Well, consciously and even subconsciously it's quieter. We really dont want thoughts. Thoughts are the things that make us unhappy; even the happy thoughts make us unhappy because while we are enjoying something, we're concerned about the possibility of maintaining this pleasure which we know is not going to last. The thought of the pleasure at the same time evokes the thought that it's not going to last. Even thoughts of happiness are limited. The really happy state is the no-thought state; it's the state of Knowingness and is beyond thought.

答：在显意识、甚至潜意识层面，头脑都变得更安静。我们真的不想要念头。念头让我们不开心，即使那些令人愉快的念头也会让我们变得不愉快，因为当我们享受什么的时候，我们会想着要维持这种愉快的感觉，但同时我们又知道不会一直这样愉快。令人愉快的念头会引发“不会一直愉快”的念头。所以即使是愉快的念头，也是有限制的。真正的愉快的状态是无念的状态，那是超越了念头的全知状态。

We started with the subject of meditation. Meditation does seem to be a question in many people's minds who have meditated for years and years. The best type of meditation is with question. When you just drop into a nice quiet state without question, you get a good feeling but no progress of getting the Knowledge.

我们从冥想入手。对那些练习冥想多年的人来说，冥想似乎依然是个问题。最好的冥想方式是带着问题冥想。如果你不带着问题，即使入静让你感觉很美妙，但是对获得智慧而言，依然无益。

Q: There isn't any progress when you're just quiet?

问：当你入静时并不意味着有进步？

Lester: There is in that you're moving toward the quiet state. And the quiet state is a better state than the noisy state. In that sense it's a step forward. But the only problem we have now is called ignorance. We're ignorant of the fact that we are infinite. To get rid of ignorance we need the Knowledge of our infinity. To get the Knowledge we have to enquire. So when we go into meditation and just get peacefully quiet, that's good, -but don't stop there, then get the answers. It's necessary to get quiet to get the answers. Only the answer to What am I? gets us to the top. That is easy to see, isn't it? So if we want to take the -quickest way, we start with the question that we finally have to answer: What am I?

答：是有些进步，相对吵闹的状态来说。但是我们现在的问题是所谓的“无知”。我们对我们所是的无限一无所知。为了脱离无知，我们需要知道我们的无限。为此我们必须探索。所以当我们在冥想时入静，这固然很好，但是不要止步不前，我们要获得答案。为了获得答案，入静是有必要的。但是只有得到了“我是什么” 的答案，我们才是到达了顶点。所以如果想要进步神速，就带着“我是什么”的问题去冥想。

I want to relate this to meditation. For more rapid growth meditation should be with question. Here's where the jnanis get the advantage over the bhaktas. Surrender and devotion throw us into nice feelings and they're good: But a jnani goes further; he says, All right, don't stop there, get the answer. It's only when we fully know who and what we are that we're at the end of the road. So the fastest and best way to meditate is to pose a question, get quiet and stay quiet until the answer shows itself. Then go to the next one until all the answers are there.

带着问题去冥想，进步会更快。这就是为什么智慧者（jnanis）要比虔信者（bhaktas）占优势的原因。臣服和奉献将我们带入美妙的状态，这固然好，但是智慧者走得更远，他们会说：不错，但不要就此打住，去获得答案。只有当我们知道我们是谁、是什么的时候，我们才是走到了终点。所以更快更好的冥想方式就是带着问题去冥想，入静并待在那里，直到答案自动呈现。然后转到下一个问题下下个问题，直到获得所有问题的答案。


Q: If we find we aren't making much progress, could we pose the question What's holding me up?

问：如果我们发现没有多大进展的话，能否提出“是什么让我止步不前”的问题？

Lester: Sure, you should. It's a good one.

答：当然可以。这是个很好的问题，你应该带着这个问题去冥想。

Q: You know I think you had it easier because you didn't have a lot of preconceived ideas.

问：我觉得你开悟比较容易，因为你之前没有太多先入为主的东西

Lester: You're right. I was very lucky that I knew nothing because intellectual knowledge about the subject is an obstacle. The ego substitutes the intellectual knowledge for the real experiencing of it. I was very, very fortunate not to have had any knowledge of it.

答：是的。我很幸运，因为对这个主题知道太多是种障碍。小我会将头脑的知识代替真实的体验。所以我在那之前对此一无所知，真的非常非常地幸运。

Q: You also didn't realize that it's as difficult as most people think it is.

问：人们都认为这很难，但你当时并不知道这很难。

Lester: Yes. However, knowing what you're telling me helps one let go of that obstacle of intellectual knowledge. I prod you in this direction, don’t I? I say: Don't believe anything. Start from scratch. Build up your knowledge on the solid foundation of proof, step by step. Everyone must do this.

答：是的。但是这样一说，能够帮你看到你需要释放头脑知识所带来的障碍。我的经历可能激励你走上这条路。我说：不要相信任何事。从零开始。将你的知识建立在体证的坚实基础上，一步步地去建立。每个人都必须这么走过来。

Q: You can't take someone else's experience?

问：你拿不走别人的经验？

Lester: Right, you would be working on hearsay, on what they have said, and the only useful thing is that which you experience. I relate it to driving a car. If I say I know how to drive a car after reading a book that directs you to turn the key on, start the motor, shift into drive and step on the gas, do I know how to drive a car? No, not until I experience it can I drive a car. It's the same thing on the path; we must experience everything.

答：是的。你可以通过道听途说，但是唯一有用的却是你亲自体验而来的。以开车为例。如果我说我看过有关如何开车的书籍，我已经知道怎么开车了。我真的知道怎么开车了吗？不，除非我真的开过车，否则我不会知道怎么开车。这个道理同样适用于这条道路，我们必须亲自去体验一切。

We must, of course, adopt the attitude that what the Great Ones say is so, that they have experienced it. However, you must check it out and prove it for yourself. And the basic Truth is that theres only one Reality; there's only one absolute Truth, and that is that this whole world or universe is nothing but God, but better than that, is nothing but my very own Self. God could be far away; He could be miles and miles away in cosmic space, but my very own Self is right here, is something I know about, is something I can perceive, it is my very own Self! So, using Self as God is far more practical than putting Him out there, putting Him apart from us. But each one must start from the bottom and prove this whole thing for himself. As the proofs come, the more they come the more we accept until we experience the whole thing.

当然，我们是要采用“伟大的一们”亲自去经验的态度。但是，你必须自己去经验去实证。根本的真相就是只有一个现实，只有一个真理，整个世界或宇宙只有上帝，更好的说法是，只有我自己的真我。上帝可能距离我们非常遥远，但是我自己的真我就在这里，是我所了解的，是我能感知的。所以，相比将上帝看成是远在天边，还不如将近在眼前的真我看成是上帝更为实际。但是每个人都得从零开始，自己亲自去证实。随着证据的越来越充分，我们就越容易接受，直到再也没有什么需要经验的。


You still want to hear more on meditation?

你还想听更多有关冥想的吗？

Group: Yes.

大家：是的

Lester: Every aid should be a means of quieting the mind. If meditation is difficult we can prepare the way by chanting. Chanting puts our minds on the meaning of the chant itself and the thoughts of the day drop away and that quiets the mind. Exercising the body, doing certain asanas, etc., do the same thing. Anything that helps is good whatever it is. The basic thing is to quiet the mind. Being loving and good makes the mind quieter.

答：我们所使用的方式应该有助于头脑安静。如果冥想有些难，我们可以用唱诵来做准备。唱诵能让我们的头脑集中在唱诵上，这样念头就会离开，头脑会变得安静。做些运动，或一些瑜伽体式等，重复做一件事。只要有助于头脑安静，做什么都可以。

The mind is the only thing that keeps us from seeing our Infinity. The mind is nothing but a collection of thoughts of limitation. And in meditation we try to quiet that mind so we can see this infinite Being that we are.

头脑是我们看见无限的唯一障碍。它只是限制性念头的集合。在冥想中我们试着让头脑安静，如此我们才能看见我们所是的无限存在。

Meditation should never be passive. We should never try to force the mind to go blank. Meditation should always be with question for the best results.

冥想绝不能是被动的，我们绝不能迫使头脑进入空白状态。为了让冥想的效果更好，我们应该带着问题进入。

The more we practice meditation the easier it is to do. To get the real deep insights requires a momentum. When meditation gets to be more enjoyable than things of the world, then we go at it with enthusiasm and desire for it. And then we just can't wait until we get back to it. When we get that momentum going, the mind gets quieter and quieter until this infinite Self is self obvious and just glares at us and we laugh. Now maybe with all this talk on meditation, we ought to try it, O. K.?

冥想练习得越多，就越容易。为了看见真相，需要一个势头。当冥想变得比其它任何事都更享受时，我们对冥想就越狂热。当势头出现，头脑变得越来越安静，直到这无限真我自动显现，瞪了我们一眼，然后我们大笑。现在我们要不开始冥想？

Q: Just one question, does concentrating on your hands help to get your mind quiet? It seems to me.
问：就一个问题。将注意力集中在手上能有助于头脑安静？对我来说是这样的


Lester: If it helps, it's good.

答：如果能有帮助，那就是好的。

Q: It's not harmful then?

问：不会有坏处吧

Lester: Oh no. There are several centers one may concentrate on. A good place is up here, between the eyebrows. Concentrating here takes your mind off other parts of the body. It is the center for the third eye, the astral eye, the spiritual eye. It pulls us away from the lower centers of the body when we come up here. Some prefer the heart center. But anything that helps, helps!

答：不会。如果想要专注，可以专注在几个中心上。比较好的是在这里，两眉之间，这是第三眼的位置，也叫天眼、灵眼。专注在这里能够让注意力从身体的较低部位移开。有些人更喜欢心轮的位置。但是只要对你有帮助的，就都行。

Q: I used to concentrate between the eyes but now when I do enquiry, I let the I sink down to the heart.

问：我以前是专注在两眼之间，但现在转到心轮位置

Lester: The heart is a good place because it is the center of feeling, and feeling is closer to the Self than thought. It depends on your background. If you're a vichara jnani, it'll be the heart, but not on the left side, on the right side. If you're a raja yogi it'll be between the eyes. When I did my concentrating it wasn't on any location; it was on wanting to have the answer. Concentrate on seeking the answer.

答：心轮是不错的位置，因为它是感觉的中心，而感觉要比念头更接近真我。要看你修的是哪个，如果你是vichara jnani，那么是在心轮位置，但是是在右边而非左边。如果你是raja yogi，那是在两眼之间。我自己当时并未集中在某处，只是想要获得答案。专注在对答案的探寻上。

Q: I haven't thought in terms of answers. I just thought in terms of getting there, that's all.

问：我没想过要得到答案，我只是想要到达那里，这就是我想要的

Lester: You see, anything in life that you wanted with intensity you always got. This goes for everyone. It's the same with the path. But it's the unconscious conviction that our joys lie in the world that keeps us away from getting the answer.

答：你看，生活中任何你非常想要的都能得到，这对每个人来说都是这样。同样地，对觉醒之路也是如此。但是潜意识里我们相信幸福是在外面，正是这个信念让我们无法得到答案。

Q: It sounds so easy the way you say it.

问：听你这么说它好像很容易。

Lester: The thing that determines the ease is the intensity of your desire for the answer. That's the crux of the whole thing.

答：是否容易取决于你对答案的渴望程度。这就是关键。