1. The Path of Initiation
1. 啟蒙之道

A Step Forward
向前邁出一步

Very much has been written and very much has been said about the path of initiation, and people who have been in contact with various schools of occultism have understood it in different ways, and thus have different ideas as to what initiation means. But in point of fact initiation only means a step forward, a step which should be taken with hope and courage, for without courage and hope it would be most difficult to take any forward step.

關於啟蒙之道，人們已經寫了很多，也談了很多；而接觸過各種神祕學派的人，對它各有不同的理解，因此對「啟蒙」究竟意味著什麼，也有不同的看法。但事實上，啟蒙所意味的只不過是向前邁出一步；而這一步必須懷著希望與勇氣跨出去，因為若沒有勇氣與希望，要向前邁出任何一步都會非常困難。

If I were asked to explain the meaning of initiation in plain words, I would say that it is like the experience of a person who has never learnt how to swim, and he steps into the river or into the sea for the first time, without knowing whether he will be able to float or whether he will be swept away and drowned. Every person has had an initiation in the worldly sense in some form or other. When a business man begins an entirely new enterprise, and there is nothing to support him at this moment except the thought, “No matter whether I lose or gain, I will take a step forward, I will go into this enterprise although I do not know what will happen later”, he undergoes a worldly initiation. And the first attempt of a man who wants to learn to ride, if he has never been on horseback before nor driven a horse, so that he does not know where the horse will take him — this also is an initiation.

如果有人要我用簡單的話解釋啟蒙的意義，我會說，它就像一個從未學過游泳的人，第一次踏進河裡或海裡；他不知道自己能不能浮起來，也不知道是否會被水沖走而溺斃。每個人其實都曾以某種形式，經歷過世俗意義上的啟蒙。當一位商人開始一項全新的事業，而此刻除了這樣一個念頭之外，沒有任何東西可以支持他：「無論最後是賠是賺，我都要向前跨出一步；即使不知道以後會發生什麼，我仍要投入這項事業。」這就是一種世俗的啟蒙。一個想學騎馬的人，若從未騎過馬，也從未駕馭過馬，因此根本不知道馬會把他帶到哪裡，那麼他的第一次嘗試，同樣也是一種啟蒙。

But initiation in the real sense of the word, as it is used on the spiritual path, takes place when a person, in spite of having a religion and belief, an opinion and ideas about spiritual things, feels that he should take a step in a direction which he does not know; when he takes the first step, that is an initiation.

然而，靈性道路上真正意義的啟蒙，是當一個人雖然已有自己的宗教與信仰，也對靈性事物抱持某些見解與觀念，卻仍感到自己應該朝一個未知的方向跨出一步；當他真正踏出第一步時，那便是啟蒙。

Ghazali, a great Sufi writer of Persia, has said that entering the spiritual path is just like shooting an arrow at a point one cannot see, so that one does not know what the arrow is going to hit; one only knows one’s own action, and one does not see the point aimed at. This is why the path of initiation is difficult for a worldly man. Human nature is such that a man born into this world, who has become acquainted with the life of names and forms, wants to know everything by name and form; he wants to touch something in order to be sure that it exists. It must make an appeal to his physical senses before he thinks that it exists; without this he does not believe that anything can exist. Therefore it is difficult for him to undergo an initiation on a path which does not touch any of his senses. He does not know where he is going.

波斯偉大的蘇菲作家加札利（Ghazali）曾說，踏上靈性道路，就像朝著一個自己看不見的目標射箭；我們不知道箭最後會射中什麼，只知道自己射出了這一箭，卻看不見所瞄準的目標。這就是為什麼啟蒙之道對世俗中的人而言如此困難。人的天性是這樣的：我們生在這個世界，習慣了名與形的生活，於是凡事都想透過名稱與形式來認識；我們想要碰觸到某樣東西，才相信它確實存在。它必須能訴諸我們的身體感官，我們才認為它是存在的；否則便很難相信有任何東西存在。因此，要在一條完全無法訴諸感官的道路上接受啟蒙，對我們而言是困難的，因為我們不知道自己正走向哪裡。

Besides man has been taught from his childhood a certain faith or belief, and he feels himself so bound to that particular faith or religion that he trembles at every step he may have to take in a direction which perhaps for a moment seems different or even opposite to what he has been taught. Therefore to take the first step on the path of initiation is difficult for a thoughtful person. No doubt a person who is driven by curiosity may jump into anything, but it is all the same to him whether he has initiation or not. However, for the one who takes initiation seriously the first step is the most difficult.

此外，一個人從小便被教導某種信仰或信念，而他往往感到自己與那特定的信仰或宗教緊緊相繫；因此，每當必須朝一個乍看之下與過去所受教導不同、甚至相反的方向跨出一步時，他都會感到畏懼。所以，對一個慎思明辨的人而言，在啟蒙之道上踏出第一步並不容易。當然，一個只是受好奇心驅使的人，可能什麼都敢一頭栽進去；但對他而言，有沒有真正接受啟蒙其實並無差別。然而，對真正認真看待啟蒙的人來說，第一步往往是最困難的一步。

12 Initiations
十二啟蒙

Initiations, according to the mystics, are twelve in number, divided into four stages; just like the semitones in the octave, or the twelve bones in the ear. The first three initiations are the first three steps, taken with the help of a guide whom one calls in Sufi terms a Murshid, a teacher. In Vedantic terms he is called Guru. He will be someone who is walking this earth, a human being placed in the same conditions as everyone else, in the midst of active life, and subject to all trials and troubles and difficulties. The help of such a friend is the first and most important step in these first three stages of the path.

依照祕士的說法，啟蒙共有十二個，分為四個階段；就像一個八度中的十二個半音，或耳中的十二塊骨頭。前三個啟蒙，是最初的三步，在一位引導者的協助下完成；在蘇菲術語中，這位引導者稱為穆希德（Murshid），也就是老師；在吠檀多的語彙中，則稱為古魯（Guru）。他是一個與我們同樣行走於世間的人，置身於與所有人相同的處境之中，在積極的生活裡，也同樣要面對種種考驗、煩惱與困難。在這條道路最初的三個階段裡，得到這樣一位朋友的幫助，是第一件也是最重要的事。

1st Initiation
第一啟蒙

In the East one will rarely find people taking the spiritual path without the guidance of a teacher, for there it is an accepted fact that these first three steps at least must be taken with the help of someone living a human life on earth. We can trace in the traditions that all the prophets, masters, saints, and sages, however great, had an initiator. In the life of Jesus Christ one reads that he was baptized by John the Baptist; and in the lives of all the other prophets and seers there was always someone, however humble or modest or human, and very often not at all comparable in greatness to those prophets, who took these first three steps with them.

在東方，很少會看到有人沒有老師的引導便踏上靈性道路，因為人們普遍認為，至少最初的三步，必須在一位同樣活在人世間的人協助下走過。從各種傳統中，我們可以看到，所有先知、大師、聖者與聖哲，無論多麼偉大，都曾有過一位啟蒙者。耶穌基督的生平中記載，他曾由施洗約翰為他施洗；而所有其他先知與先見者的生命中，也總有這樣一個人，無論那人看來多麼平凡、謙遜而尋常，甚至其偉大程度往往完全不能與那些先知相比，卻陪伴他們走過了最初的三步。

But the mother is really the first initiator of all the prophets and teachers in the world; no prophet or teacher, no saint, however great, was ever born who first walked alone without the help of the mother; she had to show him how to walk.

然而，母親其實才是世上所有先知與老師最初的啟蒙者。從來沒有任何先知、老師或聖者，無論多麼偉大，生下來之後能不靠母親的幫助便自己開始走路；是母親先教會他如何行走。

Then there arises the question of how to find the real guru. Very often people are in doubt, they do not know whether the guru they see is a true or a false guru. Frequently a person comes into contact with a false guru in this world where there is so much falsehood. But at the same time a real seeker, one who is not false to himself, will always meet with the truth, with the real, because it is his own real faith, his own sincerity in earnest seeking that will become his torch. The real teacher is within, that lover of reality is one’s own sincere self, and if one is really seeking truth sooner or later one will certainly find a true teacher.

於是便會出現一個問題：我們要如何找到真正的古魯？人們往往心存疑惑，不知道眼前所遇見的古魯究竟是真是假。在這個充滿虛假的世界裡，一個人確實常有可能遇見虛假的古魯。然而，一個真正的尋求者，一個不欺騙自己的人，最終總會遇見真實，因為他內在真實的信念，以及認真尋求時所具有的真誠，會成為照亮他的火炬。真正的老師就在內在；那個熱愛真實的，正是我們自身真誠的本性。只要我們真正尋求真理，遲早必定會遇見真正的老師。

And supposing one came into contact with a false teacher, what then? Then the real one will turn the false teacher also into a real teacher, because reality is greater than falsehood.

那麼，假如我們遇到的真是一位虛假的老師，又會怎樣？那麼，內在的真實甚至會把這位虛假的老師也轉化成真正的老師，因為真實比虛假更為強大。

There is a story told of a dervish, a simple man, who was initiated by a teacher, and after that teacher has passed away this man came into contact with some clairvoyant who asked him if he had guidance on his path. The man replied, “Yes, my master, who passed from this earth. When he was still alive I enjoyed his guidance for some time, so the only thing I would want now is just your blessing.” But the clairvoyant said, “I see by my clairvoyant power that the teacher who has passed away was not a true teacher.” When the simple man heard this he would not allow himself to be angry with the other, but he said gently, “This teacher of mine may be false, but my faith is not false, and that is sufficient.”

有一則關於一位蘇菲行者（dervish）的故事。這是一位單純的人，曾接受一位老師的啟蒙。老師離世之後，他遇到一名具有靈視能力的人，那人問他，在他的道路上是否有人引導。他回答：「有，是我的老師，他已經離開這個世界了。他還活著的時候，我曾有一段時間得到他的引導，所以現在我唯一希望從你這裡得到的，只是你的祝福。」然而那位靈視者說：「從我的靈視能力中，我看見你那位已離世的老師並不是真正的老師。」這位單純的人聽了之後，沒有讓自己對他生氣，只是溫和地說：「我的老師或許是假的，但我的信心並不假，而這就足夠了。」

As there is water in the depths of the earth so there is truth at the bottom of all things, false or true. In some places one has to dig deep, in other places only a short distance, that is the only difference, but there is no place where there is no water. One may have to dig very, very deep in order to get it, but in the depths of the earth there is water, and in the depths of all this falsehood which is on the surface there is truth. If we are really seeking for the truth we shall always find it at some time or other.

正如大地深處有水，在一切事物的深處也都有真實，無論表面看來是真是假。有些地方必須挖得很深，有些地方只要淺淺挖掘，差別只在這裡；但沒有任何地方完全沒有水。我們也許必須挖得非常、非常深才能找到它，但大地深處總有水；同樣地，在表面所有的虛假深處，也存在著真實。如果我們真正尋求真理，遲早總會找到它。

The one who wants to protect himself from being misguided shows a certain tendency, a kind of weakness, which comes from thinking deep in himself that there is no right guidance. If he realizes that right guidance is to be found in himself, he will always be rightly guided; and his power will become so great that if his guide is going wrong, the power of the pupil will help him to go right, because the real Teacher is in the heart of man. The outward teacher is only a sign.

一個一心想保護自己、不讓自己受到誤導的人，其實顯露出某種傾向、一種弱點；那是因為在他的內心深處，他認為世上並不存在真正正確的引導。如果他體認到，正確的引導就在自己之內，他便始終能得到正確的引導；而他的力量甚至會強大到，當他的引導者走偏時，門徒的力量反而能幫助老師回到正道。因為真正的老師存在於人的心中，外在的老師只是一個標誌。

A Persian poet has said that he who is a lost soul, even if he is in the presence of a Savior, will be lost just the same, because his own clouds are surrounding him. It is not a question of a guide or teacher; the obscurity which his own mind creates surrounds him and keeps him blind. What then can a teacher do?

一位波斯詩人曾說，一個迷失的靈魂，即使身處救度者面前，仍然會繼續迷失，因為包圍著他的，是他自己形成的雲霧。問題不在引導者或老師；真正包圍著他、使他看不見的，是他自己的頭腦所造成的幽暗。那麼，老師又能做什麼呢？

According to a story about the Prophet Mohammed, there lived next door to him a man who was very much opposed to the Prophet and spoke against him; and this man saw that the people to whom he spoke had belief in the Prophet, while nobody believed in him. Then years passed, and many believed and many gave their life for the message of the Prophet; and it so happened that eventually a great many people came from afar, thousands and thousands from different countries, to visit the Prophet. The same man still lived in the neighborhood, but he had never altered his opinion. And one day someone asked the Prophet, “Why does this man, who has known the day when nobody listened, when nobody followed you, but who now sees that thousands of people who come here are benefited and filled with bliss and joy and blessing, still continue to criticize you and to oppose you?” And the Prophet said, “His heart has become a fountain of obscurity; he produces from his own self the clouds which surround him; he cannot see.” And he was sorry for him.

有一則關於先知穆罕默德的故事。當時他隔壁住著一個極力反對先知、處處批評他的人。這個人眼看著自己所交談的人都相信先知，卻沒有人相信他。許多年過去了，愈來愈多人相信先知，也有許多人為先知所帶來的訊息獻出生命；後來更有成千上萬的人從不同國家遠道而來拜訪先知。那個人仍然住在附近，卻始終沒有改變自己的看法。有一天，有人問先知：「這個人曾經歷過沒有人聽你、沒有人追隨你的日子；如今他明明看見成千上萬來到這裡的人都從中受益，充滿至福、喜悅與祝福，為什麼他還是繼續批評你、反對你？」先知說：「他的心已經成為幽暗的泉源；他從自己裡面不斷生出雲霧，把自己包圍起來，所以他看不見。」先知對此深感惋惜。

The perception of the light shows the thinning of the veil that covers the heart, and the thinner the veil becomes, the greater is the power of the light within.

能夠感受到光，顯示覆蓋著心的帷幕正在變薄；而帷幕愈薄，內在之光的力量就愈強。

2nd Initiation
第二啟蒙

The next step, the second step in initiation, is to go through the tests that the teacher gives. In this initiation there is a great deal that is amusing, if one thinks about it. It is like looping the loop; sometimes the teacher gives the pupil such tests that he does not know where he is, or whether a thing is true or false.

接下來的一步，也就是第二啟蒙，是經歷老師所給予的考驗。仔細想來，這個啟蒙裡其實有許多相當有趣的地方。它就像坐著飛機做一個空中翻轉；有時老師給門徒的考驗，會使他完全弄不清自己身在何處，甚至不知道眼前的事情究竟是真是假。

There was a great Sufi teacher in India who had a thousand adherents who were most devoted pupils. One day he said to them, “I have changed my mind.” And the words “changed my mind” surprised them greatly; they asked him, “What is the matter, how can it be that you have changed your mind?” He said, “I have the feeling that I must go and bow before the Goddess Kali.” And these people, among whom were doctors and professors, well qualified people, could not understand this whim, that their great teacher in whom they had such faith, wished to go into the temple of Kali and bow before the Goddess of the hideous face, he, a God-realized man in whom they had such confidence! And the thousand disciples left him at once, thinking “What is this? It is against the religion of the formless God, against the teaching of this great Sufi himself, that he wants to worship the Goddess Kali!”

印度曾有一位偉大的蘇菲老師，身邊有一千名極為虔誠追隨他的門徒。有一天，他對他們說：「我改變主意了。」這句「我改變主意了」令他們大為震驚。他們問：「發生了什麼事？你怎麼會改變主意？」他說：「我感到自己必須去向迦梨女神（Kali）頂禮。」這些人當中有醫師、有教授，都是受過良好教育的人，卻完全無法理解老師這突如其來的念頭。他們如此信任的偉大老師，一位已體證神的人，竟然想走進迦梨神廟，向那位面容可怖的女神頂禮！於是，一千名門徒立刻離開了他，心想：「這是怎麼回事？這不僅違背了無形之神的信仰，也違背了這位偉大蘇菲自己所教導的一切，他竟然要去敬拜迦梨女神！」

And there remained only one pupil, a youth who was very devoted to his teacher, and he followed him when he went to the temple of Kali. The teacher was very glad to get rid of these thousand pupils, who were full of knowledge, full of their learning, but who did not really know him; it was just as well that they should leave. And as they were going towards the temple, he spoke three times to this young man, saying “Why do you not go away? Look at these thousand people, who had such faith and such admiration, and now I have said just one word, and they have left me. Why do you not go with them? The majority is right.” The pupil, however, would not go, but continued to follow him. And through all this the teacher received great inspiration and a revelation of how strange human nature is, how soon people are attracted and how soon they can fly away. It was such an interesting phenomenon for him to see the play of human nature that his heart was full of feeling, and when they arrived at the temple of Kali he experienced such ecstasy that he fell down and bowed his head low. And the young man who had followed him did the same.

最後只剩下一名門徒。那是一位十分忠於老師的年輕人，當老師前往迦梨神廟時，他仍一路跟隨。老師其實非常高興擺脫了那一千名門徒；他們滿腹知識、學問淵博，卻並不真正認識他，所以他們離開也未嘗不是件好事。在前往神廟的路上，老師三次對這位年輕人說：「你為什麼不離開？看看那一千個人，他們原本對我有那麼深的信心、那麼敬仰我，而現在我不過說了一句話，他們就全都離開了。你為什麼不跟他們一起走？多數人總是對的。」然而這位門徒仍不肯離去，繼續跟著老師。經過這一切，老師得到極大的啟發，也更深地看見人性是多麼奇特：人可以那麼快被吸引過來，也可以那麼快飛走。看見人性的這番展演，對他而言是如此意味深長，使他的心充滿感受。當他們抵達迦梨神廟時，他進入了極深的狂喜之中，伏倒在地，深深低下頭來頂禮；那位一路追隨他的年輕人也同樣頂禮。

When he got up he asked this young man again, “Why do you not leave me when you have seen a thousand people go away? Why do you follow me?” The young man answered, “There is nothing in what you have done that is against my convictions, because the first lesson you have taught me was that nothing exists save God. If that is true, then that image is not Kali; it too is God. What does it matter whether you bow to the East or to the West or to the earth or to heaven? Since nothing exists except God, there is nobody else except God before whom to bow, even in bowing before Kali. It was the first lesson you taught me.” All these learned men were given the same lesson, they were students and very clever, but they could not conceive of that main thought which was the center of all the teaching. It was this same young man who later became the greatest Sufi teacher in India, Khwaja Moin-ud-Din Chishti. Every year thousands of people of all religions make pilgrimages to his tomb at Ajmer, Hindus, Mohammedans, Jews, and Christians. To the Sufi all religions are one.

當老師起身後，又問這位年輕人：「你看見一千個人都離開了，為什麼你還不離開我？為什麼仍然跟著我？」年輕人回答：「你所做的事情沒有任何一點違背我的信念，因為你教給我的第一課就是：除了神之外，沒有任何存在。如果這是真的，那麼那尊像便不只是迦梨；它同樣也是神。無論你向東方、西方、大地還是天空頂禮，又有什麼差別？既然除了神之外沒有任何存在，那麼即使是在迦梨面前頂禮，也沒有任何別的對象可以接受頂禮，唯有神。這正是你教給我的第一課。」那些學問淵博的人也都接受過同樣的教導，他們都是學生，也都非常聰明，卻無法領會那個位於所有教導核心的根本思想。後來，正是這位年輕人成為印度最偉大的蘇菲老師之一——赫瓦賈・穆因丁・契斯提（Khwaja Moin-ud-Din Chishti）。每年都有成千上萬不同宗教的人前往阿傑梅爾（Ajmer）他的陵墓朝聖，其中有印度教徒、穆斯林、猶太教徒與基督徒。對蘇菲而言，所有宗教本是一體。

There are tests of many kinds that the teacher may give to his pupil to test his faith, his sincerity, his patience. Before a ship puts to sea the captain goes and makes sure that everything is in order for the voyage; and such is the duty of the teacher. Of course it is a very interesting duty. Besides the path of the mystic is a very complex path. What he says may perhaps have two meanings: the outer meaning is one and the inner meaning is another. What he does may also have two meanings, an outer and an inner meaning, and a person who only sees things outwardly cannot perceive the inner meaning. Because he only sees their outer aspect, he cannot understand his own teacher’s action, thought, speech, or movement. It is in this way that the pupil is tested.

老師可能以各種不同的方式考驗門徒，考驗他的信心、真誠與耐心。一艘船出海以前，船長必須先檢查一切是否都已準備妥當，足以展開航程；老師所負的責任也是如此。當然，這是一項十分有意思的責任。此外，祕士所走的道路本來就非常複雜。他所說的話可能具有兩層意義：外在是一層，內在又是另一層。他所做的事也可能具有內外兩層意義；而一個只能看見事物外表的人，便無法察覺其中的內在意義。由於他只能看見外在的一面，因此無法理解自己老師的行動、思想、言語或舉止。門徒正是在這些地方受到考驗。

Thus to the pupil the teacher may often appear to be very unreasonable, very odd, very meaningless, very unkind and cold and unjust. And during these tests, if the faith and the trust of the pupil do not endure he will step back from this second initiation, but if he endures through all this then comes the third step, the third initiation.

因此，在門徒眼中，老師有時可能顯得極不合理、古怪、毫無道理，甚至冷酷、無情而不公正。在這些考驗之中，如果門徒的信心與信任無法持續，他便會從第二啟蒙退卻；然而，如果他能經歷並承受這一切，接下來便會來到第三步，也就是第三啟蒙。

3rd Initiation
第三啟蒙

The third initiation consists of three stages: receiving the knowledge attentively; meditating upon all one has received patiently; assimilating all the outcome of it intelligently. Thereby the mission of the teacher in this world is completed. Gratitude still remains, but the principal work is finished.

第三啟蒙包含三個階段：專注地領受知識；耐心地冥想自己所領受的一切；並以明辨將其中所得真正吸收、化為自身。至此，老師在這世上對門徒所負的使命便完成了。感恩仍然存在，但主要的工作已經完成。

4th Initiation
第四啟蒙

The fourth initiation the seeker gets from his ideal. And who is this ideal, who can give this initiation? No living creature on earth, however great, can prove to be the ideal of anyone else; he may for a certain time, but not forever. The great ones like Buddha, Zoroaster, Christ, and Krishna, who have been the ideal of humanity for thousands of years, when did they become the ideal? During their lifetime? During their lifetime they gave a sense of being the ideal, they left impressions which afterwards proved them to be the ideal, but during their lifetime they could not prove it. Why is this?

第四啟蒙，是尋求者從自己的理想中得到的。那麼，這個能給予啟蒙的「理想」究竟是誰？世上沒有任何一個活著的人，無論多麼偉大，都能真正成為另一個人完整的理想；他或許能在一段時間裡如此，卻不可能永遠如此。佛陀、瑣羅亞斯德、基督與克里希納這些偉大的存在，數千年來一直是人類的理想；那麼，他們是在什麼時候成為理想的？是在他們活著的時候嗎？在世時，他們確實給人一種理想的感受，也留下了種種印象，使後世看見他們確實成為了理想；但在他們活著的時候，他們無法完全證明這一點。為什麼？

The reason is that even perfect man is limited in the imperfect garb of humanity. The human limitation covers perfection. However great, however deep, however spiritual a person is, with all his goodness, with all his inspiration and power, he remains limited. His thought, speech, word, and action are all limited. A man cannot make himself as his pupil imagines him. Imagination goes further than the progress of man; the imagination of every person is his own, and therefore one can only make one’s ideal oneself.

原因在於，即使是一個完美的人，穿上了不完美的人性外衣，也仍受到限制。人的限制會遮蔽那份完美。無論一個人多麼偉大、多麼深邃、多麼具有靈性，無論擁有多少良善、啟發與力量，他仍然受到限制。他的思想、言語與行動都是有限的。一個人無法使自己成為門徒想像中的模樣；想像所能到達的地方，往往超過一個人實際能夠達到的程度。每個人的想像都屬於自己，因此，我們只能由自己形成自己的理想。

No one has the power to make the ideal of another person, and therefore it is the impression of the great saviours of humanity, it is their goodness, it is whatever little grain of an ideal they have left behind them that becomes just like a seed, and that seed put into the soil of the devotee’s heart develops into a plant and bears fruit and flowers as it is reared.

沒有人有能力替另一個人塑造他的理想。因此，那些人類偉大救度者所留下的印象、他們的良善，以及他們所留下的那一點理想的種子，就像真正的種子一樣，被放入虔敬者心中的土壤；在他的培育之下，這顆種子漸漸長成植物，開花並結果。

So in this fourth initiation there is this ideal of man’s imagination. He may call it Christ or Buddha, he may call it Mohammed or Moses or Zoroaster; it is his ideal; it is he who has made it; it is his savior, and certainly it will save him if he considers it to be his savior. But he has to make it; if he does not make it, the savior will not save him. When once he has made his savior, then he is face to face with that perfection which his heart has created; then this impression of Christ or Buddha with which he has impressed himself flowers and grows into a tree, and bears the flowers and fruit which he has desired. No doubt this initiation is a phenomenon in itself.

因此，在第四啟蒙中，出現的是我們在想像中形成的理想。他可以稱這理想為基督或佛陀，也可以稱之為穆罕默德、摩西或瑣羅亞斯德；那是他的理想，是由他自己形成的，也是他的救度者。如果他真正把它視為自己的救度者，那麼它必然會拯救他。但他必須先在自己心中形成這個理想；如果沒有形成它，救度者也無法拯救他。一旦他形成了自己的救度者，他便與自己心中所創造的那份完美面對面。此時，他在自己內在所留下的基督或佛陀的印象，便開始開花、成長為一棵樹，並結出他所渴望的花與果實。這個啟蒙本身無疑就是一種非凡的現象。

Once this initiation is received man begins to radiate, to radiate his initiator who is within him as his ideal.

一旦領受了這個啟蒙，我們便開始散發出光芒，將那位以理想之形存在於內在的啟蒙者放射出來。

5th Initiation
第五啟蒙

Then there is the second stage which is the fifth initiation. And in the fifth initiation man does not imagine his ideal, but finds his ideal a living entity within himself, a Friend who is always close to him, within him; he can just bow his head and see his Friend — he is there. To the real devotees of Christ, Christ is near, as near as they are to themselves to their own self. In times of trouble, in difficulties, he is always there.

接著來到第二個階段，也就是第五啟蒙。在第五啟蒙中，我們不再只是想像自己的理想，而是在自身之內發現這個理想已成為一個活生生的存在，一位始終親近自己、住在自己內在的朋友；只要低下頭來，便能看見這位朋友——祂就在那裡。對真正虔敬基督的人而言，基督離他如此之近，就像他與自己本身一樣親近。無論遭逢困境或艱難，基督始終都在那裡。

6th Initiation
第六啟蒙

The third stage, which is the sixth initiation, is the one where Christ speaks, where Christ acts; the acts of the initiate become the actions of Christ, his speech becomes the speech of Christ. And when one has arrived at that initiation one need not declare before humanity how greatly one loves one’s Lord or Savior or Master; the initiate himself becomes a proof, his life, his word, his action, his feeling, his attitude, his outlook.

第三個階段，也就是第六啟蒙，是基督開始說話、基督開始行動的階段；接受啟蒙之人的行動成為基督的行動，他的言語成為基督的言語。當我們抵達這個啟蒙時，便不需要再向世人宣稱自己多麼愛自己的主、救度者或大師；接受啟蒙之人自身便成為證明——他的生命、言語、行動、感受、態度與看待事物的方式，全都是證明。

Life is such that no falsehood, no pretense can endure, nothing false can go far; it will only go a step and then it will tumble down; it is only the real which will go on. And the more real something is, the less it expresses itself. It is lack of reality that makes a person say: he is so and so, he has such great love for God; or he is so spiritual or pious or clairvoyant, or he has such psychic power. When one sees one does not need to say that one sees, everybody will notice that one is not blind.

生命具有這樣的性質：任何虛假、任何偽裝都無法持久；虛假的事物走不了多遠，只能向前走一步，接著便會倒下。只有真實能夠繼續前行。而一件事愈真實，就愈不需要宣揚自己。正是因為真實不足，一個人才會不斷說自己是什麼樣的人、自己多麼愛神，或自己多麼具有靈性、多麼虔敬、多麼具有靈視能力，或者具有多麼強大的靈能。一個真正看得見的人，不需要說自己看得見；每個人都會察覺他並不是盲人。

But how different it is today, when so many people ask, “Are you clairvoyant, can you see?” And if they say they do, what do they see? They have perhaps seen some color or some light here and there, or something peculiar, which means nothing. Perhaps it is their imagination. And then there are others who encourage them and make them still more crazy; and people feed their pride by telling others how much they see. But when one begins to see one cannot speak about it, it is something which cannot be told. How could one? When one sees with the eyes of Christ one can only see, when one hears with the ears of Christ one can only hear; there is nothing to be said.

然而今天的情況卻多麼不同！有那麼多人會問：「你有靈視能力嗎？你看得見嗎？」而如果有人回答自己看得見，那麼他究竟看見了什麼？也許只是在這裡或那裡看見某種顏色、某道光，或某些奇異的東西，而那些其實沒有什麼意義；也許只不過是他的想像。接著又有人在旁邊鼓勵他，使他愈來愈陷入其中；而人們也藉著告訴別人自己看見了多少東西，餵養自己的驕傲。但當一個人真正開始看見時，他反而無法談論它，因為那是無法說出的。又怎麼可能說得出來呢？當我們以基督的眼睛觀看時，只能看；當我們以基督的耳朵聆聽時，只能聽。已經沒有什麼可以再用言語說明。

7th Initiation
第七啟蒙

The further initiation, which is the seventh, is the initiation in God.

再往前的一個啟蒙，也就是第七啟蒙，是在神之內的啟蒙。

There is an account in the story of Rabia, a great Sufi. Once in her vision she saw the Prophet, and the Prophet asked her, “Rabia, to whom have you given your devotion?” And Rabia said, “To God.” And the Prophet said, “Not to me?” And Rabia said, “Yes, Prophet, you include God, but it is God I gave my devotion to.”

在偉大的蘇菲拉比亞（Rabia）的故事中，有這樣一段記載。有一次，她在異象中看見先知。先知問她：「拉比亞，你把自己的虔敬奉獻給了誰？」拉比亞回答：「給神。」先知問：「不是給我嗎？」拉比亞說：「是的，先知，在你之中也包含著神；然而，我所奉獻虔敬的，是神。」

There comes a stage where a person even rises above the ideal he has made. He rises to that perfect Ideal which is beyond the human personality, which is the perfect Being.

有一個階段，我們甚至會超越自己所形成的理想，提升至那超越人的個別風範之上的完美理想，也就是那完美的存在。

In this initiation one rises to the spheres where one sees no other than God.

在這個啟蒙中，我們提升到一個境界，在那裡所見的再無別者，唯有神。

8th Initiation
第八啟蒙

In the second stage, which is the eighth initiation, one communicates with God, so that God becomes to the initiate a living entity; God is then no longer an ideal or an imagination, no longer one whom he has made; the One whom he once made has now become alive — a living God. Before this there was belief in God, there was worship of Him; perhaps He was made in the imagination; but in this stage God becomes living. And what a phenomenon this is! This stage is a miracle in itself.

在第二個階段，也就是第八啟蒙中，我們開始與神溝通，使神對接受啟蒙之人而言成為一個活生生的存在。此時，神不再只是理想，也不再只是想像，不再只是由自己所形成的形象；過去由自己形成的那一位，如今活了起來——成為活生生的神。在這之前，我們對神有所信仰，也敬拜神；也許神仍是在想像中形成的。但到了這個階段，神成為活生生的存在。這是何等非凡的經驗！這個階段本身就是一個奇蹟。

The God-realized person need not speak of or discuss the name of God; his presence will inspire the sense of God in every being, and charge the atmosphere with it. Everyone that meets him, whether he is spiritual or moral or religious or without religion, will feel God in some form or other.

一個體證神的人不需要談論神，也不需要討論神的名；他的臨在本身就會在每個人心中喚起對神的感受，並使周圍的氛圍充滿這份感受。任何與他相遇的人，無論是否追求靈性、是否重視道德、是否有宗教信仰，都會以某種形式感受到神。

The prophets and the holy ones who have come from time to time to give the world a religion, an ideal, have not brought any new ideas; they have not brought a new belief in God, because belief in God has always existed in some form or other. What they brought was a living God. When there remained no more than God’s name in the scripture or in the people’s imagination or on the lips of the followers of a certain religion, and when that name began to become a profane name, a vain repetition, then such souls were born on the earth and brought with them a living God. If they gave anything else to humanity, either law, ethics, or morals, these were secondary.

那些一再來到世間，為世界帶來宗教與理想的先知與聖者，並沒有帶來什麼新的觀念；他們也沒有帶來一種新的神之信仰，因為對神的信仰始終以某種形式存在著。他們真正帶來的，是一位活生生的神。當神只剩下經典中的名字、存在於人們想像中的名字，或只是某個宗教追隨者口中的名字；當這個名字開始變得凡俗，只剩下空洞的反覆念誦時，這樣的靈魂便會降生世間，把活生生的神帶到人間。至於他們另外帶給人類的律法、倫理或道德，都只是次要的。

The principal thing that they gave to the world was a living God.

他們帶給世界最重要的，是一位活生生的神。

9th Initiation
第九啟蒙

The ninth initiation is what is called in Sufi terms Akhlak-e Allah, which means the Manner of God. The one who touches that plane or that realization expresses in his manner the manner of God; his outlook on life is God’s outlook; his action, his thought, and his word are God’s action, thought, and word. Therefore what the prophets spoke was Kalam-ullah, the Word of God, as for instance the Bhagavad Gita which means the Song Celestial. Why? Because at this stage God himself speaks. These holy ones became that perfect Spirit and were moved by it. They became actors, for their action was no longer their own action; it was the action of God. Their word was no longer a human word; it was the word of God.

第九啟蒙，在蘇菲術語中稱為 Akhlak-e Allah，意為「神的風範」。當一個人觸及這個境界、這份證悟時，他的風範便顯現出神的風範；他看待生命的方式，是神看待生命的方式；他的行動、思想與言語，也成為神的行動、思想與言語。因此，先知所說出的話被稱為 Kalam-ullah，也就是「神之言」；例如《薄伽梵歌》（Bhagavad Gita），其意為「天界之歌」。為什麼？因為到了這個階段，是神自己在說話。這些聖者成為那完美之靈，並受其推動。他們成為行動的媒介，因為他們的行動已不再是自己的行動，而是神的行動；他們的言語也不再是人的言語，而是神之言。

10th Initiation
第十啟蒙

Very few arrive at the last three initiations in their lifetime, for after the first nine initiations begins what is called the phase of self-realization. When those who have not arrived at this stage begin to utter affirmations such as “I am God”, they utter nothing but vain repetitions, and this obscures the God-ideal. They do not know what they are saying. If people only knew to what an extent they should be authorized before speaking about such things, they would be very careful about what they say.

能在一生中抵達最後三個啟蒙的人非常少，因為在前九個啟蒙之後，才開始進入所謂「對自身本性的證悟」的階段。當尚未抵達這個境界的人開始說出「我是神」之類的肯定語時，他所說的不過是空洞的反覆念誦，反而遮蔽了理想中的神。他並不知道自己在說什麼。如果人們真正知道，在談論這些事之前，必須達到何等程度才真正有資格如此說，他們對自己的言語便會非常謹慎。

When after having gone through all the other stages of consciousness one arrives at this stage, one can speak very little; for it is beyond the stage of religion and even beyond the notion of God; it is the stage of self-expression. This stage of self-expression is reached when a person has thoroughly dug his self out, so that nothing of the self is left but only that divine substance; and only then is he authorized to express himself.

當我們經歷過所有其他的意識階段，終於抵達這裡時，反而幾乎沒有什麼可以說；因為這已超越宗教的階段，甚至超越了「神」這個觀念。這是本性自身展現的階段。只有當一個人把有限的自己徹底挖除，直到那個自己不再留下任何東西，唯有神性的本質存在時，才會抵達這個本性自身展現的階段；也唯有到了這時，他才真正有資格讓自身顯現出來。

Thus the tenth initiation is the awakening of the real self, the real ego, and this awakening is brought about by meditation, the meditation which makes one forget one’s false or limited self. The more one is able to forget it, the more the real self awakens.

因此，第十啟蒙便是真正的自己、真正的自我意識之覺醒。這種覺醒是透過冥想而發生的；冥想使我們忘卻那虛假的、有限的自己。我們愈能忘卻它，真正的自己便愈能醒來。

11th Initiation
第十一啟蒙

In the next stages one experiences a sensation of splendor, which in Persian is called Hairat. It is like when a child is born and begins to see everything new: this old world is seen by the child as a new world. As soon as the point of view is changed by the help of meditation, one sees the whole world, which is before everybody and which everybody is seeing, quite differently.

在接下來的階段中，我們會經驗到一種壯麗而驚異的感受，在波斯語中稱為 Hairat。這就像一個孩子出生之後，開始以全新的眼光觀看每一樣事物：這個古老的世界，在孩子眼中卻是一個嶄新的世界。一旦藉由冥想改變了觀看事物的立足點，我們所看見的仍然是那個擺在所有人面前、每個人都看得見的世界，然而我們所看見的卻已完全不同。

One begins to see reason behind reason, cause behind cause, and one’s point of view also changes in regard to religion. It changes because where the average man would want to accuse or punish or blame a person for a certain action, the one who has risen to this stage can neither judge nor blame; he only sees; but he sees the cause behind the cause.

我們開始看見理由背後的理由、原因背後的原因；對宗教的看法也隨之改變。之所以改變，是因為一般人面對某個人的某種行為時，或許會想指責他、懲罰他、責怪他；然而，提升到這個境界的人既無法論斷，也無法責怪，他只是看見——而他所看見的，是原因背後更深的原因。

Whom then shall he accuse? Whom shall he blame? How can he refrain from forgiving, whatever be the fault, when he sees all that is behind the fault, when he sees the reason behind it, perhaps a more valid reason than even the one who committed the fault can see himself.

那麼，他還能指責誰？還能責怪誰？當他看見一個過錯背後所有的一切，看見造成它的原因，甚至看見一個比犯下過錯之人自己所能理解的理由更深、更充分的原因時，無論那個過錯是什麼，他又怎能不寬恕？

Therefore naturally the manner of continually sacrificing, the manner of spontaneous love and sympathy, the manner of respect both for the wise and foolish, for the deserving and the undeserving, arises and expresses itself as divine life.

因此，不斷奉獻的風範、自然而然湧現的愛與同理，以及無論面對智者或愚者、值得的人或不值得的人都能保持尊重的風範，便自然生起，並展現為神性的生命。

It is at this stage that the human soul touches perfection and becomes divine, and that it fulfills its real purpose in life.

正是在這個階段，人的靈魂觸及完美，成為神性的，並完成它在生命中真正的目的。

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