17. Unlearning
17. 放下已學

September 8, 1925

1925 年 9 月 8 日

My Blessed Mureeds,

我蒙福的門徒們：

I would like to speak a few words on the subject of unlearning. It is always difficult for some mureeds who have once heard from me the necessity of unlearning in the spiritual path. Unlearning is a process by which one rises above what one has learned. It does not mean forgetting what one has learned, it only means rising above what one has learned. What one learns in life is most useful after having attained spiritual realization, in order to express it. But it can only be a hindrance in progression in the spiritual path if one does not know how to unlearn. What does learning mean? Learning means fixing ideas and making them material. When an idea is fixed in mind, it becomes tangible; that knowledge becomes a kind of veil for any other knowledge that can illuminate the path through life.

我想談談「放下已學」這個主題。對有些門徒來說，當他們曾經從我這裡聽到，在靈性道路上有放下已學之必要時，總會覺得這很困難。放下已學是一個使人超越自己所學的過程。這並不意味著忘記自己所學的，只是意味著超越自己所學的。一個人在生命中所學的一切，在獲得靈性證悟之後，為了表達這份證悟，會是極其有用的；但如果一個人不知道如何放下已學，它就只會成為靈性道路上前進的障礙。學習是什麼意思？學習就是把觀念固定下來，並使它物質化。當一個觀念被固定在頭腦中，它便成為具體可觸的；那份知識就成了一種帷幕，遮住了其他能夠照亮人生道路的知識。

Now coming to the question, how does one unlearn? Does one forget things? It is not necessary to forget in order to unlearn. Unlearning is looking at things from an opposite point of view. In other words, seeing things from another angle, as clearly as one is able to see from the angle from which one is used to looking at them. It is this experience that leads one to perfection. The knowledge that keeps man narrow is the knowledge which is not unlearned. But once one has unlearned, one sees from two opposite angles everything in life, and that gives one a great mastery.

現在來到這個問題：我們要如何放下已學？是要把事情忘掉嗎？要放下已學，並不需要遺忘。放下已學，就是從相反的觀點來看事物。換句話說，就是從另一個角度來看事情，而且看得像自己從慣常的角度看事情時一樣清楚。正是這種經驗，引領一個人走向圓滿。使人變得狹隘的知識，就是那些未曾被放下的知識。然而，一旦一個人學會放下已學，他便能從兩個相反的角度看生命中的一切，而這會帶給他極大的自我掌握。

You will not be surprised, therefore, my mureeds, on having heard from your Murshid — when he ought to have said, “It is wrong”, he perhaps astonished you by saying, “It is all right.” Instead of saying, “No,” he may have said, “Yes.” It is to help you to bring you to that point of view which is a spiritual point of view, looking at a thing from two sides, from both sides. It is just like looking from both eyes, to make a thing complete. Will you therefore be surprised if one said that there is no set belief for a Sufi? Would you be amazed if one said that Sufism is not a particular faith? If a Sufi says, “That religion is beautiful,” or “The other religions are bad,” he does not mean it in the same sense as the adherents of that particular sect.

所以，我的門徒們，當你們聽見自己的穆希德（Murshid）在本來似乎應該說「這是錯的」時，卻可能說「這沒有問題」而令你們驚訝，你們便不必感到意外。他本來可以說「不」，卻可能說了「是」。這是為了幫助你們，使你們來到那個觀點，也就是靈性的觀點：從兩面、從兩個方面來看一件事。這就像用兩隻眼睛來看，使對一件事的看見變得完整。因此，如果有人說，蘇菲祕士並沒有一套固定的信念，你們會感到驚訝嗎？如果有人說，蘇菲主義並不是某一種特定的信仰，你們會感到詫異嗎？如果一位蘇菲祕士說：「那個宗教很美。」或者說：「其他宗教很不好。」他的意思並不像那個特定教派的信徒所理解的那樣。

He looks at it from both angles. He sees quite well when a person has something to say against a particular religion; he also sees when a person is most devoted to a particular faith. He sees the reason of both things, and therefore to both questions he says, “Yes.” Be not surprised therefore, if you hear from a Sufi, when you tell him, “Is it not a horrid thing?”, he says, “Yes, but it is a most beautiful thing;” he says, “Certainly it is so.” He has seen both points of view. You may be surprised. You will say, “How can he have two opposite views at the same time?” But he sees two opposite views at the same time also.

他是從兩個角度來看它的。當一個人對某個特定宗教有所批評時，他完全看得見其中的理由；當一個人對某一信仰極為奉獻時，他也同樣看得見。他看見這兩者各自的理由，因此，面對這兩方面，他都會說：「是。」所以，如果你對一位蘇菲祕士說：「這難道不是一件很可怕的事嗎？」而他回答：「是，但它也是一件極其美麗的事。」又說：「確實如此。」你不必感到驚訝。他已經看見了兩種觀點。你或許會感到驚訝，會說：「一個人怎麼可能同時具有兩種相反的觀點？」然而，他確實同時看見這兩種相反的觀點。

Unlearning is rising above one’s set opinion, one’s fixed idea, which makes one narrow. No doubt, it is a sign of perfection, but one goes gradually to it. If one became perfect the first day one went into the spiritual path, one would end in imperfection. Progress must be gradual, and one must know to what extent one must progress. One must not be too frank about his two points of view, or he will offend every person he meets in life. Being wise is not always speaking wisely. One can be wise without speaking wisely. There is always a danger of being too narrow-minded. And therefore the best practice that a mureed can make is to try and look at Murshid’s point of view in the teaching that Murshid gives him. If a zikr is given or a phrase is given so many times, it must be done. At this time it must be repeated, or at that time. One must try and see from Murshid’s point of view.

放下已學，就是超越自己既定的意見、固定的觀念；正是這些使人變得狹隘。毫無疑問，這是一種圓滿的徵象，但一個人必須逐漸走向它。如果一個人在踏上靈性道路的第一天就變得圓滿，那麼最後反而會落入不圓滿。進展必須是漸進的，而一個人也必須知道自己應當進展到什麼程度。我們不應太直率地表露自己的兩種觀點，否則便會冒犯生命中遇到的每一個人。有智慧，並不表示總是要說出有智慧的話。一個人可以有智慧，而不必總是把智慧說出來。人始終有變得過於心胸狹窄的危險。因此，門徒所能做的最好修持，就是在穆希德給予他的教導中，試著從穆希德的觀點來看。如果給了一個 Zikr，或給了一個詞句，規定要做若干次，就必須照著做；規定在這個時候重複，或在那個時候重複，也應如此。人必須試著從穆希德的觀點來看。

Besides, action, word, imagination and feeling, these four things have much greater power than anyone can imagine. Even a meaningless action, an action which might seem to convey nothing, an automatic movement, even that has a certain result. The mystics of the ancient times had known the great power of movement. It is at the present time that people have lost the secret of the psychological effect of movements. Movements have been always connected with sacred things. Among the old Greeks, among ancient Egyptians, among the Hindus of the ancient time, among Buddhists, there was a science of movements, there was a power in movements; and they knew that science and it produced a certain effect. A mureed unaware of it easily says, “But the movements tell me nothing; it is a strange thing to me; I would rather sit and meditate.” Everyone would like to sit and meditate, and many would rather sleep and meditate. That is still more comfortable.

此外，行動、言語、想像與感受，這四件事所具有的力量，遠比任何人所能想像的更大。即使是一個看似毫無意義的行動，一個似乎什麼也沒有傳達的動作，一個自動做出的動作，也會產生某種結果。古代的祕士知道動作具有巨大的力量。只是到了今日，人們才失去了關於動作之心理作用的祕密。動作向來與神聖之事相連。在古希臘人、古埃及人、古代印度人與佛教徒之中，都曾有一門關於動作的學問；動作之中蘊含著力量，而他們知道這門學問，也知道它能產生特定的作用。一個對此一無所知的門徒，很容易說：「可是這些動作對我毫無意義；對我來說很奇怪；我寧可坐著冥想。」每個人都喜歡坐著冥想，而許多人甚至寧可睡著冥想。那就更舒服了。

Besides that, sometimes a person thinks “Why must I repeat a word which is a foreign word, which is a strange word to me? If the word suggests something, why must I not use a word which is in my language, which comes easy for me to repeat?” Now all these things which I have said are reasonable, and those who bring up that argument have also a reason in bringing it. They are right in saying it. Only, they could see from the other point of view also. And they could only see if they would try to see. That is what is called unlearning. In the first place, the great linguists of the day have found that the ancient languages which still exist have some psychological, mystical power in their words. If anyone asks me how I see modern languages, I will humbly say they are the corruptions of the ancient languages.

除此之外，有時一個人會想：「為什麼我一定要重複一個外國的詞，一個對我而言陌生的詞？如果這個詞能喚起某種意義，為什麼我不能使用自己語言中的詞，一個我更容易重複的詞？」現在，我剛才所說的這些想法全都合乎理性，而提出這種論點的人，自然也有他提出論點的理由。他這樣說並沒有錯。只是，他也可以從另一個觀點來看。而唯有當他願意試著去看，他才可能看見。這就是所謂放下已學。首先，當代偉大的語言學者已經發現，至今仍然存在的古代語言，其詞語具有某種心理與祕士性的力量。如果有人問我如何看待現代語言，我會謙卑地說，它們是古代語言腐化之後的形式。

And I have one thousand proofs to show it. Why do I call them corruptions? Because in the ancient language every word has been derived from a root which has the essence, and which is expressive of the sense which is in that object, the name with which it is identified. In other words, if you take one word of the ancient language, and meditate upon it every day, it will reveal to you deeper and deeper meaning of the same idea that it expresses. It is not an exaggeration that I knew one line of a Persian, an ancient poem; and after fifteen years since I knew that phrase, one day the meaning of that phrase was revealed to me, which was more revealing than the whole book one could read.

而我有一千個證據可以證明這一點。為什麼我稱它們為腐化後的形式？因為在古代語言中，每一個詞都源自一個字根，而這個字根含有其本質，並能表達出那個事物本身所具有的意義，也就是那個名稱所指認的事物。換句話說，如果你取古代語言中的一個詞，每天對它進行冥想，它便會向你揭示它所表達的同一觀念中愈來愈深的意義。這並不是誇張：我曾知道一句波斯古詩中的詩句；在我知道那句話十五年之後，有一天，那句話的意義向我顯露出來，而其中所揭示的，勝過一個人所能閱讀的整本書。

Besides, the linguists today find out that the source of all languages is one language, no matter what the historians say about it. Some say Sanskrit was the mother language, another says another name. There is always a tendency to give a new name to an old thing, and there is always a tendency to create a sensation; especially historians always think that to give a new idea is the best thing. Whether that idea is right or wrong, that does not matter. Nevertheless, the ancient words sometimes have a great power; not only in their meaning, but power in their formation, in the vowels, in the letter, in the syllables that are in them they are revealing.

此外，今天的語言學者發現，所有語言的源頭其實是一種語言，無論歷史學家對此怎麼說。有人說梵語是母語，也有人提出其他名稱。人總有一種傾向，要替舊的事物取一個新的名稱，也總有一種傾向想製造新奇感；尤其是歷史學家，總認為提出一個新的觀念就是最好的事。至於那個觀念究竟對不對，似乎並不重要。儘管如此，古代的詞語有時具有很大的力量；不只是它們的意義具有力量，就連它們的構成、母音、字母以及其中的音節，都具有能揭示事物的力量。

Even to such an extent that if you were to study the words of the zikr, every single word has a certain action on the physical mechanism, on intuitive centers. An ordinary person will only take it as a word that belongs to a certain language. But such words have belonged to mystics. They never belong to any language. The languages have taken them; people have used them, expressing different things. The mystics have gathered them together just like a chemist would collect herbs an drugs and different things together in order to use them for medicine. Mystics have collected such words, words of great power and revelation, in order to produce desired effects.

甚至可以說，如果你研究 Zikr 中的詞語，就會發現每一個詞都會對身體機制、對直覺中心產生某種作用。一般人只會把它看作屬於某種語言的一個詞。然而，這樣的詞是屬於祕士的。它們從來不屬於任何一種語言。各種語言取用了它們，人們使用它們來表達不同的事物。祕士把這些詞收集在一起，就像一位藥劑師會把藥草、藥物與不同的材料收集起來，用來製作藥方一樣。祕士收集這些具有巨大力量與啟示性的詞語，是為了產生所需要的作用。

This is my own experience. I have experienced it with many people. There are words which, if they are used so many times for six weeks, the whole being of that person is changed, not only the spirit, but even the body is changed. The circulation of the blood is changed, the whole atmosphere of the person is changed. The power of the words is a living phenomenon. And when it is prescribed by the teacher who knows its secret, it is a prescription, it is an instruction. It is something that is most valuable.

這是我自己的經驗。我曾在許多人身上經驗過這一點。有些詞，只要按照特定次數持續使用六個星期，那個人的整個存在都會改變；不只是靈，就連身體也會改變。血液循環會改變，整個人的氛圍也會改變。詞語的力量是一種活生生的現象。當它由一位知道其中祕密的老師開立時，它就是一帖處方，也是一項指導。這是極其珍貴的事物。

And when once learned in this way, when one is able to look at it from the teacher’s point of view, one has accustomed oneself to seeing from the point of view of others also. Without trying to be a Sufi one becomes a Sufi. One need not make an effort to become a Sufi; it is a natural development towards the simplicity of the heart. It is the expansion of sympathy. It is looking into the wide horizon that makes one see from the point of view of others. And this is the greatest necessity in the spiritual path, that one must make oneself accustomed to rise above what one has learned. God Bless You.

一旦以這種方式學習，當一個人能夠從老師的觀點來看它時，他也就使自己習慣於從別人的觀點來看事物。不必刻意想成為一位蘇菲祕士，一個人自然而然就成為了蘇菲祕士。人不需要努力使自己成為蘇菲祕士；那是朝向心之單純的一種自然發展。那是同理心的擴展。正是望向廣闊的地平線，使一個人能夠從別人的觀點來看事物。而這正是靈性道路上最大的必要：一個人必須使自己習慣於超越自己所學的一切。願神祝福你們。

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