35. From Limitation to Perfection (2)
35. 從限制到圓滿（2）

Every kind of striving in man’s life, whether for a material or for a spiritual object, is the result of his natural inclination to reach from limitation towards perfection. Whatever it may be, wealth or rank or name or comfort or pleasure, it is this limitation which keeps man discontented. Also, in all his learning, studying, practicing, acquiring, attaining, we see this same striving to go from limitation to perfection. The saying of the scriptures that God alone is rich and all others are poor, can be seen in everyday life. The greater the riches one has the more one wants; and it is interesting to find when observing the life of a poor person that he is more content with what he has than a rich person with all his wealth. Sometimes one also sees that a poor person is more generous in his giving than a rich person in parting with his possessions.

人生中每一種努力，無論追求的是物質的目標還是靈性的目標，都是出於我們從限制走向圓滿的自然傾向。無論追求的是財富、地位、名聲、舒適或享樂，使我們始終不能滿足的，正是這種限制。在一切學習、研究、練習、獲取與成就之中，我們也都看見同樣的努力：從限制走向圓滿。經典中說，唯有神是富足的，其他一切都是貧乏的；這一點在日常生活中便可以看見。一個人擁有的財富愈多，想要的也愈多；而觀察一個貧窮者的生活，會有趣地發現，他往往比一個坐擁財富的富人，更能滿足於自己所有。有時我們甚至會看見，一個窮人在給予時，比一個富人在割捨自己的財物時更加慷慨。

When we look at another aspect of life, we see that a person who is learned in a small degree believes that he has learned and read a great deal and he wishes to show it; whereas someone who has learned more begins to discover that it is really very little and that there is still very much to be learned.

當我們從生命的另一面來看，會發現一個只學了一點的人，往往相信自己已經學了很多、讀了很多，也希望把這些顯示出來；然而一個學得愈多的人，反而開始發現自己所學其實很少，還有非常多東西有待學習。

There is still another picture to be seen: that of the foolish and the wise. The foolish man is ready to teach you without a moment’s thought, ready to correct you, ready to judge you, ready to form an opinion about you. But the wiser a man is the more diffident he is to form an opinion about you, to judge you, to correct you. What does this mean? It means that whatever man possesses in a small degree he thinks he has much of, but when he possesses more he begins to feel the need and the desire for perfection, for completion.

還有另一幅景象，就是愚者與智者的不同。愚者不假思索便準備教導你，準備糾正你，準備評斷你，也準備對你形成自己的看法。然而一個人愈有智慧，在對你形成看法、評斷你或糾正你時，反而愈加謹慎。這意味著什麼？這意味著，凡是一個人只有少許的東西，他便以為自己擁有很多；可是當他擁有得更多時，他便開始感受到一種需要與渴望，要走向圓滿、走向完整。

There is an ancient story that a king wanted to grant a dervish his desire. And the desire of the dervish was to fill his cup with gold coins. The king thought that it would be the easiest thing in the world to fill the cup of the dervish; but when they tried to fill it it proved to be a magic cup: it would not fill. The more money was poured into it, the emptier it became. And the king was very disappointed and disheartened at the thought that this cup could not be filled. The dervish said, “Your Majesty, if you cannot fill my cup you only have to say so, and I shall take my cup back. I am a dervish, and I will go, and I will only think that you have not kept your word.” The sovereign, with every good intention, with all his generosity, and with all his treasures could not fill that cup. And he asked, “Dervish, tell me what secret you have in this cup; it does not seem to be natural. There is some magic about it; tell me what is its secret.” The dervish answered, “Yes, your Majesty, what you have found out is true; it is a magic cup. But it is the cup of every heart. It is the heart of man, which is never content. Fill it with whatever you may, with wealth, with attention, with love, with knowledge, with all there is. It will never fill, for it is not meant to be filled. Not knowing this secret of life man goes on in pursuit of every object, or any object he has before him, continually. And the more he gets the more he wants, and the cup of his desire is never filled.’

有一則古老的故事說，一位國王想要滿足一名蘇菲行者（dervish）的願望。這名蘇菲行者的願望，是用金幣裝滿他的杯子。國王心想，裝滿蘇菲行者的杯子，應該是世界上最容易的事；可是當人們試著把杯子裝滿時，卻發現那是一只神奇的杯子：怎麼也裝不滿。倒進去的錢愈多，杯子反而顯得愈空。國王想到這只杯子竟然無法裝滿，感到十分失望，也十分沮喪。蘇菲行者說：「陛下，如果您無法裝滿我的杯子，只要說一聲便是，我會把杯子拿回去。我是一名蘇菲行者，我自會離開；我只會認為，您沒有遵守自己的承諾。」這位君王懷著一切善意，帶著他全部的慷慨，也動用了所有的財寶，卻仍無法裝滿那只杯子。於是他問：「蘇菲行者，告訴我，你這只杯子藏著什麼祕密？它看來並不尋常。其中一定有某種魔法；告訴我，它的祕密是什麼。」蘇菲行者回答：「是的，陛下，您所發現的是真的；這確實是一只神奇的杯子。然而，它也是每一顆心的杯子。它就是人的心，永遠不會滿足。無論你用什麼來填滿它——財富、關注、愛、知識，乃至一切所有——它都永遠不會被填滿，因為它原本就不是為了被這些事物填滿的。人不知道生命的這個祕密，所以一生不斷追逐眼前的一個又一個目標。他得到得愈多，想要的便愈多，而他的欲望之杯始終無法被填滿。」

The meaning of this can be understood by the study of the soul. Man’s appetite is satisfied by food; but behind it is an appetite which is the appetite of the soul, and that appetite is never satisfied. That appetite is at the back of all the different forms of hunger and of thirst. And since man cannot trace that innermost appetite he strives all through his life to satisfy these outer appetites, which are satisfied and yet remain unsatisfied. If someone is making a study of objective things, things of the objective world, he may gain a great deal of knowledge about them, and yet there is never an end to it. The one who searches the secret of sound, the one who searches the mystery of light, the one who searches the mystery of science, they all search and search and search, and there is never an end to it, nor is there ever satisfaction. And a thoughtful person wonders if that satisfaction is to be found anywhere, the satisfaction which so to speak fulfills the promise of the soul.

透過對靈魂的研究，我們可以理解其中的意義。人的食慾可以用食物來滿足；然而在它背後，還有另一種渴求，那是靈魂的渴求，而這種渴求永遠無法得到滿足。一切不同形式的飢餓與渴望，背後都有這種渴求。由於我們無法追溯到內在最深處的這份渴求，便終其一生努力滿足外在的種種欲求；它們雖然一再得到滿足，卻又始終沒有真正滿足。如果一個人研究的是客觀事物，是外在世界的事物，他或許能獲得大量關於它們的知識，然而這樣的追尋永遠沒有盡頭。探尋聲音祕密的人，探尋光之奧祕的人，探尋科學奧祕的人，都不斷地探索、探索、再探索，而這既沒有盡頭，也從未帶來真正的滿足。一個善於思考的人便會問：是否有什麼地方，真的能找到這種滿足——那種可以說是實現靈魂自身承諾的滿足？

Indeed, there does exist a possibility for that satisfaction; and that possibility is to attain to the perfection which is not dependent upon outside things, a perfection which belongs to one’s own being. This satisfaction is not attained; it is discovered. It is in the discovery of this satisfaction that the purpose of life can be fulfilled.

事實上，這樣的滿足確實是可能的；其可能性就在於抵達一種不依賴外在事物的圓滿，一種屬於我們自身存在的圓滿。這種滿足不是靠獲取得來的，而是被發現的。生命的目的，正是在發現這種滿足之中得以實現。

And now the question arises: how does one arrive at this perfection? Religion, philosophy, and mysticism will all help one, but it is by the actual attainment of this knowledge that one will arrive at this satisfaction.

於是問題便產生了：我們要如何抵達這種圓滿？宗教、哲學與神祕主義都能幫助我們；然而唯有真正獲得這份知，才能抵達這種滿足。

Life can be pictured as a line with two ends. One end of the Line is limitation, and the other end of the same line is perfection. As long as one is looking at the end which is limitation, however good, virtuous, righteous, or pious one is, one has not touched what may be called perfection. Are there not many believers in religion, in a God? There are many worshippers of a deity, and more among simple people than among the intellectuals and the educated. Do they all arrive at perfection before leaving this earth, by their belief in a deity or by their worship?

我們可以把生命想像成一條有兩端的線。線的一端是限制，另一端則是圓滿。只要我們仍望著限制的那一端，無論多麼善良、有德、正直或虔誠，都還沒有觸及那可以稱為圓滿的境地。相信宗教、相信神的人不是很多嗎？敬拜神明的人也很多，而且在純樸的人當中，比在知識分子與受過教育的人當中更多。難道他們僅憑對神明的信仰或敬拜，就都能在離開這個世界以前抵達圓滿嗎？

There are others who learn from books. I have known some people who had written perhaps fifty or a hundred books themselves, and had read may be a whole library, yet they still remained standing in the same place where they were. As long as one’s face is not turned away from that end which is the end of limitation, and as long as one does not look towards that ideal of perfection which is the real Ka’ba or place of pilgrimage, one will not arrive at that perfection.

還有一些人從書本中學習。我認識有些人，自己或許已經寫了五十本甚至一百本書，也可能讀過一整座圖書館的書，然而他們仍舊站在原來的地方。只要我們還沒有把臉從限制的那一端轉開，只要我們還沒有望向那圓滿的理想——那才是真正的克爾白（Ka’ba），真正的朝聖之地——我們便無法抵達那圓滿。

What keeps this perfection, which belongs to his own life, which is his own being, hidden from man? A screen put before it; and that screen is one’s self. The soul, conscious only of its limitation, of its possessions with which it identifies itself, forgets its own being and becomes so to speak the captive of its limitation. Religion or belief in God, worship, philosophy, and mysticism, all help one to attain this. But if one does not search for perfection through these, even they will only be an occupation, a pastime, and will not bring man to the right goal.

這份圓滿原本就屬於人的生命，本就是他自己的存在，那麼究竟是什麼使它對人隱藏起來？是橫在它前面的一道屏障，而這道屏障正是我們自己。當靈魂只意識到自身的限制，只意識到那些被自己認同為「我」與「我的」所有物時，它便忘記了自身真正的存在，可以說成了自身限制的囚徒。宗教、對神的信仰、敬拜、哲學與神祕主義，都能幫助我們抵達這一點；然而如果我們不藉由它們尋求圓滿，那麼就連這些也只會成為一種活動、一種消遣，而無法把人帶向真正的目標。

Is there any definition of this perfection? What sort of perfection is it? Can it be explained in any way? It is only perfection itself which can realize itself. It cannot be put into words, it cannot be explained. If anyone believes that truth can be given in words he is very much mistaken. It is just like putting sea-water into a bottle, and saying, here is the sea! Very often people ask, “But what is the truth? Can you explain it?” Words cannot explain it. Often I thought it would be a good thing to write the word TRUTH on a brick, and give it into the hands of such a person, and say, “Hold it fast, here is the truth!’

這種圓滿是否有任何定義？它究竟是怎樣的圓滿？能不能用任何方式解釋？唯有圓滿本身能夠認識自身。它無法被放進言語之中，也無法被解釋。如果有人以為真理可以透過言語交給另一個人，那就大錯特錯了。這就像把海水裝進一只瓶子裡，然後說：「看，這就是海！」人們常常問：「可是，真理究竟是什麼？你能解釋嗎？」言語無法解釋它。我常常想，也許最好的做法，是在一塊磚頭上寫下「真理」兩個字，把它交到這樣的人手裡，然後說：「拿穩了，這就是真理！」

There is a great difference between fact and truth. Fact is a shadow of truth. Fact is intelligible; but truth is beyond comprehension, for truth is unlimited. Truth knows itself, and nothing else can explain it. What little explanation can be given lies in the idea of expansion.

事實與真理之間有著極大的差別。事實是真理的影子。事實可以被理解；然而真理超越理解，因為真理是無限的。真理認識自身，除此之外，沒有任何事物能夠解釋它。如果還能對它稍作說明，那便存在於「擴展」這個觀念之中。

• There is a man who toils all day in order to gain his livelihood, to give himself a little comfort or a little pleasure, and so life goes on.
  
  有一個人終日辛勞，只為維持自己的生活，給自己一點舒適或一點享樂；他的生命就這樣繼續下去。

• And there is another man who has a family, who has others to think about, who works for them. Sometimes he forgets his own pleasure and comfort for the comfort and pleasure of those who depend upon him. He hardly has time to think about his own comfort or about himself. His pleasure is in the pleasure of those who depend upon him, his comfort is in their comfort.
  
  又有另一個人，他有家庭，有其他人需要掛念，也為他們工作。有時為了那些依靠他之人的舒適與快樂，他忘記了自己的享樂與舒適。他幾乎沒有時間想到自己的舒適，也沒有時間想到自己。他的快樂存在於那些依靠他之人的快樂之中，他的舒適也存在於他們的舒適之中。

• And there is still another man who tries to be useful to his town, to improve its condition, to help the education of the people of his town. He is engaged in this work, and very often he forgets himself in striving for the happiness of those for whom he is working.
  
  還有另一個人，努力使自己對所居住的城鎮有所助益，改善那裡的情況，幫助當地居民的教育。他投身於這項工作，並且常常在為那些人謀求幸福的努力中忘記自己。

• There are also those who live for their nation, who work for their nation, who give their whole life to it. They are only conscious of their nation.
  
  也有人為自己的國家而活，為自己的國家工作，把整個生命都奉獻給它。他們的意識之中只有自己的國家。

The consciousness of the latter is expanded; it becomes larger. There is very little difference in the size of men’s frames but there is a great difference in the expansion of man’s consciousness. There is one man who seems as large as he actually is; there is another who seems as large as his family, another who seems as large as his town, another who seems as large as his nation. And there are men who are as large as the world.

後者的意識已經擴展，變得更加廣大。人的身體大小彼此相差不多，然而人的意識所能擴展的程度，卻有極大的差異。有的人看起來就和他的身體一樣大；有的人彷彿和他的家庭一樣大，有的人和他的城鎮一樣大，有的人和他的國家一樣大。而有些人，則如整個世界一般廣大。

There is a saying of a Hindustani poet, “Neither the sea nor the land can be compared with the heart of man.”

一位印度斯坦詩人曾說：「無論大海或大地，都無法與人的心相比。」

If the heart of man is large, it is larger than the universe. Therefore if perfection can be explained in any terms, if perfection can be defined, it is in the expansion of man’s consciousness. The man who strives after this perfection need not know or learn what is selfish or unselfish. Unselfishness comes to him naturally, he becomes unselfish.

如果人的心足夠廣大，它便比宇宙更加廣大。因此，如果圓滿能以任何方式加以說明，如果圓滿能有所定義，那麼它就在於人的意識不斷擴展。追求這種圓滿的人，不需要特別去分辨或學習什麼是自私、什麼是無私。無私會自然地來到他身上，他自然成為無私的人。

In the last few years humanity has gone through a great catastrophe; all nations have suffered and have shared in it. Every individual, even every living creature on this earth has been affected by it. One might ask, what was lacking? Was education lacking? There are many schools and universities. Was religion lacking? There are many churches still, and many different beliefs still exist in the world. What was lacking was the understanding of the true meaning of religion. What was lacking was the understanding of the real meaning of education.

在過去幾年間，人類經歷了一場巨大的災難；所有國家都受了苦，也共同承受了它。每一個人，甚至地球上的每一個生命，都受到它的影響。我們或許會問：究竟缺少了什麼？缺少教育嗎？世上有許多學校與大學。缺少宗教嗎？依然有許多教堂，世界上也仍存在著許多不同的信仰。真正缺少的，是對宗教真義的理解；真正缺少的，是對教育真正意義的理解。

Those who have found out that perfection is attained by realizing the self within, have not attained it only by what man calls external worship; it was by self-abnegation in the true sense of the word. It is by going into that silence where one can forget the limitations of the self, that one can get in touch with that part of one’s being which is called perfection; and this can best be attained by those who have realized the meaning of life.

那些已經發現，圓滿是藉由體認內在的自我而抵達的人，並不是僅憑人們所謂的外在敬拜而抵達它；真正使他們抵達的，是放下對有限自我的執著。唯有進入那份寂靜，在其中忘卻自我的種種限制，我們才能觸及自身存在中那被稱為圓滿的部分；而那些已經體認生命意義的人，最能抵達這個境地。

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