真理Truth

有人來問我關(guān)于“真理”的消息1，這倒使我陷入了迷惘，無(wú)法作答。

“What’s truth？” someone asked me. I was at a loss for an answer.

如果以佛家的觀點(diǎn)來看，真理是無(wú)為的真如本體，是用來對(duì)照俗世那些有為事相的2。

From the Buddhist point of view， truth is the essence of transcendental nothingness in contrast to our worldly experiences.

假如這種說法是真的，那么，無(wú)心出岫的云、自由飄蕩的風(fēng)、美麗開放的花、飛過田野的鳥，到處都是真理。

If this is true， you can find truth where clouds drift mindlessly， where winds blow freely， where beautiful flowers blossom， and where birds fly over open fields.

佛家又說，不生不滅，非有相非無(wú)相、諸法的本來為真理3，是用來對(duì)照充滿生命的、分別的、混亂與執(zhí)著的紅塵世界。假如這種說法是真的，那么在蔚藍(lán)的天空與海洋、在飄浮于空中的草香、在白雪積了又融的山頭、在春夏秋冬都翠綠的山林中，也都飽含著真理。

Buddhism also holds that any truth about anything doesn’t involve a cycle of birth and death， that any talk about how it presents itself or refrains from presenting itself is irrelevant， and that what is deemed truth stands in contrast to a lively， diverse， and chaotic world where all mortals are consumed by worldly pursuits. If this is true， you can find truth in the blue skies and blue oceans， in the fragrance of grass floating in the air， at mountain peaks that see snow accumulate and melt periodically， and in mountains that stay green year-round.

可是，到處都在顯現(xiàn)的真理，我們是否能夠體驗(yàn)與覺知呢？

But while truth is everywhere， are we able to experience and become aware of it？

真理恒存，在偶然的一閃中，唯有能體驗(yàn)者可以相映，正如農(nóng)夫望著天空的閃電而知其意義。

Even though truth is forever there， it resonates only in an occasional flash with those who have experienced it， in a similar manner as any message a flash of lightning intends to send dawns upon a farmer when he stares at it.

真理無(wú)為4，隱藏于事相之內(nèi)，唯有能覺知者可以相得，正如筍農(nóng)觀土地痕跡而能找到春筍。

Truth doesn’t exert itself. It resides behind what’s visible， accessible only to those who can perceive it， in a similar manner as bamboo shoots in the ground can be located by a farmer who knows how to look for their traces.

真理是沒有隱藏的，有心的人就會(huì)找到。5

Truth doesn’t hide itself. If you’re mindful， you can find it.

我對(duì)那個(gè)來問的人說：“我也不能詮釋真理，我唯一知道的是，真理必須來自體驗(yàn)與覺知，必須是自己的，凡有所依賴、有所疑惑，那就不是。”

In the end， I answered， “I don’t know how to interpret truth. I know only that any truth must come from your own experience and must be something you’re personally aware of. Whatever depends on an understanding of anything else or gives you doubt is not truth.”

1 “消息”在這里不能采用其最常見的解釋，此處更接近于“含義”。“問我關(guān)于‘真理’的消息”可以譯成asked me about the meaning of “truth”或asked me about the idea of “truth”。" 2 作者的語(yǔ)言平易近人，用最平白的語(yǔ)言講述最深?yuàn)W的道理。這里涉及佛教理念，當(dāng)然有點(diǎn)晦澀抽象。翻譯時(shí)我們也應(yīng)從作者的思路出發(fā)，不必尋找“高深莫測(cè)”、鮮為人知的所謂“術(shù)語(yǔ)”，甚至梵語(yǔ)，而應(yīng)盡量用通俗的詞語(yǔ)解釋相關(guān)概念。什么是“無(wú)為”？一般指無(wú)所作為，用通俗的話來說，可以叫transcendental nothingness，這與“俗世那些有為事相”形成對(duì)照，而“俗世那些有為事相”用通俗語(yǔ)言可以解釋為worldly experiences。請(qǐng)大家記住，本文是通俗讀本，不是解釋佛教理念的論文。" 3 這里也涉及佛家理念，“不生不滅”不言自明，非常直接明了，翻譯時(shí)也可以從字面考慮，即doesn’t involve a cycle of birth and death。何為“有相”與“無(wú)相”？略顯得高深，其實(shí)，也就是字面意思。所謂“相”，就是指實(shí)際情形或表現(xiàn)形式。“有相”與“無(wú)相”就是how it presents itself or refrains from presenting itself。

4 “真理無(wú)為”是指真理本身不做什么，那就是：Truth is empty of effort. / Truth doesn’t involve effort. / Truth doesn’t exert itself." 5 翻譯時(shí)要注意分寸。對(duì)于“真理是沒有隱藏的，有心的人就會(huì)找到”，有人譯成：Truth is not hidden; dedication is the key to discovery. 另有人譯成：Truth is all around us. Seek it and you’ll find it. 兩個(gè)譯法都不確切，無(wú)論是dedication還是seek it，都表示一種努力，即“有為”，這與佛家理念背道而馳。“有心”用mindful表示比較恰當(dāng)。