..續本文上一頁her traditions try to deny.

　　早期佛教毫不諱言，困境就在于輪回于生、老、死的毫無意義。其教導並不試圖否認這個事實，因此不要求我們欺騙自己，或者裝著視而不見。如一位導師所說，佛教對現實之苦的確認──並且鄭重其事地尊之爲第一聖谛──是一件贈禮。它印證了我們對世事最敏感、最直接的體驗，而這種體驗是許多其它宗教傳統試圖否認的。

　　From there, the early teachings ask us to become even more sensitive, to the point where we see that the true cause of suffering is not out there — in society or some outside being — but in here, in the craving present in each inpidual mind. They then confirm that there is an end to suffering, a release from the cycle. And they show the way to that release, through developing noble qualities already latent in the mind to the point where they cast craving aside and open onto Deathlessness. Thus the predicament has a practical solution, a solution within the powers of every human being.

　　從那裏出發，早期佛教要求我們進一步提高敏感度，直到看見，造苦的真正原因不在那裏──不在外界社會，不在他人──而在這裏，在每個人內心的渴求。接著，它確認苦是可以止息的，輪回是可以脫離的。同時它指出了解脫之道──藉由長養內心潛在的尊貴素質，直到止息渴求、趨向涅槃。因此，困境有一條人人得以實踐的解脫之道。

　　It”s also a solution open to critical scrutiny and testing — an indication of how confident the Buddha was in the solution he found to the problem of samvega. This is one of the aspects of authentic Buddhism that most attracts people who are tired of being told that they should try to deny the insights that inspired their sense of samvega in the first place.

　　這條道之具有開放性，接受人們嚴格的審查與檢驗，也說明佛陀本人對于解決厭離感的難題何等有把握。對那些倦于受人勸解、拒絕否認引生厭離感的原初領悟的人來說，這也是真正的佛教最吸引他們的原因。

　　In fact, Buddhism is not only confident that it can handle feelings of samvega but it”s also one of the few religions that actively cultivates them to a radical extent. Its solution to the problems of life demand so much dedicated effort that only strong samvega will keep the practicing Buddhist from slipping back into his or her old ways. Hence the recommendation that all Buddhists, both men and women, lay or ordained, should reflect daily on the facts of aging, illness, separation, and death — to develop feelings of samvega — and on the power of one”s own actions, to take samvega one step further, to pasada.

　　實際上，佛教不僅對解決厭離感的問題足有把握，也是少數幾個鼓勵從根本上長養此心的宗教之一。對于人生困境的解決之道要求如此專注的修持，只有具備了強烈的厭離感，才能夠確保行者不至松懈退步、回複舊習。故有此番教誡: 無分男女、在家出家，每日籍省思老病離死，長養厭離之感，下一步，藉由個人自身行動之力，將厭離升華爲清淨。

　　For people whose sense of samvega is so strong that they want to abandon any social ties that prevent them from following the path to the end of suffering, Buddhism offers both a long-proven body of wisdom for them to draw from, as well as a safety net: the monastic sangha, an institution that enables them to leave lay society without having to waste time worrying about basic survival. For those who can”t leave their social ties, Buddhist teaching offers a way to live in the world without being overcome by the world, following a life of generosity, virtue, and meditation to strengthen the noble qualities of the mind that will lead to the end of suffering. The close, symbiotic relationship maintained between these two branches of the Buddhist parisa, or following, guarantees that the monastics don”t turn into misfits and misanthropes, and that the laity don”t lose touch with the values that will keep their practice alive.

　　對于厭離心強，有志于離開世俗糾葛、減少解脫道上的障礙者，佛教既提供了一套久經考驗的智慧體系，也提供了僧伽的安全網，這個機構使他們得以離開居家社會，基本生存條件無虞。對于離不開世俗關系者，佛教提供了一套居世而不受其染的生活方式，以布施、持戒與禅定，增強心智中趨向解脫的的尊貴品質。佛教僧俗(parisa)這兩個分支的緊密共生關系，保證了僧侶們免于成爲邊緣人與厭世者，居士們得以繼續接觸保持其修行活力的根本價值。

　　So the Buddhist attitude toward life cultivates samvega — a strong sense of the meaninglessness of the cycle of birth, aging, and death — and develops it into pasada: a confident path to the Deathless. That path includes not only time-proven guidance, but also a social institution that nurtures it and keeps it alive. These are all things that our society desperately needs. In our current efforts at mainstreaming Buddhism, we should remember that one source of Buddhism”s strength is its ability to keep one foot out of the mainstream, and that the traditional metaphor for the practice is that it crosses over the stream to the further shore.

《印證心靈真谛——佛教的“厭離”與“清淨”》全文閱讀結束。