pingu的家

第二章
起點1
痛苦的原因存在於我們每個人之內。當我們了解了自己的實相，就可以體認出這個問題的解決之道。
所有的智者都告訴我們：認識自己。我們必須從認識自身的本質著手，否則就永遠不可能解決自己
的煩惱，或是這個世界的種種問題。
但是我們究竟對自己了解多少呢？我們每個人都深信自己很重要、很獨特，但是我對自己的認識
都只是浮面的。在較深入的層次上，我們對自己一點都不了解。
佛陀透過對其自身本質的研究，來研究人的現象。他鄙棄所有的成見，探討內在的實相，領悟到
每個人都是五種運作過程的聚合體，其中四種是心理的，一種是身體的。

身（物質）

讓我們從身體的層面開始。這是最顯而易見、最清楚明白的部分，很容易就能由感官覺察到。
但是我們對它真正的了解，卻是少之又少。表面上看起來，人可以隨著他的意志控制身體的行動。
但是就另一個層面而言，所有體內的器官都不受我們的控制，它們在我們不知情的情況下運作。
就更細微的層面而言，身體的每一個細胞內，不斷發生的生化反應，我們完全沒有體驗、一無所知。
然而這個層次還不是物質現象的最終實相。追究到最後，這個看似堅固實在的身體，是由許多次原子
粒子和空間所構成的。更有甚者，即使這些次原子粒子，也不具堅實性。一個次原子粒子存在的時間，
比一兆分之一秒還要短暫。這些粒子持續不斷地生起、滅去，存在又逝去，就像一股振動之流。
這就是佛陀在兩千五百年前所發現關於身體以及所有物質的最終實相。
現代科學家經由親自研究，已經認同並且接受這個有關物質世界的最終實相。然而，他們卻沒有解脫
、開悟。基於好奇心，他們研究宇宙的本質，並運用聰明才智以及各種儀器證實他們的理論。相對地，
佛陀的動機並非僅是好奇，而是為了尋得離苦之道。除了運用自己的心去探究真理之外，他沒有使用
其他的工具。他所發現的真理，不是運用聰明才智的結果，而是他親身驗證所得到的。這就是佛陀
得以解脫的原因。
佛陀發現整個物質世界是由許多粒子所組成，巴利文稱其為kalapas（極微），「小得不可再分割的單位」。
這些粒子以不斷的變化，呈現出物質的基本特性：軟硬的性質（地）、黏著的性質（水）、冷熱的性質（火）
、和動的性質（風）。它們結合在一起，組成各種結構，似乎有某些恆常性，但事實上，都是由極其微小的
「極微」組合而成的，它們不斷地生起又滅去。這就是物質的最終實相：波動或粒子的持續之流。
而這就是每個人自稱為「我」的這個血肉之驅。
註:地是身體的骨肉筋,水是身體的血,火是體溫,風是身體呼吸氧氣.通常說生病就是地水火風四大不調.

Chapter 2
THE STARTING POINT

The source of suffering lies within each of us. When we understand our own reality,
we shall recognize the solution to the problem of suffering.

“Know thyself,”all wise persons have advised. We must begin by knowingour own nature;
otherwise we can never solve our own problems or the problems of the world.

But actually what do we know about ourselves？We are each convinced of
the importance of ourselves, of the uniqueness of ourselves, but our knowledge of
ourselves is only superficial. At deeper levels, we do not know ourselves at all.

The Buddha examined the phenomenon of a human being by examining his own nature.
Laying aside all preconceptions, he explored reality within and realized that
every being is a composite of five processes, four of them mental and one physical.

Matter

Let us begin with the physical aspect. This is the most obvious, the most apparent portion
of ourselves, readily perceived by all the senses. And yet how little we really know about it.
Superficially one can control the body：it moves and acts according to the conscious will.
But on another level, all the internal organs function beyond our control, without our knowledge.
At a subtler level, we know nothing, experientially, of the incessant biochemical reactions occurring
within each cell of the body. But this is still not the ultimate reality of the material phenomenon.
Ultimately the seemingly solid body is composed of subatomic particles and empty space.
What is more, even these subatomic particles have no real solidity；the existence span of
one of them is much less than a trillionth of a second. Particles continuously arise and vanish,
passing into and out of existence, like a flow of vibrations. This is the ultimate reality of the body,
of all matter, discovered by the Buddha 2500 years ago.

Through their own investigations, modern scientists have recognized and accepted this
ultimate realityof the material universe. However, these scientists have not become
liberated, enlightened persons.Out of curiosity they have investigated the nature
of the universe, using their intellectsand relying on instruments to verify their theories.
In contrast, the Buddha was motivated not simply by curiosity but rather by the wish
to find a way out of suffering.He used no instrument in his investigation other
than his own mind. The truth that he discovered was the result not of intellectualizing
but of his own direct experience, and that is why it could liberate him.

He found that the entire material universe was composed of particles, called in Pali Kalapas,
or “indivisible units.” These units exhibit in endless variation the basic qualities of matter：
mass, cohesion, temperature, and movement. They combine to form structures which seem to
have some permanence. But actually these are all composed of minuscule kalapas
which are in a state of continuously arising and passing away. This is the ultimate
reality of matter：a constant stream of waves or particles.
This is the body which we each call “myself.”