ALL DAY THE fog had lasted, and as it cleared towards evening a wind sprang up from the east - a dry, harsh wind, blowing down the dead leaves and drying up the land. It was a tempestuous and menacing night; the wind had increased, the house creaked, and branches were being torn from the trees. The next morning the air was so clear you could almost touch the mountains. The heat had returned with the wind; but as the wind died in the late afternoon, the fog rolled in again from the sea.
雾持续了一整天， 它消失在傍晚时分，一阵风从东方吹来 —— 干燥、尖锐的风，吹掉了枯叶，吹干了土地。 这是一个狂暴和危险的夜。 风越吹越猛，房子吱吱作响，树枝从树上撕裂掉下。 第二天早上，空气非常干净，你几乎可以触摸到山脉。 温度随着风而回升。 但随着傍晚的临近，风消失了，雾气又从海上滚滚而来。
How extraordinarily beautiful and rich the earth is! There is no tiring of it. The dry river beds are full of living things: gorse, poppies, tall yellow sunflowers. On the boulders there are lizards; a brown and white ringed king snake is sunning itself, its black tongue shooting in and out, and across the ravine a dog is barking, pursuing a gopher or a rabbit.
地球是多么美丽和丰饶！却不知疲倦。 干涸的河床上到处都是生物：金雀花、罂粟花、高大的黄色向日葵。 巨石上有些蜥蜴； 一条棕色和白色的环状王蛇正在晒太阳，它那黑色的舌头进进出出， 在峡谷中，一只狗正在吠叫，在追逐一只地鼠或兔子。
Contentment is never the outcome of fulfilment, of achievement, or of the possession of things; it is not born of action or inaction. It comes with the fullness of what is, not in the alteration of it. That which is full does not need alteration, change. It is the incomplete which is trying to become complete that knows the turmoil of discontent and change. The what is is the incomplete, it is not the complete. The complete is unreal, and the pursuit of the unreal is the pain of discontent which can never be healed. The very attempt to heal that pain is the search for the unreal, from which arises discontent. There is no way out of discontent. To be aware of discontent is to be aware of what is, and in the fullness of it there is a state which may be called contentment. It has no opposite.
知足从来不是满足、成就或占有财物的结果； 它不是由行动或不行动而产生的。 它是现实的充盈，而不是对它的变更。 那充盈的，不需要变更、改动。 正是那些不完整的，尝试变得完整的人， 才知晓失意和无常的骚乱。 现实是不完整的，它不是这种完整。 这种完整是不真实的， 追求这种不真实，就是永远无法愈合的不满的痛苦。 尝试去治疗这种痛苦，就是寻找虚幻，从而产生失意。 没有办法摆脱不满。 意识到不满，就是意识到现实， 在它的充盈中，有一种状态可以被称之为‘知足’。 它，没有对立面。
The house overlooked the valley, and the highest peak of the distant mountains was aglow with the setting sun. Its rocky mass seemed hung from the sky and alight from within, and in the darkening room the beauty of that light was beyond all measure.
房屋俯瞰着山谷， 远处山脉的最高峰，被夕阳照亮。 它的岩块似乎悬挂在天上，从里面被点燃， 在黑暗的房间里，那光的美超越了衡量。
He was a youngish man, eager and searching. "I have read several books on religion and religious practices, on meditation and the various methods advocated for attaining the highest. I was at one time drawn to Communism, but soon found that it was a retrogressive movement in spite of the many intellectuals who belonged to it. I was also attracted to Catholicism. Some of its doctrines pleased me and for a time I thought of becoming a Catholic; but one day, while talking to a very learned priest, I suddenly perceived how similar Catholicism was to the prison of Communism. During my wanderings as a sailor on a tramp ship I went to India and spent nearly a year there, and I thought of becoming a monk; but that was too withdrawn from life and too idealistically unreal. I tried living alone in order to meditate, but that too came to an end. After all these years I still seem to be utterly incapable of controlling my thoughts, and this is what I want to talk about. Of course I have other problems, sex and so on, but if I were completely the master of my thoughts I could then manage to curb my burning desires and urges."
他是个年轻人，热切而期盼。 “我读过几本关于宗教和宗教实践的书， 关于冥想和各种方法的书，这些方法是为了达到最高境界。 我曾经被共产主义所吸引， 但很快就发现，尽管有许多知识分子属于共产主义， 但它是一场倒退的运动。 我也被天主教所吸引。它的一些教义让我感到高兴， 有一段时间我想成为一名天主教徒。 但有一天，在与一位非常有学问的神父交谈时， 我突然意识到天主教与共产主义的监狱是多么地相似。 在我作为水手在一艘流浪船上流浪期间，我去了印度， 在那里度过了近一年，我想成为一名僧侣。 但这太远离生活，太理想主义地不切实际。 我试着独自生活，以便于冥想，但这也结束了。 这么多年过去了， 我似乎仍然无法完全控制自己的思想， 这就是我想说的。 当然，我还有其它问题，性等等， 但如果我完全是我思想的主人， 我就可以设法抑制我燃烧的欲望和冲动。
Will the controlling of thought lead to the calming of desire, or merely to its suppression, which will in turn bring other and deeper problems? "You are of course not advocating giving way to desire. Desire is the way of thought, and in my attempts to control thought I had hoped to subjugate my desires. Desires have either to be subjugated or sublimated, but even to sublimate them they must first be held in check. Most of the teachers insist that desires must be transcended, and they prescribe various methods to bring this about."
对思想的控制会导致欲望的平静吗， 还是仅仅会导致欲望被压制，反过来，又引发出其它更深层的问题？ “你当然不是在提倡纵欲。 欲望是思考的方式， 在我试图控制思想的过程中，我希望征服我的欲望。 欲望要么被征服，要么升华， 即使要升华它们，也必须首先加以控制和检测。 大多数老师坚持认为必须超越欲望， 他们规定了各种方法来实现这一目标。”
Apart from what others have said, what do you think? Will mere control of desire resolve the many problems of desire? Will suppression or sublimation of desire bring about the understanding of it or free you from it? Through some occupation, religious or otherwise, the mind can be disciplined every hour of the day. But an occupied mind is not a free mind, and surely it is only the free mind that can be aware of timeless creativity.
除了别人怎么说，你自己怎么看？ 仅仅控制欲望，就能解决与欲望相关的许多问题吗？ 欲望的压抑或升华 会带来对它的理解吗，还是会让你从中解脱？ 通过某种占有，不论是宗教的或其他的， 头脑可以在一天中的每一小时都受到管制。 但是，一个被占据的头脑不是一个自由的头脑， 当然，只有自由的头脑才能意识到非时间的创造力。
"Is there no freedom in transcending desire?"
“超越欲望不能出现自由吗？”
What do you mean by transcending desire? "For the realization of one's own happiness, and also of the highest, it is necessary not to be driven by desire, not to be caught in its turmoil and confusion. To have desire under control, some form of subjugation is essential. Instead of pursuing the trivial things of life, that very same desire can search out the sublime."
你说的超越欲望是什么意思？ “为了实现自己的快乐，也为了实现那最高的， 就必须不被欲望所驱使，不被欲望卷入它的骚动和困惑之中。 为了控制欲望，某种形式的征服是必不可少的。 与其追求生命中的琐碎， 还不如用欲望来探索崇高。”
You may change the object of desire from a house to knowledge, from the low to the very highest, but it is still the activity of desire, is it not? One may not want worldly recognition, but the urge to attain heaven is still the pursuit of gain. Desire is ever seeking fulfilment, attainment, and it is this movement of desire which must be understood and not driven away or under. Without understanding the ways of desire, mere control of thought has little significance.
你可以改变欲望的对象 从一套房子转变到知识，从低到最高， 但它仍然是欲望的活动，不是吗？ 一个人可能不想要世俗的认可， 但进入天堂的冲动仍然是对利益的追求。 欲望永远在寻求满足、实现， 正是这种欲望的运动，必须被理解，而不是被驱逐或被压制。 如果不理解欲望的方式，仅仅去控制思想，就没有什么意义。
"But I must come back to the point from which I started. Even to understand desire, concentration is necessary, and that is my whole difficulty. I can't seem to control my thoughts. They wander all over the place tumbling over each other. There is not a single thought that is dominant and continuous among all the irrelevant thoughts."
“但我必须回到我开始的地点。 即使要理解欲望，集中注意力也是必要的，这就是我的全部困难。 我似乎无法控制自己的思想。 他们到处游荡，互相打滚。 在所有无关紧要的思想中， 没有一个思想占据着主导地位和具有持续性。
The mind is like a machine that is working night and day, chattering, everlastingly busy whether asleep or awake. It is speedy and as restless as the sea. Another part of this intricate and complex mechanism tries to control the whole movement, and so begins the conflict between opposing desires, urges. One may be called the higher self and the other the lower self, but both are within the area of the mind. The action and reaction of the mind, of thought, are almost simultaneous and almost automatic. This whole conscious and unconscious process of accepting and denying, conforming and striving to be free, is extremely rapid. So the question is not how to control this complex mechanism, for control brings friction and only dissipates energy, but can this very swift mind slow down?
头脑就像一台机器 在日夜不停地工作、闲扯、总是在忙碌，无论是睡眠还是清醒的时候。 它很迅速，像大海一样不休止。 在这个错综复杂的机器里，其中的一个部分试图控制整台机器的运转， 从而产生了相互对立的欲望、冲动，滋生出相互之间的冲突。 这个部分可以被称之为‘高等的自我’，其余的部分被称为‘低等的自我’， 但两者都在头脑的领域内。 在思想领域内的行动和反应 几乎是同时的，甚至几乎是自动的。 在有意识和无意识的整个领域内， 接受与拒绝，服从与争取自由，这些行为是极其地迅捷。 所以，问题不在于如何控制这台复杂的机器， 因为控制产生摩擦，摩擦只会耗散能量， 但是，这个快速运转的头脑能慢下来吗？
"But how?"
“可是如何做呢？”
If it may be pointed out, sir, the issue is not the 'how'. The 'how' merely produces a result, an end without much significance; and after it is gained, another search for another desirable end will begin, with its misery and conflict. "Then what is one to do?"
如果可以指出来，先生， 问题不在于“如何”。 “如何”只会产生一个结果，一个没有多大意义的目标； 在获得它之后，对另一个想要的目标的追寻将会开始， 同时伴随着它的痛苦和冲突。 “那该怎么办呢？”
You are not asking the right question are you? You are not discovering for yourself the truth or falseness of the slowing down of the mind, but you are concerned with getting a result. Getting a result is comparatively easy, isn't it? Is it possible for the mind to slow down without putting on brakes?
你没有问正确的问题，不是吗？ 你没有亲自己去发现头脑减速的真假， 而是在关心收获一个果实。 得到一个结果是相对容易的，不是吗？ 头脑有可能在不踩刹车的情况下减速吗？
"What do you mean by slowing down?"
“你说的减速是什么意思？”
When you are going very fast in a car, the nearby landscape is a blur; it is only at a walking speed that you can observe in detail the trees, the birds and the flowers. Self-knowledge comes with the slowing down of the mind, but that doesn't mean forcing the mind to be slow. Compulsion only makes for resistance, and there must be no dissipation of energy in the slowing down of the mind. This is so, isn't it?
当你在车里开得非常快时，附近的风景是模糊的； 只有在步行的速度下，您才能详细地观察树木、鸟儿和花朵。 对自我的认知伴随着头脑的减速， 但这并不意味着强迫头脑慢下来。 强迫只会产生阻力， 头脑在减速的时候，一定不能有能量的耗散。 就是这样，不是吗？
"I think I am beginning to see that the effort one makes to control thought is wasteful, but I don't understand what else is to be done."
“我想我开始看到一个人为了控制思想所做的努力是徒劳的， 但我不理解，还有什么可做呢。”
We haven't yet come to the question of action, have we? We are trying to see that it is important for the mind to slow down, we are not considering how to slow it down. Can the mind slowdown? And when does this happen? "I don't know, I have never thought of it before."
我们还没有提出有关‘做’的问题，不是吗？ 我们试图看到，头脑慢下来，是很重要的， 我们不是在考虑如何放慢它。头脑会慢下来吗？ 什么时候会发生这种情况？ “我不知道，我以前从未想过。”
Have you not noticed, sir that while you are watching something the mind slows down? When you watch that car moving along the road down there, or look intently at any physical object, is not your mind functioning more slowly? Watching, observing, does slow down the mind. Looking at a picture, an image, an object, helps to quiet the mind, as does the repetition of a phrase; but then the object or the phrase becomes very important, and not the slowing down of the mind and what is discovered thereby.
你有没有注意到，先生，当你在看某个东西的时候，头脑会放慢速度？ 当你看着那辆车沿着公路往下移动， 或者专心致志地看任何物体时，你的头脑不是运转得更慢了吗？ 观看，观察，确实会减缓头脑的速度。 看一幅图画、一幅图像、一个物体，有助于使头脑安静下来， 就像重复一个词语一样； 但那时，对象或词语变得非常重要， 而不是头脑的减速以及由此而被发现的什么。
"I am watching what you are explaining, and there is an awareness of the stillness of the mind."
“我正在看你在解释什么， 并且意识到了头脑的静止。”
Do we ever really watch anything, or do we interpose between the observer and the observed a screen of various prejudices, values, judgments, comparisons, condemnations? "It is almost impossible not to have this screen. I don't think I am capable of observing in an inviolate manner."
我们是否曾经真正观察过任何东西， 或者我们是否在观察者和被观察者之间插入了 各种偏见、价值观、判断、比较、谴责的屏幕？ “几乎不可能没有这种屏障。 我不认为我有能力以一种不受污染的方式进行观察。”
If it may be suggested, don't block yourself by words or by a conclusion, positive or negative. Can there be observation without this screen? To put it differently, is there attention when the mind is occupied? It is only the unoccupied mind that can attend. The mind is slow, alert, when there is watchfulness, which is the attention of an unoccupied mind.
如果可以建议， 请别用言语或结论来阻碍自己，无论它是积极的还是消极的。 没有了这张屏幕，还有观察吗？ 换句话说，当头脑被占据时，会有关注吗？ 只有未被占据的头脑，才能照看。 头脑是缓慢的、警觉的， 那么，就出现了警醒，一个不被占据的头脑的关注。
"I am beginning to experience what you are saying, sir."
“我开始体会到你在说什么，先生。”
Let us examine it a little further. If there is no evaluation, no screen between the observer and the observed, is there then a separation, a division between them? Is not the observer the observed? "I am afraid I don't follow."
让我们进一步检测。 如果没有评估，观察者和被观察者之间没有屏幕， 那么它们之间是否存在着分离和划分？ 观察者不就是被观察者吗？ “恐怕我没有理解。”
The diamond cannot be separated from its qualities, can it? The feeling of envy cannot be separated from the experiencer of that feeling, though an illusory division does exist which breeds conflict, and in this conflict the mind is caught. When this false separation disappears, there is a possibility of freedom, and only then is the mind still. It is only when the experiencer ceases that there is the creative movement of the real.
钻石不能与它的品质分开，不是吗？ 嫉妒的感觉不能与这种感觉的体验者分开， 尽管确实存在一种虚幻的分裂，这种分裂滋生出冲突， 在这种冲突中，头脑被抓起来了。 当这种虚幻的分离消失时，就有了自由的可能， 只有这样，头脑才能停下。 只有当体验者停止时，才有真实的、创造性的运动。