金刚乘的精髓

During one of Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche’s visits to Antwerp, some of his Brussels-based friends asked Brussels Rigpa if they could use the centre for a day-long tsok practice. Naturally, the Brussels Sangha were delighted and immediately agreed. And, naturally, they were also determined to make the most of Rinpoche’s visit. So they asked him to teach them about The Essence of the Vajrayana.

乌金督佳仁波切一次访问安特卫普时，一些住在布鲁塞尔的朋友询问当地 本觉会，能否借用中心，修一天荟供。布鲁塞尔的僧团自然非常高兴，立刻答应了。自然，他们也决定充分利用仁波切来访的机会，于是请他讲授金刚乘的精髓。

As several of my former monks live in Belgium, I came here, few years ago, to perform a drupchen practice with them. I’m here again today because it seemed the right time for me to do another practice with them, called ‘Ngakso’ (Ocean of Amrita: A Vajrayana practice of Mending and Purification). At first, they thought we could do this practice in the Kagyu monastery near Antwerp, where we did the drupchen. But I thought it’d be better to practise here, in the Brussels Rigpa centre. So we got in touch and I am very grateful that you agreed to let us practise here.

我以前的几位僧人住在比利时，因此几年前，我来到这里，与他们一起修过一次大修。今天再次前来，是觉得时机适合，想与他们修另一部名为「密咒酬忏」的法，也就是《甘露海：金刚乘酬补与净化修法》。起初，他们想在安特卫普附近、上次举行大修的噶举寺院修。但我认为，来布鲁塞尔 本觉会 中心会更好。因此，我们联系了这里。你们同意让我们在此修法，我非常感激。

You also asked if, after the session tonight, I would talk about the practice of Secret Mantra Vajrayana. You should know that I don’t usually give this kind of teaching and that I’m only doing it now as a way of serving Sogyal Rinpoche. Whenever I go to Rigpa centres, I do everything he asks of me, because I want to help him. This is the only reason I agreed to say a few words to you tonight.

你们也问，今晚这座修法之后，我能否谈一谈秘密真言金刚乘的修持。你们应知道，我平常不讲这类教法，现在这样做，只是为了服务索甲仁波切。每当到 本觉会 中心，他请我做什么，我都会去做，因为想帮助他。这是我答应今晚向你们说几句话的唯一原因。

The first thing you need to understand is that all the sentient beings living in this world – ‘the sentient beings of the three realms of existence’ – are a product of mind. And as all sentient beings have been manufactured by mind, they are all under the influence of delusion. When we’re not under the power of delusion, we are buddhas. Therefore, sentient beings and buddhas share the same ground. That ground is called ‘buddha nature’; it is present in all sentient beings and the cause of enlightenment.

首先需要理解，住在这个世界的一切众生，也就是「三界众生」，都是心的产物。既然一切众生由心造作，就都受迷乱影响。不受迷乱支配时，我们就是佛。因此，众生与佛具有相同的根基。这个根基称为「佛性」，存在于一切众生之中，是觉悟之因。

As the buddhas have recognized their mind’s delusions, they are free. Whereas sentient beings, who have not recognized their delusions for what they are, are not free; they have been spinning around and around on the wheel of samsara from time immemorial.

诸佛认识了自心的迷乱，所以自在解脱。众生未能如实认清自己的迷乱，所以不自在；自无始以来，不断在轮回之轮上转来转去。

Samsara has but one quality: suffering. Nothing else. On a very superficial level, the three realms of existence that are samsara give the impression of being quite pleasant, even enjoyable. But if you examine samsara in greater detail, the more you look, the more clearly you will see that it is nothing but suffering. Why is it so difficult for us to recognize the intense suffering that we find ourselves in? Because we are completely blinded by the obscurations of karma, negative emotions and habitual tendencies.

轮回只有一种特征：苦。除此之外，再无其他。从非常表面的层面看，轮回三界似乎还算愉快，甚至让人享受。但若详细观察，越看就越清楚，它无非是苦。为什么我们如此难以认识自己身处的剧苦？因为业、烦恼与习气的障蔽，完全遮住了我们的眼睛。

If you’d take the trouble to examine this place we’re stuck in – samsara – and the problems that beset us here, you’d see them all. The Buddha Shakyamuni often spoke in great detail about the trials and tribulations of samsara. And when he spoke, he never once invented a single thing that he hadn’t seen for himself. All he did was look at our reality then describe it, exactly as it is.

如果肯花心思，考察这个困住我们的地方——轮回——以及在此围困我们的种种问题，就会看见它们。释迦牟尼佛常常十分详细地讲解轮回的苦难。他说法时，从未编造任何自己不曾亲见的事。他只是观察我们的现实，然后如其本来，准确描述。

The Bhagavan Buddha Shakyamuni himself spent a great deal of time in samsara – an infinite number of eons. And having realized its problems, it was in samsara that he attained liberation. This is how he was able to describe the shortcomings of samsara in such detail. In The Words of My Perfect Teacher, you will find a chapter called ‘The Defects of Samsara’. Read it and you’ll realize for yourself how problematic samsara really is.

世尊释迦牟尼佛自己，也曾长久住在轮回中，经历无量劫。认识到轮回的问题之后，他正是在轮回中获得解脱。因此，他才能如此详细地说明轮回的过患。在《普贤上师言教》中，你会找到一章，叫作「轮回过患」。读一读，就会亲自明白，轮回究竟有多少问题。

Once we acknowledge our situation and are clear about samsara’s problems, it’s very likely that we become eager to learn how to free ourselves from it. How to free ourselves is precisely what, out of his immense kindness, the Buddha taught.

一旦承认自己的处境，清楚轮回的问题，很可能就会迫切想知道，如何从中解脱。佛陀出于极大慈悲所教的，正是如何解脱。

There’s not enough time today to go into ‘The Defects of Samsara’, so you can look into it for yourselves. Once you know what these defects are, you’ll see them everywhere. You’ll realize that samara – all phenomena – has no solidity, no reality and is by nature impermanent. Actually, there people all over the world, not just Buddhists, who can see just how terrible samsara really is – those, for example, who commit suicide.

今天没有足够时间详讲「轮回过患」，你们可以自己研究。一旦知道这些过患是什么，就会处处看见。你会认识到，轮回，也就是一切现象，没有坚实性，没有真实性，本性无常。事实上，世界各地都有不只是佛教徒的人，能够看出轮回多么可怕，例如那些自杀的人。

There are so many methods for freeing ourselves and every religion has its own approach. Some explain that what Buddhists call samsara and karma was created by the ‘All-mighty’. However, Buddha Shakyamuni taught us that samsara wasn’t created by any one being, it is the product of our karma.

解脱自己的方法很多，每种宗教都有自己的途径。有些解释说，佛教徒所称的轮回与业，是由「全能者」创造的。然而，释迦牟尼佛教导我们，轮回不是任何一个众生创造的，而是我们业的产物。

In fact, it is said that, "The world is the product of karma". In other words our actions create the world. Since I created this world through my own actions, the methods for freeing myself can also only come from me. I cannot and do not need to rely on anyone else. If, as other religions believe, the world of the three realms of existence, samsara, had been created by an almighty being, I wouldn’t be able to do anything at all about my situation.

事实上，经中说：「世间由业所生。」换句话说，我们的行为创造世界。既然我通过自己的行为创造了这个世界，那么，使自己解脱的方法也只能来自自己。我不能，也不需要依赖任何别人。如果像其他宗教所信，轮回三界由一位全能者创造，那对于自己的处境，我就完全无能为力。

The Bhagavan Buddha – the complete and perfect awakened one graced with omniscient wisdom – followed the path until he finally attained liberation. He therefore experienced samsara. The Buddha then explained the situation we face in samsara, the methods we can use to liberate ourselves from it, and what, once we’ve attained liberation, the omniscience of a buddha looks like. Everything he taught was based on what he himself had seen; and he shared all his experiences in order to help others. Such is the teaching of the Buddha.

世尊佛陀，这位具足遍知智慧、圆满觉悟者，沿道修持，最终获得解脱。因此，他亲身经历过轮回。随后，佛陀解释了我们在轮回中面对的处境、可以运用的解脱方法，以及解脱之后佛的遍知智慧是什么样子。他所教的一切，都以自己亲见为基础；为了帮助别人，他分享全部经验。这就是佛陀的教法。

The Buddha presents three vehicles in his teachings, which can be subdivided into nine. When he first began to teach, Buddha took into account the capacities and diverse dispositions of sentient beings. In spite of this infinite variety, beings can be categorized into three: those who have superior, average and lower capacities. These three rather broad categories can also be refined. Those with superior capacities can be broken down into smaller groups: the best superior capacities or ‘superior-superior', average superior capacities or ‘superior-average', and the least good superior capacities or ‘superior-lower'. The same designations apply to the second category, those with average capacities who have ‘average-superior’ capacities, ‘average-average’ capacities or ‘average-lower’ capacities. Similarly, those with lower capacities will include those who have a little more capacity than the others or ‘lower-superior’ capacities, those with ‘lower-average’ capacities, and the lowest who have ‘lower-lower’ capacities.

佛陀的教法分为三乘，又可细分为九乘。最初说法时，佛陀考虑了众生的能力与不同根性。尽管差异无穷，仍可将众生分成三类：上根、中根与下根。这三个相当宽泛的类别，还能细分。上根可分为更小的组别：上根中最好的「上上根」，中等的「上中根」，以及稍次的「上下根」。同样的区分，也适用于第二类中根者：有「中上根」「中中根」与「中下根」。下根者也一样：能力比同类稍好的是「下上根」，其次是「下中根」，最低的是「下下根」。

What causes this variation in capacity among sentient beings? From the point of view of the ground, buddha nature, there is no difference between us whatsoever; buddha nature is the basis of buddhahood for everyone. The differences lie in the quantity of obscurations. We are unable to see our buddha nature because obscurations conceal it, and each of us has a different thickness or density of obscuration. This is where we are all different.

什么造成众生根机的差异？从根基，也就是佛性的角度看，我们之间毫无差别；佛性是人人成佛的基础。差异在于障蔽的多少。由于障蔽遮住佛性，我们看不见它，而每个人的障蔽，厚薄、浓淡各有不同。我们的差别就在这里。

Our temporary obscurations cast a shadow over our buddha nature. Those whose obscurations are the thickest are only capable of having thoughts of desire, aversion, ignorance, jealousy and pride – these are the only kinds of thought that arise in their minds.

暂时的障蔽，使佛性蒙上阴影。障蔽最厚重的人，只能生起贪、嗔、痴、嫉妒与傲慢的念头；他们心中只生起这些念头。

For example, if your predominant negative emotion – the emotion that has motivated you for thousands of lives and whole eons – is strong aversion, there’s a good chance that you’ll be reborn in the form of a snake. If you look at snakes carefully, you will see that the moment they hatch, their disposition is already very aggressive. Similarly, even if you are born in a human form, you will be born with the tendency to flare up in anger and to have strong aversions. The same reasoning can be applied to all the other negative emotions – desire, ignorance, jealousy and pride.

例如，如果你主要的烦恼，也就是在数千世、整整许多劫中驱动你的情绪，是强烈嗔恨，那么很可能投生为蛇。仔细看蛇，就会发现，它们刚孵化时，性情已经很有攻击性。同样，即使生为人，也会天生容易暴怒、强烈排斥。对其他烦恼，贪、痴、嫉妒与傲慢，也可以作相同推论。

From the point of view of the spiritual path, those who have cultivated these habitual tendencies for a long time are described as people with ‘lower capacities’. To give you an example, when a pure white cloth gets dropped in wet mud we can no longer see any white at all. But if the cloth is just a bit grubby, we can still make out that its true colour is white. If the cloth is slightly smeared with black streaks, we can easily see that the cloth is white streaked with black. In the same way, the various capacities of sentient beings are defined by the depth of their obscurations, which are produced by negative emotions.

从修行道的角度，长久培养这些习气的人，被称为「下根」。举例说，一块纯白布掉进湿泥里，我们便再也看不见一点白色。但如果只是有些脏，还能辨认它本来是白的。如果只沾了少许黑痕，就很容易看出，这是一块带黑痕的白布。同样，众生不同的根机，依其烦恼所生障蔽的深浅而定。

Everyone, whether we are of superior, average or lower capacity, must use our own intelligence to evaluate our mind and see where we are at. Intelligence is the wisdom within us, but when our obscurations are very dense, wisdom cannot express itself. Those of average capacity will, from time to time, enjoy a burst of wisdom. Those of superior capacity only need to hear a short explanation on a point of Dharma to understand it; and they are also capable of recognizing the various implications that relate to other aspects of Dharma. So clearly, for a practitioner, wisdom – or intelligence – is the most important quality on the path.

无论上根、中根还是下根，每个人都必须运用自己的智力，评估自心，看看处于什么程度。智力就是内在的智慧；但障蔽很浓厚时，智慧无法展现。中根的人，偶尔会有智慧的闪现。上根的人，只须听到对一个法义的简短解释，就能理解，也能认识它与其他法义相联系的种种含义。所以，显然对修行者而言，智慧，或者说智力，是道上最重要的品质。

Therefore, if you wish to become a Buddhist, the first thing you must understand is that there’s no point in waiting for solutions to your problems to come from the outside; you yourself must examine your own situation and your own mind.

因此，若想成为佛教徒，首先必须明白：等待外界送来解决问题的方法，没有意义；你必须亲自审视自己的处境与自心。

For us, "the authentic master, the complete and perfect awakened buddha” is a teacher, and a teacher is a person who teaches. All our teacher, the Buddha, could do was show us what to adopt and what to avoid, because when it comes to how we act, it’s up to us. We will always do what we want to do, so, the Buddha can only show us what we should do. It’s then up to us whether we do it, or not. If Buddha could enlighten all sentient beings himself, without us having to do anything at all, there would no longer be any such thing as ‘sentient beings’ because we would all already have been liberated.

对我们而言，「真实导师、圆满正觉佛陀」是一位老师，老师就是教导的人。我们的导师佛陀，所能做的，就是指出应取、应舍，因为实际如何行动，取决于我们自己。我们总会做自己想做的事，因此佛陀只能指出我们应该怎么做。之后，做不做，由我们决定。如果我们什么都不必做，佛陀就能亲自使一切众生觉悟，那么「众生」这种情况就早已不存在，因为我们早已全部解脱了。

We must reflect on the Dharma that the Buddha so kindly explained to us, and by meditating and by using our own intelligence, we must then apply it. We are all perfectly free and it’s entirely up to each one of us whether or not we follow the path. This is why the Buddha said:

我们必须思惟佛陀慈悲为我们解释的法，再通过禅修、运用自己的智力，付诸实践。我们全都自由，是否遵循这条道路，完全由每个人自己决定。因此，佛陀说：

I have shown you the methods
That lead to liberation.
But you should know
That liberation depends upon yourself.^[1]

我已向你指出
通往解脱的方法；
但你应当知道，
解脱依靠自己。^[1]

For example – imagine that I put two plates on a table, one containing food, the other poison. I then explain: “This is a plate of food, if you eat it, it will do you good. This is a plate of poison, if you eat it you will die.” Once I’ve told you clearly what’s what, it’s up to you what you then do.

例如，设想我在桌上放两个盘子，一盘食物，一盘毒药，然后解释：「这一盘是食物，吃了对你好；这一盘是毒药，吃了会死。」当我已经清楚说明各是什么，接着怎么做，就由你决定。

The Buddha was extremely kind to have explained all this. The usual example of the effect of his teachings is that it’s like restoring sight to a blind person. However, the Buddha also said:

佛陀解释这一切，恩德极大。通常形容教法作用的譬喻，是使盲人恢复视力。不过，佛陀也说过：

Examine my words carefully and
Do not accept them simply out of faith in me.

仔细检验我的话，
不要仅因相信我而接受。

So the perfect Buddha himself said that we must each check his teachings. The more we examine what he said, the more we will understand. The more we recognize the fundamental points of his teachings and realize the reasons behind his words, the more we realize just how true they are – this is the most important aspect. To believe everything the Buddha said just because he said it, is not a good approach. If you follow the Dharma in this way, even if you practise for decades, you will never truly understand the teachings or know what, as a Buddhist practitioner, you should do.

因此，圆满佛陀自己说，我们每个人都必须检验他的教法。越考察他的话，越能理解；越认识教法的根本要点、明白其言语背后的理由，越会体会这些话多么真实。这是最重要的方面。仅仅因为是佛说的，就相信佛所说的一切，不是好的方法。若这样学佛，即使修几十年，也永远不会真正理解教法，或知道作为佛教修行者该做什么。

This is the traditional approach of Buddhism and there’s a very profound point to it. The Buddhist approach is very different to that of other religions. Many religions depend on writings and reasoning to inspire and educate practitioners, but the Buddhist tradition is almost unique in emphasizing logic and reasoning over reliance on the words of the scriptures. Teachings are given to help us appreciate certain points of Dharma, but it is through logic and reasoning that we are able to check what is taught. This is how we come to truly assimilate the teachings.

这是佛教的传统方法，其中有很深的要点。佛教的方法，与其他宗教很不同。许多宗教依靠著作与说理，启发、教育修行者；但佛教传统强调逻辑与推理，胜于依赖经典的字句，这一点几乎独有。传法帮助我们领会某些法义，但要通过逻辑与推理，才能检验所教的内容。这样，我们才能真正吸收教法。

To free ourselves from samsara we must turn to the Buddha’s teachings and check that they make sense.

要从轮回中解脱，就必须依止佛陀的教法，并检验它们是否有道理。

The Buddha’s teachings begin with renunciation. So the first thing we must do is develop the deep desire to free ourselves from samsara – renunciation. By spending time examining your samsaric situation, thinking about it and researching all possibilities, you will be able to distinguish each one of samsara’s problems. However, recognizing the realities of samsara does not, in itself, help much. The point is for us to long to free ourselves from the trails and tribulations that are samsara. But without renunciation – the desire to be free from samsara – the rest is useless.

佛陀的教法从出离心开始。因此，首先必须生起深切愿望，从轮回中解脱，这就是出离心。花时间考察自己的轮回处境，思考它，研究一切可能性，就能辨认轮回的每一种问题。然而，认识轮回的真实情况，本身并无多大帮助。要点是，渴望从轮回的种种苦难中解脱。没有出离心，没有出离轮回的愿望，其余都没有用。

For example, Antwerp is not far from here, but if you never conceive the wish to go there, you never will. If, on the other hand, you decide you really want to visit Antwerp, you will make all the necessary arrangements and eventually you’ll get there – even if you end up having to go on foot. The more you want to go somewhere, the more likely it is that you will get there.

例如，安特卫普离这里不远，但如果从未生起想去的念头，就永远不会去。反之，若决定真想去安特卫普，就会作好所需安排，最终到达，哪怕最后不得不步行。越想去某处，就越有可能到达。

So, what if you do free yourself from samsara, where will you go? You will find yourself in a state of total and perfect awakening – in other words, omniscience. And omniscience is what we want to achieve. What does "to reach the state of total and perfect awakening of omniscience" mean? This is something you will have to think about!

那么，如果真的从轮回中解脱，会去哪里？会进入圆满正觉之境，换句话说，就是遍知。而遍知，正是我们想要获得的。「到达遍知的圆满正觉之境」是什么意思？这需要你们思考！

As Chandrakirti said in The Introduction to the Middle Way:

正如月称在《入中论》中所说：

The Shravakas and those halfway to buddhahood are born from the Mighty Sage,
And Buddhas are born of Bodhisattva heroes
Compassion, nonduality, the wish for buddhahood for others’ sake
Are causes of the children of the Conquerors.^[2]

声闻与行至佛果半途者，皆从能仁生；
诸佛则从菩萨勇士生。
悲心、无二慧、为他成佛之愿，
是胜者之子的因。^[2]

Shravakas and pratyekabuddhas – those who are ‘halfway to buddhahood’ – wish to free themselves from samsara. How do they free themselves? By practising the Dharma, as taught by the Bhagavan Buddha.

声闻与缘觉，也就是「行至佛果半途者」，希望从轮回中解脱。他们怎样解脱？修持世尊佛陀所教的法。

How do buddhas liberate themselves? First, they are bodhisattvas who perfect the accumulations and eliminate all obscurations by following the path, eventually attaining complete and perfect buddhahood. And, wrote Chandrakirti, the cause that results in the birth of bodhisattva is compassion.

诸佛又怎样解脱？首先，他们是菩萨，沿道修持，圆满资粮、净除一切障蔽，最终成就圆满正等觉佛果。而月称写道，产生菩萨的因，是悲心。

Shravakas can free themselves from samsara, but it takes a long time. To achieve the state of complete liberation – of complete and perfect awakening – shravakas eventually have to become bodhisattvas by generating bodhichitta.

声闻可以从轮回中解脱，但需要很长时间。要达到完全解脱、圆满正觉的境界，声闻最终必须生起菩提心，成为菩萨。

Pratyekabuddhas first reach the state of arhathood, then concentrate on training in bodhichitta – that is “as vast as the ocean” – and eventually become buddhas.

缘觉首先证得阿罗汉果，然后专注训练「如海广大」的菩提心，最终成佛。

It is also said that the very moment a person gives birth to bodhichitta the foundation for the attainment of enlightenment is laid.

也说，一个人生起菩提心的刹那，便奠定了证悟菩提的基础。

Should bodhichitta come to birth
In those who suffer, chained in prisons of samsara,
In that instant they are called the children of the Blissful One,
Revered by all the world, by gods and humankind.^[3]

系缚轮回牢狱、受苦的众生，
若能生起菩提心，
刹那即名善逝之子，
世间天人皆尊敬。^[3]

The moment a person awakens to the ‘two-fold mind’ – bodhichitta of aspiration and bodhichitta in action – they are freed from the shackles of negative emotions and karma that have kept them chained to the prison of the three realms of existence, samsara. They then become a "heart son or daughter of the buddhas" – in other words, a great bodhisattva, a hero of awakening – and an object of veneration for other beings, such as gods and humans, who show their respect by prostrating to them. Therefore, we must cultivate bodhichitta, the mind of awakening.

一个人唤起「二种心」，也就是愿菩提心与行菩提心的刹那，便从将自己束缚于三界轮回牢狱的烦恼与业的枷锁中解脱。他成为「诸佛的心子或心女」，换言之，就是大菩萨、觉悟勇士，成为天、人等其他众生尊崇的对象，他们以顶礼表示敬意。因此，我们必须培养觉悟之心——菩提心。

Bodhichitta, the awakened mind,
Is known in brief to have two aspects:
First, aspiring, bodhichitta in intention;
Then active bodhichitta, practical engagement.^[4]

菩提心，觉悟之心，
略说有二：
首先是发愿，即愿菩提心；
然后是实践，即行菩提心。^[4]

To put it simply, the mind of awakening has two aspects: bodhichitta of aspiration and bodhichitta in action. “Having bodhichitta is cherishing others more than yourself”; this, the teachings tell us, is the foundation of bodhichitta. Without bodhichitta, we think only of ourselves; with bodhichitta, others are more important than we are.

简言之，觉悟之心有两个方面：愿菩提心与行菩提心。「有菩提心，就是珍爱别人胜过自己。」教法告诉我们，这是菩提心的基础。没有菩提心，我们只想到自己；有了菩提心，别人就比自己更重要。

There are three approaches to benefiting others: the approach of those with a higher capacity, the approach of those with an average capacity, and the approach of those with a lower capacity.

利益别人有三种方式：上根者的方式、中根者的方式，以及下根者的方式。

Aspiration bodhichitta is resolving, with great conviction, to do exactly what all the buddhas and their sons and daughters, the bodhisattvas, have always done and continue to do for the benefit of beings. It is also training yourself in the same way all bodhisattvas have trained themselves, so that you accomplish everything fully, just as they have. So, you develop the bodhichitta of aspiration and get accustomed to continuously bearing it in mind. That is to say, you spend as much time as you can getting used to aspiring to be a bodhisattva, by thinking about and meditating on bodhichitta, so it becomes completely integrated into your mindstream.

愿菩提心，就是以强烈确信立下决心，要像一切诸佛与其子女菩萨，一直以来以及现在利益众生那样去做。也像所有菩萨训练自己那样训练，像他们一样将一切圆满成办。因此，你生起愿菩提心，并习惯于不断忆念它。也就是说，尽可能花时间，思惟、观修菩提心，熟悉希求成为菩萨的愿望，让它完全融入心相续。

Once you have cultivated the aspiration of bodhichitta, you must practise bodhichitta in action. To put bodhichitta into action is to accomplish activities that actually make a positive difference to the lives of others. How? First, practise generosity by giving; start by giving away small things, then gradually give more and more. Next, cultivate discipline, by trying to help others, neither too strictly nor too lackadaisically. It’s also necessary to develop patience, perseverance, meditation and wisdom. In fact, putting bodhichitta into action is to train in the six perfections.

培养菩提心之愿后，必须实践行菩提心。将菩提心付诸行动，就是成办真正改善他人生命的事业。怎样做？首先，通过给予而修布施，从送出小东西开始，逐渐施予更多。其次，培养持戒，尝试帮助别人，既不过分严苛，也不过于松懈。还须培养安忍、精进、禅定与智慧。事实上，实践菩提心，就是训练六波罗蜜。

What does training in bodhichitta bring us? It develops our wisdom. As Shantideva said, the first five perfections – generosity and so on – are ancillary to wisdom. Therefore, by cultivating the first five perfections, wisdom will arise. The signs that wisdom has arisen within you are: compassion comes naturally; you begin to consider others to be more important than yourself; and the two aspects of bodhichitta – aspiration and action – increase.

修菩提心会带来什么？它会开展智慧。正如寂天所说，布施等前五度，是智慧的辅助。因此，培养前五度，智慧就会生起。内在智慧生起的征相是：悲心自然流露；开始认为别人比自己更重要；愿与行两个方面的菩提心增长。

There are meditations we can practise to cultivate these two bodhichittas. If you have something to meditate on, you are practising relative bodhichitta. When you reach the point where there is nothing left to meditate on, absolute bodhichitta has arisen. As Shantideva said:

有些禅修，可以用来培养这两种菩提心。如果还有所修，就是在修世俗菩提心。当达到无所可修之时，胜义菩提心便生起了。正如寂天所说：

When something and its nonexistence
Both are absent from before the mind,
No other option does the latter have:
It comes to perfect rest, from concepts free.^[5]

有与无二者，
俱不现心前；
此心无余途，
离念寂然住。^[5]

"When" your mind is left without the slightest relative bodhichitta meditation, and there’s nothing left to do – just like writing on water or a rainbow dissolving into the sky. Mind “comes to perfect rest, from concepts free”; absolute bodhichitta has risen and you realize emptiness.

「当」心中连丝毫世俗菩提心的观修都不再留下，无事可做，就如水上写字，或彩虹消融于天空。心「离念寂然住」，胜义菩提心已经生起，你证悟了空性。

Absolute bodhichitta is also the source of what the teachings call the ‘Great Madhyamika’, the ‘Great Mudra’ (Mahamudra), and the ‘Great Perfection’ (Dzogpachenpo) – “Great Madhyamika is the base, Great Mudra is the path, Great Perfection is the fruition.”

胜义菩提心，也是教法所称「大中观」「大手印」与「大圆满」的源头。「大中观是基，大手印是道，大圆满是果。」

To recap, briefly, in order to follow the path we need to:

简要回顾，要修道，需要：

1. develop renunciation;
2. develop compassion; and
3. realize emptiness.

1. 生起出离心；
2. 生起悲心；以及
3. 证悟空性。

These three are the basis on which we develop the pure perception that is the Vajrayana. Emptiness is a necessary prerequisite – it must be understood, experienced and realized –before we can give birth to pure perception.

依这三者为基础，才能培养金刚乘的净观。空性是必要前提：必须理解、体验并证悟空性，才能生起净观。

Having realized emptiness, we will see everything purely – the entire external environment, the universe and all the beings living in it. It is therefore necessary, at the very least, to have an intellectual understanding of emptiness, or even better, to have realization, so you can think about what emptiness means.

证悟空性后，我们会清净地看待一切：整个外在环境、宇宙，以及其中生活的全部众生。因此，至少必须从理解层面认识空性，更好的是证悟，这样才能思惟空性的含义。

The Vajrayana is summed up in these three points: appearances are deities, sounds are the mantras, and thoughts are realization.

金刚乘概括为三点：显现为本尊，声音为咒语，念头为证悟。

If you want to turn all appearances into deities, hear all sounds as mantras, and experience all your thoughts as realization, everything must arise as the manifestation of emptiness. The deity is emptiness, and emptiness has the capacity to manifest the display of primordial wisdom in the form of all that appears. It is only because everything that appears is empty that it can appear. If what appears weren’t empty, it wouldn’t be possible for anything to die or rot away or disappear. All that appears would be unchanging and would always be there. So we must understand that while phenomena that are empty do appear, even though they appear, they are empty. All that appears is but the display of the primordial wisdom that arises from the energy of emptiness.

若想将一切显现转为本尊，将一切声音听为咒语，将一切念头体验为证悟，一切都必须作为空性的显现而生起。本尊就是空性；空性能够以一切显现的形态，展现本初智慧。正因为一切所显皆空，才得以显现。如果所显不空，就不可能有死亡、腐朽或消失。一切显现都会不变，永远存在。因此，必须理解：空的现象虽显现，虽显现却是空。一切所显，无非是由空性活力而生的本初智慧展现。

Similarly, enlightened speech and all the manifestations of awakened mind arise from the energy of emptiness.

同样，觉悟语及觉悟心的一切显现，也从空性的活力生起。

Unceasing empty sounds is vajra sound.

空声无断，即金刚声。

And,

又说：

Liberation of what arises, with no grasping, is vajra mind.

所起无执而解脱，即金刚意。

Everything is but the “inexhaustible wheel of ornaments of enlightened body”, the “inexhaustible wheel of ornaments of enlightened speech”, and the “inexhaustible wheel of ornaments of enlightened mind” that manifest through the dynamic energy of emptiness. We must establish this view beyond all doubt. As Nagarjuna said,

一切无非是由空性活力显现的「觉悟身无尽庄严轮」「觉悟语无尽庄严轮」与「觉悟意无尽庄严轮」。我们必须毫无疑惑地抉择这一见地。正如龙树所说：

If emptiness is possible,
Then everything is possible.^[6]

若空性成立，
则一切皆成立。^[6]

This is where the ‘clear visualization’, ‘confidence of vajra’ and ‘remembering the purity’ aspects of practice come from. Since everything is fundamentally pure, the most important thing is pure perception.

修持中「明晰观想」「金刚慢」与「忆念清净」这些方面，就从这里而来。既然一切本来清净，最重要的就是净观。

What is the point of cultivating pure perception in this way? The buddhas do not perceive impurely; their perception is always pure. We living beings, on the other hand, only perceive impurely; phenomena that appear purely do not occur within our limited perception. Even when you put every effort into perceiving purely, for example, as you meditate on the deities, it does not always work. This is why the Buddha taught us how to cultivate enlightened body, speech and mind.

这样培养净观，有什么意义？诸佛没有不净的知觉，其所见始终清净。我们众生相反，只能不净地认知；清净显现的诸法，不会出现在我们有限的知觉中。即使全力尝试净观，例如观修本尊，也不总是成功。因此，佛陀教导我们如何培养觉悟身、语、意。

So we must develop pure perception. The method for training ourselves, step-by-step, in pure perception is explained in many texts. As Shantideva said, "There is nothing that does not grow light through habit and familiarity."^[7]

所以，必须培养净观。许多文本解释了如何循序渐进地训练净观。正如寂天所说：「无有任何事，不因习惯熟悉而变得容易。」^[7]

Everything can be learned through training. For example, Theravadin monks train themselves to meditate on women as skeletons; the method called "meditation on ugliness". They look at photographs of skeletons that are hung on a wall and meditate on the 32 repulsive parts of the body. In the end, that’s how they end up perceiving women.

一切都能通过训练学会。例如，上座部僧人训练自己，将女性观为骷髅；这种方法称为「不净观」。他们看着挂在墙上的骷髅照片，观修身体三十二种不净部分。最终，他们便如此看待女性。

A yogi who practises the Vajrayana will meditate on the pristine purity of all that appears and exists – samsara and nirvana – in the form of male and female deities. This is a meditation that requires cultivation. Similarly, if you train yourself to get used to perceiving all the sounds as mantra, you will end up hearing all sounds as mantra.

金刚乘瑜伽士，则以男女本尊的形相，观修一切显有、轮回与涅槃的本来清净。这是需要培养的禅修。同样，如果训练自己，习惯将一切声音听为咒语，最后就会听见一切声音都是咒语。

As you are all practitioners of Dzogchen and your master has introduced you to the dharmakaya – the recognition of which you maintain in meditation – you will reach enlightenment very quickly. All your thoughts, from the past, the present, and the future, will disappear instantly – like writing on water. In Dzogchen, we don’t say our thoughts ‘disappear’, we say they are ‘liberated’. If a thought is liberated, no karma is accumulated.

你们都是大圆满修行者，上师已经向你们直指法身，而你们在禅修中保持这一认知，因此会很快觉悟。过去、现在、未来的一切念头，都会瞬间消失，如同水上写字。在大圆满中，我们不说念头「消失」，而说它们「解脱」。念头一解脱，就不积累业。

What is the benefit of liberating thoughts? You don’t create more karma. Past thoughts have gone, they do not exist anymore; future thoughts have not yet risen, so they don’t exist; and as for present thoughts, they are liberated. All thoughts are liberated. This is why Samantabhadra said, “I am the Buddha, I am the beings”^[8] . He added that delusion has no foundation, and that he had never been under the influence of illusion. Liberation is only a word; in reality, as there has never been any delusion, there is nothing to be liberated. That's your view, right? The Rigpa view.

念头解脱有什么利益？你不再造更多的业。过去的念头已经过去，不再存在；未来的念头尚未生起，所以不存在；现在的念头，则正在解脱。一切念头皆解脱。因此，普贤王如来说：「我是佛，我是众生。」^[8]他又说，迷乱没有根基，自己从未受幻惑影响。解脱只是一个词；实际上，既然从未有迷乱，也就无所解脱。这就是你们的见地，对不对？本觉会 的见地。

That's all.

就这些。