Month: December 2023

一九八　炫　耀

有個弟子自稱他有意去教導別人真理。大師要考核他：「你準備一篇演講，我將親臨會場審核你是否已經準備妥當。」

這篇演講頗具啟發性。最後，一位乞丐走向這位演說者，他立卽起立，並將自己的外衣送給這個乞丐，做為羣衆的表率。

事後，大師說：「你的言詞充滿宗教熱忱，然而，孩子，你尚未準備好。」

「為什麼？」弟子顯得十分失望。

「有兩個原因：你根本沒有給那乞丐開口的機會，表明他真正的需要；而且你也不必過於向他人炫耀你的德行。」

EXHIBITION

When one of the disciples announced his intention of teaching others Truth, the
Master proposed a test: “Give a discourse that I myself shall be present at to judge if you
are ready.”

The discourse was an inspiring one. At the end of it a beggar came up to the speaker
who stood up and gave the man his cloak — to the edification of the assembly.

Later the Master said. “Your words were full of unction, son but you are not yet
ready.”

“Why not?” said the dispirited disciple.

“For two reasons: You did not give the man a chance to voice his need. And you are
not above impressing others with your virtue.”

一九七　執　着

「我不知到明天會發生什麼事，所以我希望早作準備。」

「你只害怕明天－－却不知道昨天一樣充滿危機呢！」

ATTACHMENT

“I have no idea of what tomorrow will bring, so I wish to prepare for it.”

“You fear tomorrow — not realizing that yesterday is just as dangerous.”

一九六　操　縱

大師坐在那兒聽一位婦女抱怨她的丈夫。

最後，大師說：「孩子，如果你能做一個好妻子的話，你的婚姻就可以算是相當幸福了。」

「那，我該如何做呢？」

「別在拚命想把你先生改造為一個好丈夫。」

MANIPULATION

The Master sat through the complaints a woman had against her husband.

Finally he said, “Your marriage would be a happier one my dear, if you were a better
wife.”

“And how could I be that?”

“By giving up your efforts to make him a better husband.”

一九五　豪氣干雲

有天，弟子們想知道，那一類的人才適合投入大師門下。

大師說：「有一種人，他只有兩件襯衫，却賣了一件，用這錢買了一朶花。」

EXTRAVAGANCE

One day the disciples wanted to know what sort of person was best suited to
discipleship.

Said the Master, “The kind of person who, having only two shirts, sells one and with
the money buys a flower-”

一九四　祈　禱

大師總喜歡反駁一般人所接受的天主的槪念。

「當天主把你從困境中解救出來，你才會想到尋求真實的天主。」

弟子要求大師解釋此言之意。大師說了一個故事：

有個人上街購物，把一輛全新的腳踏車停放在市場邊。直到第二天，他才想起他的腳踏車。衝到市場時，以為那腳踏車一定被人偷走了。然而那腳踏車却安然無恙地停在原處。

他高興地跑到附近聖堂內感謝天主保全了他的腳踏車。當他走出聖堂，却發現腳踏車不見了。

PRAYER

The Master never ceased to attack the notions about God that people entertain.

“if your God comes to your rescue and gets you out of trouble,” he would say. “It is
time you started searching for the true God.

When asked to elaborate, this is the story he told: -

A man left a brand new bicycle unattended at the marketplace while he went about his
shopping.

He only remembered the bicycle the following day — and rushed to the marketplace
expecting it would have been stolen. The bicycle was exactly where he had left it.

Overwhelmed with joy he rushed to a nearby temple to thank God for having kept his
bicycle safe — only to find, when he got out of the temple, that the bicycle was gone!

一九三　過猶不及

一位充滿狂熱的弟子一心想去教導別人「真理」，前來徵求大師的意見。大師只說：「等一等。」

每年這位弟子都提出同樣的請求，而每年大師的答覆都是：「等一等。」

有一天，他終於忍不住質問大師：「究竟要等到什麼時候我才夠格去教導別人？」

大師說：「當你一心想為人師的狂熱消退以後。」

AGGRESSION

A zealous disciple expressed a desire to teach others the Truth and asked the Master
what he thought about this. The Master said, “Wait.”

Each year the disciple would return with the same request and each time the Master
would give him the same reply: “Wait.”

One day he said to the Master, “When will I be ready to teach?’

Said the Master, “When your excessive eagerness to teach has left you.”

一九二　隨機施教

有位訪客滿懷期待而來，却對大師的一般陳腔老調頗感失望。

他向一位門人吐訴：「我不惜跋涉千里，只為一訪名師，却發現他與凡人並無二致。」

這位門人答覆他說：「師父好比一個鞋匠，雖然擁有取之不盡的皮貨，但他的責任，只能按照你腳的尺寸，加以裁剪縫製而已。」

PROPORTION

A visitor who was full of expectations was unimpressed by the commonplace words
the Master addressed to him.

“I came here in quest of a Master.” he said to a disciple. “All I find is a human being
no different from the others.”

Said the disciple, “The Master is a shoemaker with an infinite supply of leather. But he
does the cutting and stitching in accordance with the dimension of your foot. “

　一九一　猜　忌

有位訪客請教大師如何分辨師父的真偽。大師簡單地答覆說：「如果你自己是不可欺的，就沒有人能欺騙得了你。」

事後，大師向弟子說：「為什麼求道者總是假定自己正直無欺，而百般試探師父的正直與否？」

SUSPICION

To a traveller who asked how he could tell a true Master from a false one, the Master
said shortly, “If you are not yourself deceitful you will not be deceived.”

To his disciples the Master later said, “Why do seekers assume that they themselves
are honest and all they need is a test to detect deceit in Masters?”

一九０　寂　滅

「我要在祈禱中與天主同在。」

「你所想要的實在荒謬。」

「為什麼？」

「因為每當你在時，天主就消失；每當天主臨在，你必然消失。所以你怎能與天主同在？」

大師接着又說：

「追尋孤獨吧！不論你與何人同在，你就不是獨處。當你與天主同在，你也不算獨處。想要與天主同在，唯一的方法卽是徹底的獨處。那麼，但願天主臨在而你消融於其中了。」

SOLITUDE

“I want to be with God in prayer.”

“What you want is an absurdity.”

“Why?”

“Because whenever you are, God is not: Whenever God is, you are not. So how could
you be with God?”

Later the Master said:

“Seek aloneness. When you are with someone else you are not alone. When you are
with God ‘you are not alone.

The only way to really be with God is to be utterly alone.

Then, hopefully, God will be and you will not.”

一八九　藝　術

「師父究竟有何用處？」有人問。

弟子答覆：「他教你一些你早已知道的事情，向你指示，你終日視而不見的現象。」

問道者不解其意。這位弟子又說了：

「一位藝術家用他的畫教我如何欣賞日落景色。大師以他的開示教我認識生活中每一剎那的真相。」

ART

“Of what use is a Master?” someone asked.

Said the disciple, “To teach you what you have always known, to show you what you
are always looking at.”

When this confused the visitor, the disciple exclaimed:

“An artist, by his paintings, taught me to see the sunset. The Master, by his teachings,
taught me to see the reality of every moment.”