学习大圆满的人应该具备的资格

“一般来说，要想进入此乘并开始实修，你必须具备下列条件：”

• belief in the Dharma and in your guru

相信佛法与你的上师

• unwavering trust in the path

对此道（大圆满之道）有坚定不移的信心

• earnest mindfulness of death and the conviction that all composite phenomena are impermanent, so that you have little at traction to mundane activities

对死亡、业因果等持续保持警觉和正念，这样你才不会陷入平庸的行为当中

• contentment with respect to food, wealth, and enjoyments

对于饮食、财富和享乐等知足

• insatiability for Dharma due to a great deal and determination

对于多闻佛法从而获得定解有希求心

• integration of life and spiritual practice, without complaining

将生活与修行相容，没有抱怨

By distinguishing those things to be taken literally from that which is provisional, we discover the core themes of the Dharma. These emerge quite clearly in this text. These themes include bodhichitta, the realization of emptiness, buddha nature, and the possibility of overcoming mental afflictions. From another angle, we can observe the broad framework of Dharma based on such things as ethics, samadhi, wisdom, and the six perfections.

从上述这些要求的文字当中，我们能够发现教法中的甚深内容。这些非常清晰地蕴含在上述文字中，包括菩提心、证悟空性、佛性以及断除烦恼等。从另一个角度，我们也能发现涵盖了戒律、智慧以及六种波罗密等的广大的教法。

Regarding "belief in the Dharma," there is a danger that overemphasizing faith alone may lead to spiritual sloth. I have seen this occur in both Western students and in Tibetans. One pitfall is the spiritual sloth of self effacement. There are Tibetans who are very strong when it comes to belief in the Dharma but who take the attitude: "I am not a tulku, so why should I meditate? Meditation is for great beings, not an ordinary person like me." That is the downside of the marvelous hagiographies of great beings such as Milarepa, Tsongkhapa, Jigme Lingpa, and Dudjom Lingpa. They can inspire, but they can also be intimidating.

说到“相信佛法”的时候，有时会由于过度的“信”而导致心灵上的“懒惰”，我在西方和藏族的弟子当中都看到过这类情况。这种“懒惰”的陷阱之一是自我贬低。比如一些本来很强壮的藏族人，当他们开始信仰佛法的时候就会说：“我不是一个祖古，所以为什么要禅修呢？禅修是那些大人物作的事情，不是我这类普通人作的。”这是那些伟大的修行者们的修行传记所带来的负面效应，在看了比如米勒日巴、宗喀巴、吉美林巴和敦珠林巴的传记之后，人们是会受到鼓舞，但可能也会被吓到。

In order to avoid the notion of faith, it may be more useful to think of the approach of the working hypothesis. In other words, we may provisionally adopt certain views and live in accordance with them while at the same time doing our best to put them to the test of experience so that we can discover for ourselves whether they are true. We can use the hypotheses that shamatha was designed for people like us; ethics was designed for us; bodhichitta was something to be cultivated by people like us. We hypothesize that these are all things we can accomplish. According to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, if we practice like the great beings of the past, we will have the same realizations.

为了避免这些信仰方面的问题，也许可以考虑采用一些渐进的方法。换句话说，我们可以先接受一些特定的见解，在生活中进行运用，同时我们也尽全力修行体会，从中发现这些见解是否正确。比如我们可以修学一些适合我们这类人的比如“修止”、“戒律”和“菩提心”等。这些都是我们力所能及的教法。根据嘉瓦仁波切的教导，如果我们像过去伟大的修行者那样修行，我们也会获得同等的证悟。

This then is a pragmatic approach to belief. We start from where we are rather than engaging in wishful thinking, embroidering, and speculation. We are not taking the attitude that simply because we believe something, this guarantees some outcome, such as our being "saved" or our going to some pleasant destination after death. Rather, we must be willing to reassess our beliefs as we go along, keeping an open mind. So when someone says, "Padmasambhava is here, now," what does that really mean? If you believe you have buddha nature, what does that mean? What does it mean to believe that there is continuity of consciousness from lifetime to lifetime? The hypothesis must be explored, tested. For instance, you may have had for some time the belief that karmic imprints carry over from lifetime to lifetime. But on reassessing that old hypothesis you may discover that this is a rather crude formulation in comparison to new and subtler knowledge you have acquired. So you revisit and reassess such hypotheses from time to time, giving them greater meaning. The basis for this approach is to keep an open mind, which is what we’ve been asked to do from the very beginning.

这样下来更容易接近真正的“信仰”。我们从自身现有的状况做起，效果远胜于一开始就投入到根本无法做到的空想当中。我们不可能仅仅因为相信某个事物，就能立竿见影看到效果，这类情况会以其他的方式实现，比如我们在死后才能因为之前做过的善业去往更加安乐的地方。而且，我们需要保持一颗开放的心态，并且要习惯于在前进过程中重新审视自己原来的“信仰”。因此当人们说“莲花生大师现在就在这里”的时候，他的真实意义是什么呢？如果你相信自己有佛性，这又是什么意思呢？相信一个能在生生世世中持续不断地存在的相续有什么意义呢？这些渐进的过程必须被探索和检验。例如，你可能在以前的一段时间里相信业力是生生世世地携带并传递的，但是在重新审视这些以前的认识时，你可能会发现同你新近接受的更加微妙的知识相比，以前的认识显得比较粗糙原始。因此你需要反复地对自己进行重新审视，这样做的基础就是需要具有开放的心态，这是我们必须从一开始就要做到的。

What about "belief...in your guru"? Here again we can use a working hypothesis. The teacher needn't be a bodhisattva, but he or she should have an altruistic motivation and a sound understanding of the subject matter. We can waste a lot of time wondering, "Has lama X or teacher Y achieved A?" Keeping in mind that lamas, teachers, and serious students of Dharma are always in flux, trying to pin down their realizations is pointless. It is more important for us to have faith in Samantabhadra, in Padmasambhava, in the Buddha. These are not merely historical figures, they are here with us right now. The qualities necessary for us to receive teachings from Padmasambhava are the openness of our hearts, our receptivity when listening, and faith in the presence of Padmasambhava. Then, if Padmasambhava or Buddha Shakyamuni is our true guru, any qualified teacher can bring to us their blessings and wisdom. Therefore, check the teachers qualifications and motivation. Ask yourself if the teacher has knowledge you don't have or has had realization that you have not yet attained. Of course, if you don't have confidence that the teacher's motivation is altruistic, then you should find another teacher.

“相信上师”是怎么回事呢？我们在这里也可以做一个假设。一位上师不一定就是菩萨，但他（或她）必须具有无伪的利他之心与对佛法主旨的充分了解。我们可能会浪费很多时间思考着“喇嘛X或者上师Y达到A境界了吗？”之类的困惑。需要知道的是，喇嘛、上师以及佛法真正的修学者（的修行）并非是一成不变的，试图给他们的证悟境界下个定论也是不可能的事情。对我们来说，一开始就对普贤王如来、莲师或者佛陀产生信心基本上是不可能的。他们不仅仅是某个历史人物，实际上他们现在就与我们毫无隔阂。对我们来说如果能够打开我们的心扉，在闻法时完全融入到义海中，并且坚信莲师就在目前的话，就可以从莲师那里直接获得教法。如果莲师或者佛陀释迦牟尼成为我们真正的上师，那么通过任何具格上师都可以将二圣的加持和智慧赐予我们，然后，我们所要作的就是去考察上师是否具备足够的资格和动机。不妨问一下自己那位上师是否拥有你还没学过的佛法知识（教法），或者他是否拥有你不曾企及的证悟。当然，如果你对上师的动机是否无伪利他有怀疑的话，就应该去寻找别的上师。

In addition to the two basic qualities a teacher must possess—altruistic intention and a sound knowledge of Dharma—three qualities are necessary on the part of a disciple. The first is perceptivity—attending closely, clarity of attention. "What is taking place in my mind, my speech, in other people's speech? Am I picking up what's going on?" A student who is not perceptive is not a suitable disciple and is not going to achieve enlightenment. The second quality is having an aspiration to put the teachings into practice. You aren't receiving teachings merely to accumulate knowledge, or because the lama is charismatic, your friends are going, or other reasons. You have come because you really want to practice. Otherwise you are wasting the teacher's time, which is a grave thing to do. The third quality is to attend to the teachings without prejudice, especially the prejudice of uncritically believing that your own ideas are true, while any assertion that differs from your beliefs is suspect. In other words, its imperative to have an open mind, one willing to critically reassess even your own most cherished assumptions. These three qualities, like those necessary in a teacher, are crucial.

除了上师需要具备的两条基本素质——无伪的利他与对佛法的充分了解之外，弟子方面也需要具备三种素质。首先是具备洞察力（知觉），就是具有紧密的、明晰的关注。“在我说话的时候、在别人说话的时候我的心里正在发生什么？我只是感受到了正在发生的事情吗？”一个修学者如果不具备这样的洞察力，就无法成为真正的弟子，也无法达至开悟。第二个素质就是渴望将教法付诸实修。你不能够因为下列原因而接受教法，比如积累知识、上师的魅力、你的朋友也在闻法或者一些其他原因。你必须是因为真心想要实修才来接受教法的。否则你就是在浪费上师的时间，本来上师可以利用这些时间做很多有意义的事情。第三个素质就是要无偏见地趋入教法，特别是不要不加鉴别地盲目相信自己的观点就一定是对的，任何与自己相违的说法都是错的。换句话说，开放的心态是必要的前提，一个人需要愿意对自己哪怕是最珍贵的见解提出质疑。这三条作为弟子的素质和前面作为上师的素质是至关重要的。

To enter this path, this vehicle, this "swift path of the clear light Great Perfection," not only do you need just those qualities, you must hone them, sharpen them. Then take this one step further: Since Dudjom Lingpa is saying that if you have these qualities you are suitable to follow this path, adopt the self-assurance that you are truly a suitable vessel for these teachings. Next go through them and see if you have some weak points, areas that could be improved. Burnish them and then return to that assurance: These are teachings for me. These are teachings that I could practice, that I could follow, just as the great Dzogchen masters of the past have done.

要进入这条道，这个乘，这种“光明大圆满之捷径道”，你不仅只需要这些素质，你必须磨练他们，增强他们。然后再以此为基础继续前进：由于敦珠林巴说过，如果你具备这些素质你就是遵从此道的根基，因而你自信是一个真正适合这些教法的容器。接下来通过他们去审视你是否有一些不足之处，哪些方面还有待改进。磨砺它们，然后再回到这个确信：这些都是适合我的教法，这些都是我可以实修和趋入的教法，就像过去伟大的大圆满大师曾经做过一样。

What is "earnest mindfulness of death," and what is it’s value? This virtue is put into practice by living with death in the back of your mind, and sometimes in the front of your mind, and becoming very comfortable with it. This recognition puts things into sharp focus— gives us "the conviction that all composite phenomena are impermanent, so that you have little attraction to mundane activities." In light of our death, our mundane desires are seen for what they are. For example: I feel a desire for my favorite bread, and then I get some and eat it. In normal, conventional circumstances that may be meaningful. In the face of death, it is completely irrelevant. How much sourdough bread I have eaten in this lifetime won't be something I care about when I am dying. From that perspective all the mundane concerns are likewise valueless. If our desires for wealth, luxury, good food, praise, reputation, affection, acceptance by other people, and so forth are worth nothing in the face of death, then that is precisely their ultimate value. Furthermore, anything unwholesome we've done in the pursuit of mundane concerns is going to have a negative impact. Maintain that perspective.

什么是“对死亡保持警觉和正念”，它的价值是什么？这样做的优点是将“念死”的修行与你的生活融为一体，有时是隐藏在你的潜意识中，有时也会在你的心意活动当中表现出来，并且能够融洽地与之相处。这种认识死亡这个事实变成关注的焦点，让我们知道“所有的因缘聚合的现象都是无常的，因而世俗之事对你就没什么吸引力了。”当我们正视死亡时，就会看到世俗欲望的真相。例如：我觉得想吃最爱吃的面包，然后我就去吃一些。在通常情况下，这可能是有意义的。然而在面对死亡时，它就完全不相干了。无论我这一辈子已经吃过多少发酵面包，在我要死的时候都不会有任何帮助。从这个角度来看，所有世俗的考虑也同样是毫无价值的。如果我们对财富、奢华、美味、荣耀、名气、情感、其他人对自己的认同等等的诸多欲望在面对死亡时都是没有价值的，那么这恰恰就是这些欲望的终极价值。此外，我们在追求世俗生活的过程中所做的种种恶业，都会带来负面的果报（痛苦），需要对此保持清醒的洞察。

There is, however, another side to that coin. Just as we can overindulge in the mundane concerns, we can also go to the other extreme by overindulging in austerity. If we set inordinately high ascetic goals for our practice we can create obstacles and even injure ourselves physically and mentally.

然而，硬币往往还有另一面。正如我们会在世俗行为中放纵一般，我们也可能会走向过度强迫的另一个极端。如果我们将非常高难度的苦行作为修行的目标，就会制造障碍，让自己的身体和心灵受到伤害。

In fact, creature comforts can be an aid to practice. It is good to have a comfortable home where you feel at ease, where your mind is spacious, where you can settle down and practice Dharma. If you need to get from here to there, what is wrong with having a dependable automobile? Luxuries may also have their place. At times you become tired and need a break—some entertainment, listening to a little music—why not? The same goes for the enjoyments of friendship, nature, and sex as well. Unless you have taken a monks vows, there is nothing wrong with that. There can be no denying the beauty of intimacy, the warmth and love that can be shared in that context. Getting hung up on how much sex you are having is an overindulgence, but if sex forms part of the intimacy of a loving relationship, especially a Dharma relationship, there's nothing wrong with it.

事实上，舒适的物质条件可以辅助修行。有一个舒适安心的家，在那里你的头脑是敞亮的，你可以定居下来修学佛法，这是好事。如果你需要从这里去到那里，拥有一辆可用的汽车又有什么错呢？奢侈品有时也可以有好的作用，有时候你疲倦了，需要休息，这时候搞一些消遣活动比如听点音乐，为什么不行呢？这同样适用于其他利于怡情的事情，比如友谊，大自然，性爱等。除非你已经接受了出家梵行的戒律，否则没有什么不妥的。不能否认亲密关系带来的美好，比如在亲密关系中彼此分享的温暖和爱。片面追求性爱的次数当然是一种放纵，但如果通过性爱构成了一个充满爱的关系的一部分，特别是佛法的关系，那没有什么不妥的地方。

In the same vein, we needn't become overly concerned about praise. If praise were entirely bad, then we should never praise each other or acknowledge someone's good qualities and actions because that would be feeding them poison. On the contrary, praise can be very helpful—receiving the acknowledgment, the affection, the acceptance, the respect of those around us. Mundane concerns have a place as long as our central motivation is the practice of Dharma. It is only when we invert things—when for instance we practice Dharma so people will like us more or to improve our material situation—that we devalue our practice and make a mockery of Dharma.

本着同样的精神，我们不需要成为过分担心赞誉。如果赞美是完全不好，那么我们就永远不应该赞美对方或承认别人的品质和行为，因为这是他们的毒害。相反，赞美可以是非常有帮助的，我们可以接受来自于周围的人的认同、感情、接纳和尊敬。只要我们的主要动机是佛法的修行，世俗方面的考虑就有存在的意义。只有当我们颠倒从事，比如当我们希望通过修行佛法而获得人们更多的喜爱，希望以此来提高我们的物质状况的时候，我们实际上就是在贬损我们的修行，使佛法沦为笑柄。

Still, the earnest mindfulness of death puts everything into perspective. It sets our priorities straight, which is what Dharma boils down to. Awareness of death helps us to recognize that everything to which we cling—including teachers, icons, altars, texts, traditions, teachings, Dharma settings, the time we put in on our cushion, let alone all of our mundane concerns—all of that is subject to impermanence. It all passes. Therefore, "all composite phenomena are impermanent...you have little attraction to mundane activities." He doesn't say no attraction. He says "little attraction." So, when I reach out for the plate of sourdough bread and it falls on the floor, I won't be terribly perturbed.

然而，对死亡的殷切正念让我们正确看待一切事物。它按照佛法的教义进行归纳，为我们设置了优先级。对死亡的认识有助于我们认识到一切都是无常的，这些我们坚持的东西，包括上师、图案、祭坛、文字、传统、教义、佛法的一些设定、我们用在坐垫上的时间等等都是无常，更何况是种种世俗方面的关注了。这一切都会消亡。因此，“所有的因缘聚合的都是无常......于是世俗对你就没什么吸引力了。”他不说没有吸引力。他说：“几乎没有吸引力。”所以，当我伸出手去拿发酵面包，而它却掉落在地板上时，我并不会很忐忑。

"Contentment with respect to food, wealth, and enjoyments": The monastic ideal is to be content with that which is adequate. So contentment on the one hand with regard to the food—the food is "good enough," the wealth—"got enough." And as for enjoyments: again its nice to have some diversion once in a while, perhaps a walk or some music occasionally. So on the one hand you have contentment with regard to the mundane, but "insatiability"— just the opposite of contentment—for Dharma. With great zeal and determination, you just cannot get enough of Dharma. Until you are enlightened you are insatiable.

“对于饮食、财富和享乐等知足”的意思是：寺院的理想一般是足够即可。所以，一方面对于食品“足够好”即可，对于财富“够用”即可，对于享乐：需要重申的是如果每过一段时间就可以有一些消遣是非常好的，比如偶尔散散步或听听音乐。所以，一方面你对于世俗比较知足，但对佛法的正好相反，却要“不知足”。你需要极大的热情和决心，对于获得佛法永远不觉得已经足够多了。直到你开悟之前都不要对佛法有已经够多了的想法。

Finally we come to "integration of life and spiritual practice, without complaining": You want to have total integration. For instance, if you are alternating a week of retreat with three weeks living in your normal situation, then you would spend a week on nothing other than concerted focus on specific formal practices followed by thorough integration of them into your life in the following weeks. You continue on in that manner, dipping back in maybe a bit deeper in formal practice and then once more effecting thorough integration in daily life. The idea of course is that your practice and your life are coextensive. Like oil seeping into paper, there is no part of the paper that is not touched by the oil. And whatever life dishes up for you in terms of difficulties and challenges, you meet them with composure, without complaining.

最后我们看看“将生活与修行相容，没有抱怨”：你想拥有的完全的相容。举例来说，如果你在住的地方有四周的时间可用，其中一周闭关的话，那么你会花一周专注于所修的正式的内容，而在其他三周中将其彻底融合入你的生活当中。你以这种方式持续修行，通过正式的修法获得哪怕时很小的深入，然后再一次彻底将其融入到日常生活中。当然，这个方式是希望你的修行和生活是共存的。像油渗入纸张，油会无有例外地延展到纸张的所有部分。并且当生活以无论任何在困难和挑战的方面呈现在你面前，你都能沉着应对，毫无抱怨。

There are only six points, as listed above. None of them are daunting, none are intimidating; nor are they impossible. In all of them there is the opportunity for greater growth, deeper conviction in Dharma, deeper trust in the guru, deeper trust in the path, a clearer, more vigilant, crisp awareness of death, greater contentment. Basically there is a growing insatiability for Dharma. Why? Because you love it so much. That's what zeal is. Its not just love, there is also that steel behind it—knowing that the practice of Dharma won’t always be fun. That's where determination comes in. This is like driving along in fourth gear and then suddenly you're in potholes going up a steep incline. That's the time to downshift back into second. Second gear is determination. You just get through it with sheer determination and faith that Dharma is meaningful. Sooner or later things smooth out and zeal returns. You're not always going to be practicing joyfully,- it just doesn't work that way. Still the bottom line is that you keep returning to joyous zeal as your ground state.

上面列出的只有六条，它们都不是令人望而生畏，也没有恐吓，也不是不可能做到的事情。在所有这些当中，也有机会获得更大的增长，更加深信佛法，更加深信上师，更加深信修行之道，更明晰、更警醒、更明确的对死亡的觉察，更广泛的知足。基本上对佛法的求索也是越来越迫切。为什么呢？因为你太爱它了，这就是所谓的热情。其实不仅仅需要爱，在爱的背后还存在一个更坚强的支柱就是，知道佛法的实践并非总是很有趣。这就是决心的用武之地，这就好比当你开车以四档行驶时，突然地面的坑将车导向一个陡峭的斜坡，此时应该迅速降回二档，二档是正确的选择。你只有通过对佛法具有实义具备纯粹的决心和信心才能顺利度过。迟早有一天事情发展平稳并且热情也会回落，你不会总能从修习中获得愉悦，因为修行就是这回事。这里的底线就是你所能回落到的最基本的愉悦与热情。

Sentient beings suffer in myriad ways. We suffer depression, anxiety, misery, grief, despair. On the path of Dharma that suffering can be magnificently meaningful. Instead of weaving your way around all the potholes of life, you take all the suffering that may come your way—some of it even catalyzed by your Dharma practice—and you transmute it into Dharma practice. So even in the midst of suffering, even when misery or conflict or internal strife or mental afflictions seem to dominate your mind— filling the space of the mind, capturing you, enslaving you—even then your mind is larger than all that. I love that phrase and find it very meaningful. The space of your awareness is larger than the space of your convoluted mind. That doesn't mean the mind isn't afflicted. You are just seeing it from a wider angle, where some voice in you can say, "Oh, I see, my mind's afflicted; oh, I see, this is grief; this is despair," and so on.

众生在以无数的方式受苦。我们会苦于抑郁、焦虑、痛苦、悲伤和绝望。在实践佛法的道路上，这些痛苦可以变得具有辉煌的意义。同在周围的坑坑洼洼中编织生活不同的是，你把所有会出现在你面前的痛苦，有些甚至是因为你修行佛法导致的，转化为佛法的修行。因此，即使正处在在苦难中时，即使痛苦或冲突或内乱或精神痛苦看上去已经主宰了你的心灵，它们似乎充斥了心灵的所有空间，捕捉你，奴役你，即使这样，你的心依然更加辽阔广大。我喜欢这句话，并发现它非常有意义。你的觉性的空间比你那不可思议的心的空间更加广大。这并不意味心灵不受折磨，你只是以更广阔的角度看到了一切，在那里你会有一些内在的声音说：“哦，我明白了，我的心灵在受折磨；哦，我明白了，这是悲伤；这是绝望…”等等。

This has happened to me on a number of occasions. I would have some hours of depression now and then when I was in retreat. I wondered how long it could last. I would sit down and watch it, and see 'That was depression. Now it's getting less." As soon as it would get less, it would get less very quickly. Sometimes it would be as big as a rhinoceros. It filled up a lot of my mind, but never all of it. So I would say, "Ah, that's depression." Or "Ah, that's elation." Or "Ah, that's hope, ah, that's fear." In addition there was one big bogeyman that I got to recognize very well: "How fast am I progressing?" That's the spiritual version of "Are we there yet, Daddy?" "How fast am I progressing? Am I moving?" is one of the most pernicious impediments. So I would look at that one and just smile.

对我而言，这是曾经多次发生的经历。当我在闭关的时候，我有时会有几个小时的沮丧。我不知道会持续多久。我会坐下来，看着它，觉察到“那是沮丧，现在它越来越少了。”只要它开始减弱了，它就会减弱得非常迅速。有的时候会大如犀牛，它占据了我很多心念，但却从来没有完全占有。所以我会说：“啊，那是沮丧。”或者“啊，那是得意洋洋。”或者“啊，那是希望，啊，这是恐惧。”此外，还有一个我不得不承认的巨大的可怕之处：“我进步有多快？”这就是心灵版的“我们到了吗，爸爸？”“我进步有多快？我前进了吗？”这些是最有害的障碍之一，所以我会看着它，只是微笑。