The Great Supreme (4)
大宗師（四）
1 Zisang Hu, Meng Zifan and Ziqin Zhang were closing friends, they liked to talk about the ways of practice together. They thought that those men of real practice lived together but they respect each other’s privacy. Each focused on his own practice, never disturbing others.
子桑戶、孟子反、子琴張三個人在一起聊天。他們認為真正的修行人雖然幾個人生活在一起，可是彼此尊重隱私，每個人都專注在個人的修養上，從不打擾同伴的靈修。
2 So, even they lived together, they appeared to live separately.
所以看起來他們又像不是生活在一起的。
3 They supported each other voluntarily, and all their helpings were for other’s sake and to be on their own initiative. Any one had redundancy he would unconditionally shared it with others.
他們之間互相扶持都是出於自願，都是出於為他人設想的基礎。自己有多餘的就無條件的拿出來與同伴分享，從不需朋友開口。
4 When any one of them practiced and quietly entered into Samadhi condition, the others would willingly cook and guard for him.
當同伴進入三昧，閉關練功時，他們自動地供應飲食，擔任警衛負責安全。
5 The assistance was just like the left hand helping and protecting the right hand. It was so natural, as if it were not help but an intuitive action.
這種協助就像左手幫助右手，保護右手，其動作那麼自然，好像不是出於幫助，而是自然的動作一樣。
6 One day, they discussed the issues regarding how to practice so that they could fly up to the heaven, how to roam around the universe, how to free from the limit of time and space and how to transmigrate and finally reach the goal of Nirvana.
有一天，他們討論到如何修煉才能隨時登上天際，乘雲遨遊於宇宙之間，不受時空之限制。跳出生死輪迴，永生於涅槃之境。
子桑戶、孟子反、子琴張三人相與語曰：「孰能相與於無相與，相為無相為，孰能登天遊霧，撓挑無極，相忘以生，無所終窮？」
7 As discussing reaching to this point, they smiled to each other. The smile adequately expressed that each of them completely made clear about this issues. They knew that they had found bosom friends so they decided to be company and encouraged each other in the life of practice.
子桑戶等三人討論至此，他們相顧而笑，在微笑中充分地說明各人對這些事的徹底瞭解。心中明白他們已找到了知音，因此決定結伴成為相互勉勵的朋友。
三人相視而笑，莫逆於心，遂相與為友。
8 It is not long after they lived together, Zisang Hu suddenly died of disease. His corpse was laid in the mourning hall. Hearing the news, Confucius specially sent Zi Gong, his disciple, to assist them in handling the mourning ceremony.
過了沒多久，子桑戶突然因病過世，遺體停放在靈堂上。孔子知道了這個消息，特別派他的弟子子貢前往協助辦理喪事。
莫然有間，而子桑戶死，未葬。孔子聞之，使子貢往侍事焉。
9 When Zi Gong arrived, he saw Men Zifan and Ziqin Zhang playing music and singing the song that they themselves composed in the mourning hall.
子貢抵達現場時，發現孟子反及子琴張兩人在靈堂內手彈樂器，口中唱著他們自己編的曲子。
10 The song went like this:“Zisang Hu, you come back! Zisang Hu, you come back! Why do you leave us? You jump out of the transmigration. You enter into the eternal Nirvana. We are friends, aren’t we? We should leave together, shouldn’t we? How can you leave us in this world alone?”
曲子是這樣的：「桑戶啊！你回來啊！桑戶啊！你回來啊！你怎麼一個人跳出輪迴，永生涅槃，棄我們於不顧啊！我們是朋友，難道不應該共同進退嗎？你怎麼就這樣的走了，留下我們獨在人間呢？」
或編曲，或鼓琴，相和而歌曰：「嗟來桑戶乎！嗟來桑戶乎！而已反其真，而我猶為人猗！」
11 Zi Gong was proficient in convenance, which was the reason why Confucius sent him to there. Looking at it, Zi Gong felt it was out of convenance. He said, “Singing in front of your friend’s corpse, it appears to break the convenance! Isn't it?”
子貢是精於禮儀的，這也是孔子派他來協助處理喪事的原因。子貢看見這樣的行徑，大不以為然。他說：「在朋友遺體前面唱歌，這樣合乎禮數嗎！」
子貢趨而進曰：「敢問臨尸而歌，禮乎？」
12 Hearing such blame, the two knew that Zi Gong was not the bird of their feathers.
孟子反及子琴張聽到子貢這樣子的責備，知道子貢不是他們同類之人。
13 Therefore, they smiled to each other, “Zisang Hu has been dead. How does he know the ceremony of his funeral?”
因此，他們相顧而笑地說：「子桑戶已經死了，他那會清楚這葬禮的儀式呢？」
二人相視而笑曰：「是惡知禮意！」
14 Zi Gong felt that they were irrational so he went back.
子貢覺得這些人不可理喻，因此就回去了。
15 Zi Gong intently asked Confucius about this affair, “What kind of people are they? The gist of their practice is that they believe all dharmas are empty, by their very nature completely empty. They think that emptiness can solves all worry and know that form, sensation, conception, volition and consciousness all are vain and empty, by which they could achieve supreme correct enlightenment. They sing in front of his friend’s corpse. Their heart seems not to be disturbed by his friend’s death. How to remark them? I really don’t know. Who are they on earth?”
子貢為了這件事特別問孔子：「這些人是怎麼回事啊！他們修煉的宗旨在於體認五蘊皆空。認為 “空” 可以解除所有的煩惱。認清色、受、想、行、識皆為虛妄，就能修得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提到達涅槃境。他們在自己朋友的遺體面前可以唱歌，他們的心似乎完全沒有被朋友的死這檔事碰觸干擾。我真的不知道要怎麼來評述這些人，他們到底是什麼人啊？」
子貢反，以告孔子曰：「彼何人者邪？修行無有，而外其形骸，臨尸而歌，顏色不變，無以命之。彼何人者邪？」
16 Confucius said, “They are very different from us. We live in the real material world whereas they float on other non-material world. Therefore, in this regards, there is no common point between them and us.
孔子說：「這些人與我們是不同的，我們是生活在現實的物質世界之中，他們則是漂浮在另一個非物質的空間。因此，在這方面，我們與他們之間是沒有交集的。
17 I really should not send you there. They regard themselves as the company of the Creator. Their lives are a part of Nature.
我實在不應該派你去他們那兒，他們那些人自認為與造物者之間是夥伴關係。他們的生命是與大自然共生為一體的。
孔子曰：「彼游方之外者也，而丘，游方之內者也。外內不相及，而丘使女往弔之，丘則陋矣！
18 They look fresh body as tumor. Death is to excise the tumor. To men as they are, how do they care for life and death?
他們視肉身為一塊腫瘤。死亡正是將腫瘤切除掉。像他們這樣的人，又怎麼會在乎生死呢？
彼方且與造物者為人，而游乎天地之一氣。彼以生為附贅縣疣，以死為決病潰癰。
19 They come to this world by temporarily borrowing many materials to form the human figure. So they disregard various organs in body and neglected the sense of hearing and sight. They think that those are unreal and vain, unworthy of seeking.
他們來到這世間，只是暫時借用了許多物質來形成這個人形。所以他們對這身體的各項器官並不重視。對於聽覺、視覺感應的東西也不那麼在意。他們認為那都是虛幻的，不值得重視、不值得追逐的。
20 They deem that life is transmigrated. In continuous whirling, there is no beginning and no end. There is no life and death. Life and death are relayed. Death is the beginning of another life; life is the very end of the death.”
他們認為生命是輪迴的。在不斷的旋轉之中，沒有什麼是開始，也沒有什麼是結束。沒有什麼是生，沒有什麼是死。生死是連續不斷的。死是另一個生的開始，生正是死的結束。」
夫若然者，又惡知死生先後之所在！假於異物，托於同體﹔忘其肝膽，遺其耳目﹔反復終始，不知端倪﹔芒然仿徨乎塵垢之外，逍遙乎無為之業。彼又惡能憤憤然為世俗之禮，以觀眾人之耳目哉！」
23 Zi Gong never heard this kind of concept before from his teacher. He asked further, “If so, which world do you like, the material one or the spiritual one?” Shaking his head, Confucius bantered, “The Heaven dislikes me, so I am belonging to the material one; however, I would like to do some coordination works so as to make up for the pity.”
子貢第一次聽到老師講這樣的事，他追問到：「如果是這樣，那你比較喜歡哪一種世界呢？是物質世界好呢？還是精神世界好？」孔子搖搖頭，半開玩笑地說：「老天不太喜歡我，因此我是屬於物質世界這邊的。不過為了補救這樣的遺憾，我也願意做一些調整的工作。」
子貢曰：「然則夫子何方之依？」孔子曰：「丘，天之戮民也。雖然，吾與汝共之。」
24 “How will you do it?” Zi Gong asked curiously.
子貢好奇地問：「您準備怎麼做呢？」
子貢曰：「敢問其方？」
25 Confucius said, “Fish lives in water while man lives in Tao. The creatures living in water in whole its life can habitat in the pond free and comfortably. Man living in Tao in whole his life may live in the world free and comfortably too. It is unnecessary to play conspired and unique tricks.
孔子說：「魚一生都生活在水裡，而人則一輩子生活在道裡。一生都生活在水中的生物，他們在池溏中生活的安怡自在。而一輩子生活在道中的人，他們只要順著道的安排去生活即可，不必別出心裁的玩太多人為的把戲。
26 Therefore, people used to say that the air supplies us with oxygen that we can’t live without it. However, all creatures don’t remember the air all day long. Our forgetting the existence of air means that the air is abundant around us and our life is happy.
所以人們常說：「空氣供應我們呼吸的氧，沒有氧我們一刻也活不成。可是我們所有的生物都不會整天牽記著空氣，當我們忘記空氣的存在時，這表示空氣充裕，我們生活愉快。
27 It is the same with fish. It's forgetting about water means that it has been in water. When fish comes out of water to land, at that time it knows the importance of water. So, the fish that forgets about water is a happy fish.
同樣的道理，當魚忘記水時，表示它已身在水中。只有跌落在陸地上的魚才會警覺得到水的重要性。所以忘記水的魚是愉快而幸福的。
28 People can’t live without Tao. We forget the vast powerful domination of Tao, which means that we live in Tao that takes close care of us.
人沒有道不能活，當我們忘記道的龐大支配力量時，表示我們是生活在道之中，有道的貼身照顧。
29 Those that are afraid that they will break the law or infringe the moral rule, possibly they are already living in the verge of law and moral.”
一天到晚擔心觸犯法律，違背道德標準的人，他們大概都已經生活在法律道德標準的邊緣了。」
孔子曰：「魚相造乎水，人相造乎道。相造乎水者，穿池而養給﹔相造乎道者，無事而生定。故曰：魚相忘乎江湖，人相忘乎道術。」
30 Zi Gong wanted to have some real example to understand further his teacher’s explanation. Therefore, he asked again, “Sir. What do you think of such people as Men Zifan and Ziqin Zhang?”
子貢還是希望獲得一些實際一點的例子，來幫助他瞭解孔子的解釋。因此他又問：「那麼，老師，您又是怎麼看待孟子反、子琴張他們這些怪人呢？」
子貢曰：「敢問畸人？」
31 “These people are a little odd in our eyes but they are normal and adapted to Tao of Nature. So the saying goes like this: 'the meanest thing in heaven would be the best on earth; and the best on earth, the meanest in heaven'. In the eyes of Heaven, both of us are worse than them.”
孔子說：「在我們世俗凡人眼裡，這些人是顯得有點怪異，可是在大自然的道裡他們都是正常而自適的。所以有句俗語說得好：『天之小人，人之君子；人之君子，天之小人』。你我兩人在天的眼睛裡是不及他們的。」
曰：「畸人者，畸於人而侔於天。故曰：天之小人，人之君子﹔人之君子，天之小人也。」