The Great Supreme (8)
大宗師（八）
1 Zi Yu and Zi Sang were close friends. Zi Yu was well-being while Zi Sang was a beggar, very destitute in his retired life.
子輿是子桑的好朋友。子輿家境小康，可是子桑則窮困潦倒，平日以乞討為生。
2 Those days it kept drizzling and cloudy. The loathsome drizzle in spring had been continued for ten more days. Road was all muddy. This environment just restrained the common people’s walking but spoiled a beggar’s living. How could a beggar beg food or money on the muddy and rainy road?
這一陣子陰雨綿綿，討人厭的梅雨已經連續下了十餘天，路上一片泥濘。對於一般人來說，連日陰雨只是行動稍有不便而已，可是對以乞討為生的人而言，則是完全沒有了要飯與討錢的環境。在泥濘的路上，乞丐們又何以營生呢？
子輿與子桑友。而霖雨十日，子輿曰：「子桑殆病矣！」裹飯而往食之。
3 Considering it, Zi Yu carried some food to call Zi Sang. When he reached the doorway of Zi Sang’s house, he heard Zi Sang singing and playing his broken instrument used for begging. Zi Sang sang gloomily, “Father, Mother! Heaven, Earth! Why do you treat me like this and torture me so much?”
子輿想到此點，連忙盛了些飯菜跑到子桑那兒去。走到子桑家門前，子輿就聽到這位朋友彈著他那把討飯的破琴，憂傷地唱著：「爸啊！媽啊！天啊！地啊！為什麼如此待我，讓我受此無情的煎熬？」
至子桑之門，則若歌若哭，鼓琴曰：「父邪！母邪！天乎！人乎！」有不任其聲而趨舉其詩焉。
4 The dismal song expressed his despair, which by the rule of practice was not allowed. Entering the house, he hand food to Zi Sang and said, “Why is your song so sad? Why do you express your complaint to the people, the Earth and the Heaven? As the men of practice, should we conform to Tao and be contented with our lot?”
子桑淒涼的歌聲透露出絕望的心情。這對一位修行者而言是完全違背原則的。子輿走進門，將食物遞給子桑，然後說：「你的歌聲為什麼這麼悲淒？如此呼天搶地的顯露出怨天尤人的悲情？做為一名修行者，我們不是應該順道而行，不是應該樂天知命嗎？」
子輿入，曰：「子之歌詩，何故若是？」
5 Zi Sang factually hunger to death. He said very weakly, “I just wonder why I become destitute like so. My parents used to take much care of me and wish me to be a useful and great man, never thinking that I come down to the world like this.
子桑實在是餓昏了，他氣若遊絲地說：「我只是在仔細地研究，為什麼我會落難到這般田地。我的父母親早年對我愛護有加，他們都是望子成龍，望女成鳳，斷不會希望看到我，如此的窮途潦倒的。
6 The Heaven cares everything selflessly, as does the Earth. They would not treat me so unkindly. Why do I become so?
老天爺無私地照顧萬物，大地也是無私地承載著各類物種，他們必定不會對我特別刻薄的。既然如此，那究竟是為了什麼，害得我竟落難至如今這般田地呢？
7 I think that my destiny is a bad one.
想來也只有怪命不好。
8 Zi Yu! Content with your lot is just a lip service. Nevertheless, I can’t accept happily the life if I have nothing to eat for ten days.
子輿啊，樂天知命對你而言只是一句漂亮話。對我而言，十幾天粒米未食，這種命卻是難以欣然接受的。
9 When I was an official, I was incorrupt and loved my people even my salary was petty and consequently, had little saving. Now I am retired. To be an official all my life, I become a man who can’t burden something and can’t make something for living, except begging, how do I arrange my aged life?
我做官時雖然薪水微薄，我依然清廉愛民，以致鮮有積蓄。如今屆齡退休，肩不能挑，手又不巧，除了乞討，你說我又要怎麼安排老年生活呢？
10 Could I blame it on the governmental system, or on myself, I might be corrupted, but I was scantily shameless and ruthless then.
我能怪政府的制度不佳嗎？還是怪我自己可以貪污，可是臉皮不夠厚，心不夠狠？
11 Zi Yu! Do you say that it is destiny, don’t you? How can you blame me on my attitude to the practice? Content with my lot is difficult to me.＂
子輿啊！你說這是不是命呢？你能怪我的修行態度嗎？樂天知命，不容易啊！」
曰：「吾思夫使我至此極者而弗得也。父母豈欲吾貧哉？天無私覆，地無私載，天地豈私貧我哉？求其為之者而不得也！然而至此極者，命也夫！」
12 Looking at Zi Sang, Zi Yu whispered, “Eat something first. The destiny is complex, which you can’t make clear in a short time. Take the food when it is hot.”
子輿看了看子桑，他低聲說：「先吃點東西吧！命運這種事是很複雜的，一時也說不清楚。趁熱先吃些吧！」
13 When Zi Sang was eating, Zi Yu sat beside him. Zi Yu closed his eyes and pondered on the question of destiny.
子輿利用子桑吃東西這段時間，坐在一旁閉目打坐，並專心思索命運這個問題。
14 First, life, death, aging and illness are dominated by the power of Impermanence. All creatures in this world experiences life, aging, illness and finally death, so they are irrelevant to the destiny. At most we call it foreordination, which are beyond our control.
首先，人的生老病死是無常力在主導的，應該與命運無關。在這個世界上的萬物都有生，都會經歷病、老的過程，最後都會死。所以生老病死與人的命運無關，最多我們只能稱其為宿命，是我們難以左右的。
15 Excepting it, the so-called destiny should be a causal phenomenon. A cause leads to its unique result. A seed has sowed in the earth and finally grows into its own fruit. Zi Sang was poor in his aged time because he neglected his finance when was young. He had no saved money, so he became a beggar.
除此以外，所謂命運應該是因果的現象，種什麼因得什麼果; 種什麼種子得什麼果實。子桑老來貧困潦倒，是因為他年輕時不注意自己的財務，沒有積蓄，所以才落到乞討的地步。
16 It is right that Zi Sang as an official he should love his people and be incorrupt. It is also true that his salary from the government was too less to support his pension program. However, in the past decades why didn’t he ponder over his life after retirement which would come up inevitably?
子桑做官時清廉愛民，這沒有錯; 可是公家薪水微薄，不足以養老，在那幾十年中，子桑為什麼沒有仔細地思考自己退休後該如何生活，這件必將到來的事呢？
17 Thirty or forty years are considerably long. The one with intent to prepare for the life after retirement should have enough time to do it.
三、四十年的時間不算短，有心人就應該有足夠的時間去做應該做的事，為自己養老事宜做好準備。
18 Zi Sang in his days must had many opportunities to make an effort to improve his life but he neglected and deserted all.
子桑在他盛年時有太多機會為自己的生活環境做些努力，可是他都疏忽、荒廢掉。
19 Zi Sang! There is no destiny in this world. Only the seed of cause that you sow in alayavijnana-Consciousness germinates and grows when the time is due. The seed is made from you, sowed by you and buried by you.
子桑啊！其實這世上沒有命這回事，有的只是你自己種的因，埋在阿賴耶識中的種子。這些種子在適當的時機、適當的環境中發芽、成長。這個種子是你自己造成的，自己種的，自己埋的。
20 What you said is right. Parents, the Earth and the Heaven are impertinent to it. Before we make clear the definition of destiny completely, we shouldn’t take the destiny as a cause to excuse the past misconducts.
你說的不錯，父母、天地都與此無關，在我們對命運這檔事，還沒有徹底弄清楚之前，也不要隨便找個命這個詞，來搪塞自己對過去行為的責任吧！