【文化释说英文有声书】第一篇 食（七）

Section Seven - Food

筷子

Chopsticks

以道治身，便是明明德。

To use the Dao to cultivate one’s body is to make manifest one’s illustrious virtues.

中国人使用最普遍的餐具就是筷子 , 以筷子进餐少说也有 3000 年的历史。中国人用筷子, 为什么不说是两根, 而是一双？ “一双” 代表一阴一阳 , 对立统一  ,“一阴一阳”加在一起就是“道”, 所以不叫两根叫“一双”, 这里的“一”是“道”的意思。它的长度 , 按照古时的尺寸是“七寸六分”。民以食为天 , 吃东西的时候，我们的贪欲直接暴露 , 而贪欲是应当被克制的 ,“七寸六分”表示人有七情六欲 , 这七情六欲要用理智来克制。

The eating utensil that is used by the Chinese most commonly is the chopstick. The history of using chopsticks to eat goes back at least 3,000 years. Why is it that the Chinese call it ‘one pair of chopsticks’ instead of ‘two chopsticks’? ‘One pair’ symbolizes yin and yang, and the union of two antitheses. When yin and yang are joined, there is Dao. As such, they are not called ‘two’ but ‘one pair’.  The ‘one’ here means the Dao. The length of the chopstick should be seven and six parts Chinese inches long, according to the ancient method of measurement. It is said that people attach paramount importance to food. As we are eating, our greed and lust is fully exposed. This greed and lust should be restrained. ‘Seven and six parts’ represent our seven emotions and our six desires. These seven emotions and six desires should be restrained by rationality.

我爷爷出生在清末 , 活到百岁 , 小时候在爷爷身边长大 , 规矩严格。吃饭的时候 , 桌上的菜 , 只能捡你面前盘子里的 , 筷子不能伸至远处。吃花生米时不能“呱嗒”嘴，一次只吃一两粒 , 还要慢慢嚼。孔老夫子的“食不语, 寝不言”已沿袭数千年, 在炎黄子孙的日常生活里已成为基本的规矩。

My paternal grandfather was born towards the end of the Qing Dynasty and he lived to a hundred years old. I grew up with my grandfather when I was small. There were strict rules. When we had our meals, we could only pick from the dishes in front of us as and were not allowed to reach too far out with our chopsticks. When we ate groundnuts, we were not supposed to make any sounds. We could only consume one or two at one time, and we had to chew slowly. Having been passed down for a few thousand years, Kong-Zi’s ‘not speaking while eating, and not talking when in bed’ has become the basic rule in the everyday life of the descendants of Emperors Yan and Huang.

“吃饭”在佛教里不仅要控制“贪心”, 连每一个“行止”都有涵义。今天我给大家还带来一个宝贝 , 我们佛教的钵 , 这个是水晶钵。

In Buddhism, not only does it mean that one has to restrain one’s lust during mealtime, every other related act has meaning as well. I have brought for everyone here a treasure – what we call an alms bowl in Buddhism. It is a crystal alms bowl.

左手持饭碗 , 佛门里称这个动作叫龙含珠 , 好像龙的嘴巴衔住龙珠。

拿这个“如意”权当筷子 , 筷子表“凤”, 钵表“龙”, 这是“龙含珠”, 这叫“凤点头”。吃饭也吃得这么优雅 , 这就是中国的传统，即便到欧美 , 我跟他们说：“我到了这里也天天都用筷子哦 !”无论身在何处 , 一刻都没有放弃我们中华文明的这种表法 , 其中的涵义是很深的。

The action of holding a rice bowl in our left hand is called ‘dragon clutching the pearl’. It is like how the dragon has the pearl in its mouth. Taking this scepter as a pair of chopsticks, the chopsticks represent the phoenix. The bowl represents the dragon. One is ‘dragon clutching the pearl’ while the other ‘phoenix nodding its head’. One can be so elegant while eating – this is the tradition of the Chinese. Even when in Europe or America, I will also tell the people around me, ‘Even when I am here, I want to use chopsticks everyday.’  No matter where we are, we never abandon this form of symbolism found in our Chinese civilization. The meaning within is very profound.  

在我们中国 ,“道”有多深 !  一双筷子, 一根“动”，一根“不动”，然后龙含珠，凤点头，又是一动一静，“道”就在其中。龙珠“不动”, 龙再怎么升腾都是围绕着珠。“凤点头”，吃的时候, 保持正念 , 保持着“止”的状态。

How profound is the Dao in our Chinese civilization? For a pair of chopsticks, one moves and one does not; and ‘dragon clutching the pearl’ and ‘phoenix nodding its head’ also refer to something which moves and something which does not. The Dao is within. The dragon always surrounds the pearl no matter how the dragon rises and soars, even if the pearl is not moving. ‘Phoenix nodding its head’ means that when one eats, one should have a wholesome mind – a state of tranquility should be maintained.

三德六味

The Three Virtues and the Six Flavours

作为佛教 , 依然保持着中华文明的传承。

As Buddhists, we need to carry on the heritage of the Chinese civilization.

我们的生命，应以怎样的状态立于天地之间？每天吃饭补充能量， 为的是什么？人在道中，而不知道之存在，就好像鱼儿游在水中，而   不知水之存在一样。佛弟子们，食存五观，就是念念保持正觉，不悖   于道。想想看，当今社会上的中国人是不是离中国文化太远了。从这个意义上说，许多人应该羞于称自己为中国人，因为我们已经忘失了   中国文化。当我们渐渐撩开华夏文明的面纱，你会惊喜地发现原来儒   释道，作为中国的主流文化，承载的是万古流芳的华夏文明。

In what manner are we supposed to place our lives within heaven and earth? Why are we eating and replenishing our energy requirements daily? We are within the Dao and yet we do not know its existence – just like the fish which swim in the water and yet not know of the existence of water. Disciples of the Buddha need to have the Five Contemplations in mind during food. It is to maintain right awareness during every thought, and to not go against the Dao. Think about it, have not the Chinese of the present society drifted too far away from the Chinese culture? Speaking from this perspective, many should be ashamed to call themselves Chinese. This is because we have forgotten about and lost the Chinese culture. As we gradually lift up the veil of Hua Xia civilization, we are pleasantly surprised to discover that, as the Chinese cultural mainstreams, what Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism convey and sustain is the Hua Xia civilization which has flourished for a very long time.

尤其是出家众饭食之时，常念三德六位，供佛及僧。三德，指轻软德，净洁德和如法德。六味，指苦、醋、甘、辛、咸、淡。你看， 斋饭就有三德六味，除了滋养我们的身心，还可以上供祖先。“供”, 是通过我们的心灵和智慧 , 把“有形的”从有限“放大”到无限, 这是很神奇的。如果仅仅停留在吃顿饭上，而没有经过我们的大脑进行 处理，把它升华到无形，你等于浪费掉一顿饭。

Especially so when they eat, the monastics have to constantly keep the Three Virtues and the Six Flavours in mind and to dedicate them to the Buddhas and the monastic order. The Three Virtues refer to the virtue of being hygienic and free of meats as well as the five pungent flavours, the virtue of being soft and not course, and the virtue of having been prepared according to the Dharma. The Six Flavours refer to bitterness, sourness, sweetness, spiciness, saltiness, and blandness. Are you able to see that our food contains the Three Virtues and the Six Flavours which not only nourish us physically and mentally, but which can also be offered to our ancestors? To offer is for us to transform spiritually and through our wisdom that which has forms and is limited into something which is made bigger and unlimited. This is very amazing. If we are merely stuck in the act of eating and do not process this any further in our minds to elevate it into something incorporeal, we would have put a meal to waste.

塔下僧影

The presence of monastics at the foot of the pagoda

佛教里, 单就一个吃就很讲究“正念”。虽然我们在“形而下”, 但不要忘掉“形而上”的存在。人，顶天立地。生命的伟大之处在于，人人都能转凡成圣。三百六十行，行行出状元，这是我们中华民族的   民主自由，要比西方的民主自由更加彻底。在道的面前，人人平等，   无论庙堂之上的皇帝，还是闹市之中的庶民。只不过，做皇帝的福报大， 修了很多世，能代表道，所以你是真龙天子，有形的和无形的都会以你为中心。换句话说，你的生命是成熟的，我的生命还未成熟。但是不管怎样，习道和悟道全由自身 , 旁人无法替代。

In Buddhism, even with the simple act of eating, ‘right mindfulness’ is very much emphasized. Although we are in the material world, do not forget about the existence of the metaphysical. The human being ‘stands upon the ground and holds his head into the sky’. That which is great about life lies here: everyone can transform into the holy from the mundane. There are people who excel in their line of work in every walk of life. This is the democracy of the Chinese people, a democracy more absolute than the democracy of the West. In front of the Dao, everyone is equal - whether it is the emperor above the temple, or the common folk in the centre of the city. It is just that the emperor is enjoying the result of his blessings which he has accrued over many lifetimes. He is able to represent the Dao, and as such he is the true son of heaven. All which have material as well as metaphysical existences regard him as the centre of their lives. In other words, his life has come to maturity, ours have not. Whatever it is, the practice and realization of the Dao is completely dependent upon oneself, and nobody else can do it on one’s behalf.  

我们在座的各位，都是人间的智者，人类真的已经到了一个同舟共济的关键点！西方有人早在上个世纪就提出来，中国的儒家文化和 佛教的大乘思想，可以帮助整个人类度过二十一世纪。西方人开始重 新审视并尊重东方文明，因为中国是文明古国、礼仪之邦。

Every one of you seated here are all the wise ones of the human world. Humanity has come to the crucial juncture where all of us have to survive as people of the same boat! The Westerners have very early during the last century spoken about how Confucianism and Buddhist Mahayana thought of China are able to help the whole of humanity survive the twenty-first century. The Westerners have begun to re-evaluate and give due respect to the civilizations of the East. This is because China is an ancient civilization, and a sovereignty of propriety and decorum.

善歌者，使人继其声；善行者，使人承其志；善教者，使人修其德； 善闻者，使人悟其道。

One who is adept at singing is able to let others carry on his voice; one who is wholesome in his conduct is able to let others inherit his aspirations; one who is skillful in teaching is able to let others practice his virtues; and one who is good in listening is able to let others realize his path of practice.  

今天大家交流的话题很有能量，每个人都有历代祖先，我们是历  代祖先的血脉传人，基因的继承者。了解华夏文明之源，就是与我们   的祖先接轨。我常说，我们现在到处接轨，却忘记了与自己的祖先接轨， 忘记了与五千年的华夏文明接轨。

我们的文化与历史辉煌不朽，我们应当永志继承和发扬，万不可惘失于颓迷，愧对于祖先。

The topic we have shared with everyone today is full of positive energy. Everyone has generations of ancestors. We are the inheritors of the bloodline of our forefathers, and the transmitter of their genes. To understand the origin of the Hua Xia culture is to connect with our ancestors. I always say, ‘We link up with people everywhere nowadays, but we have forgotten to connect with our ancestors, and the 5,000 years of Hua Xia civilization.’ There is glory and lastingness to our culture and history. We must inherit, perpetuate, and make illustrious the aspirations [of our forefathers]. We must never ever lose ourselves to decadence and bewilderment, and face up to our ancestors with regret.  

英文翻译&读诵：建成

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