【文化释说英文有声书 】第一篇 “华夏文明”之源怎样流淌而下（一）

今天,我们为什么要来探索“华夏文明之源”这个课题？

Today, we will explore the subject of the origins of the Hua Xia civilization.

水有源兮而流长,木有根兮而叶茂。多少致力于精神启蒙的孤独 身影，已经湮没在历史的漫漫长卷，但书画尺牍间，翠竹黄花处，那 些道法天地、立君子之德的往圣先贤；那些位至公卿、集天下之望的忠臣良将；那些虽身陷逆境、终不忘青云之志的侠义英烈；那些弘宗演教、续佛陀慧命的梵行高僧……中华民族的精气神韵，志士仁人的生命求索，常有暗香拂面。

‘Because of its springhead, a river flows far; because of its roots, the leaves of a tree are abundant.’ How many lonely figures were there who toiled for the cause of spiritual awakening but whose traces have already gotten buried in the long annals of our history? However, in the midst of the bamboo and chrysanthemum contained in a foot-long piece of calligraphy or painting, we are able to catch a glimpse of the holy and virtuous person of the past who taught that heaven and earth followed the ways of the Dao and who laid down the moral code of the junzi (gentleman); the one who achieved high officialdom – a loyal minister and a fine general - who had all the people’s hopes on his shoulders; the heroic and gallant individual who never forgot his noble aspirations even though he was in trying circumstances; and the distinguished monastic whose conduct was pure and who taught and spread and perpetuated the life of wisdom of the Buddha. The spirit, charm and grace of the Chinese race, and the quest for life of those who were benevolent and had high ideals, often reach out to us like how subtle fragrance caresses one’s face.

对生命自身的思考、对宇宙的探索,不仅是21世纪的主题,也是人类永恒的主题。一方面，现代科技日新月异,工业文明的成果遍及世 界各个角落,人们的物质生活得到极大繁荣。告别农耕文明的人类， 在科技引领的社会进步中，尽情享受着物质财富带来的巨变，而远古 时期在大自然面前表现出的敬畏与虔诚，早已荡然无存。另一方面， 对各种资源的过度开发,已经令人类赖以生存的地球满目疮痍。在这 场弥漫全球的消费盛宴中，人类被无休止地利诱，欲望被无止境地开发。仅仅出于食用和商业目的，人类就大踏步地越过持简抱朴的合理之限，肆无忌惮地捕杀各种动物。联合国环境计划署预测，今后 二三十年内，地球上将有四分之一的生物物种陷入绝境。活着，还是毁灭，不再是文学作品中的虚拟命题，它俨然成为全人类必须共同面 对的集体抉择。没有与世隔绝的侥幸，只有休戚与共的担当。我们将 何去何从？我们的自身价值究竟何在？

The pondering of life itself and the discovery of the universe are not only themes of the 21st century, but also the eternal subject matter of the human race. On the one hand, as technology innovates in a fast pace and the results of industrialized civilization spread to every corner of the world, the human material life has seen extreme prosperity. Having bid farewell to agricultural civilization and with improvements in society brought on by technology, the human race is enjoying its material wealth with abundance in the midst of great changes. However, the reverence and respect we have shown towards nature in the ancient times have disappeared without a trace. On the other hand, the over-exploitation of all kinds of natural resources has already caused the earth upon which human survival depends to become debilitated. Enticed by boundless profits and fuelled by insatiable desires, humans have been making endless exploitations in this feast of consumerism which has gripped the whole planet. Just for food and commercial purposes alone, the human race has gone greatly beyond the limits of simplicity and modesty to capture and kill with abandon all kinds of animals. The United Nations Environmental Organization predicts that within the next 20 to 30 years, a quarter of the biological species on earth will become extinct. To survive or to go into oblivion is no longer a hypothetical question in literary exercise. It has seriously become a common decision to be faced and made by the whole of humankind as whole. It is not possible for one to enjoy the good fortune of living in isolation; there is only the taking up of this responsibility as a whole. What will be our destiny? Where could we find the intrinsic value of ourselves?  

在宝贵的百年人生中,当我们开始寻求生命的真正价值与意义时, 会情不自禁地回想到人类祖先的生命观,继而深入思考：他们是怎样生活的？华夏文明的最深处，究竟怎样光耀千秋、恩施万代？究竟如何慧音缭绕福佑中华？探寻华夏文明源头,不仅仅攸关中国的未来， 更攸关全人类的未来。

During the precious 100 years of our lifetime, when we start to search for the real values and meaning of our lives, we will instinctively think of the outlook on life of our ancestors and continue to ponder deeply: how did they live? How did the deepest reaches of the Hua Xia civilization actually enable it to shine for so many years and to benefit ten thousand generations? How have the hymns of wisdom lingered on to bless the Chinese? The search for the springhead of the Hua Xia civilization not only concerns the future of China; more importantly, it concerns the future of the whole of humankind.   

二十多年前的上海，人口已过1200多万，现在常住人口已达2400 多万，中国现有出家人中上海籍的出家人是很少的。那我为什么会去学佛？

The population of Shanghai more than 20 years ago had already crossed the 12 million mark. The population of its permanent residents has already reached more than 240 million now. The number of monastics with Shanghai residency in China now is very small. So why did I go into Buddhism?

我出生于二十世纪六十年代，老实说，那时的上海信息闭塞，知识匮乏 , 偶尔听闻的也多是负面信息。小时候最深的记忆，就是一些场景的定格：宣传车上的大喇叭震耳欲聋，人们群情激愤，黑板报上充斥着耸人听闻的字眼。

I was born in the 60s of the 20th century. Frankly, Shanghai then was closed-up and knowledge was scarce. The occasional news that we heard were negative. The most vivid memory I have is of this frozen scene: the propaganda vehicle with its massive deafening loudhailers, the zealous and angry crowds, and the captivating words on black notice boards.

时至今日，那种特殊时代的思维，依然影响或牢牢占据着某些人的心灵。许多那个时期产生的想法，也还潜移默化地危害到今天的人们。尤其是中国传统道德的丧失，对今天重新定位和弘扬传统文化， 依然会产生某些误解和阻力。尤其是人与人之间、人与社会之间的信任危机，对今天人们的生活乃至精神信仰影响尤甚。那个年代，人们普遍感到精神的迷茫，就连国家向什么方向发展也成为问题。

Until now, the way of thinking of that unique era still either influences or exerts a firm grip on the souls of some people. Many of the thoughts given rise to in that era are still lurking around and silently harming the people of today. This is especially so with the loss of traditional Chinese morals and ethics, which will still be causing some misunderstanding and hindrance to the re-positioning and the propagation of traditional culture. Specifically, the crises of trust between humans and that between humans and society, greatly affect one’s life and spiritual beliefs today. During those times, people everywhere felt lost spiritually, and even the direction of the nation’s development became questionable.

我们从哪里来，做些什么，向哪里去？这些人类的基本问题，更是困扰着人们。人活着到底有什么意义和价值？生命的真谛何在？

Where do we come from? What do we do? Where do we go? These are the basic questions of humanity, and they have always troubled us. What is the meaning and which are the values of life? What is the truth in life?

人生短暂的几十年匆匆而过，死了，拉到西宝兴路就烧掉了。西宝兴路又是没有礼拜天的，火炉子是要天天开的。第一次感受到的生离死别，是祖母过世。那时只有几岁大，可当时大家如何来悼念，怎 样做丧事、去火葬场等细节，历历在目，我当时心中就想：一个人就这样没了。

The few scores of one’s life briefly pass by. Once we die, we are brought to the crematorium to be cremated. There is no Sunday for the crematorium. The furnace operates every day. The first time I experienced birth, separation and death was the passing of my grandmother. I was only a few years old at that time. How everyone came to pay their last respects, how the funeral was conducted, and the details of the trip to the crematorium have become vivid memories. I thought to myself then, ‘A person is gone just like that.’

及至读书后，在思考人生意义的时候，又到书本里去寻找。在上  海文化街“福州路”有各类书店，那时的书架也较开放，我就一家家进去看，有时上午进去至晚上才出来，连中午饭也忘记了。尤其当看   到孔子、孟子、荀子、庄子、墨子等诸子百家，群星闪烁，各有主张， 学派纷呈，哲理纷繁。但对一个孩子来说，太复杂了，就从《三字经》开始，再到《道德经》……冥冥之中，我感到一种召唤，一种心感亲熟和向往的召唤，就是这种召唤，让我最终找到了佛教。

When I started school and thought about the purpose of life, I searched for it in the books. I went into each and every one of the bookstores along Fu Zhou Road – the cultural street of Shanghai. In the morning, I went into these stores which had open shelves, and forgot about lunch. Especially when I saw Kong-Zi (Confucius),  Meng-Zi, Xun-Zi, Zhuang-Zi, Mo-Zi, and the philosophers of the hundred schools of thought, it was like gazing upon a group of shining stars. Each had his own thought - different schools presented different views, and the philosophies were varied and diverse. However, this was all too complicated for a child. So I started with the Three Character Classic and proceeded on to the Dao De Jing. Subconsciously, I felt a call, a call with which I was familiar and to which I looked forward. It was this call which led me to Buddhism in the end.

那时住得离玉佛寺、静安寺不远，可直到学佛后才走进寺院，心中默默在想：寺院代表什么呢？随着对中国传统文化的逐步了解，才 渐渐发现寺院里的陈设及物件、乃至佛像和佛像上的装饰，还有出家人的生活等，全都携带着中华民族的古文明信息。宋朝的一位理学大家，在庙里目睹了一堂斋饭，曾慨叹：中华礼乐尽在此矣。

At that time, I lived not far away from Yu Fo Monastery and Jing An Monastery; but it was not until I practised Buddhism that I did enter a monastery, thinking to myself, ‘What does a monastery represent?’ As I gradually understood traditional Chinese culture, I slowly realized that the ornaments displayed in a monastery, including the images of the Buddha and the adornments on the images, and even the monastics and their way of life, carried messages from the ancient civilization of the Chinese race. After having witnessed a session of vegetarian meal-offering in a monastery, a scholar of Neo Confucianism in the Song Dynasty exclaimed, ‘Chinese propriety can all be found here.’

在开始提及华夏文明前，我们最好重温一下人类社会迄今为止的一些重要文明印迹。于两河流域发源的古巴比伦文明；于尼罗河发端 的古埃及文明；于恒河流域发源的古印度文明；于黄河和长江流域发 源的华夏文明；于拉丁美洲古代印第安人创造的玛雅文明。在这几大文明中 , 传承至今的 , 一是古印度 , 一是中国。

Before we start to talk about the Hua Xia civilization, let us look back at some of the important milestones in human society from the past until the present: the origination of the ancient Babylonian civilization in the Tigris and Euphrates river basin, the ancient Egyptian civilization in the Nile river basin, the ancient Indian civilization in the Ganges river basin, the Hua Xia civilization in the Yellow and Chang Jiang river basins, and the Mayan civilization founded by the ancient Indians in Latin America. Among these great civilizations, those that have continued until now are that of India and that of China.

我们汉传佛教讲，三千多 3043 年前 , 释迦牟尼佛出生在古印度迦毗罗卫国 ( 今尼泊尔境内 ), 父亲净饭王 , 母亲摩耶夫人，身为太子的他生活在一个刹帝利种姓的家庭。

It has been mentioned in Chinese Buddhism that Buddha Sakyamuni was born in Kapilavastu (inside present Nepal) in India more than 3,000 years ago. Together with his father, King Suddhodana, and his mother, Lady Maya, the prince lived in a household of the caste of the rulers.

人类历史中 , 古印度文明和中国文明绵延不绝。

In the history of humankind, the civilizations of ancient India and China have continued uninterruptedly.

诸位对中国历史朝代的演进 , 应该都很熟悉。从三皇五帝 , 中间略去，再到后来的唐宋元明清。

Everyone should be very familiar with the dynasties of Chinese history – from the Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors to the later Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties.

周族部落盘踞在渭水一带，首领姬昌即后来的周文王求贤若渴， 当听说有人直钩钓鱼，就直接到渭水去见姜子牙。一番对话后他确信 自己找到了旷世奇才，尊姜子牙为“太公望”。司马迁在《史记》中说：“天下三分，其二归周者，太公之谋计居多。”周文王去世后， 即位的周武王尊姜子牙为“尚父”，姜子牙尽心辅佐武王讨伐商纣创建周朝。周朝历 800 余年，是中国历史上存续时间最长的朝代。我们尊为至圣先师的孔子，就出生在东周晚期的春秋时代，他“述而不著”, 恢复周礼以整饬社会，被当代社会列为世界十大文化名人之首。

The tribal people of Zhou resided in the region of the River Wei. Their leader, Ji-Chang, who would later go on to be King Wen of Zhou, searched for talent like one who was hungry for food. Upon hearing that someone had been fishing using a straight hook, he went straight to River Wei to see Jiang Zi-Ya. After speaking with him for some time, he was confident that he had found a rare talent of the world. He conferred the title of ‘Hopeful Grand Duke’ on Jiang Zi-Ya. Sima Qian in Record of the Grand Historian wrote, ‘The world is divided into three parts; two of them belong to Zhou due mostly to the strategies of the Grand Duke.’ When King Wen of Zhou passed away, King Wu of Zhou who inherited the throne named him ‘Respectable Father’. Jiang Zi-Ya did his best to guide and assist King Wu of Zhou in his military campaign against King Zhou of Shang to establish the Zhou Dynasty. The Zhou Dynasty lasted for more than 800 years and is the dynasty to have had existed for the longest period of time in Chinese history. Kong-Zi (Confucius), whom we honour as the ultimate sage, was born in the later part of the Eastern Zhou during the Spring and Autumn Periods. He ‘transmitted [the ancient teachings] but did not author [any works himself]’ to revive Zhou propriety in order to heal the society. He has been named during modern times as the foremost in the list of the top 10 well-known cultural personalities of the world.

再往上推就是商朝。商朝帝王的名字很特别，都是以天干命名，人们称呼君王时，往往在名字前面加上一个帝字。商王的名字叫辛， 人称帝辛。帝辛自幼天资聪颖，不仅才华横溢，而且有百人之敌。《史记》说他“材力过人，手格猛兽”。他即位后励精图治，多次击退外族势力，商王朝成为当时世界上疆域最大的国家之一。当他坐拥天下后，蜕变得也是相当惊人，极端残暴，荒淫无度。

As we go further back, we have the Shang Dynasty. The names of the emperors of the Shang Dynasty were very unique; all were named according to the Heavenly Stems. When the people addressed the sovereigns, they often added ‘Emperor’ in front of their names. The name of the King of Shang was Xin. People called him Emperor Xin. Emperor Xin was naturally gifted and intelligent since young. Not only was he multi-talented, he was able to ‘hold himself against a hundred men’. Record of the Grand Historian describes him as ‘talented above all else, [and was] capable of fighting ferocious beasts’. After he ascended to the throne, he was diligent in his rule and fought off foreign invasion on many occasions. The Shang Imperial Dynasty became at that time, one of the states with the largest territories. After he had gained control of the world, the change in him was rather shocking; he became extremely ruthless and was excessively decadent.

“商”以前是“夏”。在中国，“国家”概念的形成自夏朝开始。禹, 本是舜帝时一位负责水利的大臣，因治水有功，受舜禅让继承帝位。尧帝和舜帝 , 任人唯贤 , 以德传位，令世人追慕，是我国禅让制度的圣君。大禹没有继承禅让，而是传位给儿子启，启建立夏朝 , 从此尧舜禹时代的禅让制退出舞台，世袭制拉开了几千余年的历史序幕。

Before Shang, it was the Xia Dynasty. In China, the concept of the state started to be formed during the Xia Dynasty. Yu was originally a high-ranking official who was responsible for controlling floods during the reign of Emperor Shun. As he was credited with successful flood control, Yu took over the throne from Shun who had abdicated in his favour. Emperors Yao and Shun had made governmental appointments based on merit and handed over their thrones based on virtue. That was both admired and respected by everyone. They were the saintly rulers of our nation’s abdication system. The great Yu did not inherit the abdication system, and handed over the throne to his son, Qi, instead. After Qi established the Xia Dynasty, the abdication system during the time of Yu and Shun withdrew from stage and the curtain was raised for the history of hereditary rule during the few thousand years that followed.

对生命自身的终极思考和对宇宙的无尽探索，是永恒的主题。从古至今，不仅人类，地球上的山川湖泊、森林飞鸟，乃至我们佛教所讲的胎卵湿化，各种千差万别的生命形态，始终都是一个共同体。早   在上个世纪七十年代，有气象学家提出了蝴蝶效应，用科学家的解释， 蝴蝶效应就是事物彼此之间有着非常微妙的关系，有时甚至牵一发而动全身。

The ultimate pondering of life itself and the discovery of the universe are eternal themes. From the ancient times until the present, not only humans but the mountains, rivers, and lakes on the earth, the birds in the forests, and including those whom we describe in Buddhism as being born from egg, from womb, from moisture, or spontaneously, have all along been of the same body. Early in the 70s of the last century, there had been climate scientists who mentioned the butterfly effect. According to their explanation, the butterfly effect describes how phenomena are subtly related to each other, such that at times, the movement of a single fibre triggers off a movement of the entire body.

我曾经到访过各国许多大学，从美国的哈佛、斯坦福和麻省理工到英国的剑桥、牛津。这些世界知名学府传承的是西方文艺复兴以来 的人生观和世界观，崇尚的是现代工业文明。大家有没有发现，当前的科学技术和生产力正在带来各种问题。

I have been to many universities in many countries – from Harvard, Stanford, and MIT in the United States, to Cambridge and Oxford in the United Kingdom. These internationally renowned universities have inherited the outlook on life and the worldview of the renaissance that hold in high esteem modern industrialized civilization. Has everyone realized all the different problems modern technology and productivity have created?

被称为当今最伟大科学家的斯蒂芬•霍金多次提出，人类如果想摆脱灭亡的命运，就必须设法移民其他星球。

Stephen Hawking, who had been called the greatest scientist of the modern era, mentioned that if the human race wants to escape the fate of oblivion, it has to migrate to the other planets.

霍金说：“人类已经步入越来越危险的时期，我们已经历了多次事关生死的事件。由于人类基因中携带的‘自私、贪婪’的遗传密码， 人类对于地球的掠夺日盛，资源正在一点点耗尽，人类不能把所有的鸡蛋都放在一个篮子里，所以，不能将赌注放在一个星球上。”

Hawking said that mankind has entered an era during which it is getting ever more dangerous. We have already encountered many incidents of life and death. As the human genetic makeup contains hereditary codes to be selfish and greedy, humankind’s exploitation of the earth is evermore rife as resources are being depleted bit by bit. We cannot put all our eggs into one basket; therefore, humans cannot all live on a single planet.

早年他说最多两百年，我们人类就要灭亡了，今年在澳州他又讲是一千年。对一个文明来说，两百年跟一千年有什么两样吗？都是很紧迫的。

In his early years, he said that it would take 200 years at most before humankind is destroyed. In Australia this year, he said it was 1,000 years.  To a civilization, is 200 different from 1,000 years? They are both very pressing figures.

他是怎么说移民呢？霍金的讲座也是很奇特，他本人没有到现场， 还在英国，通过先进的全息远程技术把影像传输到澳大利亚的演讲现场，斯蒂芬•霍金悬浮在半空中跟大家讲话。在之后的交流环节有人提问，说英国某个演唱组合有个成员退团，使得许多年轻女孩子的心都碎了，在被问及会造成怎样的宇宙效应时，霍金特别愉快地回答了这个问题。他说这个问题很重要，我建议那些伤心欲绝的年轻女孩密切关注理论物理的研究，因为有一天可能会证明确实存在多重宇宙，在另一个平行宇宙中，他可能仍然还在乐队，女粉丝甚至可能与他快乐地结婚了。

What did he say about migration? Hawking’s talk was also very special. He was not present in person. He was in England; and through advanced holographic telepresence technology, his image was transmitted live to the talk venue in Australia. Stephen Hawking floated in the air to talk with everyone. During the question-and-answer session later, someone asked him about the impact on the universe when a member of a certain English singing band quit causing many young girls to be heart-broken. Hawking was especially happy to answer that question. He said that it was a very important question and suggested that the utterly distressed young girls should be deeply concerned with the study of theoretical physics. This was because it might one day be proven that multiverses exist – the band member might still in the band in a parallel universe, and one of his female fans might even get to be married happily to him.

霍金再次提到平行宇宙，这是个很有意思的话题，也是我们人类需要思考的重要课题。如果二十一世纪最先进的科技已经从理论物理 学的角度推理出有平行宇宙，在座的可以想象，我们现在坐在这里， 是不是一个三维空间？随着我的讲话，滴答滴答，时光在不舍昼夜地流走，是不是又进入了四维空间？请问我们有没有处在五维的空间里？也有的。只不过我们不认识五维空间是什么，其实，六维七维， 八维十维，现在都是存在的。

The parallel universe mentioned by Hawking is a very meaningful subject, and an important theme which we humans need to think about. If the most advanced technology in the 21st century can prove with theoretical physics that multiverses exist, every one of you can imagine that as we are seated here in this three-dimensional space, would not time – tick-tock, tick-tock – slip by so ever quickly into four-dimensional space as I speak? Let me ask if we will ever find ourselves in five-dimensional space. We will too. It is just that we do not know what is five-dimensional space. In fact, the six-dimensional, the seven-dimensional, the eight-dimensional and the ten-dimensional; they all exist at present.

有这样两部片子倍受关注，一部是《超体》，另一部是《星际穿越》。刚开始看《星际穿越》的时候，你可能一直在猜男主角的书房有什么奥秘？为什么风吹过来，灰在地上写出了字来？后来这位科学家根据   这个字找到了秘密航空基地。影片的最后你才明白，当这个人进入多维空间的时候，是超越时间的。对于我们现在的人来说，在时间面前， 你完全是不自由的，时间就像一张单程车票。我们每个人在时间面前都是被动的，都是不可重复的。里面有一句台词：如果从五维的世界 里看，时间有可能只是一个物体的两个面而已，就像一个山坡，你可以爬东坡，也可以爬西坡。

There are two movies which have received much attention; one is Lucy and the other Interstellar. As you begin to watch Interstellar, you might be wondering what the secret is inside the protagonist’s room. Why do words appear on the dusty floor when it gets windy? The protagonist who is a scientist manages to rely on those words to discover a secret air-base. It is only towards the end of the movie that you realize that time has been transcended when he enters multi-dimensional space. For all of us in the present age, we are absolutely bound by time. Time is like a one-way bus ticket. When it comes to time, every one of us is passive and nothing happens twice. There is a line in the movie: ‘The way time is seen in a five-dimensional world – it is possible that it is just two sides of an object, like a mountain slope; you can climb it from the east, or you can climb it from the west.’

物理学家这样解释：如果我们把一张纸叠起来把蚂蚁放在上面， 蚂蚁会不停地在纸上爬。它感觉自己生活在二维空间里，但是我们人 一看就知道是三维空间，可是蚂蚁不知道，它在二维的循环里永无边 际地爬着……

Physicists explain it this way: if we roll up a sheet of paper and let an ant crawl on it, it will be crawling on it without end. It senses that it is in a two-dimensional space. However, we humans know that is three-dimensional space the moment we see it. But the ant does not know; it crawls on the endless and boundless two-dimensional continuum unendingly.

《星际穿越》还有一句台词，如果一个五维的智慧生命看人类的四维生命，我们何其的幼稚。根据剧情的发展，主人公进入了一个超时空的空间，他在书房书架一侧，拨动了改变我们现实四维世界的机关。随着科学观念的发展和转变，现代科技已经开始触摸到这一点。

There is another line in Interstellar: ‘If human four-dimensional life is to be viewed using the wisdom of a five-dimensional life-form, humans appear exceedingly puerile.’ As the script develops, the protagonist enters a space in which time has been transcended. On one side of the bookshelf in his room, he initiates a device which alters four-dimensional reality. With the development and shift in scientific thought, modern technology has already started to touch on this issue.

也就是说，我们最好带着这种智慧，超越时空障碍的智慧，再来重新解读人类的文明源头。

That is to say, it is best that we have in us wisdom that transcends the barriers of time and space before we are to re-assess the origins of human civilization.  

大致梳理一下人类的古文明，你会发现华夏文明与世界其它几大  文明之间，内涵基本上是一致的。说起来很神奇，远在文明还未萌芽之际的上古时代，没有手机，没有信息化社会的种种便利，尽管远隔   千山万水，但是不同文明之间的先祖们所思考的问题竟然惊人地相似。从时间观到空间观，从形而下到形而上，从低维空间到高维空间。非常可惜的是，岁月并没有让人类的生存智慧同步增长，相对于这些古   代文明来说，反而处在二十一世纪的现代人类显得有些蹩脚。就好像我们希翼借助哈勃望远镜在浩瀚的宇宙中探索外星生命一样，对具有更高文明的外星生命来说，这是很幼稚的事情。人类在四维时空里进行探索 , 用望远镜去观测，但高级智慧生命体是超越四维时空的。

From a general account of ancient human civilizations, you will find that the essence of the Hua Xia civilization is basically the same as the others. It is very amazing when we talk about it. Long ago in the ancient times during which civilization had yet to germinate, and mobile phones and the conveniences of the information age did not exist, the problems over which the forbears of the different civilizations thought were surprisingly the same, despite being separated from each other by vast lands and seas. Whether from the perspective of time or space, metaphysics or physics, or lower or higher dimensional space, it is a great pity that the wisdom which has enabled the humans to survive has not grown with time. In contrast with these ancient civilizations, the modern humans of the 21st Century appear somewhat lame. Just like how we hope to discover extraterrestrial life in the expansive universe with the Hubble telescope - to an extraterrestrial life-form having a more superior civilization, that is something very puerile. Humans carry out their exploration in four-dimensional space by observing with telescopes; but the life-forms of higher intelligence transcend the space of four dimensions.

中国人讲人往高处走，何处谓高？从形而下到形而上，从生灭到  永恒，也就是我们佛教所讲的南无阿弥陀佛。阿弥陀佛是永恒的意思， 南无阿弥陀佛译为皈依永恒，皈依无量光无量寿。人的生命很短暂，哪怕就像《兰亭序》提到的彭祖，到他死去的那一刻，八百年光景都似一场空梦。

The Chinese talk about aspiring upwards; but what is upwards? It is to go from the material to the metaphysical, and from creation and destruction to eternity; that is, to ‘Namo Buddha Amitabha’ mentioned by us Buddhists. Buddha Amitabha means eternity. ‘Namo Buddha Amitabha’ translates as ‘seeking refuge in eternity’, and ‘seeking refuge in boundless light and endless life’. The human life is brief. Whether it is Peng-Zu (a legendary long-lived figure in Chinese mythology) mentioned in Preface to the Poems Collected from the Orchid Pavilion, the time of 800 years upon his death was also just like a dream.

自上个世纪初叶开始，西方思潮不断席卷中国，民族虚无主义喧嚣一时，中华传统文化在近百年的徘徊中步履蹒跚。相对于现代文明来说，华夏文明的确显得有些年事已高，在人类还没有确切文字记载之前，华夏文明就已经创造了辉煌篇章，这个时代就是三皇五帝时代。

Beginning from the early part of the last century, the wave of western thought has continuously swept into China. Nihilism created much brouhaha for quite some time. In the period of uncertainty that lasted almost 100 years, traditional Chinese culture was faltering in its stride. Compared to contemporary culture, Chinese culture indeed appears to be already old in age. The Hua Xia civilization had already created illustrious chronicles before there was definite human written history. This was the era of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

你可以想象，我们华夏文明悠久不悠久啊？当我们这些后世子孙学习中华传统文化的时候，真的要有一种民族荣誉感和自豪感。我们是炎黄子孙，我们是华夏古老文明最直接的传承人。当我们中国人说自己是炎黄子孙的时候很自豪，因为华夏文明有着强大的文化能量。

You can imagine how long the history of our Hua Xia civilization is. When descendants like us learn Chinese traditional culture, we really have to have a sense of honour and pride. We are descendants of Emperors Yan and Huang. We are the direct heirs of the ancient civilization of Hua Xia. When we Chinese say we are the descendants of Emperors Yan and Huang, we do it with pride because the Hua Xia civilization possesses great cultural energy.

我国当代知名的教育家和佛学家南怀瑾老先生早就预言，二十世纪人类最大的敌人是癌症，二十一世纪人类最大的敌人是精神疾病。本世纪内，人类的精神领域非常薄弱。道德体系原本是人类的护身符， 就像开车要系保险带，家里要安防盗门一样，一旦防御体系被破坏，相当于我们的精神领域失去了防御能力。

Nan Huai-Jin, the well-known educator and Buddhist scholar of our nation in present times, predicted long ago that while the greatest enemy of humankind in the 20th Century was cancer, it is mental illness in the 21st Century. In this century, human mental faculty is very weak. A moral system is fundamentally an amulet to protect humankind; just like a safety belt to be put on when one is driving, or an anti-burglary door in one’s home – once this defence system breaks down, it is like the loss of the defence capability of our spiritual faculty.

从社会调查得知 , 中国现在精神疾病，以及重度神经病已超过几千万人。特别在大学校园里 , 有忧郁症和躁郁症倾向的学生占到17%，这是一个非常严重的社会问题。

We know from social surveys that the number of people with mental afflictions and serious illnesses in China now is already more than a few scores of millions. Especially in the universities, those inclined to depression and bipolar disorder make up 17 percent of the student population. This is a very serious social problem.

对生命的不断追问和对古典文明的不懈探索，逐渐成为一些生命寻路人希翼走出困境，追寻人类古老文明生存智慧的真实路径。

For those who hope to escape from their predicament, the search for the wisdom of survival of human ancient civilization through the ceaseless making of inquiries about life and the persistent exploration of classical ancient cultures has increasingly become a real and viable path.

我遇到过许多精神上有问题的人，一接触中国传统文化，马上开始恢复了，有的甚至立竿见影。精神疾病，医学角度上没有特效药， 但是中华传统文化有强大的文化能量，对这类群体显示出“特效”。借用这次宝贵的讲座机遇，也是我对大家给出的一个思路吧。

I have met many who have had mental problems who started to recover right away the moment they came into contact with traditional Chinese culture. Some even recovered instantaneously. From the perspective of medical science, there is no medicine which is especially effective for mental illness. However, traditional Chinese culture has great energy, and to this group of people, it has made manifest its special effects. Making use of this talk as an extraordinary opportunity, I hope I am also offering to everyone, another way of thinking.