【翻譯練習】打掃環境，洗滌身心
Take it from me, a Buddhist monk: cleaning is good for you
作者：松本紹圭
來源：https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/05/buddhist-monk-cleaning-good-for-you
打掃、擦拭、整理等例行事務，有其精神上的意義，而我們不必信某種宗教，就可以受益於清潔的修行
心理諮商師常建議客戶每天清掃居家環境。髒亂可能是不開心或生病顯現的症狀。但是，保持環境整潔不只是為了心地光明，而是日本佛教各宗各派共同持守的、最基本的修行之道。日本佛教觀點中，為了追求精神生活的昇華，吾人必須信受奉行清潔、清潔、再清潔的原則。這是因為，清潔的修行蘊含無比的力量。
當然，身為致力提升精神生活的佛教僧侶，我推薦的也會是佛教的概念和修行法。不過，我們倒是不必改信佛教才能學會這些法則。很多人一看到「宗教」這個詞．就聯想到宗教應該會包含用來規範人們價值觀和行為的一套信條，宗教應該會創造出一種超出人類理性和經驗之外的崇高實體，或者認為宗教是那些沒主見之人在茫茫大海中抓到的一根浮木。不過在我看來，值得尊敬的宗教，不該去約束一個人的價值觀或行為；宗教的用意，是讓人們跳脫出社會秩序所依歸的制度和標準，從而獲得自由和解脫。「自由」的字面意義，即是「因你而生」。
清潔的修行 (我指的是掃地、擦拭、磨光、洗滌、整理等例行事務) 是通往內在和平的道路上邁出的一小步。日本佛教並未將個人及其周遭環境區分開來，而清潔能夠體現出我們對身邊萬事萬物的尊重，形成天人合一之感。
我們可以在日本的茶道或花道傳統中，觀察到「自然」的存在，這兩種傳統習俗都源於佛教。然而，日本人的「自然」觀卻深受西方文化影響，「しぜん」(shizen) 這個拼法呈現的是以人類為中心的世界型態，人類彷彿聳立在生物層級的頂端，以造物主的代理者或傳話者自居。
然而，古代日本另有一種「自然」觀。「じねん」(jinen) 的漢字同樣是「自然」，在以往卻是指「放下」或「如如不動」之意－－這個定義比較接近佛教的教義，關係到萬物皆有靈的論點，以及對大自然的敬畏。
佛教和其他哲理傳入日本後，日本人開始不只在人類身上觀察自然，更普及於一切有情眾生，甚至山川河海，樹木花草。這種自然觀一直持續到近代的日本文化，像是寶可夢的各種異獸，或是《借物少女艾莉緹》之類的吉卜力動畫，都透露著一絲環境主義的氣息。於是，即使我們把「自然」念成「しぜん」，但這個字依然傳達出人類並沒有置身於自然之外、而是與自然合而為一的日本人生觀。
佛教認為，我們以為有「我」這個人的存在，這其實是自我創造出來的假象－－而清潔正是去除這種假象的一種方法。「人類」這個詞，日文的漢字寫作「人間」，代表人類是「在某某之間的人」。因此，作為人類的我們，只會透過與他人的關係而存在，譬如與朋友、同事、家人等其他人之間的關係。作為人類的我們，有自己特定的用語、表情和行為，但這些言行舉止只會透過與他人的互動和連結，才得以顯現出來。這就是佛教「緣」(相依性) 的概念。
人人都有機會藉由佛教清潔的修行，進一步認識上述的概念。清潔的修行，不需要學習特殊的技巧，不必雇用專業的清潔顧問，也不用舉行高僧主持的特別儀式。
清潔的基本要點，非常簡單：家裡從上到下一一打掃，物品按照擺放位置逐一擦拭，每件東西都要小心拿取。開始清潔住家後，可以繼續把清潔的修行延伸到其他面向，包括自己的身體。至於如何清潔自己的心靈，這個問題我想我就不予答覆，但是如果我們確實認真地清潔、清潔、再清潔，最後就會發現自己在清潔外在環境的同時，也一併灑掃內心的庭院了。
的確，有時人手不足，日本寺廟還是會雇清潔人員來打掃，但僧侶也會自己動手清潔，因為清潔的修行並不是一種手段，它本身就是一個目的。我們並不會出錢請別人幫我們完成靜坐的修行吧？
就和靜坐的修行一樣，清潔的修行並沒有終點可言。這一刻才把花園掃乾淨，心滿意足，下一刻落葉和灰塵又開始堆積。同樣地，這一刻才沉浸在無我的正念所湧現的禪悅法喜，下一刻心中竟又生起瞋恨或無明煩惱。內心的我執生生不息，為了達到定與靜的境地，我必須時時勤拂拭，勿使惹塵埃。活著，就是清潔、清潔、再清潔。
Mental health counsellors often recommend that clients clean their home environments every day. Dirt and squalor can be symptoms of unhappiness or illness. But cleanliness is not only about mental health. It is the most basic practice that all forms of Japanese Buddhism have in common. In Japanese Buddhism, it is said that what you must do in the pursuit of your spirituality is clean, clean, clean. This is because the practice of cleaning is powerful.
Of course, as a monk who is dedicated to spiritual life, I recommend Buddhist concepts and practices. But you don't have to convert to a new religion to learn from it. Many people's associations with the word "religion" may include a set of rules to regulate people's values and actions; the creation of an irrational transcendent entity; or the idea of a crutch for people who cannot think for themselves. In my view, though, a respectable religion does not exist to bind one's values or actions. It is there to free people from the systems and standards that order society. In Japanese characters, the word "freedom" is written as "caused by oneself".
Cleaning practice, by which I mean the routines whereby we sweep, wipe, polish, wash and tidy, is one step on this path towards inner peace. In Japanese Buddhism, we don't separate a self from its environment, and cleaning expresses our respect for and sense of wholeness with the world that surrounds us.
You can see the presence of nature in the Japanese traditions of sado (tea ceremonies) or kado (flower arranging), which were both originally born from Buddhism. But the idea of "nature" in Japan has been strongly influenced by western culture. Pronounced "shizen", the characters reflect a human-centred version of the world in which humans stand at the top of a hierarchy as the agent or messenger of the creator.
But there is another sense of "nature" derived from ancient Japanese. Pronounced "jinen", the same characters once meant "let it go" or "it is as it is" – a definition much closer to Buddhist philosophy, with its links to animism and the worship of nature.
After Buddhism and the other philosophies were introduced to the Japanese people, they began to see nature not only in humans, but also in all sentient beings, and even in mountains, rivers, plants and trees. This view of nature persists in modern Japanese culture – for example in Pokémon's characters or Studio Ghibli films such as Arrietty, with their environmentalist messages. As a result, even when we pronounce the characters for nature as "shizen", the term still carries with it the Japanese idea that humans are not excluded from nature, but are part of it.
Buddhism says the notion that you have your own personality is an illusion that your ego creates – and cleaning is a means to let go of this. The characters for "human being" in Japanese mean "person" and "between". Human being is "a person in between". Thus, you as a human being only exist through your relations with others – people such as friends, colleagues and family. You as a person have some particular words, facial expressions and behaviours, but these arise only through your interaction and connections with other people. This is the Buddhist concept "en" or interdependence.
Buddhist cleaning practice provides each of us with an opportunity to understand this concept. You don't have to acquire special techniques, hire a professional cleaning consultant, or perform the special rituals used by senior monks.
The basics are very simple. Sweep from the top to the bottom of your home, wipe along the stream of objects and handle everything with care. After you start cleaning your home, you can extend cleaning practice to other things, including your body. How you can apply cleaning practice to your mind is a question I want to leave unanswered, but if you practise cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning, you will eventually know that you have been cleaning your inner world along with the outer one.
Of course Japanese temples sometimes employ cleaners when they are short of hands. But Buddhist monks also clean by themselves. This is because the cleaning practice is not a tool but a purpose in itself. Would you outsource your meditation practice to others?
As with meditation practice, there is no endpoint of the cleaning practice. Right after I am satisfied with the cleanliness of the garden I have swept, fallen leaves and dust begin to accumulate. Similarly, right after I feel peaceful with my ego-less mindfulness, anger or anxiety begin once again to emerge in my mind. The ego endlessly arises in my mind, so I keep cleaning for my inner peace. No cleaning, no life.
作者：松本紹圭
來源：https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/05/buddhist-monk-cleaning-good-for-you
打掃、擦拭、整理等例行事務，有其精神上的意義，而我們不必信某種宗教，就可以受益於清潔的修行
心理諮商師常建議客戶每天清掃居家環境。髒亂可能是不開心或生病顯現的症狀。但是，保持環境整潔不只是為了心地光明，而是日本佛教各宗各派共同持守的、最基本的修行之道。日本佛教觀點中，為了追求精神生活的昇華，吾人必須信受奉行清潔、清潔、再清潔的原則。這是因為，清潔的修行蘊含無比的力量。
當然，身為致力提升精神生活的佛教僧侶，我推薦的也會是佛教的概念和修行法。不過，我們倒是不必改信佛教才能學會這些法則。很多人一看到「宗教」這個詞．就聯想到宗教應該會包含用來規範人們價值觀和行為的一套信條，宗教應該會創造出一種超出人類理性和經驗之外的崇高實體，或者認為宗教是那些沒主見之人在茫茫大海中抓到的一根浮木。不過在我看來，值得尊敬的宗教，不該去約束一個人的價值觀或行為；宗教的用意，是讓人們跳脫出社會秩序所依歸的制度和標準，從而獲得自由和解脫。「自由」的字面意義，即是「因你而生」。
清潔的修行 (我指的是掃地、擦拭、磨光、洗滌、整理等例行事務) 是通往內在和平的道路上邁出的一小步。日本佛教並未將個人及其周遭環境區分開來，而清潔能夠體現出我們對身邊萬事萬物的尊重，形成天人合一之感。
我們可以在日本的茶道或花道傳統中，觀察到「自然」的存在，這兩種傳統習俗都源於佛教。然而，日本人的「自然」觀卻深受西方文化影響，「しぜん」(shizen) 這個拼法呈現的是以人類為中心的世界型態，人類彷彿聳立在生物層級的頂端，以造物主的代理者或傳話者自居。
然而，古代日本另有一種「自然」觀。「じねん」(jinen) 的漢字同樣是「自然」，在以往卻是指「放下」或「如如不動」之意－－這個定義比較接近佛教的教義，關係到萬物皆有靈的論點，以及對大自然的敬畏。
佛教和其他哲理傳入日本後，日本人開始不只在人類身上觀察自然，更普及於一切有情眾生，甚至山川河海，樹木花草。這種自然觀一直持續到近代的日本文化，像是寶可夢的各種異獸，或是《借物少女艾莉緹》之類的吉卜力動畫，都透露著一絲環境主義的氣息。於是，即使我們把「自然」念成「しぜん」，但這個字依然傳達出人類並沒有置身於自然之外、而是與自然合而為一的日本人生觀。
佛教認為，我們以為有「我」這個人的存在，這其實是自我創造出來的假象－－而清潔正是去除這種假象的一種方法。「人類」這個詞，日文的漢字寫作「人間」，代表人類是「在某某之間的人」。因此，作為人類的我們，只會透過與他人的關係而存在，譬如與朋友、同事、家人等其他人之間的關係。作為人類的我們，有自己特定的用語、表情和行為，但這些言行舉止只會透過與他人的互動和連結，才得以顯現出來。這就是佛教「緣」(相依性) 的概念。
人人都有機會藉由佛教清潔的修行，進一步認識上述的概念。清潔的修行，不需要學習特殊的技巧，不必雇用專業的清潔顧問，也不用舉行高僧主持的特別儀式。
清潔的基本要點，非常簡單：家裡從上到下一一打掃，物品按照擺放位置逐一擦拭，每件東西都要小心拿取。開始清潔住家後，可以繼續把清潔的修行延伸到其他面向，包括自己的身體。至於如何清潔自己的心靈，這個問題我想我就不予答覆，但是如果我們確實認真地清潔、清潔、再清潔，最後就會發現自己在清潔外在環境的同時，也一併灑掃內心的庭院了。
的確，有時人手不足，日本寺廟還是會雇清潔人員來打掃，但僧侶也會自己動手清潔，因為清潔的修行並不是一種手段，它本身就是一個目的。我們並不會出錢請別人幫我們完成靜坐的修行吧？
就和靜坐的修行一樣，清潔的修行並沒有終點可言。這一刻才把花園掃乾淨，心滿意足，下一刻落葉和灰塵又開始堆積。同樣地，這一刻才沉浸在無我的正念所湧現的禪悅法喜，下一刻心中竟又生起瞋恨或無明煩惱。內心的我執生生不息，為了達到定與靜的境地，我必須時時勤拂拭，勿使惹塵埃。活著，就是清潔、清潔、再清潔。
Mental health counsellors often recommend that clients clean their home environments every day. Dirt and squalor can be symptoms of unhappiness or illness. But cleanliness is not only about mental health. It is the most basic practice that all forms of Japanese Buddhism have in common. In Japanese Buddhism, it is said that what you must do in the pursuit of your spirituality is clean, clean, clean. This is because the practice of cleaning is powerful.
Of course, as a monk who is dedicated to spiritual life, I recommend Buddhist concepts and practices. But you don't have to convert to a new religion to learn from it. Many people's associations with the word "religion" may include a set of rules to regulate people's values and actions; the creation of an irrational transcendent entity; or the idea of a crutch for people who cannot think for themselves. In my view, though, a respectable religion does not exist to bind one's values or actions. It is there to free people from the systems and standards that order society. In Japanese characters, the word "freedom" is written as "caused by oneself".
Cleaning practice, by which I mean the routines whereby we sweep, wipe, polish, wash and tidy, is one step on this path towards inner peace. In Japanese Buddhism, we don't separate a self from its environment, and cleaning expresses our respect for and sense of wholeness with the world that surrounds us.
You can see the presence of nature in the Japanese traditions of sado (tea ceremonies) or kado (flower arranging), which were both originally born from Buddhism. But the idea of "nature" in Japan has been strongly influenced by western culture. Pronounced "shizen", the characters reflect a human-centred version of the world in which humans stand at the top of a hierarchy as the agent or messenger of the creator.
But there is another sense of "nature" derived from ancient Japanese. Pronounced "jinen", the same characters once meant "let it go" or "it is as it is" – a definition much closer to Buddhist philosophy, with its links to animism and the worship of nature.
After Buddhism and the other philosophies were introduced to the Japanese people, they began to see nature not only in humans, but also in all sentient beings, and even in mountains, rivers, plants and trees. This view of nature persists in modern Japanese culture – for example in Pokémon's characters or Studio Ghibli films such as Arrietty, with their environmentalist messages. As a result, even when we pronounce the characters for nature as "shizen", the term still carries with it the Japanese idea that humans are not excluded from nature, but are part of it.
Buddhism says the notion that you have your own personality is an illusion that your ego creates – and cleaning is a means to let go of this. The characters for "human being" in Japanese mean "person" and "between". Human being is "a person in between". Thus, you as a human being only exist through your relations with others – people such as friends, colleagues and family. You as a person have some particular words, facial expressions and behaviours, but these arise only through your interaction and connections with other people. This is the Buddhist concept "en" or interdependence.
Buddhist cleaning practice provides each of us with an opportunity to understand this concept. You don't have to acquire special techniques, hire a professional cleaning consultant, or perform the special rituals used by senior monks.
The basics are very simple. Sweep from the top to the bottom of your home, wipe along the stream of objects and handle everything with care. After you start cleaning your home, you can extend cleaning practice to other things, including your body. How you can apply cleaning practice to your mind is a question I want to leave unanswered, but if you practise cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning, you will eventually know that you have been cleaning your inner world along with the outer one.
Of course Japanese temples sometimes employ cleaners when they are short of hands. But Buddhist monks also clean by themselves. This is because the cleaning practice is not a tool but a purpose in itself. Would you outsource your meditation practice to others?
As with meditation practice, there is no endpoint of the cleaning practice. Right after I am satisfied with the cleanliness of the garden I have swept, fallen leaves and dust begin to accumulate. Similarly, right after I feel peaceful with my ego-less mindfulness, anger or anxiety begin once again to emerge in my mind. The ego endlessly arises in my mind, so I keep cleaning for my inner peace. No cleaning, no life.
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