涅槃的意义

[作者]坦尼沙罗尊者

[中译]良稹

Nibbana

byVen.ThanissaroBhikkhu

我们都了解火焰熄灭的情形。火尽烟散、寂然无迹。因此我们初次了解到，涅槃(nibbana/nirvana)这个词，作为佛教的修持目标，其字面意思是火焰的熄灭， 会感到作为一个灵性追求目标，很难想象有比彻底消亡这个形象更致命的了。不过，对于涅槃概念作这般理解，实际上是一个误会，并非在文字上，而是在形象上。对于佛陀时代的印度人来说，熄灭之火代表了什么? 绝对不是消亡。

Weallknowwhathappenswhenafiregoesout.Theflamesdiedownandthefireisgoneforgood.SowhenwefirstlearnthatthenameforthegoalofBuddhistpractice,nibbana(nirvana),literallymeanstheextinguishingofafire,it\'shardtoimagineadeadlierimageforaspiritualgoal:utterannihilation.Itturnsout,though,thatthisreadingoftheconceptisamistakeintranslation,notsomuchofawordasofanimage.WhatdidanextinguishedfirerepresenttotheIndiansoftheBuddha\'sday?Anythingbutannihilation.

根据古老的婆罗门信仰，火焰熄灭时进入一个潜在阶段。它并非停止存在，而是处于静态，在这个不受燃料束缚的状态下扩散开来，弥漫于空间。当佛陀用这个比喻对当时印度的婆罗门人士讲解涅槃之意时，绕过了熄灭之火是否继续存在的问题，而是侧重于说明，要定义不燃之火是不可能的: 因此他关于一个彻底“熄灭”者的称谓，也是不可描述的。
 
AccordingtotheancientBrahmans,whenafirewasextinguisheditwentintoastateoflatency.Ratherthanceasingtoexist,itbecamedormantandinthatstate—unboundfromanyparticularfuel—itbecamediffusedthroughoutthecosmos.WhentheBuddhausedtheimagetoexplainnibbanatotheIndianBrahmansofhisday,hebypassedthequestionofwhetheranextinguishedfirecontinuestoexistornot,andfocusedinsteadontheimpossibilityofdefiningafirethatdoesn\'tburn:thushisstatementthatthepersonwhohasgonetotally\"out\"can\'tbedescribed.

但是，佛陀在对自己的弟子讲解时，更多地用涅槃的形象作为自由的象征。当时的印度人，似乎都把燃烧之火看成动荡、有依赖性、禁锢状态，燃烧时既执取、又受缚于燃料。为了点火，必须把它“抓获”(seize)。火在放弃了(letgo)燃料之后，便“自由”了，从动荡、依赖、禁锢中获得解脱，宁静、不受制约。这就是为什么巴利文诗偈中反复以熄灭之火的形象作为自由的比喻。实际上，这个词属于火的一组类比，相关词汇另有两个。Upadana，意为执着，也指火从燃料中获得的滋养。Khandha，不仅指界定一切缘起经验的五蕴之一——形态、感受、辨知，思维、意识，而且还指树干。正如火停止执着、停止从木料获取滋养，便熄灭了;心终止对五蕴的执着时，便获得了自由。 

However,whenteachinghisowndisciples,theBuddhausednibbanamoreasanimageoffreedom.Apparently,allIndiansatthetimesawburningfireasagitated,dependent,andtrapped,bothclingingandbeingstucktoitsfuelasitburned.Toigniteafire,onehadto\"seize\"it.Whenfireletgoofitsfuel,itwas\"freed,\"releasedfromitsagitation,dependence,andentrapment—calmandunconfined.ThisiswhyPalipoetryrepeatedlyusestheimageofextinguishedfireasametaphorforfreedom.Infact,thismetaphorispartofapatternoffireimagerythatinvolvestwootherrelatedtermsaswell.Upadana,orclinging,alsoreferstothesustenanceafiretakesfromitsfuel.Khandhameansnotonlyoneofthefive\"heaps\"(form,feeling,perception,thoughtprocesses,andconsciousness)thatdefineallconditionedexperience,butalsothetrunkofatree.Justasfiregoesoutwhenitstopsclingingandtakingsustenancefromwood,sothemindisfreedwhenitstopsclingingtothekhandhas.

因此，涅槃这个形象之下的内涵是指自由。巴利论藏追溯其动词的词根为“解脱”(unbinding)，也支持这个观点。是怎样的解脱?经文中描述了两个层次。一个是此生的解脱，以火已熄灭、余烬尚温为象征，这代表已证悟的阿罗汉，有视觉听觉，敏感于喜乐，但已脱离了贪、瞋、痴。第二个层次的解脱，以火焰灭尽、余烬已冷作为象征，代表了阿罗汉此生以后的经验。来自感官的一切输入冷却下来，他/她从时空存在的最细微的苦与局限中获得了解脱。

Thustheimageunderlyingnibbanaisoneoffreedom.ThePalicommentariessupportthispointbytracingthewordnibbanatoitsverbalroot,whichmeans\"unbinding.\"Whatkindofunbinding?Thetextsdescribetwolevels.Oneistheunbindinginthislifetime,symbolizedbyafirethathasgoneoutbutwhoseembersarestillwarm.Thisstandsfortheenlightenedarahant,whoisconsciousofsightsandsounds,sensitivetopleasureandpain,butfreedfrompassion,aversion,anddelusion.Thesecondlevelofunbinding,symbolizedbyafiresototallyoutthatitsembershavegrowncold,iswhatthearahantexperiencesafterthislife.Allinputfromthesensescoolsawayandhe/sheistotallyfreedfromeventhesubtleststressesandlimitationsofexistenceinspaceandtime.

佛陀坚持说，这后一个层次是不可描述的，即便以存在与非存在角度也不可能，因为言辞只适于有限事物。他除了以形象和比喻之外，实际上说的只是，人在此生可以预尝终极快乐的经验，而这个经验是真正值得了解的。

TheBuddhainsiststhatthislevelisindescribable,evenintermsofexistenceornonexistence,becausewordsworkonlyforthingsthathavelimits.Allhereallysaysaboutit—apartfromimagesandmetaphors—isthatonecanhaveforetastesoftheexperienceinthislifetime,andthatit\'stheultimatehappiness,somethingtrulyworthknowing.

因此，下一次你目睹火焰熄灭时，不要把它作为消亡的例证，而看成从舍弃中获得自由的一课。

Sothenexttimeyouwatchafiregoingout,seeitnotasacaseofannihilation,butasalessoninhowfreedomistobefoundinlettinggo.