《靈魂層次的自由》《 Soul levels of freedom》

人都渴望自由，很多人覺得錢可以帶來自由，所以拼命想要賺錢，俗話說：「沒有人會嫌錢多。」這就暗示了錢等於自由的想法，但錢可以讓你不生病、不老死、死的時候不會一切都歸於零嗎？不會，所以有的人走上靈修之路。或是當他發現內

心痛苦的時候，錢沒有用，他就走向宗教、走向靈修。

People long for freedom. Many people think that money can bring freedom, and they crave for more money. As the saying goes: "Money is never enough." This implies that money equals freedom, but can money set you free from sickness, death from old age, and remain useful to you after death? No; thus, some people choose to walk a spiritual path in life. Alternatively,maybe when man realizes that money cannot treat his psychological suffering, he turns to religion and spiritual practice.

可是，幾乎大多數的人，無論向外求或向內求，他們總把所渴望的自由視為一種形容詞或動詞。比如說自由就是一種怎樣怎樣的狀態，或自由就是可以隨心所欲的去做等等。但這都是頭腦所投射出來的自由，頭腦不明白真正的自由：靈魂層次的自由。

However, most people who search both external and internal freedom always regard the freedom they aspire to as an adjective or a verb. For example, you might say freedom is a kind of state, or doing what you would do for free. However, this is the projection of freedom of the ego. The ego does not understand; the real freedom is soul freedom.

靈魂層次的自由，是跟一切形容詞或動詞都無關。這種跟一切形容詞與動詞都無關的自由，才是真正的自由。

Soul freedom has nothing to do with adjectives and verbs. Moreover, the real freedom is that it has nothing to do with adjectives and verbs.

有的人覺得情緒很苦，很想解脫，於是去跳樓自殺，他也是想要自由，但是在他的內在還帶著那個想不開，所以他的想不開還會讓他在輪迴中繼續創造類似的生活。有的人就這樣過了幾千年，甚至過得愈來愈狹窄，意識層次愈來愈低的也有，一直到了某個時候，終於發生一件事把他一巴掌打醒，他才開始回頭。

Some people jump to their death because they suffer mood swings and want to be free. However, they have not healed the pain they feel inside; they will fall into the reincarnation and continue to create a similar life. Some people have spent thousands of years on a cycle of life, and become even more narrow-minded. Sometimes the level of consciousness gets lower until an event serves as a wake-up call for him to turn his life around.

另外有的人很想要開悟，很想要解脫，如果有人告訴他從高樓上跳下去可以開悟解脫，他也會一陣HIGH的就撲下去，但是在他的內在還帶著那個追尋的激情，他是非常想要那個「不凡」的，結果他跳下去以後並不會開悟，也會繼續在輪迴中過著渴望著非凡的生活。

In addition, some people want enlightenment and liberation. If someone told him to jump off a high building so that he can get enlightened, he would jump with joy. In fact, his mind is still busy with the pursuit of wisdom, and he wanted to be “remarkable," and therefore, he will not get enlightened. He would have been longing for an extraordinary life in reincarnation.

但是有的人，已經圓滿了地球的功課，那麼，他是很淡泊地在生活著，靜候著那個離開世界的機緣。有時候只是還有一些小小的人情上的隨順，所以他還活在這個世界上，但是當「靈魂的出口」來到時，他會知道，他就離開了，這裡面沒有激情、沒有逃脫也沒有渴望。也許是一場火災，你看到的是一具焦黑的屍體，但他不在那裡，也不在輪迴裡了，就像火災裡有一扇門似地，他只是簡單地走了出去，在那裡沒有留下鬼也沒有留下神。

However, there are some people who have accomplished their work on earth and live a simple life, ready and waiting to leave this world. Sometimes, you need to be compliant with some little humanities. Thus, he is still in this world. However, there is no passion, no escape, no desire, and he knows it is time to leave when the life of his soul comes to an end. Maybe it was a fire, and you saw a charred body, but his soul was not there, nor in reincarnation. It is like there is a door in the fire, and he just walked out the door, and there is nothing in there, neither a

ghost nor a deity.

「靈魂的出口」並不真的是有一個出口，這只是一個比喻，但準備好的人會知道那個機會之窗來了。

 "An exit toward the soul" does not mean there really is an exit; it is just a metaphor, but the window of opportunity is known only to those who are ready to leave.

真正的自由，不是你想，然後你可以，而是你沒去想，但要的話你也可以。如果你想死，然後你去死，這不是自由；你沒有想死的這種念頭，但如果要你離開這個世界的話也可以，就好像線上遊戲可以隨時不玩一樣，這才是真正的自由。如果時機差不多到了，那個機緣點來了，你就走了。這是已經準備好的人，已經圓滿了地球功課的人的自由。

Real freedom is not about doing whatever you want to do; instead, you do not think about it, but you can have it if you want it. Making your death wish come true does not mean freedom from death. Real freedom is not having considered committing suicide; however, you can leave this world if this is what you want. It is similar to an online game that you can log out of whenever you want. If your time is almost up, chances are there to be taken, and then you leave. This is freedom for those who are ready and have accomplished their work on earth.

禪宗裡面記載了不少這樣的人物，中唐的龐蘊居士是其中之一，他與女兒靈照身為在家人，卻展現出生死自在的風采，「景德傳燈錄」第八卷記載了他是如何離開這個世界的故事。這段翻成白話文大意是這樣的：

There have been several such figures, according to Zen, and Pangyun Jushi, who lived in the middle of the Tang Dynasty, was one of them. He and his daughter Lingchao were Buddhist householders who showed they were comfortable with death. Volume eight of the "Jingde Era Record of the Transmission of the Lamp" recorded the story of how he left this world. The main idea of this passage, written in vernacular Chinese, is as follows:

龐蘊居士將要入滅的那一天，準備選在正中午的時候，他就吩咐女兒，幫他注意著太陽的變化，看到日正當中時要來稟報給他（那時候沒有手錶）。到了中午，女兒進屋裡告訴父親說：「日正當中了，不過有日蝕喔。」龐蘊居士就出門來看，結果根本沒這回事，等到再回到房子裡的時候，發現女兒靈照竟然佔據著自己的座位，先一步坐亡了。龐蘊居士一看笑說：「我這女兒就是這麼機鋒敏捷，毫不低調！」於是只好把自己要離開的時間延七天（處理一下女兒的後事），第七天他的朋友州牧于公來探視他，龐蘊居士交代說自己死了以後燒一燒丟棄就行了，然後對于公說：「但願空諸所有，慎勿實諸所無，好住世間皆如影響。」說完頭枕在于公的膝上就死了。

One day, Pangyun Jushi knew that he was going to die at noon, so he asked his daughter to pay attention to the movement of the sun. She has to report to him when the sun is high in the sky at noon. Watches did not exist during that time. At noontime, the girl went inside the house and told him:"The sun is now high in the sky, but there's an eclipse." Pangyun Jushi went out to see, but nothing happened at all. When he went back to his room, he found his daughter Lingchao has occupied his seat and died. Pangyun Jushi laughed and said: "My daughter was very smart, never kept a low profile!" He put off his death for seven days and

arranged his daughter's funeral. By the seventh day, his friend ZhouMuYuKong came to see him. Pangyun Jushi explained him to leave his dead body on fire after he died. His final words to ZhouMuYuKong were, "I hope you see things as an illusion when you thought they were true; do not see an illusion even as a truth! See things that exist as shadows and sounds, and then you can live well in the world." After saying these words, he laid his head on YuKong's lap and died.

真正的自由比較像這樣：當你完成了地球功課，會有一個窗口突然開了，就好比多拉A夢的時光機來了，然後一個洞口突然打開了那樣，你就瀟灑地說：「喔那大家再見！」然後就搭了這順風車走人。能夠這樣的人就是因為他已經準備好了，這個世界已經被他看透了，他只是順其自然地體驗著生活，等待著可以離開的機會，當那機會之窗來到時，他就毫不戀棧地說再見。

Real freedom would somehow be like this: when you accomplish your work on earth, a door would suddenly open: it would be something like Doraemon's time machine. The door suddenly opens, and you smartly say: "Oh, goodbye everyone." Then you are gone. You can do it this way is because you have fully understood the world in that you take life as it comes and wait for the proper time to leave. When the window of opportunity comes, you leave with no regrets.

我們來地球就是為了學習智慧，智慧愈打開人自然會有愈多的自由，到後來你甚至會有能力意識到那個窗口打開了，然後就輕鬆地離開輪迴。不要問在這自由裡面會有什麼感覺？會有什麼事情發生？這份自由跟人們認為的外在事件或內在感覺完全不相干。在這自由裡面，不是動詞或形容詞能夠描述的，跟這些是完全不相干的。

We came to earth to learn wisdom; the more wisdom you attain, the more freedom you will earn. You would even realize that the window of opportunity is there in that you can easily get out of reincarnation. No need to know how it would feel to be free. What would happen next? It is irrelevant what other people think of freedom via external events and feelings. Also, it is entirely different to the verb or the adjective referring to this freedom.

人間所有事情都找得到出口，只是看你看得到看不到，從世間的大大小小事情，到看似沒完沒了的生死輪迴，都有出口，真的瞭解這個你就會有慈悲，不會有害怕，不會有需要活在抱怨和無奈裡面。這句話很深，淺的人看到淺的，深的人會看到深的。

You can always find a way to all matters and something seem endless of the reincarnation. It all depends on how you look at things. If you totally understand that, you are full of mercy and live life without complaints and frustrations. This word has a deeper sense of meaning; the deeper you look, the deeper you become.

祝你圓滿地球功課，能與所愛的家人之間，有來自盈滿感謝的祝福，這會是最美好的一生。

I hope you accomplish the work on earth and enjoy being with the family, with all the finest blessings. This would be the best and most beautiful life.

 譯者：Venica