譯者按：頂禮本師釋迦牟尼佛！恕譯者才疏學淺，未明心要，謬誤在所難免，僅供參考。所譯文字未經上師認可，或專業翻譯機構校對，純以個人學習為目的，轉載或引用請慎重。
Bodhichitta is much more than kindness and compassion
Introduction
[There was a] request last time when we [were on] Zoom to say something about bodhichitta. I will try my best. Bodhichitta is like the quintessence of the Mahayana teaching. That’s how it is said. And again, I have to say [that] our language and philology is going to be challenging. I think it’s really difficult to translate [the word] “bodhichitta”.
上次我們在 ZOOM 的時候，有人要求說一些關於菩提心的內容，我將盡力而為。菩提心據說是大乘佛法教學的精髓。並且，我必須再說一次，我們的語言和文字將是一個挑戰。我認為要翻譯「菩提心」這個詞，真的很難。
Anyway, according to the Mahayana sutras and shastras, just the fact that the term bodhichitta is still alive today, and that you and I are talking about it, this alone means that we have done something so good in our past lives. Some sutras say that there will be a day when terms such as bodhichitta and its meaning will no longer exist. And that [will] almost [be] close to [a] dark age. Not the total dark age, but quite close.
總之，根據大乘經論，僅僅是菩提心這個詞今天仍然存在，而且你和我都在談論它，這就意味着我們在過去的生活中做了一些善業。有些佛經說，有一天，像菩提心這樣的術語及其意義將不再存在，這幾乎等同於黑暗時代了。不是完全的黑暗時代，但相當接近。
Bodhichitta is really vast and deep. This is a big subject for the Mahayana. Of course, initially it was taught by the Buddha. And subsequently there were a lot of [other] teachings on bodhichitta. One of the most popular and revered in Tibet is a text called the Bodhicharyavatara (The Way of the Bodhisattva) written by Shantideva. But it’s not just Shantideva’s Bodhicharyavatara. [There are] many many other texts [on bodhichitta]. Shantideva’s Bodhicharyavatara just came into my mind, so I’m saying this.
菩提心真的很廣很深，是大乘佛法的一個大課題。當然，最初它是由佛陀教導的，後來又有很多關於菩提心的教法。在西藏，最受歡迎和最受尊敬的是一部由寂天菩薩寫的《入菩薩行論》。當然我們不僅有《入行論》，還有許多其他關於菩提心的教材。只是寂天的《入行論》突然蹦到我的腦海裡，所以我才這樣說。
Historical context
If you think about the context of Shantideva’s Bodhicharyavatara, it’s quite something to think about. For example, in Peru I think there is a civilization called the Inca civilization. The reason why I’m talking about Peru is [because] at the moment they’re playing football with Brazil, right this very moment. And when the Bodhicharyavatara was composed or written or taught in India (Ed.: in about 700 CE), the Inca civilization was still alive. It was the beginning of the decline, I think. So, this is something to think about.
如果你想一想《入行論》的背景，這是很值得思考的問題。例如，在祕魯，有一種文明叫印加文明 （譯：Part 2 的結尾，仁波切更正了這一點） 。我之所以說到祕魯，是因為此刻他們正在和巴西踢足球，就現在。而當《入行論》在印度被創作、書寫或傳授的時候 （譯：公元八世紀） ，印加文明還存在，但可能已經開始衰退了。所以，這是一個值得思考的問題。
And then in Japan, since it looks like there are some Japanese people listening, [it was the] Nara period. And in India, I think the Pala dynasty in West Bengal was sort of thriving at that time. And this is something to note: at that time, the Jatakamala Sutra was translated into the Arabic language. And in Indonesia, the big stupa at Borobudur was just beginning to [be] constructed. And all this is preparation to say the following: so-called Great Britain didn’t even exist. I hope Richard Dixey is listening. Vikings where are they from, Sweden? The Swedish Vikings were just beginning to go to England and make the English people learn how to at least be like humans.
同時在日本（因為有一些日本人在聽），是奈良時期。而在印度，我認為西孟加拉邦的帕拉王朝在那個時候是比較繁榮的。還有一點值得注意，在那個時候，《本生經》已經被翻譯成了阿拉伯語。而在印度尼西亞， 婆羅浮屠的大佛塔 剛剛開始建造。我說這一切是為了準備說：所謂的大英帝國還不存在。我希望理查德·迪克西 （譯：仁波切弟子） 正在聽。來自瑞典的維京人剛剛開始去英國，讓英國人學會至少像人一樣活著。
So, when we look at this context, as a Buddhist I feel very moved that a concept like bodhichitta is still being studied, practiced and read [today], and [there are] thousands of commentaries.
因此，當我們看到這個背景時，作為一個佛教徒，我感到非常感動，像菩提心這樣的概念今天仍然在被研究、實踐和閱讀，而且有成千上萬的譯註。
Bodhichitta is ruthlessly honest
Now, I think the idea, the concept, the term “bodhichitta” has been watered down too much. Bodhichitta is measured or seen as something very philanthropic, compassionate, loving, kind, smiling, nonviolent — that’s about it. People don’t go beyond that. That is a really big downfall. If you really want to know about bodhichitta, there is a big loss [in] approaching bodhichitta this way.
但是，我認為菩提心這個想法、概念和術語已經被稀釋得太多了。菩提心被看作是非常慈善的、慈悲的、善良的、微笑的、非暴力的東西，僅此而已。人們並沒有超越這一點，這是一個真正的大缺點。如果你真的想了解菩提心，以這種方式接近菩提心會有重大的過失。
There is an aspect of bodhichitta that is relentlessly ruthless. That is so important. [The aspect that is] ruthlessly honest, ruthlessly raw and ruthlessly blatant or honest or truthful. Not many people pay attention [to] this aspect of bodhichitta. I think partly it’s because of the fault of cultural differences, I would say.
菩提心有一個方面是非常的無情，這一點非常重要：是無情的誠實，無情的真實，無情的真相。沒有多少人注意到菩提心的這個方面。我想說，部分原因是文化差異的錯。
Because when you go to a traditional Mahayana Buddhist temple, a bodhisattva is almost always depicted as someone who’s very compassionate, [with] kind eyes, [like] Avalokiteshvara and Arya Tara. Very nice people basically. Even though if you closely look at Mahayana temples, especially Vajrayana temples, there are a lot of bodhisattvas [who] are not what — in our mundane world — you would call “nice guys”. They don’t look good. They are very wrathful. Their methods may not necessarily be gentle.
因為當你去傳統的大乘佛教寺廟時，菩薩幾乎總是被描繪成非常慈悲的人，有著善良的眼睛，像觀世音和聖度母，都是非常好的人。但是，如果你仔細觀察大乘寺廟，特別是金剛乘的寺廟，有很多菩薩並不是這樣，並不是我們世俗世界稱之為 「好人」的人。他們看起來不善良，而是非常的憤怒，他們的方法也不是溫柔的。
And I think this is because, as I said, the aspect of bodhichitta which has something to do with the truth has been watered down, or not emphasized, or forgotten. This is why.
這是因為，正如我所說的，菩提心與實相有關的面向已經被稀釋了，或者沒有被強調，被遺忘了，這就是原因。
This happens. Someone [might] say, “Oh, he’s really like a bodhisattva”. What does this mean? Usually [they are referring to someone who is] not short tempered, very forgiving, patient, soft spoken. Usually [when] we say “He’s a bodhisattva”, we are hardly [ever referring to] someone who shouts, yells, [or is] rude. We hardly [ever] say [of a person like that], “Oh, he’s a great bodhisattva”.
現在就是這樣，當有人說「哦，他真的像個菩薩」，這是什麼意思？通常他們指的是溫柔、脾氣好、非常寬容、有耐心、說話溫和的人。我們肯定不會指的是那些大喊大叫的人。我們很難說粗魯的人「是個大菩薩」。
Bodhichitta is like alchemy
Bodhichitta also gets interpreted as some sort of a kind heart and kind mind. And that’s it. That’s where it stops. It doesn’t really go beyond that. Then you are missing a big part of bodhichitta. In the Mahayana sutras and shastras, they say that bodhichitta is like alchemy. If bodhichitta is just a kind heart, kind mind, loving, compassionate — if that’s all there is, then bodhichitta can never become alchemy.
菩提心被解釋為某種善良的心和善良的思想，然後就止於這一層意思，並沒有真正超越這個範圍。這樣你就錯過了菩提心的一個重要部分。在大乘佛經和論典中，他們說菩提心就像鍊金術 （譯：能改變一切的意思） 。如果菩提心只是一顆善良的心，善良的思想，慈悲的思想，如果這就是全部，那麼菩提心永遠不可能成為鍊金術。
We also read in the Mahayana texts that if you have bodhichitta [then] there’s nothing, not a single thing that you do, that will not become beneficial to sentient beings. Such a statement is [possible] because bodhichitta is not just kind, gentle, soft, compassionate. It is beyond that. That’s why [the Mahayana texts] can afford to say such things.
我們還在大乘經文中讀到，如果你有菩提心，那麼你所做的任何事情，一丁點兒小事，都會成為利益眾生的事。有這樣的說法是因為，菩提心不僅僅是善良、溫和、柔軟、慈悲。它是超越這些的，這就是為什麼大乘經文能夠說出這樣的話。
So I will try to decipher some of the reasons why bodhichitta is not just kind, compassionate, loving kindness.
因此，我將嘗試破譯一些原因，為什麼菩提心不僅僅是善良、慈悲、和仁慈。
How is bodhichitta to be understood?
(1) Freedom from suffering and the causes of suffering
At a glance, one would think that bodhichitta is the mind that wishes to free sentient beings from suffering, which is sort of correct. [It’s] not complete, but it has some element [of that]. However bodhichitta is not [just] a mind that wishes to free beings from suffering, not just that. It has to go beyond that. It [also] has to have the element [of wishing] to free beings from the cause of suffering.
乍一看，人們會認為菩提心是希望將眾生從痛苦中解脫出來的心。這是正確的，雖然並不完整，但菩提心確實有這個要素。然而，菩提心不只是希望讓眾生脫離痛苦的心，不只是這樣。它必須超越這一點。它還必須有希望眾生從痛苦的原因中解脫的因素。
Now, even more complicated is — what is suffering? And here again, I have to remind people, the English word “suffering” may not be doing justice [as a translation of] the word dukkha in Sanskrit. Of course, I don’t need to say that nobody wants to suffer. I mean, that’s standard. That’s given. Who wants to suffer? Nobody wants to suffer. And if we know the cause of that kind of suffering, we will also try to do something [to remove the cause of suffering].
現在，更復雜的是：什麼是苦？在這裏，我必須再次提醒人們，英語中的 suffering（受苦）一詞用來翻譯梵文中 dukkha（苦）這個詞，可能並不全面。當然，不說也明白，沒有人願意受苦，那是最低標準，那是肯定的。但如果我們知道痛苦的原因，我們也會嘗試做一些事情以消除痛苦的因。
(2) Freedom from happiness and the causes of happiness
[The] wish and effort to go away from suffering that we usually talk about, that exists with everyone. But not everybody wishes to be free from happiness. When we talk about bodhichitta, from the bodhichitta point of view, happiness is also problematic. I mean, the happiness that you and I think and talk about. Because from the bodhichitta point of view, from the Bodhisattvayana point of view, [the] so-called happiness that we have is actually untrustable. It’s conditioned. It’s fabricated. It’s dependent [on] lots of causes and conditions. Therefore, you can’t really rely [on it]. You can’t trust [it].
所以，對於我們通常所說的痛苦，我們都希望遠離，努力遠離，這存在於每個人身上。但不是每個人都希望遠離幸福。當我們談論菩提心時，從菩提心的角度來看，幸福也是有問題的。我是在說我們通常所說的幸福。因為從菩提心的角度來看，從菩薩乘的角度來看，所謂的幸福實際上是不可信賴的，是有條件的，是捏造的，依賴於許多因緣。因此，你不能真正依賴它，不能相信它。
As I’ve already said, we want to be free from suffering. Bodhisattvas want [this as well], but bodhisattvas also want to be free from happiness. That is what makes bodhichitta kind of special, [although] a lot of [other] Indian wisdom traditions [also] have that kind of guts or courage to free ourselves from happiness and the cause of happiness. It’s not really Buddhism or Mahayana exclusive.
正如我已經說過的，我們想從痛苦中解脫，菩薩們也想，但菩薩們也想從快樂中解脫。這也算菩提心的特殊之處。但是其它印度智慧傳統也有這種膽量或勇氣，讓我們從幸福和幸福的原因中解脫，並不是佛教或大乘佛教的專屬。
(3) Freedom from all phenomena
Now, the third one [is] even more important. Bodhichitta is the wish to free all sentient beings from all phenomena. Now, this is what makes bodhichitta special. Just so that we can understand what I’m talking about, [the term “phenomena” refers to] the moment there is a concept, such as values [or] language. The bodhisattva even wishes to be free from the very path that the bodhisattva or the practitioner is practicing. So I would say this makes bodhichitta unique.
第三種，也是更重要的，菩提心是願所有眾生從一切現象中解脫。這是菩提心最特殊的地方了。為了讓大家能理解我在說什麼，我要解釋一下，現象一詞指的是概念的產生，例如價值觀，例如語言。菩薩和大乘修行者甚至希望，自己能從自己所修行的法道中解脫出來。這使菩提心變得獨一無二。
I’m sorry, probably I’m putting it in a very academic and complicated way. I will try to simplify as we go. An example I often use when I teach the Mahayana path is when a mother is playing with her kids in the sand at the beach. And the kids construct a sandcastle and the mother also really helps to build it. But there is an element, a part in the mother that knows that this sandcastle is not really a real castle [Ed.: for example, she knows it will be washed away as the tide rises]. This is probably a good example for bodhichitta.
對不起，可能我把它說得很學術，很複雜。讓我嘗試簡化一下。我在教授大乘法道時經常使用的一個例子是，一位母親與她的孩子在海灘上玩沙，孩子們建造了一個沙堡，母親也真的幫助建造了它。但是有一個因素，母親在心裡清楚知道這個沙堡並不是真正的城堡 （編：例如，她知道它將在潮水上漲時被沖走） 。這可能是菩提心的一個好例子。
Earlier I was talking about being ruthlessly truthful, so to speak? By the time it’s eight o’clock in the evening, the mother will say to the kids, “Okay, let’s pack, let’s go back”. Being honest about the facts, [the truth]. I think this element is something that Mahayana practitioners really can’t afford to miss when we talk about bodhichitta.
這就是剛剛我說過的：無情的真相。到了晚上八點的時候，母親會對孩子們說：「好了，我們收拾一下回家吧」。真誠地對待真相，我認為這個元素是大乘修行者在談論菩提心時，真的不能錯過的東西。
Awakening to the truth
Once we understand this aspect, then we will realize that with bodhichitta, we can actually turn many so-called non-virtuous [thoughts and actions] into [something] virtuous. And this is why you hear things that non-Mahayana people or other religious people may [find difficult to] understand. [For example,] Mahayana [people] say, “Oh, you know, a bodhisattva could tell a lie and that lie could be virtuous.”
一旦我們理解了這個方面，那麼我們就會意識到，通過菩提心，我們實際上可以把許多所謂的非善意的想法和行為變成善意的。這就是為什麼你會聽到非大乘人或其他宗教人士難以理解的事情。例如，大乘人會說：「你知道嗎？菩薩可以說謊，而這個謊言可能是善業。」
And usually, when we explain this, we always talk about intention, “Oh, for the sake of saving lots and lots of people, maybe a bodhisattva could tell a lie to [mislead] a killer”, and so forth. But actually, it’s not just the intention. It’s knowing the truth. Because of that, if a bodhisattva has that kind of realization of the truth, [then] even the bodhisattva’s nonvirtuous action becomes virtuous.
而通常，當我們解釋這一點時，我們總是談及意圖，「為了拯救很多很多人，也許菩薩可以說一個謊言，來誤導一個殺手」等等。但實際上，這不僅僅是意圖。而是了知實相。正因為如此，如果菩薩有那種對實相的領悟，那麼即使是菩薩的惡的行為也會變成善業。
And, even more importantly, not all virtuous actions become a path to enlightenment. Many virtuous actions [only] end up becoming a cause for a higher birth or good experience. For example, you could even build a hospital [and] save thousands of people’s lives and so forth, but [if you do not realize the truth] it might still not be a path to enlightenment. But with bodhichitta not only [does] the nonvirtuous become virtuous, [but also] virtuous actions become what we call [a] path to nirvana.
而且，更重要的是，不是所有的善行都能成為通向開悟的道路。許多善行最終成為更好的來生，或更好的體驗的因。例如，你可以建造一所醫院，並拯救成千上萬人的生命等等，但這可能仍然不是一條通往証悟的道路。但是，有了菩提心，不僅惡的變成善的，而善的也成為我們所說的通往涅槃的法道。
I will try to explain this from a slightly different angle. Fundamentally bodhichitta is [the] union of wisdom and skillful means. You know, we Mahayana practitioners always say that we have to have bodhichitta. And the way we practice bodhichitta is usually like, “For the sake of the enlightenment of all sentient beings, I shall do this and that”.
我將嘗試從一個稍微不同的角度來解釋這個問題。從根本上說，菩提心是智慧和方便的結合 （譯：雙運）。你知道，我們大乘修行者總是說，我們必須要有菩提心。而我們修行菩提心的方式通常是：「為了所有眾生的証悟，我將做這個，做那個」。
Here again, sometimes we get bogged down by terms such as “enlightenment”. When we say “For the sake of the enlightenment of all sentient beings”, what we really mean is “For sentient beings to awaken to this truth, one way or another I shall do this and that. I shall light a lamp. I shall burn incense. I shall circumambulate a stupa, whatever”.
在這裏，有時我們又會被「証悟」這樣的術語所困擾。當我們說「為了一切眾生的証悟」時，我們真正的意思是「為了眾生能夠覺悟到這個實相，我將以這種或那種方式來做，我要點燈，我要點香，我要繞行佛塔，以及其它修行」。
So next time when we think about “To enlighten all sentient beings”, I think it would help if you think in this context — to awaken sentient beings to the truth. If you can really contemplate on this, it’s really the highest wholesome thought that exists. From the Mahayana point of view, the wish to awaken others to the truth is far greater than wishing to build a lot of hospitals and saving lots of lives and so forth.
所以下一次當我們想到「令一切眾生証悟」時，如果你在這個背景下思考會有幫助，那就是「喚醒眾生了知實相」。如果你能真正思考這個問題，這真的是已知的最有益最有益的思想。從大乘的角度來看，喚醒他人了知實相的願望遠比建造大量醫院、拯救大量生命等願望更重要。
So if you think about concepts such as love, compassion, and bodhichitta, you can [differentiate] these three:
因此，如果你思考慈悲和菩提心這樣的概念，你可以正確地區分這三種：
Wishing somebody [to be] happy and have the causes of happiness is considered love, kindness. Wishing others to be free from suffering and the causes of suffering is considered compassion. This is a very standard way of explaining. But bodhichitta has to have this element of [wishing to] awaken beings to the truth. In other words, to place them in the state of enlightenment.
希望別人獲得快樂和擁有快樂的原因，是慈心。希望別人擺脫痛苦和痛苦的原因，是悲心，這是一種非常標準的解釋方式。但菩提心必須有希望喚醒眾生了知實相這一要素。換句話說，要置他們於証悟的狀態。
Bodhichitta is the union of skillful means and wisdom
Remember I was talking about the union of skillful means and wisdom? Wishing to free others from suffering and wishing them to be happy, these are skillful means. [In addition] there are methods such as discipline, ethics, patience, and samadhi, such as mindfulness. These are all skillful means. But these skillful means without wisdom, without prajña — without the quest for the truth, let’s say for now — all these skillful means are very blind and also very misleading.
還記得我說過的方便和智慧的結合 （雙運） 嗎？希望把別人從痛苦中解脫出來，希望他們獲得幸福，這些都是方便。還有一些方便，如戒律、道德、忍辱和三昧、正念，這些都是方便。但是，如果沒有般若智慧，也即沒有對實相的追求，我們可以這麼說：所有這些方便都是非常盲目的，也是非常誤導性的。
Pick one. [For example], we wish other people to be happy, [but] without the wisdom aspect. This is very vague. First of all, we don’t even know what is happiness. We wish no harm to others. But that’s also very vague. I mean, the best we could do is “What I don’t want, I guess others don’t want. Therefore I will not give him or her what I don’t want or what I don’t like”. That’s about the best thing we could do.
選一個例子，假如，我們希望其他人快樂，但沒有智慧方面的考量，這是很模糊的。首先，我們甚至不知道什麼是快樂。我們希望不傷害他人，但這也是非常模糊的。我的意思是，我們能做的最好的事情是「我不想要的東西，我猜別人也不想要。因此，我不會給他我不喜歡的東西」。這就是我們能做的最好的事情了。
Or whatever you think you are happy with, or [what makes] you feel blissful, [you might think] “I guess others also wish [for this], so I give [this to them]”. That’s very good. I’m not condemning this. It’s good. It’s very sweet. It’s very nice. But it’s very vague. There’s not much guarantee there. Who knows? Maybe what you like is what the other person really detests. So if you shove what you like down their throat, probably you are not doing a good thing.
或者，無論什麼讓你感到快樂，或幸福，你可能會想「我想其他人也希望這樣，所以我給予他們這樣的因」。這非常好。我不是在譴責這個，這是非常有愛的，非常好的，但是它非常模糊。它沒有太多的保證。誰知道呢？也許你喜歡的東西是對方特別厭惡的東西。因此，如果你把你喜歡的東西塞到他們嘴裡，可能你不是在做一件好事。
So this is why if you miss this wisdom aspect, the Mahayana idea of bodhichitta ends up becoming very limited and very mundane. Bodhichitta is not mundane, that’s what I’m trying to say.
所以這就是為什麼如果你錯過了智慧的面向，大乘的菩提心理念最終會變得非常有限和非常平凡。菩提心不是世俗的，這就是我想說的。
Okay we’ll take a break here, and then we will resume again.
好的，休息一下，然後我們再繼續。
宗薩欽哲仁波切，於 2021年7月5日 在美國加利福尼亞州，給予了關於《菩提心》的開示。英文部分由 Alex Li Trisoglio（仁波切指定的佛法老師）聽寫，並分段和添加標題，發布在 Madhyamaka.com。中文部分由 孫方 翻譯。並在翻譯過程中，根據視頻做了文字上的修訂，所以中英文部分可能會有可忽略不計的微小差別。
