Reasons to Be Cheerful
Rinpoche was in Paris, his favourite city, with nothing to do for a few days, when suddenly he announced he wanted to take the train to Antwerp. Once we’d arrived in Antwerp he told us he wanted to visit Amsterdam the following day, to take up an invitation from his old friend Ane Jinba, to visit the famous flower market and maybe also drop in on the Rigpa Amsterdam centre.
仁波切在最喜爱的城市巴黎，几天没什么事可做，突然宣布想搭火车去安特卫普。到了之后，他说，第二天想去阿姆斯特丹，应老友阿尼晋巴之邀，参观著名花市，或许也顺道拜访本觉会阿姆斯特丹中心。
As you might imagine, Rigpa Amsterdam immediately invited Rinpoche to teach, and as these days, one of the most fashionable subjects for Dharma teachers to teach on is ‘happiness’, he decided that it was about time he presented his take on what makes a Buddhist happy.
可以想象，本觉会阿姆斯特丹立刻邀请仁波切讲法。而如今，“快乐”是佛法老师最流行的讲题之一，所以，他决定，是时候谈谈自己认为佛教徒因何而快乐了。
Once again, Rinpoche used his time to present a distillation of the fruit of an entire lifetime’s Dharma practice, rather than following the traditional route of merely repeating the words of the Buddha and the great masters that, he says, can easily be found in books like The Words of My Perfect Teacher.
仁波切再次利用这段时间，呈现一生修法成果的精粹，而不是循惯例，只重复佛陀与诸大上师的话。他说，那些话很容易在《普贤上师言教》等书中找到。
I arrived here completely unexpectedly, without any planning at all! And as I was in Holland anyway, I didn’t think you’d mind my stopping by. It is Sunday after all, so most of you were free. Today I’ve decided to teach in a way I never have before.
我来这里完全出乎意料，毫无计划！反正人在荷兰，我想顺道看看，你们应该不介意。毕竟是星期日，大多数人有空。今天，我决定用一种以前从未用过的方式讲法。
When we first approach the Buddha’s teachings, we have to start at the beginning, which means the preliminary practices (Ngöndro). In Tibet, lamas always taught the preliminaries first and then the main part. When they taught the main part, they would refer to elements of the preliminaries as a way of training the students’ minds. So the preliminaries are the foundation of the practice, and in the same way that if the foundations of a house aren’t properly laid the building will wobble, if the preliminaries to a teaching are not taken to heart, the profound words of the main part, how to practise, won’t be supported and everything you do will be a bit shaky.
初学佛陀教法，必须从头开始，也就是前行。西藏上师总先讲前行，再讲正行；讲正行时，也会引用前行内容，训练弟子的心。因此，前行是修持基础。就像房屋地基没打好，建筑会摇晃；教法的前行若未入心，正行关于如何修持的甚深词句便没有支撑，你所做的一切都会有些不稳。
Usually, when we explain the preliminaries we talk about the suffering of the three realms of samsaric existence. But today I’m not going to talk about suffering. Instead I’m going to talk about happiness!
通常解释前行，我们会讲三界轮回的痛苦。但今天，我不谈痛苦，要谈快乐！
八暇十满 Eight Freedoms and Ten Advantages
You’ve already received teachings on how precious human birth is and its eight freedoms and ten advantages. Reflecting on each one should make you feel happier and happier as every single one of you has them all! I am not going to list them because it would take too long. And anyway, all you need to know is that you have them.
你们已经领受人身何等珍贵、以及八暇十满的教法。逐一思惟，应当越来越快乐，因为每个人都全部具足！我不列举了，那要花太久。再说，只须知道自己具备它们就够了。
In this world of ours, is someone instantly happy when they receive one hundred million dollars? I’ve heard that some people who have been driven mad by winning that much money. But actually, winning a prize like these freedoms and advantages really should drive you mad – mad with joy! But even if you don’t feel mad with joy, you should at least feel as happy as you possibly can!
在这个世界上，一个人得到一亿美元，会立刻快乐吗？听说有人赢了这么多钱，却发疯了。但事实上，赢得暇满这样的大奖，真的应当令你发疯——欢喜得发狂！即使没有乐得发狂，至少也应尽可能快乐！
生命无常 Impermanence of Life
After describing the preciousness of human life, the ngöndro teachings explain that life is impermanent. Impermanence is part of who we are, but as we’re all alive at this very moment we haven’t yet experienced the truth of impermanence of life – death. We will all die at some point because that’s what happens to all sentient beings, so what’s the point of worrying about it now? You should in fact rejoice in the fact that you are not yet dead. Maybe you’ll die quite soon, which the teachings warn us could happen. But even if you do, you’ve received Dzogchen teachings, the root of all Dharma, many times, including special instructions like the Tsik Sum Ne Dek. Having received this kind of instruction and done your best to practise it, you will have nothing to regret when you die – and nothing to worry about.[1]
因果 Cause and Effect
Next, we contemplate cause and effect, the law of karma. It’s clear that causes always produce results or effects, and that both causes and effects are produced by the mind.
接着，思惟因果、业的法则。显然，因总会产生果，而因与果都由心产生。
So what happens when you bring practice to mind? Imagine you generate the mind of enlightenment, either by fabricating it or by having a natural sense of bodhichitta. Either way, I’m sure that for every single one of you in this room it’s a mental process, which means it’s the conceptual mind that’s doing it. And the benefit of arousing a single instant of bodhichitta in your mind, in your ‘stream of being’, is that you will be free of the karma and negative emotions that are inherent in the three realms of samsaric existence and which shackle you like iron chains to the prison that is samsara. As a result, you will be recognized as an heir of the Victorious One and supreme among his children. And as his bodhisattva heart-son or daughter you will be a worthy object of prostrations and offerings from all the gods and humans.
那么，忆念修持时会怎样？设想你发起觉悟之心，无论是造作而生，还是自然具有菩提心的感受；我确信，对在座每个人而言，无论哪种，都是心的过程，也就是分别心在做。心中、自己的“生命相续”中，哪怕生起一刹那菩提心，其利益也在于使你脱离三界轮回固有的业与烦恼；它们如铁链，把你锁在轮回监狱。由此，你会被认定为胜者的继承者、佛子中的殊胜者。作为他的菩萨心子或心女，你将值得一切天与人顶礼、供养。
A master called Bodhisattva Shantideva, was a true ‘heir of the Victorious One’. However, to other people he looked like an ordinary man who lived at the great Buddhist university of Nalanda and ate three kilos of rice as he sat in the gallery of the temple every day. The rest of time, all he ever seemed to do was sleep! He had no trouble sleeping for almost 24 hours a day – all day and all night – which exasperated many of the other monks, who gave him the nickname ‘Busuku’[2] , ‘one who eats, sleeps and shits’. They endlessly complained that Shantideva did nothing a Sangha member should do, like meditate and recite prayers or any other Dharma practice; “All he does is sleep, and that’s not good!” But they couldn’t just kick him out because he was the son of a king, so they had to come up with a plan to have him expelled.
Every fifteen days, monks always gather for sojong purification practice, right? The idea they came up with was to make a different monk present a sutra teaching at every sojong gathering, as they were sure that when Busuku’s turn came, he would be incapable of presenting anything at all and would feel so ashamed that he’d leave of his own accord.
僧人每十五天会聚集，举行布萨净戒，对吧？他们想出办法，每次布萨由不同僧人讲一部经。他们确信，轮到布苏古时，他什么都讲不出来，会羞愧得自行离开。
When it was Shantideva’s turn, the monks only gave him a day or two’s warning. He responded with, “Very well,” and then went back to sleep. The day came, and to embarrass him even further, they built a very high throne and made sure they invited absolutely everyone to come and listen.
轮到寂天时，僧人只提前一两天通知。他回答：“很好。”然后又去睡觉。那天到了，为了让他更加难堪，大家搭起很高的法座，确保邀请所有人来听。
At the appointed time, Shantideva climbed onto the throne and asked the assembly: “What kind of teaching do you want today? A teaching you’ve already heard, or something new?”
到了指定时间，寂天登上法座，问大众：“今天想听哪一种教法？听过的，还是新的？”
The monks and panditas were of one mind. Of course, the best would be for him to repeat a teaching they knew, but as they were sure he won’t be able to – how could anyone recite something they’ve never heard themselves? – they asked him to give a completely new teaching. And that’s when he recited the The Way of Bodhisattva from beginning to end. When he reached what we now call the Wisdom Chapter, as he spoke the words of verse 34, “When something and its nonexistence Both are absent from before the mind...” he rose up into the sky, flying higher and higher, until by the end of the chapter he could no longer be seen.
僧人与班智达想法一致。当然，最好让他复述大家熟悉的教法；但他们确信，他做不到——没听过的东西，怎么能背出来？——于是要求他讲全新的教法。就在那时，他从头到尾宣讲了《入菩萨行论》。讲到如今所称“智慧品”，说出第34偈“若实物与其无有，皆不现于心前……”时，他升上虚空，越飞越高，到该品结束时，已看不见身影。
The point I was making is, as it says in the The Way of Bodhisattva and most of the great texts, the moment bodhichitta is aroused, “A great and unremitting stream, A strength of wholesome merit, Even during sleep and inattention, Rises equal to the vastness of the sky.”[3] Basically, you have become an heir of the Victorious One, and within three countless aeons you will reach enlightenment.
我要说的是，正如《入菩萨行论》及大多数伟大论典所说，菩提心一旦生起，“广大不息之善德洪流，即使睡眠、失念之时，也不断涌现，等同虚空。”[3]基本上，你已成为胜者的继承者，并将在三个无数劫内成佛。
Therefore there is no one who does not need to cultivate the two types of bodhichitta. Even if you have accumulated enough negativity to keep you in the hell realms for thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years, when bodhichitta runs through your mind, even for an instant, that’s enough to purify everything.
因此，没有人不需要培养两种菩提心。即使积累的恶业足以令自己在地狱住上数千乃至数十万年，只要菩提心流过自心，哪怕一刹那，也足以净除一切。
In one of his previous lives, our teacher, the Buddha, stepped on a insect and killed it. As a result he was born in a hell realm where a circular saw continuously cut holes in his skull. As it was happening, he thought to himself, “There are probably many people who’ve stepped on an insect like I did. May I experience the ripening of their negativity so they don’t have to.” Just that thought was enough to make the saw rise spinning into space, and the bodhisattva who would become the Buddha was freed.
我们的导师佛陀，在某一前世，踩死过一只虫。由此，他生于地狱，一把圆锯不停地在头骨上切出洞来。正经历此事时，他想：“大概有许多人，也像我这样踩死过虫。愿我承受他们恶业的成熟，使他们不必承受。”仅这个念头，就使圆锯旋转着升入虚空，后来成佛的这位菩萨也获得了释放。
The benefit of meditating on bodhichitta just once is so great that by doing so, as many buddhas as there are atoms in a vast land will instantly come to wherever you’re meditating. These days Tibetan masters constantly travel through your countries, like wolves roaming a forest, and they always talk about bodhichitta. And since you accumulate so much merit simply by hearing about bodhichitta, you can spend the rest of your time having fun. You can also relax and sleep soundly. What you have to realize is that your situation is exceptionally fortunate. In Europe, not even one percent of the population is Buddhist. Think about it! You are amongst the very few who have become Buddhist and heard about bodhichitta, the mind of enlightenment. You are extremely fortunate!
修一次菩提心，利益便如此广大，使等同广大国土微尘数的诸佛，立即来到修持之处。如今，西藏上师不停穿行你们的国家，像狼在森林游走，总在谈菩提心。仅仅听闻菩提心，就能积累这么多福德，所以其余时间可以尽情玩乐，也能放松，睡得安稳。必须认识到，自己的境遇特别幸运。在欧洲，人口中连百分之一都不是佛教徒。想一想！你属于极少数成为佛教徒、听闻觉悟之心菩提心的人，极其幸运！
In the teachings on the preliminary practices, we talk about this precious human birth, the impermanence of life, the sufferings of samsara and the law of karma, cause and effect. Of course, we must still be wary of the laws of cause and effect, but the teachings say that when you generate the mind of enlightenment, bodhichitta, and when it permeates all your activities, everything you do will become virtuous. With genuine bodhichitta in your mind, if you kill someone, even that action will bring you closer to enlightenment by hundreds of years, or lifetimes – even kalpas. Our teacher, the Buddha, killed Black Spearman in one of his previous lives and by doing so leapt 80,000 kalpas closer to enlightenment. You can also get closer to enlightenment by arousing bodhichitta when you feel a desire something. If you then steal someone’s possessions and offer them, that act will have drawn you closer to enlightenment. It is said that when embraced with the mind of enlightenment, all five poisonous destructive emotions support Dharma practice. Even eating meat will bring you closer to enlightenment.
Dza Mura Tulku was an incredible master who was unbelievably learnèd. When he checked his previous lives, he discovered he had once been a sheep that was slaughtered for meat, and one of his legs was given to Mipham Rinpoche, who ate it. As a result of the bodhichitta and aspiration prayers Mipham Rinpoche made as he ate that leg of mutton, the sheep’s next incarnation was Dza Mura Tulku. And this is what happens when we act having embraced the enlightened mind of bodhichitta. So you shouldn’t feel oppressed by the ocean of suffering in which we live, and you don’t have to be afraid of cause and effect. Do, however, bear in mind that you’re on dangerous ground if your actions are not directed by the mind of bodhichitta.
扎穆惹祖古是一位不可思议、极为博学的大师。他观察自己的前世，发现曾是一只被宰杀取肉的羊，其中一条腿供给米滂仁波切食用。由于米滂仁波切吃羊腿时所发菩提心与祈愿，羊的下一世就成为扎穆惹祖古。这就是以觉悟菩提心摄持而行的结果。因此，不应被身处的苦海压得喘不过气，也不必害怕因果。但务必记住，行为若不由菩提心引导，就处在危险境地。
轮回 Samsara
This is why the preliminaries describe samsara’s shortcomings next. If there were no samsara the buddhas would not appear; and without samsara, what’s the point of the buddhas? They’d have nothing to do. If there is no one to buy something, neither will there be anyone to sell it. The ‘bodhisattvas’ remain in samsara to carry out their activities – to do their jobs. So Manjushri and Avalokiteshvara remain in samsara to help other beings. This is something else you should think about.
因此，前行接着描述轮回过患。若没有轮回，诸佛就不会出现；没有轮回，诸佛又有何用？他们将无事可做。没人买东西，也就没人卖。“菩萨”住在轮回中成办事业，履行自己的工作。因此，文殊与观世音住在轮回，帮助其他众生。这也是应当思考的事。
Now, once you are free from samsara, where do you go? As samsara is based on the mind, it’s your mind that is freed and your mind that reaches enlightenment, not your body. Therefore samsara is a good thing, so you should make aspiration prayers like the one in The Way of Bodhisattva, chapter 10, verse 55.
那么，从轮回解脱之后，到哪里去？轮回依于心，所以解脱的是心，觉悟的也是心，不是身体。因此，轮回是件好事，应当像《入菩萨行论》第十品第55偈那样发愿：
Samsara contains all the paths followed and accomplished by the buddhas in order to help sentient beings. Therefore samsara isn’t so terrible after all. In fact, it’s very pleasant.
诸佛为利益众生而行持、圆满的一切道路，都包含在轮回中。所以，轮回毕竟没那么可怕，实际上还很愉快。
皈依的欢喜 Refuge Joy
Next comes taking refuge. Everyone here has already taken refuge. Buddha said that the benefit of taking refuge is so great that if it took a physical shape, it would be too big to fit into the whole of space. Taking refuge in each of the Three Jewels individually brings benefits beyond our imaginations. Since you have taken refuge already, you should rejoice at having done something that has so many benefits and qualities.
接着是皈依。在座人人都已皈依。佛陀说，皈依的利益如此广大，若有形体，整个虚空都容纳不下。分别皈依三宝中的每一宝，也会带来超出想象的利益。既然已经皈依，就应为自己做了如此具足利益与功德的事而欢喜。
菩提心 Bodhichitta
After that comes arousing the mind of enlightenment: the bodhichitta of aspiration and action. If you can keep the bodhichitta of aspiration in your mind and apply bodhichitta to all your activities, you will reach enlightenment. This is especially true of putting bodhichitta into action. When embraced by the application of bodhichitta, everything you do becomes a cause for enlightenment. This is also something to rejoice.
之后，发起觉悟之心，即愿菩提心与行菩提心。若能心持愿菩提心，并将菩提心运用于一切活动，就会达到觉悟；尤其把菩提心付诸行动，更是如此。以行菩提心摄持，所作一切都成为觉悟之因。这也值得欢喜。
One sixtieth of an hour is one minute, isn't it? The merit of embracing the mind of enlightenment by holding bodhichitta in your mind for just one minute is inconceivable. How long have you been going round and round in samsara? How many billions of years have you already spent here? It’s incalculable, way beyond our capacity to imagine. When you think about the benefits and qualities of bodhichitta, you should want to throw a party to celebrate every single day, because arousing bodhichitta offers us such incredible opportunities for enlightenment. And it’s so easy. All you have to do is think about it.
一小时的六十分之一是一分钟，对吧？仅一分钟，心持菩提心、摄持觉悟之心，福德就不可思议。你在轮回中转了多久？已在这里度过多少个十亿年？不可计算，远超想象。想到菩提心的利益与功德，应该每天都想办庆祝会，因为发菩提心带来如此不可思议的觉悟机会，而且这么容易，只要想到它就行。
As Maitreya said to Asanga,
如弥勒对无著所说：
Precious, sublime bodhicitta:
May it arise in those in whom it has not arisen,
May it never fail where it has arisen
May it go on increasing, further and further.
珍贵殊胜菩提心，
未生者愿令生起，
已生者愿永不退，
辗转增上更增长。
Actually when you train the mind in bodhichitta, ‘rejoicing meditation’ is also necessary, and we don’t do it alone, “all of you gods also rejoice!” So if you don’t rejoice yourself because you’re brooding over your own misery, what’s the point of meditating on the fact that all the gods are happy? “May gods and demigods and all the rest rejoice!”[5]
实际上，以菩提心训练自心时，也需要“随喜观修”，而且不是独自欢喜：“诸天，你们也一起欢喜！”所以，若只沉浸于自身痛苦，自己不欢喜，观想诸天都快乐又有何意义？“愿诸天、阿修罗及一切众皆欢喜！”[5]
金刚萨埵 Vajrasattva
After that you meditate on Vajrasattva, or if you like you can offer the mandala first and then meditate on Vajrasattva. Today, we’ll begin with Vajrasattva.
然后观修金刚萨埵；若愿意，也可以先供曼荼罗，再修金刚萨埵。今天先从金刚萨埵说起。
You don’t have to recite millions of hundred-syllable mantras because one hundred and eight will already bring you great benefit. You will become a child of the buddhas, the ‘Victorious Ones of the three times’.
不必念数百万遍百字明，一百零八遍就已带来大利益。你会成为诸佛、“三世胜者”的孩子。
You must also trust the practice will work. Mantras need to be recited with trust. Without trust, reciting even a hundred million mantras won't help. You can develop trust by reading quotations about the benefits of mantra recitation – which is why the quotations are so often mentioned.
也必须相信修法能起作用。念咒需要信赖，没有信赖，即使一亿遍也无帮助。阅读有关持咒利益的教证，可以培养信赖，因此这些引文常被提及。
So as you recite the mantra, all the heinous actions and obscurations you accumulated in the past are purified. You need to trust that this is what happens, and if you do, you’ll feel happier about your situation. Not everything here will have have recited the hundred-syllable mantra one hundred thousand times, but I’m sure that everyone has recited it at least one hundred and eight times, haven’t they?
因此，念咒时，过去积累的一切重罪与障碍都得净除。需要相信确实如此；若相信，就会对自己的处境感到更快乐。在座未必人人都念过十万遍百字明，但我确信，人人至少念过一百零八遍，对吧？
曼荼罗供养 Mandala Offering
After that comes the mandala offering. Shantideva writes,
之后是曼荼罗供养。寂天写道：
But all of us here must have great merit because none of us is as poor as Shantideva was.
但在座大家一定有大福德，因为没有人像寂天那么穷。
The best way to become prosperous is to practise the mandala offering. All of you know the short mandala offering prayer by heart, and even if you can’t recite it from memory, you’ve also practised the Three Kaya Mandala Offering from the Longchen Nyingtik Ngöndro. As Jowo Jé Atisha said, “To accumulate virtue there is no better practice than the mandala offering.” Therefore through the mandala offering we perfect the accumulations. And what happens once you’ve fully perfected the accumulations? You become a buddha. So this is also something for you to rejoice about.
上师瑜伽 Guru Yoga
Now comes the real reason for meditating on joy, Guru Yoga.
现在，来到观修欢喜真正的理由：上师瑜伽。
First of all, if you haven't met a teacher yet, then you can’t practice Guru Yoga, right? Many people these days say they haven't met their teacher, yet they still practise Guru Yoga. But that’s impossible. So if you haven't met a master, you should be crying your eyes out because you have no one to take you down the path to liberation. Which is worse than being blind, isn’t it? A blind person can still find his or her way with a cane, but without a teacher you have no clue what to do. So all of you have at least one reason to be happy: you have met a teacher. And not just any teacher, an authentic teacher who has all the necessary qualities. For those of you from Rigpa, that teacher is Sogyal Rinpoche, whose own teachers were extremely great beings. As you’ve found a teacher, you don't have to meditate on the suffering of not having met a teacher! Instead, you should rejoice!
首先，如果还没遇见老师，就不能修上师瑜伽，对吧？现在很多人说尚未遇见自己的老师，却仍修上师瑜伽，但这不可能。因此，如果尚未遇见上师，应该哭得肝肠寸断，因为没有人引你走向解脱道。这比失明更糟，不是吗？盲人还能借手杖找路，没有老师，却根本不知道怎么做。所以，大家至少有一个快乐的理由：已经遇见老师。而且不只是随便一位，是具足一切必要功德的真正老师。对本觉会学员而言，就是索甲仁波切，他自己的老师们都极其伟大。既然已找到老师，就不必观修未遇老师之苦，应当欢喜！
I’ve noticed that you all carry pictures of your teacher around with you, but you should know that the picture is not the teacher. In the presence of your teacher, you develop faith, pray to him, are never disrespectful, and so on. But instead, merely to pretend to do all that in front of his picture is useless. Mind you, there is nothing wrong with practising in front of pictures. Rigpa people always put pictures of Sogyal Rinpoche on their table before they start practising, even if they only do a five-minute recitation. And that’s good.
我注意到，大家都随身携带老师照片，但应知道，照片不是老师。在老师面前，会生信、祈请，决不不敬，等等。但若只是对着照片假装这样做，并没有用。不过，在照片前修持并没有错。本觉会的人总在开始修法前，把索甲仁波切的照片放在桌上，即使只是念五分钟。这很好。
Once you’ve met your teacher, not to receive teachings from him is another reason to cry your eyes out, as Jetsun Milarepa did when Marpa refused to teach him. But in your case, your lama teaches so often that your challenge is more about keeping up with him! And in each of his teachings, he gives you the most profound instructions.
In the past, students would work out which teaching they needed, then ask their teacher to teach it to them. Once the request had been made, they would always worry about whether or not the teacher would ever give that teaching. But nowadays, students don't seem to think about what it is they need. The teacher does the thinking for them and then makes a comprehensive programme for the coming years. “This year I’ll teach this, next year I’ll teach that, and this month I’ll give this teaching...” They put so much effort into devising their teaching programmes! And if you were really to think just how fortunate you are, you would be beside yourselves with joy!
过去，弟子会先弄清自己需要什么教法，再向老师请求。求法之后，总担心老师究竟会不会传。但如今，弟子似乎不考虑自己需要什么，老师代为思考，再为未来几年制定完整课程：“今年讲这个，明年讲那个，这个月传这一教法……”他们花了这么多精力设计教学计划！若真正想一想自己何等幸运，就会欢喜得忘乎所以！
Not only should you rejoice about having met an authentic teacher, you should also be joyful about the Dharma he teaches. The teachings of the lower vehicles that require three countless kalpas to accomplish the state of complete Buddhahood can seem a bit arduous. But these are not the teachings your teacher gives. You are receiving the most profound Clear Light Dzogpachenpo teachings, which are so powerful that you can be liberated merely by hearing about them! ‘Liberation upon hearing’ means that when you hear these teachings, just the fact that they’ve entered your conscious mind liberates it. If you have the capacity to think about it, when you hear that the empty essence, the cognizant nature and unimpeded appearances are the three kayas, there is no question about whether mind is liberated or not.
不仅应为遇见具德上师欢喜，也应为他所传的佛法欢喜。较低乘的教法，需要三个无数劫才能成就圆满佛果，听来或许有些艰难。但你的上师传授的不是这些教法。你正在领受最深奥的光明大圆满教法，它的力量如此强大，仅仅听闻便能解脱！“闻解脱”是指，当你听闻这些教法，仅仅是它们进入意识这一事实，就使心得以解脱。若有能力思维，当听到本体空、体性明、显现无碍就是三身，心是否解脱，便毫无疑问。
These teachings go even further. They say that the three aspects of empty essence, cognizant nature and unimpeded appearances of everything that arises are not three different things but simply the dynamic energy of emptiness, the dynamic energy of rigpa. They are not three but in essence one, the empty essence, which is even more profound! And its meaning is what liberates the mind.
这些教法还更进一步。它们说，一切所现的本体空、体性明、显现无碍这三个面向，不是三种不同的事物，只是空性的力用、觉性的力用。它们并不是三个，本质上只是一，即本体空，这就更为深奥！正是它的意义使心解脱。
There are six types of liberation. Not just one, but six! So when you receive Dzogpachenpo, you are being given the teachings that contain all six types of liberation. Even if none of the six liberates you in this lifetime, you could still be liberated in the bardos. And if you are not liberated in the bardos, you might go to a natural nirmanakaya pure field, and attain liberation there. This is why there is no mention of future lives in these teachings. Once you receive them, you will without doubt become a buddha. So isn't that something to be happy about? On the other hand, to keep agonizing about your own suffering doesn’t bring anything at all, right?
解脱有六种，不只一种，而是六种！因此，领受大圆满时，你得到的是包含六种解脱的教法。即使六种都未能使你今生解脱，仍可能在中阴解脱。若中阴未得解脱，还可能往生自然化身净土，在那里解脱。因此，这些教法不谈来世。一旦领受，就无疑会成佛。这难道不值得欢喜吗？反过来，不断为自己的痛苦烦恼，丝毫没有好处，对吧？
What you need to realise is that the radiance of the dharmakaya is present within your body; rainbow-light is in your flesh and blood. If you sulk and collapse in on yourself, you are like an egg. There is a bird in the egg. While it’s inside its shell the bird remains invisible and can’t fly into the sky. Once it’s out of the eggshell, though, the bird will quickly be able to fly. Right now, our physical shell of flesh, blood, aggregates and elements smother the radiance of the dharmakaya. But the moment mind is freed, or the moment the body no long imprisons mind, mind is instantly liberated and we can see the dharmakaya.
你需要认识到，法身光辉就在身体之内；虹光就在血肉之中。若闷闷不乐、萎靡蜷缩，就像一颗蛋。蛋里有一只鸟。只要仍在壳中，这只鸟就仍不为人所见，也无法飞上天空。但一旦出了蛋壳，很快便能飞翔。此刻，我们由血肉、蕴与界组成的身体外壳，遮蔽着法身光辉。但心解脱的那一刻，或者身体不再囚禁心的那一刻，心就立即解脱，我们便能见到法身。
So it's absolutely normal that you can’t see the dharmakaya now. When you stand at the foot of a mountain you can see neither its peak nor the surrounding area, but when you get to the top, everything comes into view. Similarly, right now because of our physical body of blood and flesh, we cannot see the radiance of the dharmakaya. But once we’ve left our physical body behind and reached the top of the mountain of the wisdom of dharmakaya, which is the Ground, we’ll be able to see it.
所以，现在看不见法身，完全正常。站在山脚，既看不到山顶，也看不到周围景色；但登上山顶，一切尽入眼帘。同样，目前由于血肉之躯，我们无法见到法身光辉。但一旦离开肉身，登上作为基的法身智慧之山顶，就能看见。
At the moment we can only perceive physical objects with our two eyes, hear sounds with our two ears, smell odours with our nose, experience tastes with our tongue, and know only the thoughts that our ordinary mind produces. This is all we can do. Imagine how someone with three eyes would see. He’d be able to see things we can’t. His vision would be quite different.
目前，我们只能用两眼看物，用两耳听声，用鼻嗅气味，用舌尝滋味，所知也只是凡心生起的念头。能做的仅此而已。想象一下，有三只眼的人会怎样看世界。他能看见我们看不见的东西，所见会很不一样。
We won’t be able to see the wisdom of the dharmakaya immediately. But at the moment of liberation it will appear to us very clearly! This is why the Dzogchen teachings speak of ‘liberation upon seeing’, ‘liberation upon hearing’, ‘liberation upon physical contact’, ‘liberation upon remembering’, ‘liberation upon thought’, and ‘liberation upon taste’. But for us it’s hard to believe that these six types of liberation are possible. So I’ve given these two examples to help you develop confidence and trust.
我们无法立即见到法身智慧，但在解脱之时，它会极为清晰地显现！因此，大圆满教法说到“见解脱”“闻解脱”“触解脱”“忆解脱”“思解脱”与“尝解脱”。但我们难以相信这六种解脱可能发生，所以我举了这两个例子，帮助你们生起信心与信赖。
You may now ask, when is all this going to happen? Well, soon. Once you know something exists, eventually you’ll see it, which is why, having received Dzogchen instructions, enlightenment is the only direction you can go in. The nature of the Dzogchen teachings is such that even if you never meditate on them, or reflect on them, or have anything more to do with them, just having received them means that in the future, you will reach the state of liberation.
现在，你也许会问，这一切什么时候发生？很快。一旦知道某事物存在，终究会看见它。因此，领受大圆满教授之后，你只能走向觉悟。大圆满教法的性质就是如此：即使从不修习，从不思维，也不再与之有任何关系，仅仅领受过，就意味着未来会达到解脱境界。
When Khenpo Jikmé Phuntsok visited the west and taught Dzogchen, he said, “You may not meditate on this teaching, you may not even reflect on it, but just having heard it should be enough. So just relax and be happy. In future, you will reach enlightenment.”
堪布晋美彭措访问西方并传授大圆满时说：“你也许不修这个教法，甚至不思维，但仅仅听过，应该就已足够。因此，只管放松，欢喜起来。未来，你将会证得觉悟。”
So, there is tremendous benefit to be gained simply from hearing Dzogchen teachings. And all of you continue to receive a superabundance of Dzogchen teachings! So you should constantly be laughing out loud for joy. There’s no need for you to suffer. Remember how Jetsün Milarepa cried when he went to see Marpa [for the last time], and Marpa said, “Don't cry! Why are you crying? You've done everything you had to do. So you should leave happy rather than wail. I have given you all the precious teachings I gathered with so much effort and at such great cost in India. So what are you agonizing about?”
所以，仅仅听闻大圆满教法，就有极大利益。而你们所有人都还在不断领受极为丰富的大圆满教法！因此，你们应该始终欢喜得放声大笑，没有必要受苦。记得至尊米拉日巴[最后一次]去见玛尔巴时哭泣，玛尔巴说：“别哭！为什么哭？你已完成一切该做的事，应该欢欢喜喜地离开，不该号啕。我如此辛苦、付出如此大代价在印度求得的一切珍贵教法，都已传给你。还有什么好苦恼的？”
So, this is the ngöndro meditation on joy, up until and including Guru Yoga. After ngöndro, come the Secret Mantra Vajrayana teachings. If you are fortunate enough to practise them, you really should rejoice and be ‘happy’ – as you call it – because these teachings are truly extraordinary and their effect far greater than you can possibly imagine!
这就是前行中修习欢喜的方式，一直到上师瑜伽，也包括上师瑜伽。前行之后，是秘密真言金刚乘教法。若有幸修持，确实应该欢喜，应该如你们所说的“快乐”，因为这些教法极为殊胜，其效力远远超出你能想象的范围！
When we practise sitting meditation it gives us hope for our next life and a goal to aim at, something we can achieve by practising the teachings. So there’s no need to worry. When you start something new, it helps to be one hundred percent confident that what you’re doing needs to be done. And this is definitely the case when you follow the Dzogchen path. You are going in the right direction, so there’s no reason to worry.
静坐修习，使我们对来生有所希望，也有一个可追求的目标，一个能够通过修持教法而实现的目标。因此，不必担忧。开始做一件新事时，若能百分之百确信所做之事应当去做，会很有帮助。追随大圆满之道，情况正是如此。你正朝着正确方向前进，没有理由担忧。
The Mantrayana teachings are taught after the preliminaries, but today I have other places to visit, so we don't have time to go through them. But one day I will talk about them! If not at Rigpa Amsterdam, at some other Rigpa centre. It doesn’t really matter which one, because you can listen to the recordings or watch the teaching on a computer. In Rigpa, you only have to say something once and everyone hears it.
前行之后传授真言乘教法，但今天我还要去别的地方，没有时间一一讲解。不过，总有一天会讲！如果不是在阿姆斯特丹的 本觉会，就是在另一处 本觉会 中心。在哪里其实不太要紧，因为你们能听录音，或在电脑上观看教法。在 本觉会，一件事只须说一次，每个人就都能听到。
As I said in Lerab Ling, nowadays a teacher doesn’t need to check a student in the way we used to in the past. Why? Because we don't know the students, so how can we check them? Teachers just teach, and students watch and listen on their computers.
如我在列绕林所说，如今上师已不必像从前那样观察弟子。为什么？因为我们不认识弟子，怎么观察？上师只是讲法，弟子则在自己的电脑上观看、聆听。
Actually I have an even stronger statement to make about ‘happiness’, which once you’ve heard it, will most probably bring an end to all your worries. But today, I don’t have the courage to say it.
其实，关于“快乐”，我还有一句更有力的话；听过之后，很可能会结束你们的一切忧虑。不过今天，我还没有勇气说出来。
Nowadays when people experience joy they go crazy – it’s quite common in the West it seems. I don't have much experience of it personally, but I have heard that when someone wins the lottery, for example, they go absolutely crazy! I don't think I’ve managed to bring anyone to that state of ‘happiness’ this time, but I'll work on it.
如今，人一欢喜就会发狂，看来这在西方相当常见。我个人没有太多这样的经验，但听说，例如中了彩票，有人就会彻底疯狂！我想，这次还没有使任何人达到那种“快乐”状态，不过，我会继续努力。
Until today, I have always spoken about suffering. But this time I’ve said that there is no suffering! Usually I say that enormous problems come with being in samsara. So much so, that you should think every instant that, “I need to attain liberation”. I often use graphic similes to describe the experience of samsara: samsara is ‘a prison’, ‘a nest of poisonous snakes’, ‘a pit of fire’, ‘an island infested with ogres’. In the past I have said all this. But today, I didn't mention one word of it! I’ve changed my message.
直到今天，我向来讲的是痛苦。这一次，却说没有痛苦！通常，我说身在轮回会带来巨大的问题，以至于每一刹那都应想着：“我必须获得解脱。”我常用鲜明的比喻描述轮回体验：轮回是“监狱”“毒蛇窝”“火坑”“罗刹遍布的岛屿”。过去，这些我都说过。可是今天，一个字也没提！我改变了说法。
What I said today is that if there were no samsara, there would also be no ‘buddha’; if there were no samsara, Buddha would be out of a job. It’s true, no? Buddha Shakyamuni toiled for three countless kalpas in samsara before he became the Buddha. No one can dispute that. And in the future, all the buddhas, starting with the Buddha’s regent Maitreya, will emerge out of samsara. Therefore samsara is necessary. Think about it! For example if I worry terribly in a dream, nothing of that worry will be left when I wake up. It won’t be there, right? There is nothing enduring or stable about my worrying.
今天我说，若没有轮回，也就没有“佛”；若没有轮回，佛就失业了。这是真话，对吧？释迦牟尼佛在轮回中辛勤努力了三个无数劫，才成为佛。没人能够否认。未来，从佛的补处弥勒开始，一切诸佛也都将从轮回中出现。因此，轮回是必要的。想一想！例如，若在梦中极为忧虑，醒来时，那忧虑不会有任何残留。它不在那里，对吧？我的忧虑没有任何持久或稳定的东西。
I will stop here. The thing is that Holland is well-known for allowing the sale and consumption of various drugs, so if I keep on like this, people will say: “When Orgyen Tobgyal went to Holland, he must have been on drugs – if you don’t believe me, listen to his teaching! He said some really weird things.”
就说到这里。问题是，荷兰以准许销售、使用各种毒品而闻名；若再这样说下去，人们会说：“乌金督佳到荷兰时，一定吸了毒——不信，就听他的教法！他说了些真正古怪的话。”
I did not plan to come here today. But when I was here a couple of years ago I really enjoyed the flower market, so basically I came back to look at it again – although this year it seems smaller than last time. And as I was already here, I thought I’d drop into the Rigpa centre, because I have a bit of an attachment to Rigpa. So that’s why I came...
今天原本没打算来这里。不过，几年前来到这里时，我很喜欢花市，所以主要是想再来看看——虽然今年看来比上次小。既然已到这里，我就想顺道来 本觉会 中心，因为我对 本觉会 有些执著。所以，我就这样来了……
Translated by Gyurmé Avertin
Edited by Janine Schulz
英文口译：久美·阿韦尔坦
英文编辑：雅尼娜·舒尔茨
原注 Notes
By and large, those who received Dzogchen teachings in this way—Yeshe Lama for example—didn’t have to be reborn again in samsara. The accounts we read of their lives always describe ‘liberation’. And when such a person was dying, those at his bedside would often say, “Oh, he received Yeshe Lama”, meaning “Don’t worry about him, he’ll be fine.”
总的来说，以这种方式领受大圆满教法，例如《智慧上师》的人，不必再次投生轮回。我们读到的他们的生平，总是在描述“解脱”。这样的人临终时，床边的人往往说：“哦，他领受过《智慧上师》。”意思是：“不必担心，他不会有事。”
出处与版本
原刊：ALL-OTR · Reasons to Be Cheerful。讲授：9th September 2012；Amsterdam, The Netherlands。原刊发布日期：2016-04-02。