名著精讀:《悉達多》 戈塔馬(1)

GOTAMA
In the town of Savathi, every child knew the name of the exalted Buddha, and every house was prepared to fill the alms-dish of Gotama's disciples, the silently begging ones. Near the town was Gotama's favourite place to stay, the grove of Jetavana, which the rich merchant Anathapindika, an obedient worshipper of the exalted one, had given him and his people for a gift.
All tales and answers, which the two young ascetics had received in their search for Gotama's abode, had pointed them towards this area. And arriving at Savathi, in the very first house, before the door of which they stopped to beg, food has been offered to them, and they accepted the food, and Siddhartha asked the woman, who handed them the food:
"We would like to know, oh charitable one, where the Buddha dwells, the most venerable one, for we are two Samanas from the forest and have come, to see him, the perfected one, and to hear the teachings from his mouth."
Quoth the woman: "Here, you have truly come to the right place, you Samanas from the forest. You should know, in Jetavana, in the garden of Anathapindika is where the exalted one dwells. There you pilgrims shall spent the night, for there is enough space for the innumerable, who flock here, to hear the teachings from his mouth."
This made Govinda happy, and full of joy he exclaimed: "Well so, thus we have reached our destination, and our path has come to an end! But tell us, oh mother of the pilgrims, do you know him, the Buddha, have you seen him with your own eyes?"
Quoth the woman: "Many times I have seen him, the exalted one. On many days, I have seen him, walking through the alleys in silence, wearing his yellow cloak, presenting his alms-dish in silence at the doors of the houses, leaving with a filled dish."
Delightedly, Govinda listened and wanted to ask and hear much more. But Siddhartha urged him to walk on. They thanked and left and hardly had to ask for directions, for rather many pilgrims and monks as well from Gotama's community were on their way to the Jetavana. And since they reached it at night, there were constant arrivals, shouts, and talk of those who sought shelter and got it. The two Samanas, accustomed to life in the forest, found quickly and without making any noise a place to stay and rested there until the morning.
At sunrise, they saw with astonishment what a large crowd of believers and curious people had spent the night here. On all paths of the marvellous grove, monks walked in yellow robes, under the trees they sat here and there, in deep contemplation--or in a conversation about spiritual matters, the shady gardens looked like a city, full of people, bustling like bees. The majority of the monks went out with their alms-dish, to collect food in town for their lunch, the only meal of the day. The Buddha himself, the enlightened one, was also in the habit of taking this walk to beg in the morning.
Siddhartha saw him, and he instantly recognised him, as if a god had pointed him out to him. He saw him, a simple man in a yellow robe, bearing the alms-dish in his hand, walking silently.
"Look here!" Siddhartha said quietly to Govinda. "This one is the Buddha."
Attentively, Govinda looked at the monk in the yellow robe, who seemed to be in no way different from the hundreds of other monks. And soon, Govinda also realized: This is the one. And they followed him and observed him.
The Buddha went on his way, modestly and deep in his thoughts, his calm face was neither happy nor sad, it seemed to smile quietly and inwardly. With a hidden smile, quiet, calm, somewhat resembling a healthy child, the Buddha walked, wore the robe and placed his feet just as all of his monks did, according to a precise rule. But his face and his walk, his quietly lowered glance, his quietly dangling hand and even every finger of his quietly dangling hand expressed peace, expressed perfection, did not search, did not imitate, breathed softly in an unwhithering calm, in an unwhithering light, an untouchable peace.
Thus Gotama walked towards the town, to collect alms, and the two Samanas recognised him solely by the perfection of his calm, by the quietness of his appearance, in which there was no searching, no desire, no imitation, no effort to be seen, only light and peace.
"Today, we'll hear the teachings from his mouth." said Govinda.
Siddhartha did not answer. He felt little curiosity for the teachings, he did not believe that they would teach him anything new, but he had, just as Govinda had, heard the contents of this Buddha's teachings again and again, though these reports only represented second- or third-hand information. But attentively he looked at Gotama's head, his shoulders, his feet, his quietly dangling hand, and it seemed to him as if every joint of every finger of this hand was of these teachings, spoke of, breathed of, exhaled the fragrant of, glistened of truth. This man, this Buddha was truthful down to the gesture of his last finger. This man was holy. Never before, Siddhartha had venerated a person so much, never before he had loved a person as much as this one.
They both followed the Buddha until they reached the town and then returned in silence, for they themselves intended to abstain from on this day. They saw Gotama returning--what he ate could not even have satisfied a bird's appetite, and they saw him retiring into the shade of the mango-trees.
But in the evening, when the heat cooled down and everyone in the camp started to bustle about and gathered around, they heard the Buddha teaching. They heard his voice, and it was also perfected, was of perfect calmness, was full of peace. Gotama taught the teachings of suffering, of the origin of suffering, of the way to relieve suffering. Calmly and clearly his quiet speech flowed on. Suffering was life, full of suffering was the world, but salvation from suffering had been found: salvation was obtained by him who would walk the path of the Buddha. With a soft, yet firm voice the exalted one spoke, taught the four main doctrines, taught the eightfold path, patiently he went the usual path of the teachings, of the examples, of the repetitions, brightly and quietly his voice hovered over the listeners, like a light, like a starry sky.
When the Buddha--night had already fallen--ended his speech, many a pilgrim stepped forward and asked to accepted into the community, sought refuge in the teachings. And Gotama accepted them by speaking: "You have heard the teachings well, it has come to you well. Thus join us and walk in holiness, to put an end to all suffering."

戈塔馬
在薩瓦梯城，每一個孩子都知道活佛戈塔馬的名字，家家戶戶都隨時準備接待戈塔馬的弟子，那些默默無語的化緣者，給他們的飯碗裝滿食物。戈塔馬最喜歡住的地方離城不遠，叫耶塔瓦納林苑，富商阿納塔品迪卡是活佛的一個忠實崇拜者，那是他送給活佛及其門徒的禮物。
兩年年輕的苦行僧尋找戈塔馬的住處，按照別人介紹與回答的指引來到了這個地區。他們到達薩瓦梯之後，在第一家屋門前就停 下來化緣，受一頓款待。他們收下了食物，席特哈爾塔向那個給他們食物的女人:
“謝謝你，你真好心。我們很想知道活佛住在哪兒，因爲我們是兩個來自森林的沙門，想來見他，聽他親口講經。”
那女人說:“來自森林的沙門啊，你們到這兒來算是找對了地方。活佛就住在耶塔瓦納，住在阿納塔品迪卡的林苑裏。你們這兩位朝拜者可以去那兒過夜，因爲那裏有足夠的地方接待大批前來聽他講經的人。”
戈文達很高興，滿懷喜悅地叫道:“真好啊，我們到達了目的地，總算是走到頭了!可是，朝拜者的大娘啊，請告訴我們，你認識活佛嗎?你親眼見過他嗎?”
那女人說:“我見過他好多次。在好多日子裏都見到他，目睹他穿着黃僧衣默默地穿街過巷，默默地停在各家各戶門前，遞上他的碗，又拿着盛滿食物的碗離去。”
戈文達聽得入迷，還想再打聽許多情況，可是，席特哈爾塔卻提醒他繼續前行。他們道過謝就走了，幾乎用不着再問路，因爲有不少朝拜者和戈塔馬的弟子都在前往耶塔瓦納的路上。他們晚上到了那兒，見到不斷有一批批找住處的人到達，發出叫嚎聲和講話聲。這兩個過慣了森林生活的沙門很快就不聲不響地找到了棲身之處，一覺睡到了第二天早上。
到太陽升起時他們才驚奇地發現，在此地過夜的信徒和好奇者竟是好大一羣人!在這座美麗林苑的所有小徑上，都有穿着黃僧衣的和尚走來走去。他們東一羣西一夥地坐在樹下潛心修行，或是進行宗教討論。那些濃蔭覆蓋的花園看上去就像是一個城市，擠滿了像蜜蜂一樣麇集的人們。大多數和尚正拿着化緣碗往外走，去城裏募集他們每天只吃一頓的午餐。就連活佛本人也通常是早上出去化緣。
席特哈爾塔看見了活佛，馬上就認出了他，就好像有神靈指點似的。他注視着活佛，一個身穿黃僧衣的樸實無華的人，手裏端着化緣碗，靜靜地走了過去。
“快看這邊!”席特哈爾塔小聲招呼戈文達，“這個人就是活佛。”
戈文達仔細打量這個身穿黃僧衣的和尚，覺得他似乎跟其他千百個和尚毫無區別。但是，戈文達很快也認出來了:此人正是活佛。於是，他們便跟隨在他身後，邊走邊仔細地觀察他。
活佛謙遜地走着自己的路，陷於沉思之中，他那平靜的面容既不快活也不悲傷，似乎在向他們微笑。活佛面帶隱隱的笑容，平靜、安詳，就像一個健康的孩子，從容步行，穿着僧衣，步子和追隨他的所有和尚同樣，遵循着嚴格的規矩。他的面容和步子，他的靜垂的目光，他的靜垂的雙手，以及手上的每一根指頭，都顯示出安寧，顯示出完美。他並不追求什麼，也不摹仿什麼，而是柔和地呼吸，處於一種不容破壞的安寧之中，一種不會衰敗的光線之中，一種不容侵害的和平之中。
戈塔馬就這樣朝城裏走去，去化緣。這兩個沙門單從他那安寧的完美、儀態的覺靜就認出了他，那儀態沒有追求，沒有慾望，沒有摹仿，沒有煩勞，只有光明與和平。
“咱們今天可以聽他親口講經了。”戈文達說。
席特哈爾塔沒答話。他對講經並不怎麼好奇，不相信講經能教給他新東西。他和戈文達一樣，早就多次聽說過這位活佛講經的內容，儘管那都是來自第二手和第三手的報告。他聚精會神地凝視着戈塔馬的頭、他的肩、他的腳以及他的肅然垂放的手，覺得這隻手每根手指的每個關節都有學問，都會說話、呼吸和散發出芳香，都閃耀着趔的光輝。這個人，這位活佛，全身上下直至小手指的姿態都是誠摯的。這個人是聖潔的。席特哈爾塔對他比對任何都尊敬，對他比對任何人都熱愛。
兩個人跟着活佛走到城邊，就默默地返回了，因爲他們打算這一天戒食。後來，他們看見戈塔馬回來，看見他在弟子們圍坐的賀圈中用餐 他吃的東西簡直連一隻鳥兒都喂不飽 他們看見他又回到了芒果樹的濃蔭下。
晚上，當炎熱已經消退時，林苑裏到處都活躍起來，大家聚集到一起聽活佛講經。他們聽着活佛的聲音，那聲音十分完美，顯示出完美的平靜，充滿着和平。戈塔馬講有關煩惱的學問，講煩惱的起源，講消除煩惱的途徑。他的深沉的演講平和流暢，清晰明朗。生活就是煩惱，世界充滿了煩惱，但是可以找到擺脫煩惱的方法:誰走活佛的路，誰就能得到解脫。
活佛用柔和而又堅定的聲音講述着，講授了四項主要原理，講授了八條途徑。他耐心地遵循講道理、舉例並重復的慣常方式，他的聲音在聽衆頭頂上洪亮而又平靜地迴響，好似一道光，好似一片星空。活佛結束講經時已經夜深了，幾個朝拜者走上前去，請求加入這個集體，願意皈依活佛。戈塔馬接納了他們，說道:“你們都認真地聽了我講經，已經有所收穫，那就加入進來吧，進入聖潔之中，徹底結束一切煩惱吧。”