L3 2020.03.20

At first such changes generally are not welcome.We try to deny our vision and to smother our doubts; we struggle to drive away the discontent with new pursuits.

一開始，這樣的改變通常是不受歡迎的。我們會試圖 去否定自己的見解，壓抑自己的疑惑；我們會奮力驅散對追尋新目標的不滿意。

But the flame of inquiry, once lit, continues to burn, and if we do not let ourselves be swept away by superficial readjustments or slouch back into a patched up version of our natural optimism, eventually the original glimmering of insight will again flare up, again confront us with our essential plight.

但是，探究的火苗一旦點燃， 便會持續燃燒，如果我們不讓自己被表面上的改變掃除，也不想無精打彩地退回草率修補的樂觀天性這一 面，那麼，這個乍現的洞察微光，終將再度燃起，再一 次讓我們面對追尋本質的誓願。

It is precisely at that point, with all escape routes blocked, that we are ready to seek a way to bring our disquietude to an end.

當所有逃避路線都不通的當下，就是我們準備好，要去尋找一條終止不安的道路。

No longer can we continue to drift complacently through life, driven blindly by our hunger for sense pleasures and by the pressure of prevailing social norms. A deeper reality beckons us; we have heard the call of a more stable, more authentic happiness, and until we arrive at our destination we cannot rest content.

我們再也不能繼續還自以為是地終身漂泊，盲目地被感官欲樂的渴求及一般社會規範的壓力所駕馭。一份更深層的實相向我們招手，我們已經聽到更安穩、更真 實的幸福召喚，除非抵達目的地，否則我們不能就此滿足。

 **英文摘錄自菩提比丘（The Noble Eightfold Path）

＊＊香光寺翻譯