What Is Natural?

　　何谓自然?

Claiming they want their practice to be "natural," some people complain that this way of life does not fit their nature.

　　有些人抱怨这里的生活方式与他们的根性并不相符，所以，他们呼吁修行要合乎“自然”。

Nature is the tree in the forest. But if you build a house, it is no longer natural, is it? Yet if you learn to use the tree, making wood and building a house, it has more value to you. Or perhaps the dog is natural, running here and there, following its nose. Throw food to dogs and they rush to it, fighting each other. Is that what you want to be like?

　　自然，就是森林里的树，可是，一旦你拿它来盖房子，就不再是自然了，不是吗?然而如果你学会利用树木、刨制木材来建造房屋，它对你而言就更有价值了。或许狗的本性是随著嗅觉到处跑，如果丢些食物给他们，它们就会互相争夺。这是你所要的自然吗？

The true meaning of natural can be discovered with our discipline and practice. This natural is beyond our habits, our conditioning, our fears. If the human mind is left to so-called natural impulses, untrained, it is full of greed, hatred, and delusion and suffers accordingly. Yet through practice we can allow our wisdom and love to grow naturally until it blossoms in any surroundings.

　　在持戒和修行中能发现自然的真义，这个自然是超越我们的习气、我们的习惯和恐惧的；假使心任由自然的冲动发展，而不加训练，就会充满贪、嗔、痴而受苦。然而，透过修行，我们便能够让我们的智慧与慈悲自然地增长，直到遍地开满了花。