Seize the Right Moment

捕获正确的瞬间

You must seize the first critical moment when sense-door consciousness first arises. If you fail to do so, you will be deluded by conceptual knowledge. If you fail to note seeing as it happens, you are dwelling in the conceptual realm. For ease of understanding, let me summarize the four stages of the process that I have explained.

你必须抓住(五门之一的)门识心路第一次生起的这个关键瞬间(译注：新英译此处也有偏差)。(注，加上：错过的话，抓住接下来的第一个意门心路过程。)如果无法做到，你将会被概念认识所迷惑。如果在看发生时没有注意到看，你就居住在了概念的领域。为了便于理解，我总结下已解释过的四个阶段的(心路)过程。

(译注：意门心路过程有两类：随起的和独立的。依照上文，可知指的是随起意门心路过程。为了容易理解，本人加了一些词句。另外，英译对心路过程、心识刹那、普通意义的瞬间这三个时间单位有些混淆不清)

1. First, adverting reflects as the object enters the mind door.
2. That moment of reflection constitutes the first thought process, which tries to gain cognition through consciousness.
3. Then concept is formed in the next thought process.
4. Finally the nature of the object is known by its name or concept.

1. 首先，对象进入意门时，(意门)转向心审查(该对象)。(注：之前还有个眼门心路过程，能认知究竟法。)
2. 那片刻的审查构成了第一个(意门)心路过程，它通过心识努力获得认识。(注：能认知究竟法。)
3. 然后，概念在接下来的(第二个意门)心路过程形成。(注：只能认知概念法)
4. 最后，(在第三个意门心路过程中)通过它的名称概念来了解对象的性质。(注：只能认知概念法)

Mind and matter in the ultimate sense can been known through meditation on the nature of phenomena as soon as they arise. If one knows instantly what is actually happening one gains insight into the three characteristics of impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self. The following four points should also be noted.

一旦现象生起，立即观照它们的本质，如此便可以看到究竟义中的名法和色法。如果即刻地了知到底是什么在发生，就能达到了知无常、苦、无我这三种特相的观智(注：思惟智)。下面四点也应该注意到。

1. Seize the first moment in the act of seeing.
2. Arrest the flow of consciousness at the first thought process (to conform to the exhortation: “ditthe ditthamattam bhavissati.”)
3. Differentiate mind and matter, noting that they are distinct phenomena.
4. Recognise the three characteristics.

1. 抓住看的过程的第一个瞬间。
2. 逮住第一个心路过程的心识之流(使得和这个教诫一致: “ditthe ditthamattam bhavissati.” 在你见时，你只见到它)
3. 区别名和色，注意到它们是不同的现象。
4. 了知无常、苦、无我三种特相。

As the development of insight gathers momentum, mind will be distinguished from matter, and dissolution will become clearly manifest. As knowledge of dissolution (bhanga-ñāna) gets sharper, the mind is able to appreciate that both the object seen and the seeing pass away at a tremendous pace. A meditator who contemplates dissolution may feel that mind-consciousness is fluttering as it dissolves into nothingness. The impression is so hazy that he or she might think that something is wrong with his or her eyesight. Having gained experience of dissolution, the meditator will benefit from direct knowledge of impermanence. This will lead to the revelation that what is not permanent is unsatisfactory and insubstantial, as one has virtually no control over mind and matter. They just occur, which is their intrinsic nature.

随着内观的培育聚集了动力，名法和色法将能被区别开，坏灭也明显地呈现出来 。坏灭智(bhanga-ñāna)变得锐利后，心就能察觉到被看物和看的心两者都在以极快的速度消逝掉。观察坏灭的禅修者可能感觉到意识不断地颤动，因为它消融无余。这个印象如此朦胧，以致于可能会认为视力出了问题。获得坏灭的体验后，禅修者将从对无常的直接认识中受益。这将导致了知到，凡是无常的，都是苦，都是无实体，因为实际上人无法控制名法和色法。它们仅是生起(就灭掉)，这是它们的固有本性。

If we are mindful of the phenomena of seeing, hearing, etc., according to the Buddha’s instructions, we may realise that they just occur, and that nothing can be done about it. The meditator need not go beyond seeing or hearing to examine what the object is, whether it is male or female, for example. The mind does not dwell on concepts, but stays with the ultimate realities (paramattha).

如果我们正念于看、听等等的现象，依据佛陀的教导，我们会认识到它们只是瞬间生起就灭去，对此无能为力。禅修者无须超出看或听来检查对象是什么，例如，它是男性还女性。心就不会居住于概念，而是与究竟法为伍。