Q7: Venerable Sir, in Vipassana practice is it necessary to label or name an object such as “rising, falling” etc.?

问7：内观修行需要对所缘进行标记或称名吗，如“起、伏”等等？

Names, whether they are in technical terms or in ordinary language, are all conceptual or conventional and not that important. What matters most is to be aware of the phenomena involved in an object like “rising and falling of the abdomen when breathing.” In reality, just being aware of an object without labeling at all, will serve the purpose. Without labeling, however, it may be difficult to be fully aware of an object precisely and accurately. Also, it will not be easy for the yogi to report his or her experience to the teacher, or for a teacher to give advice to the yogi. That is the reason why the yogi is instructed to label an object when he or she notes it. Even then, it would be difficult to use technical terms for all objects a yogi encounters. That is why I instruct yogis to use ordinary language like “rising, falling” when he or she practices.

不管是专业术语还是日程用语中，名字都是属于概念或世俗的，因此并不重要。重要的是觉知所缘涉及的现象如“呼吸时腹部的起伏”，实际上，只需觉知目标根本不需标记就能达到目的。然而不用标记可能难于精准而充分地觉知目标，学生也不方便向老师汇报自己的体验，老师也不方便给学生指导。这是为什么我们教学生在观照目标时进行标记。即使这样，也难于用佛教名相标记所有禅修者遇到的所缘，因此我教学生在禅修中使用日常用语如“起、伏”。