发表于2025年11月11日作者管理员

The Big Bang and Vegetable Soup

2024-07-07 heyumapati Hare Krishna

调皮的奎师那拿着一块糖

The other afternoon I wanted to make an offering to Lord Krishna. So I cut up some vegetables into tiny pieces for vegetable soup.
有天下午，我想给奎师那供奉。所以我把⼀些蔬菜切成了⼩块做蔬菜汤。

After damn near slicing off a fingertip, I picked up the cutting board and scraped the pieces of carrot, celery, green beans, and whatever into a pot of boiling water. I reached for the wooden spoon to stir the mixture, but…Wait… I couldn’t find the spoon. It wasn’t in its place.
在差点切掉⼀根⼿指尖后，我端起砧板把切好的胡萝⼘、芹菜、四季⾖和其它东西都倒进⼀锅沸⽔中。我伸⼿去拿⽊勺搅拌，但…等等…我找不到勺⼦。它不在它的位置上。

But the water was boiling, and the soup wasn’t going to stir itself. I had to find the spoon, and fast. I jerked open and slammed shut one drawer after another, but no spoon. Finally my roommate told me to look in an upper cabinet, and I found the spoon and stirred the soup.
但⽔开了，汤不会⾃⼰搅拌。我还是得找到勺⼦，⽽且要快。我猛的打开和关上⼀个又⼀个抽屉，还是没有。最后我的室友告诉我在橱柜的上层看看，我找到了勺⼦，搅拌了汤。

Then I began to wonder, Why can’t the soup stir itself? Didn’t this gigantic universe put itself together from the flying debris of an explosion? Then why can’t a little pot of vegetables and water stir itself?
然后我就想，为什么汤不能⾃⼰搅拌呢？难道这个巨⼤的宇宙不是由爆炸的碎⽚组成的吗？那为什么⼀⼩锅蔬菜和⽔不能⾃⼰搅拌呢？

Then another thought struck me and made me shudder. Could it be that the universe didn’t really put itself together?
然后另⼀个想法出现了，让我不寒⽽栗。会不会是宇宙并没有真正把⾃⼰组合在⼀起？

Oh no! Was I suggesting the Big Bang Theory could be flawed? Krishna help me! I’ll be tried for heresy, maybe burned at the stake or crushed to death with heavy stones.
哎呀！我是在暗⽰⼤爆炸理论可能有缺陷吗？奎师那救救我！我会因异端邪说⽽受审，也会被烧死在⽕刑柱上，或者被重⽯砸死。

What next? Run into the next room and hide in the dust under the bed? I laughed. Then I walked over to the bookshelf and took out my Srimad Bhagavatam. I opened it to the Third Canto, chapter 3. The esteemed sage Maitreya is describing the creation of the universe. Here’s a part of it:
那接下来呢？跑到隔壁房间，躲在床下的灰尘⾥？我笑了。然后我⾛到书架前，拿出我的《圣典博伽⽡谭》。我打开书，翻到第三篇，第五章。受⼈尊敬的圣⼈麦垂亚正在描述宇宙的创造。这是其中的⼀部分：

“Thereafter the Personality of Godhead [Krishna] glanced over the sky, partly mixed with eternal time and external energy, and thus developed the touch sensation, from which the air in the sky was produced.
之后，⼈格⾸神[奎师那]扫视了与永恒的时间和外在能量部分混合在⼀起的天空，触觉从⽽发展出来。从触觉，天空中的空⽓产⽣了。（3.5.33）

Thereafter the extremely powerful air, interacting with the sky, generated the form of sense perception, and the perception of form transformed into electricity, the light to see the world.
此后，极为强⼤的空⽓产⽣后，与空间相互作⽤，产⽣出感官感知的形体，对形体的感知转化为电能——让我们得以看见世界的光。

When electricity was surcharged in the air and was glanced over by the Supreme , at that time, by a mixture of eternal time and external energy, there occurred the creation of water and taste.
承载了电的空⽓被⾄尊者扫视的那⼀刻，由于与永恒的时间和外在能量混合，产⽣出⽔和味觉。

Thereafter the water produced from electricity was glanced over by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and mixed with eternal time and external energy. Thus it was transformed into the earth, which is qualified primarily by smell.
随后，⾄尊⼈格⾸神扫视了产⾃电的⽔，⽔于是与永恒的时间及外在能量混合，从⽽转变为其主要特征是嗅觉的⼟。

O gentle one, of all the physical elements, beginning from the sky down to the earth, all the inferior and superior qualities are due only to the final touch of the glance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
和善的⼈啊！从被叫做空间的元素下⾄⼟元素，所有这些物质元素所呈现的⾼等或低等品质，都是因为被⾄尊⼈格⾸神故意看才展现的。”

I looked over the whole thing, but the sage forgot to mention the explosion. Or did he really forget?
我回过头来看整件事情，但圣⼈忘记提到爆炸了。还是他真忘了吗？

Could it be that the Big Bang never happened? (Now I’m really, really in trouble. They’re gonna come and drag me off to heresy court. Oh Krishna! Help!)
会不会是⼤爆炸从未发⽣过？（我现在真的真的有⿇烦了。他们会把我拖到异端法庭。哦，奎师那！救救我！

Then I wondered, Why does the sage Maitreya’s explanation make more sense to me than the Big Bang?
然后我想，为什么圣⼈麦垂亚的解释⽐宇宙⼤爆炸对我更有意义？

Of course! For the same reason that I had to stir my vegetable soup. Yes. Matter cannot move on its own. It has to be moved by a conscious living being.
当然！出于同样的原因，我不得不搅拌我的蔬菜汤。是的。物品⾃⼰⽆法移动。它必须由⼀个有知觉的⽣物来移动。

Do bricks jump on top of each other to make a house? Does a pen jump on top of the paper to write a novel? Could my vegetable soup stir itself?
砖会跳到⼀起盖房⼦吗？钢笔会跳到纸上写⼩说吗？我的蔬菜汤会⾃⼰搅动吗？

No you need a bricklayer, an author, a cook like me—conscious beings.
不会，你需要⼀个泥⽡匠，⼀个作家，⼀个像我⼀样的厨师——有知觉的⼈。

Srila Prabhupada elaborates:
施瑞拉·帕布帕德阐述道：

“If an apple drops from a tree, the apple is obeying the law of gravity. The apple does not know the law of gravity; therefore that law is being enforced by some superior entity.
如果⼀个苹果从树上掉下来，它就遵循了万有引⼒定律。苹果不知道万有引⼒定律；因此，该定律是由某个更⾼级的实体执⾏的。

In our dealings in society, people know laws. Still, they don’t obey them. They have to be forced to obey the laws, and still, people disobey the law. But the laws of nature are so perfectly enforced that nobody can disobey. (Janmastami, Montreal, 1968)
在我们的社会交往中，⼈们知道法律。尽管如此，他们还是不服从。他们必须被迫遵守法律，但⼈们仍然不遵守法律。但⾃然法则是如此完美地执⾏，以⾄于没有⼈可以违反。（1968 年，蒙特利尔，奎师那显现⽇）

And now the sage Maitreya tells us that the universe is created not by an explosion but in stages, and each stage is activated by a conscious being, in this case by the supreme being, Lord Krishna.
现在圣⼈麦垂亚告诉我们，宇宙不是由爆炸创造的，⽽是分阶段创造的，每⼀个阶段都是由⼀个有知觉的⽣物激活的，在这种情况下，这个⽣物是⾄⾼⽆上的主奎师那。

And what about explosions? Most of us have never seen an explosion We read about them in the news. And when was the last time the news reported an explosion creating a universe? Or creating anything at all?
那⼤爆炸呢？我们⼤多数⼈从未见过爆炸，我们只在新闻上读到过。上⼀次新闻报道爆炸创造宇宙是什么时候？或者创造了任何什么东西吗？

The most famous explosion in modern history is the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Did it create a universe? Or did it simply destroy a city and kill thousands of people?
现代史上最著名的爆炸是⼴岛原⼦弹爆炸。它创造了宇宙吗？还是它只是摧毁了⼀座城市，杀死了成千上万的⼈？

That’s what explosions do. They do not create. They destroy.
这就是爆炸的作⽤。他们不创造。他们毁灭。

Granted, we have seen in the news that an explosion called the Big Bang created the universe. But who saw it? Where are the photos? The eyewitness reports?
当然，我们已经在新闻中看到，⼀次被称为“⼤爆炸”的爆炸创造了宇宙。但谁看到了？照⽚在哪⾥？⽬击者报告呢？

Sorry to break it to you, but the Big Bang is really the big bedtime story, a figment of someone’s imagination. It defies logic. It defies observation of the laws of the universe.
很抱歉打断你，但⼤爆炸其实是睡前故事，是某⼈凭空想象出来的。这不符合逻辑。它违背了对宇宙规律的观察。

Srila Prabhupada sums it up:
施瑞拉·帕布帕德总结道：

“The conclusion is that the physical elements may work very wonderfully to the laymen’s eyes, but their workings actually take place under the supervision of the Lord.
结论是：在世俗之⼈的眼⾥，物质元素似乎很神奇，但它们这些活动实际上都是在⾄尊主的监督下运⾏的。

Those who can mark only the changes of the physical elements and cannot perceive the hidden hands of the Lord behind them are certainly less intelligent persons, although they may be advertised as great material scientists. (Srimad Bhagavatam 3.5.37)
有些⼈虽然有响亮的物质科学家的名号，但如果只看到物质元素的变化，却看不到背后有⾄尊主操纵⼀切，就肯定不是明智的⼈。（《圣典博伽⽡谭 3.5.37》）

Uh-oh. I hear a noise outside. They’re coming to get me. I gotta run. Hare Krishna! Bye-bye.
啊哦。我听到外⾯有声⾳。他们来找我了。我得⾛了。哈瑞·奎师那。再见。

⁓Umapati Swami, July 7, 2024
~乌玛帕提·斯⽡⽶ 2024 年 7 ⽉ 7 ⽇

Eternally touching my head to the floor at the lotus feet of my spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, for showing me this.
永恒地顶拜我的灵性导师施瑞拉·帕布帕德，他向我展⽰了这⼀切。

Notes:
注：

The Hare Krishna Mantra: Haré Krishna, Haré Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Haré Haré / Haré Rama, Haré Rama, Rama Rama, Haré Haré.
哈瑞奎师那·曼陀罗：哈瑞奎师那，哈瑞奎师那，奎师那奎师那，哈瑞哈瑞 / 哈瑞茹阿玛，哈瑞茹阿玛，茹阿玛茹阿玛，哈瑞哈瑞。

See also my post Who Carved the Grand Canyon?

The opinions expressed in this article are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any organization or any other person.
本⽂所表达的观点是我个⼈的观点，并不⼀定反映任何组织或任何其他⼈的观点。

Photo top: Naughty Krishna holding a piece of candy (Jishnu Das)

Love it? Hate it? Got a question? Write to me: hoswami@yahoo.com

Srila Prabhupada

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada is the teacher who brought Krishna Consciousness from India to the West and then to the rest of the world. He is the founder of the worldwide Hare Krishna Movement as well as the author and compiler of many works of Vedic knowledge. He left this world in 1977.

Umapati Swami

One of the first American devotees of the Hare Krishna Movement, he became Srila Prabhupada’s disciple in 1966. Since then, he has preached Krishna Consciousness in many countries and is the author of “My Days with Prabhupada,” available from Amazon. Now 87 years old, he maintains this blog to share what he has learned.