发表于2026年4月6日作者管理员

To a Great Soul, 2024

2024-08-25 heyumapati Hare Krishna

调皮的奎师那拿着一块糖

Here is my yearly tribute to my spiritual master, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, on the anniversary of his appearance in this world in 1896.
这是我对我的灵性导师 A.C.巴克提韦丹塔·斯瓦米·帕布帕德（A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada）的年度致敬，纪念他于 1896 年来到这个世界。

The Torch of Knowledge
知识的火炬

I look across the room at Jagannath, Baladeva, and Subhadra.
I sigh. “ Let me walk up to the altar,” I tell myself, “and take one last look at Krishna before I retire for the evening.”
我望向房间对面的佳甘纳特 (Jagannath)、巴拉戴瓦 (Baladeva) 和苏巴铎 (Subhadra)。
我叹了口气。“我要走到神坛前，”我告诉自己，“在晚上休息前，再最后看一眼奎师那。”

Eight o’clock. Evening. I feel tired. My eyes burn. My body feels heavy. I can hardly keep on chanting Hare Krishna.
晚上八点。我觉得累了。我的眼睛灼痛。我的身体感觉很沉重。我几乎无法继续唱颂哈瑞奎师那。

I rub my eyes.
我揉了揉我的眼睛。

“No,” answers my mind. “I’m too tired. I don’t feel like standing up. And I’ll only commit offenses.”
“不，”我的大脑回答道。“我太累了。我不想站起来。而且我只会做冒犯。”

I dig my elbows into the armrests of my padded chair, trying to push myself up. “Come on. What have I got eyes for anyway?”
我用手肘抵住软垫椅子的扶手，试图将自己撑起来。“拜托。我的眼睛是用来干什么的？”

Now I push the heels of my hands into the armrests, and with a big heave I stand up. I walk over to the altar to get a good look at Jagannath, Baladev, and Subhadra.
现在我用手掌根部抵住扶手，然后用力站了起来。我走到神坛前，仔细观看佳甘纳特、巴拉戴瓦和苏巴铎。

Jagannath’s big round eyes make my doubts evaporate. His bright black skin reflects the light, and his red lips have a big smile. His jutting arms taper down to fine hands.
佳甘纳特的圆圆的大眼睛让我的疑虑烟消云散。他亮黑色的皮肤反射着光芒，红唇上挂着灿烂的笑容。他伸出的手臂逐渐变细，变成了纤细的手。

Then my eyes go leftward to Baladev. Skin white as milk, large almost oblong eyes, and another big red-lipped smile. Fine hands. I take a deep breath.
然后我的目光转向左边的巴拉戴瓦。皮肤白皙如牛奶，眼睛大得几乎是椭圆形，嘴唇上挂着大大的红唇微笑。双手纤细。我深吸了一口气。

In the middle stands Subhadra looking every inch a princess, the cloth that covers her modest head draping down to her feet. Golden skin and large eyes. Cannot see her arms. And, of course, a lovely smile.
站在中间的苏巴铎看起来就像一位真正的公主，头上披着的布一直垂到脚边。她有着金色的皮肤和大大的眼睛。看不到她的手臂。当然，有可爱的微笑。

“Why did I hesitate?” I ask myself. “The sight is so beautiful.”
“我为什么犹豫了？”我问自己。“这幅景象这么美。”

This happens every time I look at them. Their beauty takes me by surprise. But how can the same sight surprise me again and again?
每次我看着他们，都会有这种感觉。他们的美丽让我惊讶。但同样的景象怎么能一次又一次让我感到惊讶呢？

I have seen beautiful things in this world: the beauty of cities like Paris and San Francisco, the beauty of tropical forests in Brazil and Ivory Coast, the beauty of famous women like Marilyn Monroe and Brigitte Bardot.
我见过这个世界上许多美丽的事物：巴黎和旧金山等城市的美丽、巴西和科特迪瓦热带森林的美丽、玛丽莲·梦露和碧姬·芭铎等著名女性的美丽。

But has any of this beauty ever surprised me day in and day out, year in and year out like the beauty of Jagannath?
但是，这些美丽是否曾像佳甘纳特的美丽那样，日复一日、年复一年地令我感到惊奇呢？

And with every moment of surprise comes the answer: Srila Prabhupada has let me glimpse the beauty of Krishna’s world. The beauty that keeps increasing.
伴随着每一次惊喜的时刻，答案就出现了：施瑞拉·帕布帕德让我瞥见了奎师那世界的美丽。这种美丽还在不断增加。

Now I do not dare to say that I see the spiritual world. No. Far from it. My eyes focus firmly on the fleeting, pain-inducing pleasures of this material sphere. But Prabhupada has done something. He has taken a torch and let a shaft of light pierce my material darkness.
现在我不敢说我看到了灵性世界。没有。远远没有。我的眼睛紧紧地盯着这个物质世界转瞬即逝、痛苦不堪的快乐。但帕布帕德做了一件事情。他拿起火炬，让一束光刺穿我的物质黑暗。

He did it the first time I heard him speak, but I never noticed it till now. Worse yet, how many times have I picked up the sprinkling can of pride and poured the water of speculation on the flame? But it doesn’t go out. No. Prabhupada never gives up on me.
我第一次听他讲话时他就这么做了，但直到现在我才注意到。更糟糕的是，我有多少次拿起骄傲的喷壶，把猜测的水喷在火焰上？但它没有熄灭。没有。帕布帕德从不认为帮助我是没有用的就放弃这么做。

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
圣恩 A·C·巴克提韦丹塔·斯瓦米·帕布帕德

I rub my head. I stagger into my bedroom and plop down into my desk chair. I open a desk drawer and see the Bhagavad Gita As It Is. I look at the picture of Arjuna and Krishna on the cover.
我揉了揉头，踉踉跄跄地走进卧室，一屁股坐到办公椅上。我打开抽屉，看到了《博伽梵歌原意》。我看着封面上的阿尔诸那和奎师那的照片。

“This is it,” I think. “This is the torch. And Prabhupada’s typewriter on Second Avenue was the match that lit it.”
“就是这个，”我想，“这就是火炬。第二大道上帕布帕德的打字机就是点燃它的火柴。”

Like the world that it reveals, the Bhavad Gita As It Is contains endless surprises. Yes. I can count the pages, I can count the verses, I can even count the words, but I cannot count the times I have found something there that I had never seen before, even after years of reading the book.
正如它所揭示的世界一样，《博伽梵歌原意》本身就包含着无尽的惊喜。是的。我可以数出它的页数，可以数出它的诗句，甚至可以数出它的单词数，但我数不清有多少次在其中发现了一些我从未见过的东西，即使读了这本书很多年之后。

[Krishna’s spiritual master said,] ‘You are above all blessing, yet it is my duty to bless You. I therefore give You the benediction that whatever You speak will remain as eternally fresh as the instructions of the Vedas.
[奎师那的灵性导师说，]“你高于一切祝福，但我有责任祝福你。因此，我祝福你，无论你说什么，都将像韦达经的教诲一样永远新鲜。

Your teachings will be honored not only within this universe or in this millennium but in all places and ages and will remain increasingly new and important.’
你的教诲不仅会在这个宇宙或这个千年中受到尊敬，而且会在所有地方和时代受到尊敬，并将变得越来越新鲜和重要。’

[Because of] this benediction from His teacher, Lord Krishna’s Bhagavad-Gita is ever-increasingly fresh and is renowned not only within this universe but in other planets and other universes also. (Krishna Book 45)
[因为]他的老师的祝福，主奎师那的《博伽梵歌》越来越新鲜，不仅在这个宇宙中享有盛誉，而且在其他星球和其他宇宙中也享有盛誉。（《奎师那——至尊人格首神》第45章）

I had read other English editions of the Bhagavad-Gita, but I never cared enough to read them twice. Prabhupada’s explanations in Bhagavad Gita As It Is alone let the brilliance of Krishna’s words shine out and showed me the eternal surprises within.
我曾经阅读过《博伽梵歌》的其他英文版本，但从未认真读过两遍。只有《博伽梵歌原意》中帕布帕德的解释才让奎师那的话语熠熠生辉，并向我展示了其中永恒的惊喜。

Is this not the mark of a true spiritual master? That he not only describes the glories of the spiritual world but also gives the disciple a preview? I had heard from other teachers, yes, but no one ever gave me a look beyond the material darkness.
这难道不是一位真正的灵性导师的标志吗？他不仅描述了灵性世界的荣耀，也给了门徒一个预览？我从其他老师那里听说过，但从来没有人给我一个超越物质黑暗的视角。

Not until I met Prabhupada.
直到我遇见了帕布帕德。

“The Supreme Absolute Truth is a person,” said Prabhupada that evening on Second Avenue.
“至尊绝对真理是一个人，”帕布帕德那天晚上在第二大道说道。

And the torch flamed for first time.
火炬第一次燃烧。

“It’s Krishna! It’s Krishna!” Prabhupada shouted one morning. His voice resounded through the storefront like a lion roaring as he slammed his hand on the table. “It’s no unborn within Krishna! It’s Krishna!”
“是奎师那！是奎师那！”一天早上，帕布帕德喊道。他的声音响彻整个店面，就像狮子在咆哮，他用手猛击桌子。“不是奎师那体内未诞生的！是奎师那！”

The second flame flared up.
第二团火焰猛然升起。

The third flame? A handwritten comment on a printed page: “God is standing in front of Arjuna, and the foolish commentator wants Arjuna to turn around and look inside.” (It didn’t look like Prabhupada’s handwriting, but whoever wrote it surely heard it from him.)
第三团火焰？一张印刷页上的手写评论：“上帝站在阿尔诸那面前，愚蠢的评论家想让阿尔诸那转过身向里面看。”（这看起来不像是帕布帕德的笔迹，但无论是谁写的，肯定都是从他那里听到的。）

And finally? Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, the roaring flame for everyone to look at and see. Not just for me. For the whole universe.
最后呢？《博伽梵歌原意》是每个人都能看到的熊熊火焰。不是只是为我。是为整个宇宙。

Still, my stubborn mind keeps trying to put out the flame. But Prabhupada never gives up on me.
然而，我固执的心意却一直试图扑灭火焰。但帕布帕德从未放弃我。

Let me beg him one more time:
让我再恳求他一次：

Dear Srila Prabhupada,
亲爱的施瑞拉·帕布帕德，

For many years I have begged you for indulgences. Today I want to beg for something else. I want to beg for intelligence. I am begging you to hand me the torch like an Olympic relay and to give me the intelligence to shine the light for others exactly as you have shone it for me. No more, no less.
多年来，我一直恳求您忍受我的错误。今天，我想祈求一些别的东西。我想乞求您赐予我智慧。我恳求您像传递奥运火炬一样把火炬传递给我，并赐予我智慧，让我像您为我照亮一样照亮他人。不多也不少。

Let me open the eyes of others as you have opened mine. If I have to beg for one thing in this universe, can I beg you for anything better than this?
让我也能启亮别人的眼睛，正如您启亮了我的眼睛一样。如果我必须在这个宇宙中乞求一件事，我还能向您乞求比这更好的东西吗？

Dear Srila Prabhupada,
亲爱的施瑞拉·帕布帕德，

You just give and give and give. And you only take for yourself as much as you need in order to keep on giving. Please ask Lord Krishna to bless me with intelligence so I can become like this.
您只是给予、给予、再给予。您只为自己拿取为了继续给予而所需的。请祈求主奎师那赐予我智慧，让我能成为这样。

Everything about you is perfect. Please grant me that I may live eternally as your unwavering follower, yes, and that I may hold the torch in a firm and steady grip.
您的一切都是完美的。请赐予我永远做您坚定不移的追随者，让我紧紧握住这火炬。

Your most humble servant,
Umapati Swami
您最卑微的仆人，
乌玛帕提·斯瓦米

⁓Umapati Swami, August 26, 2024
⁓乌玛帕提·斯瓦米，2024年8月26

Eternally touching my head to the floor at the lotus feet of my spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada.
我永远以头触地，虔诚顶礼我灵性导师圣恩帕布帕德（Srila Prabhupada）的莲花圣足。

Notes:
备注：

The Hare Krishna Mantra: Haré Krishna, Haré Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Haré Haré / Haré Rama, Haré Rama, Rama Rama, Haré Haré.
哈瑞奎师那玛哈·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。

The opinions expressed in this article are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any organization or any other person.
本文所表达的观点仅代表我个人，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
喜欢本文吗？或者讨厌它？有问题想问？请给我写信： 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.