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埃克哈特談顯化
經常有人詢問有關顯化和意圖的力量的問題，以及這與當下的力量之間的關係。有個人問我，我在《新世界》中提到的持續的渴望，與創造的意圖之間有何區別。在你的生活中顯化或創造一些事物，這重要嗎？這會不會事與願違？
現在有很多激動人心的書都在講創造和顯化：《秘密》、《亞伯拉罕的教導》等等。人們常常問，這與寧靜和內在空間有何關聯？與接納事情的本來面目，臣服於當下時刻，活在當下有何關聯？這裡面有沒有矛盾的地方，是否有一方是錯誤的，或者會產生誤導呢？
这是一個對幾乎每一個人都很重要的問題。你的生命是大宇宙中的小宇宙。當你看著宇宙，你會發現它喜歡創造，它喜歡顯化。僅僅在這個星球上，宇宙不間斷地創造和顯化了無數的生命形式。而在外太空，我們可以想像 – 我們不知道具體那裡有什麼 – 但可以想像那兒有廣大的生命，很可能比我們這個星球的生命形式多得多。在海洋裡、在陸地上的生命形式，包括人類，他們看上去都很享受創造和毀滅的生命之舞。這是一個不斷變化的過程。
只需要看著生命，你就能發現宇宙喜歡顯化。而且它似乎喜歡隨著時間的推移，生命形式呈現得越來越多樣化。甚至是人類社會，也變得越來越複雜。我們古老的文明非常複雜，但我們現在的文明卻是最複雜的。這當然就包括不斷被問題追趕，問題總是伴隨著複雜性而來的。現代文明中的每個人都有一個充滿問題的人生。但是我們不能一直複雜下去。
宇宙喜歡創造，喜歡顯化，喜歡體驗形式的遊戲。這是一個傾向。在一定程度上，你可以在你的自身看到這一點。而在人類身上還有另外一些東西，一個內在的現象，你只能在你的裡面真正發現它。宇宙不僅想要體驗顯化的生命，它也想要體驗平和，想要體驗外在不斷變化的形式所碰觸不到的東西。它渴望深入、直接地認識它自己，它的本質。這是真正的靈性的根本。宇宙不僅想要向外運動，也渴望朝內探索 – 對一（the One）的回歸。每一個人類個體都包含了這雙向的運動。有時你彷彿要被這兩級的力量撕裂了，一邊想朝外在形式探索，一邊又渴望回到萬物之始的源頭。你從未失去這源頭，因為它是永恆的，它就存在於你之內。你感受到它的召喚，你感受到那個將你拉回到靈性，回歸平和與寧靜的力量。
沒有哪一個是對的或者錯的。也許只有當你完全迷失在外在或內在，才會有對錯，但也可能不完全是錯的。可能這就是宇宙在這星球，或者也在其他星球，所遇到的挑戰。這挑戰就是如何調和這兩級運動，而不是將它們分開。內在朝向寧靜與存在（Stillness and Being）的運動，與外在朝向行動、“做”的運動，這兩者有可能變得和諧一致嗎？我認為這就是我們大家在此刻所遇到的挑戰。
過去，人類對他們在這個世界已經顯化的事物非常無意識。他們完全認同於“做”，認同於形式。這是自我們有記憶以來，自歷史有記錄甚至更加久遠以來就一直在發生的。我們稱之為“自我”。在所有事物之下的合一的意識進入了形式，表現為形式，和形式遊戲，但是僅僅與形式遊戲還不夠，合一意識需要完全相信形式，這樣才能使這遊戲顯得更真實。你需要在形式之夢中迷失你自己。
每個人都相信他們有一個屬於自己的生命，這意味著他們認同於生命的外在形式。尤其是這個肉體，這個心智體，由思想和隨著思想而來的情緒所組成的心智體。這些都成為了形式認同的一部分。
意識被困住了，或者說它以為自己被困住了。我們可以說在這個狀態下，宇宙或者說意識進入了一個“如夢境般的”狀態。它渴望這樣做，它必須在一定程度上享受這個夢。在“如夢境般的”狀態中，意識完全與形式認同。它沒有意識到每一個形式其實都是它自身的一個面向。當然，這樣你就是一個孤立的個體。一段時間之後，你感到很不開心。所以你必須與其他個體聚在一起，於是代之以“我”，你們開始有了“我們”。
宇宙，在一段時間之內，似乎對於意識完全與形式認同感到還可以接受。接著“電影”繼續。閱讀歷史，你就會發現當意識完全認同形式時會發生什麼。然後進入另一個階段的時間到了，意識開始從與形式完全認同之中蘇醒過來。這開始在很多地方發生。這正是為什麼人類被靈性的教導所吸引。這就是從形式之夢中覺醒。
Often people ask questions about manifesting and the power of intention, and how that relates to the power of Now. One person asked me about the difference between the continuous wanting that I write about in A New Earth and intention – the intention to create something. What is the importance of manifesting things in your life, or creating, or is that counter-productive?
There are many exciting books these days about creating and manifesting: The Secret, the teachings of Abraham, and so on. Often people ask, how does that relate to Stillness and inner peace? And acceptance of what is? And surrender to the Present Moment? And living in alignment with Now? Is there conflict, is one wrong? Or misleading?
This is an important question for almost everybody. Your own life is a microcosm of the macrocosm. If you look at the Universe, the first thing you will see is that it likes to create, and it likes to manifest. On this planet alone, the Universe is continuously creating and manifesting countless life forms. And in outer space, we can only assume – we don’t know what exactly is there – but there is a vastness of life out there, and probably many more life forms than we have on this planet. The life forms, both in the sea, and on land, including humans, they seem to enjoy a dance of coming into being and destruction. It’s a transformational process.
By just looking at life, you can see that the Universe loves to manifest. Also it seems to be the case that life forms, over periods of time, become more differentiated. Many more come. And even human societies become more complex. We have had ancient civilizations that were very complex, but our present civilization is the most complex. This of course includes problem-ridden. That goes with complexity. Every individual who is part of this civilization has a life that is full of problems. But complexity cannot go on forever.
The Universe likes to create, to manifest, to experience the play of form. That’s one movement. And you can see it in yourself, at some level. There is something else in humans, you can only really see in yourself, an inner phenomenon. The Universe wants not only to experience that manifested life, it also wants to experience peace and something that is not touched by the continuously fluctuating forms. It wants to know itself deeply, directly, in its essence. That really is the root of spirituality. The Universe not only wants the outward movement, but it also wants the inward – the return movement to the One. Every human being also embodies these two movements. It seems that you are torn sometimes between the outward movement into form, and the inward return movement to the Source where it all started. The Source that was never really lost, it is always there because it is timeless, and it is within you. You feel drawn back to that, and that is the pull toward spirituality, peace, Stillness.
Not one or the other is right or wrong. It’s only perhaps if you totally lose yourself in one or the other – maybe that’s not quite it. Perhaps this is the challenge of the Universe here on this planet, and perhaps on other planets. The challenge to reconcile the two movements, rather than to have them be separate. Is it possible to reconcile the inner movement toward Stillness and Being, and the outer toward action, and doing? I would say it is, and that is our challenge at this time.
Traditionally, it’s been very unconscious what humans have manifested in this world. They have been identified with doing, and identified with form. That has been going on for as long as anyone can remember – since recorded history and beyond. And we call that ‘ego’. The One consciousness that underlies everything moves into form, assumes forms, and enjoys the play of form but it’s not enough for the one consciousness to enjoy the play of form, it needs to completely believe in it to make it seem ‘real’. You need to lose yourself in that dream of form.
Every human believes that they have a life of their own, and that means they are identified with the form of that life. This particular physical body, this particular psychological life form, the accumulation of thoughts and the emotions that go with these thoughts; it all becomes part of that form-identity.
Consciousness is trapped, or believes itself to be trapped in that. We could say that in that state, the Universe or Consciousness has entered a “dream-like” state. It wants to do that, it must enjoy that dream, up to a point. Consciousness has entered that “dream-like” state where it is completely identified with form. It doesn’t realize that every other form is an aspect of itself. Of course, then you are just an isolated entity. It becomes quite unpleasant after a while. So you have to get together with other entities and instead of having an “I” form, you have a “We” form, an “Us”.
For a while, the Universe seems to be okay with that, to have Consciousness identified completely with form. Then the “movie” goes on. Reading through history, you can see what happens when Consciousness is identified completely with form. Then it comes time for another stage to arise, when Consciousness is beginning to awaken from complete identification with form. This is beginning to happen at many stages, this is why human beings are drawn to spiritual teachings. It is the awakening from the dream of form.
