自如射箭的心境

 　After winning several archery contests,the young and rather boastful champion challenged a Zen master who was renowned² for his skill as an archer¹.

　　The young man demonstrated remarkable³ technical proficiency⁴ when he hit a distant bull’s eye on his first try,and then split that arrow with his second shot.

　　“There,”he said to the old man, “see if you can match that!”

　　Undisturbed ,the master did not draw his bow,but rather motioned for the young archer to follow him up the mountain.

　　Curious about the old fellow’s `intentions,the champion followed him high into the mountain until they reached a deep chasm⁵ spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log.

　　Calmly stepping out onto the middle of the unsteady and certainly perilous⁶ bridge ,the old maser picked a far away tree as a target,drew his bow,and fired a clean,direct hit.

　　“Now it is your turn,”he said as he gracefully⁷ stepped back onto the safe ground.Staring with terror into the seemingly bottomless and beckoning⁸ abyss,the young man could not force himself to step out onto the log,no less shoot at a target. “You have much skill with your bow,” the master said ,sensing his challenger’s predicament, “but you have little skill with the mind that lets loose the shot.”

　　[参考译文]

　　在赢得几场射箭比赛后，一位年轻而又极为自负的冠军向一位以精湛的箭术而闻名的禅师提出了挑战。

　　这位年轻人展示了异常娴熟的技艺，他一箭射中了远处的靶心，接着第二枝箭将第一枝箭射劈。

　　“喂”，他对老者说，“看看你是否有得一比！”

　　禅师不以为然，并没有拉弓射箭，而是示意年轻的射手跟着他往山上走去。

　　射箭冠军对老人的意图感到很好奇，于是紧随其后爬上山，来到一个峡谷前，连接两岸的圆木极不牢固且摇摇欲坠。

　　老禅师沉着地迈步走到那座摇摇晃晃、十分危险的独木桥中央，选了远处的一棵树做靶子，拉开弓箭，一箭射中，动作干净利落。

　　“现在该你了，”他说着，从容而优雅地走回到安全的地面。年轻人满眼恐惧，望着那看似令人心惊肉跳的无尽深渊，他连向独木桥上迈一步的勇气都没有，更别说射靶了。觉察到这位挑战者的窘境，禅师说道：“你拥有高超的弓箭术，但你缺乏自如射箭的心境。”

1 archer   

n.射手，弓箭手

参考例句：

• The archer strung his bow and aimed an arrow at the target.弓箭手拉紧弓弦将箭瞄准靶子。
• The archer's shot was a perfect bull's-eye.射手的那一箭正中靶心。

2 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 proficiency   

n.精通，熟练，精练

参考例句：

• He plied his trade and gained proficiency in it.他勤习手艺，技术渐渐达到了十分娴熟的地步。
• How do you think of your proficiency in written and spoken English?你认为你的书面英语和口语熟练程度如何？

5 chasm   

n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突

参考例句：

• There's a chasm between rich and poor in that society.那社会中存在着贫富差距。
• A huge chasm gaped before them.他们面前有个巨大的裂痕。

6 perilous   

adj.危险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• The journey through the jungle was perilous.穿过丛林的旅行充满了危险。
• We have been carried in safety through a perilous crisis.历经一连串危机，我们如今已安然无恙。

7 gracefully   

ad.大大方方地；优美地

参考例句：

• She sank gracefully down onto a cushion at his feet. 她优雅地坐到他脚旁的垫子上。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line. 新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

8 beckoning   

adj.引诱人的，令人心动的v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• An even more beautiful future is beckoning us on. 一个更加美好的未来在召唤我们继续前进。 来自辞典例句
• He saw a youth of great radiance beckoning to him. 他看见一个丰神飘逸的少年向他招手。 来自辞典例句