Matthieu Ricard: How to let altruism be your guide

翻译人员: Yumeng Guo 校对人员: Wei Wu

So we humans have an extraordinary potential for goodness,

人类为善的潜力没有尽头，

but also an immense power to do harm.

但为恶的能力也不可小觑。

Any tool can be used to build or to destroy.

任何工具，在人类手里都可用于行善， 也都可用于作恶。

That all depends on our motivation.

这完全取决于我们内心的动机。

Therefore, it is all the more important

因此，心怀利他精神，

to foster an altruistic motivation rather than a selfish one.

而不是自私的念头，比什么都重要。

So now we indeed are facing many challenges in our times.

当今世界我们确实面临着太多挑战。

Those could be personal challenges.

其中有我们自身的挑战，

Our own mind can be our best friend or our worst enemy.

我们的思想可以是我们最善良的朋友， 也可以是最危险的敌人；

There's also societal challenges:

也有社会层面的挑战：

poverty in the midst of plenty, inequalities, conflict, injustice.

贫富分布不均、不平等、战乱、不公平；

And then there are the new challenges, which we don't expect.

还有很多尚未料到的新的挑战。

Ten thousand years ago, there were about five million human beings on Earth.

一万年前，地球上只有大概五百万人，

Whatever they could do,

无论那时的人做了什么，

the Earth's resilience would soon heal human activities.

地球的恢复力都会让人类的影响消于无形。

After the Industrial and Technological Revolutions,

自工业技术革命开始以来，

that's not the same anymore.

这种情况就不复存在了。

We are now the major agent of impact on our Earth.

人类成为了破坏地球最主要的因素。

We enter the Anthropocene, the era of human beings.

我们迎来了人类纪，即人类的纪元。

So in a way, if we were to say we need to continue this endless growth,

从某种角度来看， 如果我们持续这种无节制的发展，

endless use of material resources,

持续不断地消耗资源，

it's like if this man was saying --

我们就会像这位——

and I heard a former head of state, I won't mention who, saying --

我从一位前国家元首那听来的， 我不会说是谁——说的这样，

"Five years ago, we were at the edge of the precipice.

「五年前，我们站在悬崖边，

Today we made a big step forward."

今天我们又跨出了一大步。」

So this edge is the same that has been defined by scientists

这个悬崖边，就是科学家们定义的

as the planetary boundaries.

「地球限度」。

And within those boundaries, they can carry a number of factors.

在限度以内—— 这个限度是由多种因素决定的——

We can still prosper, humanity can still prosper for 150,000 years

我们仍然可以繁荣发展，

if we keep the same stability of climate

如果维持曾经持续了一万年的 全新纪的环境稳定性，

as in the Holocene for the last 10,000 years.

人类可以再发展十五万年。

But this depends on choosing a voluntary simplicity,

但这决定于我们的选择，

growing qualitatively, not quantitatively.

要自发地求简、求质，而不是求数量。

So in 1900, as you can see, we were well within the limits of safety.

在二十世纪初，你们能看到， 我们还处在安全的限度以内。

Now, in 1950 came the great acceleration.

到二十世纪五十年代， 社会的发展速度有了极大提升。

Now hold your breath, not too long, to imagine what comes next.

请屏住呼吸，快速想一下， 接下来会发生什么吧。

Now we have vastly overrun some of the planetary boundaries.

如今我们在很多方面大幅超出地球限度，

Just to take biodiversity, at the current rate,

以生物多样性来说吧，按现有速度，

by 2050, 30 percent of all species on Earth will have disappeared.

到2050年，地球上30%的物种将会消失。

Even if we keep their DNA in some fridge, that's not going to be reversible.

即便我们冷藏其DNA，消失的物种也不能复原。

So here I am sitting

照片中的我坐在

in front of a 7,000-meter-high, 21,000-foot glacier in Bhutan.

不丹境内七千米高， 也就是两万一千英尺高的冰川前。

At the Third Pole, 2,000 glaciers are melting fast, faster than the Arctic.

在第三极点，两千米高的冰川在迅速融化， 速度比北极融化的还要快。

So what can we do in that situation?

这种情况下我们能做些什么呢？

Well, however complex politically, economically, scientifically

环境问题尽管充斥着政治、

the question of the environment is,

经济、学术等诸多因素，

it simply boils down to a question of altruism versus selfishness.

但可以归结为一点：是利他，还是利己。

I'm a Marxist of the Groucho tendency.

我是格劳乔马克思主义者。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Groucho Marx said, "Why should I care about future generations?

格劳乔•马克思说过， 「我为什么要为后代考虑呢？

What have they ever done for me?"

他们为我做过什么吗？」

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Unfortunately, I heard the billionaire Steve Forbes,

不幸的是， 我也曾听到亿万富翁史蒂夫•福布斯

on Fox News, saying exactly the same thing, but seriously.

在福克斯新闻这样说过，

He was told about the rise of the ocean,

当谈到海平面上升问题，他义正言辞地说，

and he said, "I find it absurd to change my behavior today

「为一百年后发生的事情而改变自己今天的所作所为，

for something that will happen in a hundred years."

这简直是荒谬的。」

So if you don't care for future generations,

既然你不为后代着想，

just go for it.

就随你去吧。

So one of the main challenges of our times

当今我们面临的主要挑战是

is to reconcile three time scales:

协调三个时间维度的矛盾：

the short term of the economy,

短期的经济发展问题，

the ups and downs of the stock market, the end-of-the-year accounts;

如股市的涨跌，年终审计；

the midterm of the quality of life --

中期的生活质量问题——

what is the quality every moment of our life, over 10 years and 20 years? --

未来10年，20年，我们生活的质量如何？

and the long term of the environment.

以及长期的环境问题。

When the environmentalists speak with economists,

环境学家和经济学家对话听起来

it's like a schizophrenic dialogue, completely incoherent.

就像是精神分裂患者的对话， 丝毫没有关联。

They don't speak the same language.

他们没有共同语言。

Now, for the last 10 years, I went around the world

过去十年，我游遍世界，

meeting economists, scientists, neuroscientists, environmentalists,

与经济学家、科学家、 神经学家、环境学家、

philosophers, thinkers in the Himalayas, all over the place.

哲学家和喜马拉雅地区的思想者对话。

It seems to me, there's only one concept

我意识到，只有一个理念能协调

that can reconcile those three time scales.

那三个时间维度的矛盾，

It is simply having more consideration for others.

即多为他人考虑一些。

If you have more consideration for others, you will have a caring economics,

如果你能为他人多考虑一些， 我们就会拥有彼此关怀的社会，

where finance is at the service of society

经济发展为社会服务，

and not society at the service of finance.

而不是社会为经济发展服务；

You will not play at the casino

你就不会辜负社会对你的信任，

with the resources that people have entrusted you with.

挥霍资源，在赌场寻欢作乐；

If you have more consideration for others,

如果你能为他人多考虑一些，

you will make sure that you remedy inequality,

你就会致力于消除不平等，

that you bring some kind of well-being within society,

将善良与恩惠带给社会，

in education, at the workplace.

带给教育，带给工作。

Otherwise, a nation that is the most powerful and the richest

否则，国家繁荣而富强，

but everyone is miserable, what's the point?

生活却不堪入目，这样有什么意义呢？

And if you have more consideration for others,

如果你能为他人多考虑一些，

you are not going to ransack that planet that we have

你就不会像现在这样掠取地球的资源，

and at the current rate, we don't have three planets to continue that way.

没有三个地球供你挥霍。

So the question is,

问题是，

okay, altruism is the answer, it's not just a novel ideal,

好，答案是利他思想，这并不是一个新概念，

but can it be a real, pragmatic solution?

但利他思想可以转化为真实可行的出路吗？

And first of all, does it exist,

首先要弄明白的是，真正的利他思想存在吗？

true altruism, or are we so selfish?

还是我们都是自私的？

So some philosophers thought we were irredeemably selfish.

有些哲学家认为我们的自私无可救药。

But are we really all just like rascals?

但我们真的就这么像「无赖」吗？

That's good news, isn't it?

好消息是，不是吗？

Many philosophers, like Hobbes, have said so.

很多哲学家，如霍布斯，给出的答案是：不是。

But not everyone looks like a rascal.

并不是所有人都像无赖。

Or is man a wolf for man?

人对于他人就像豺狼吗？

But this guy doesn't seem too bad.

但这个人看起来不那么坏，

He's one of my friends in Tibet.

他是我在西藏的好朋友，

He's very kind.

他很和善。

So now, we love cooperation.

我要说的是，我们热爱合作。

There's no better joy than working together, is there?

没什么比合作带来更多的幸福感，没错吧？

And then not only humans.

不只是人类。

Then, of course, there's the struggle for life,

当然，生活也有艰辛的一面，

the survival of the fittest, social Darwinism.

适者生存，达尔文主义。

But in evolution, cooperation -- though competition exists, of course --

但在进化的过程中，合作 ——尽管竞争存在，没有疑问——

cooperation has to be much more creative to go to increased levels of complexity.

合作对于生命的复杂演变发挥了更大的作用。

We are super-cooperators and we should even go further.

人类是伟大的合作者， 而且我们要进一步加强合作。

So now, on top of that, the quality of human relationships.

这其中最重要的是人类彼此关系的质量。

The OECD did a survey among 10 factors, including income, everything.

OECD曾做过一个调查， 列举了十个因素，如收入等等。

The first one that people said, that's the main thing for my happiness,

调查显示，影响幸福感的首要因素，

is quality of social relationships.

是社会关系的质量。

Not only in humans.

不仅仅是人类社会关系。

And look at those great-grandmothers.

再看看这些曾祖母们吧。

So now, this idea that if we go deep within,

剖析地够深就会发现

we are irredeemably selfish,

人类是无可救药的自私，

this is armchair science.

这种说法是空穴来风，

There is not a single sociological study,

没有任何一个社会学

psychological study, that's ever shown that.

或心理学研究支持这种说法。

Rather, the opposite.

事实是相反。

My friend, Daniel Batson, spent a whole life

我的朋友丹尼尔•巴特森花了一生的时间

putting people in the lab in very complex situations.

研究人们在实验室中复杂环境下的表现。

And of course we are sometimes selfish, and some people more than others.

当然，我们有时是自私的， 而且有些人会比他人更自私。

But he found that systematically, no matter what,

但他发现，整体来看，无论如何，

there's a significant number of people

有大量的人会

who do behave altruistically, no matter what.

表现出利他的行为，无论如何。

If you see someone deeply wounded, great suffering,

如果你看到有人受伤很严重，非常痛苦，

you might just help out of empathic distress --

你就会出于同理心而伸出救援之手——

you can't stand it, so it's better to help than to keep on looking at that person.

你无法承受其伤痛， 与其冷眼相看，不如上前救援。

So we tested all that, and in the end, he said, clearly people can be altruistic.

种种情况都进行过试验研究， 最后，他说，人是有利他精神的

So that's good news.

这是好消息。

And even further, we should look at the banality of goodness.

而且，我们要看到善良的平凡一面。

Now look at here.

看这儿，

When we come out, we aren't going to say, "That's so nice.

当我们走出家门，我们不会说，「太好了，

There was no fistfight while this mob was thinking about altruism."

当强盗也在考虑帮助他人， 就不会有暴力发生了。」

No, that's expected, isn't it?

不，这很显然，不是吗？

If there was a fistfight, we would speak of that for months.

如果真有暴力事件， 那够我们谈论几个月的了。

So the banality of goodness is something that doesn't attract your attention,

因此，你或许没留意到善良的平凡一面，

but it exists.

但它确实存在。

Now, look at this.

看这段录像，

So some psychologists said,

许多心理学家说，

when I tell them I run 140 humanitarian projects in the Himalayas

当我告诉他们我在喜马拉雅地区 开展的140个人道主义行动

that give me so much joy,

带给我极大的幸福感时，

they said, "Oh, I see, you work for the warm glow.

他们说，「我明白了，这是温情效应，

That is not altruistic. You just feel good."

而不是利他精神， 你只是为了让自己感觉良好。」

You think this guy, when he jumped in front of the train,

看看他，迎着火车跳入铁轨时，

he thought, "I'm going to feel so good when this is over?"

你们认为他会在想 「救了他之后我的感觉会棒极了」吗？

(Laughter)

（笑声）

But that's not the end of it.

故事并没有结束。

They say, well, but when you interviewed him, he said,

他们说，好吧，他接受采访时，说，

"I had no choice. I had to jump, of course."

「我没有选择，我不得不跳下去， 当然了。」

He has no choice. Automatic behavior. It's neither selfish nor altruistic.

他没有选择，自发的行为。 这不是自私也不是利他。

No choice?

没有选择？

Well of course, this guy's not going to think for half an hour,

当然，他不会在那想个半小时，

"Should I give my hand? Not give my hand?"

「我要不要救他？不救他会怎样？」

He does it. There is a choice, but it's obvious, it's immediate.

他跳了下去，这是一个选择， 但很显然，这是瞬间的反应。

And then, also, there he had a choice.

然后，没错，他确实是做了选择。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

There are people who had choice, like Pastor André Trocmé and his wife,

有很多人做了选择， 像 Pastor André Trocmé 和他的妻子，

and the whole village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon in France.

还有法国的名为利尼翁河畔勒尚邦的小镇。

For the whole Second World War, they saved 3,500 Jews,

在二次世界大战期间， 他们救了三千五百个犹太人，

gave them shelter, brought them to Switzerland,

为他们提供住所，带他们去瑞士，

against all odds, at the risk of their lives and those of their family.

克服一切困难， 冒着丧生和失去整个家庭的危险。

So altruism does exist.

因此，利他精神确实存在。

So what is altruism?

利他精神是什么呢？

It is the wish: May others be happy and find the cause of happiness.

是一种希望： 愿他人幸福喜乐，并找到幸福的根源。

Now, empathy is the affective resonance or cognitive resonance that tells you,

移情作用是一种共鸣， 或称之为认知共鸣，

this person is joyful, this person suffers.

它会让你感受到他人的欢快， 他人的伤痛。

But empathy alone is not sufficient.

但只有移情是不够的。

If you keep on being confronted with suffering,

如果周遭的不幸始终笼罩着你，

you might have empathic distress, burnout,

你就会感到压力，承受不住，

so you need the greater sphere of loving-kindness.

所以，你需要更大范围的充满关爱的善良。

With Tania Singer at the Max Planck Institute of Leipzig,

来自莱比锡马普研究所的塔尼亚•辛格 与我一起发现，

we showed that the brain networks for empathy and loving-kindness are different.

从大脑构造的角度来看， 移情和充满关爱的善良是不一样的。

Now, that's all well done,

这是成熟的科学研究。

so we got that from evolution, from maternal care, parental love,

这些是进化而来的， 是从我们接受母爱、父爱而得到的，

but we need to extend that.

但我们不能止步于此，

It can be extended even to other species.

它还可以拓展到其他物种。

Now, if we want a more altruistic society, we need two things:

如果希望社会中有更多的利他行为， 我们需要做到两方面：

individual change and societal change.

个人的改变和社会的改变。

So is individual change possible?

个人的改变可能吗？

Two thousand years of contemplative study said yes, it is.

两千年的冥想研究表明，是可以改变的。

Now, 15 years of collaboration with neuroscience and epigenetics

神经科学和表观遗传学 长达15年的合作也表明，

said yes, our brains change when you train in altruism.

改变可以发生，当你接受利他精神的训练时， 你的大脑会发生改变。

So I spent 120 hours in an MRI machine.

我接受了MRI长达120小时的扫描，

This is the first time I went after two and a half hours.

这是上次两个半小时治疗后第一次接受扫描。

And then the result has been published in many scientific papers.

扫描的结果被多篇学术论文选用。

It shows without ambiguity that there is structural change

其结果清晰地表明，当你接受利他关爱的训练时，

and functional change in the brain when you train the altruistic love.

大脑的结构和机能会发生改变。

Just to give you an idea:

给你们一个直观的感受：

this is the meditator at rest on the left,

从左到右依次是放松状态下的冥思者，

meditator in compassion meditation, you see all the activity,

正在冥思怜悯的冥思者， 你们能看到发生了什么，

and then the control group at rest, nothing happened,

然后是对照组，放松时，什么都没发生，

in meditation, nothing happened.

冥想时，什么都没发生，

They have not been trained.

他们没接受过训练。

So do you need 50,000 hours of meditation? No, you don't.

你需要五万小时的冥想吗？不，不需要的。

Four weeks, 20 minutes a day, of caring, mindfulness meditation

与对照组相比，每天20分钟，持续4周的

already brings a structural change in the brain compared to a control group.

关爱、正念冥想训练会使大脑结构发生改变。

That's only 20 minutes a day for four weeks.

只需每天20分钟，持续四周。

Even with preschoolers -- Richard Davidson did that in Madison.

甚至幼儿园的孩子也能发生这样的改变， 理查德•戴维森在麦迪逊市做过实验。

An eight-week program: gratitude, loving- kindness, cooperation, mindful breathing.

八星期长的项目：感恩、关爱、合作与呼吸训练。

You would say, "Oh, they're just preschoolers."

你会说，「他们只是幼儿园的孩子啊。」

Look after eight weeks,

八星期之后，

the pro-social behavior, that's the blue line.

亲社会的行为，是这根蓝色线。

And then comes the ultimate scientific test, the stickers test.

然后是终极的科学实验，贴纸测试。

Before, you determine for each child who is their best friend in the class,

在训练前，确定每个孩子在班里最好的朋友，

their least favorite child, an unknown child, and the sick child,

最不喜欢的伙伴，不认识的小孩， 还有生病的小孩，

and they have to give stickers away.

每个孩子都要把手中的贴纸分发出去。

So before the intervention, they give most of it to their best friend.

在训练介入之前，孩子手中的贴纸 大部分都给了最好的朋友。

Four, five years old, 20 minutes three times a week.

四五岁的孩子，一周三次， 一次20分钟的训练。

After the intervention, no more discrimination:

训练之后，不再有区别对待：

the same amount of stickers to their best friend and the least favorite child.

孩子手中的贴纸等同地分给了 他们最好的朋友和最不喜欢的朋友。

That's something we should do in all the schools in the world.

我们需要把这个培训带给全世界的学校。

Now where do we go from there?

我们接下来要怎么做？

(Applause)

（掌声）

When the Dalai Lama heard that, he told Richard Davidson,

当达赖喇嘛听到了我的想法， 他告诉理查德•戴维森，

"You go to 10 schools, 100 schools, the U.N., the whole world."

「从1个学校到10个，再到100个， 到联合国，到全世界。」

So now where do we go from there?

我们接下来要怎么做？

Individual change is possible.

个人的变化是可能的。

Now do we have to wait for an altruistic gene to be in the human race?

我们还要等人类基因中出现利他基因吗？

That will take 50,000 years, too much for the environment.

这还需要五万年，环境等不了这么久。

Fortunately, there is the evolution of culture.

幸运的是，文化也可以进化。

Cultures, as specialists have shown, change faster than genes.

文化，正如学者们指出的， 要比基因变化快得多。

That's the good news.

这是好消息。

Look, attitude towards war has dramatically changed over the years.

你们看，相比过去， 人们对于战争的态度已发生了天翻地覆的变化。

So now individual change and cultural change mutually fashion each other,

个人的变化与文化的变化相辅相成，

and yes, we can achieve a more altruistic society.

没错，我们能实现利他社会。

So where do we go from there?

接下来要怎么做？

Myself, I will go back to the East.

我要回到东边，

Now we treat 100,000 patients a year in our projects.

目前我们的一个行动每年救助十万个患者。

We have 25,000 kids in school, four percent overhead.

我们的学校里有两万五千个孩子。

Some people say, "Well, your stuff works in practice,

有些人说，「你所做的一切在实践中可行，

but does it work in theory?"

但有理论支持吗？」

There's always positive deviance.

总是会有些偏差，

So I will also go back to my hermitage

因此我常常独自一人思索，

to find the inner resources to better serve others.

追寻我的内心，来更好的帮助他人。

But on the more global level, what can we do?

在全球范围内，我们能做些什么？

We need three things.

我们需要做好三件事。

Enhancing cooperation:

加强合作：

Cooperative learning in the school instead of competitive learning,

在学校里倡导合作式学习，而不是竞争式学习；

Unconditional cooperation within corporations --

在企业里鼓励无条件的合作——

there can be some competition between corporations, but not within.

企业间可以有竞争，但不是企业内部。

We need sustainable harmony. I love this term.

我们需要持续的和谐，我喜欢这个词。

Not sustainable growth anymore.

不是持续的发展。

Sustainable harmony means now we will reduce inequality.

持续的和谐意味着消除不平等。

In the future, we do more with less,

未来，我们要以少及多，

and we continue to grow qualitatively, not quantitatively.

追求高质的发展，而不是高量的发展。

We need caring economics.

我们需要充满关爱的经济。

The Homo economicus cannot deal with poverty in the midst of plenty,

守旧的人无法解决贫富不均的问题，

cannot deal with the problem of the common goods

无法解决公共福利的问题，

of the atmosphere, of the oceans.

无法解决大气和海洋的问题。

We need a caring economics.

我们需要充满关爱的经济。

If you say economics should be compassionate,

如果你说经济应该充满关怀，

they say, "That's not our job."

他们会说，「这不关我的事。」

But if you say they don't care, that looks bad.

你要告诉他们，如果他们不在乎， 看起来很糟。

We need local commitment, global responsibility.

我们不但要对周边履行承诺和责任， 还要着眼整个世界。

We need to extend altruism to the other 1.6 million species.

我们需要把利他精神 传播给其他一百六十万种生物。

Sentient beings are co-citizens in this world.

我们都是一家人。

and we need to dare altruism.

我们要敢于弘扬利他精神。

So, long live the altruistic revolution.

愿利他精神得以恩泽天下。

Viva la revolución de altruismo.

愿利他精神得以恩泽天下。

(Applause)

（掌声）

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）