唐代永嘉玄觉禅师《证道歌》信达雅英译传世典藏

《证道歌》是唐代永嘉玄觉禅师（665－713）创作的长篇杂言古诗，又名《永嘉证道歌》。该诗由玄觉禅师拜谒六祖慧能获印证后，由其妹静居法师整理成篇，记录其悟道心得。

玄觉（665—713），字明道，唐朝高僧，俗姓戴，温州永嘉（今浙江温州）人，世称永嘉玄觉禅师，总角出家，龆年剃发。幼年，遍探三藏精典，于四威仪中，常冥禅观。自筑禅庵，于温州龙兴寺侧岩下独居研学，后因左溪朗禅师激励，与玄策同诣曹溪，得六祖慧能大师印可。永嘉玄觉翌日下山，乃回温州龙兴寺，学者辐凑，号真觉大师。天台宗第八祖玄朗赠书招之山栖，玄觉复书辞退。先天二年（713，一说开元二年/714）十月十七日趺坐入寂，世寿四十九（一说五十）。

《证道歌》全诗二百四十七句，为长篇杂言形式，文字通俗，铿锵有力，琅琅上口，思路清晰，层次分明，阐扬禅理，简单易行，唐宋时广为流传。每句大部分为七字，共一千八百一十四字（一作二百六十七句一千八百一十七字），体裁为古体乐府诗，或四句或六句一解，或五十一解或五十四解，揭示其悟境之要旨。《证道歌》不仅深寓禅理，而且文采斐然，完全可以与古乐府诗《孔雀东南飞》媲美。

《证道歌》在唐宋时期广为流传，在北宋以后士宦文人间的广泛流传。《证道歌》在宋代既已经脍炙人口，在禅思想史上具有重要影响。至明清，《证道歌》任是佛教界传习的重要文本，还在文人士大夫乃至妇孺间广泛传播。其传播范围亦不限于禹域之内，还传播到日本、朝鲜半岛、琉球、越南等东亚汉文化圈国家或地区，形成了广泛的影响，并产生了众多版本的《证道歌》及《证道歌》注疏之本，是永嘉佛学世界影响力的突出代表。本译本，以信达雅、功能对等、归化、异化、“三美论”以诗译诗等原则，独创英译，供有兴趣读者、学者欣赏和研究。

《永嘉大师证道歌》
君不见，绝学无为闲道人，不除妄想不求真。无明实性即佛性，幻化空身即法身。法身觉了无一物，本源自性天真佛。五阴浮云空去来，三毒水泡虚出没。

证实相，无人法，刹那灭却阿鼻业。若将妄语诳众生，自招拔舌尘沙劫。

顿觉了，如来禅，六度万行体中圆。梦里明明有六趣，觉后空空无大千。

无罪福，无损益，寂灭性中莫问觅。比来尘镜未曾磨，今日分明须剖析。

谁无念，谁无生，若实无生无不生。唤取机关木人问，求佛施功早晚成。

放四大，莫把捉，寂灭性中随饮啄。诸行无常一切空，即是如来大圆觉。

决定说，表真乘，有人不肯任情征。直截根源佛所印，摘叶寻枝我不能。

摩尼珠，人不识，如来藏里亲收得。六般神用空不空，一颗圆光色非色。

净五眼，得五力，唯证乃知难可测。镜里看形见不难，水中捉月争拈得。

常独行，常独步，达者同游涅槃路。调古神清风自高，貌悴骨刚人不顾。

穷释子，口称贫，实是身贫道不贫。贫则身常披缕褐，道则心藏无价珍。

无价珍，用无尽，利物应机终不吝。三身四智体中圆，八解六通心地印。

上士一决一切了，中下多闻多不信。但自怀中解垢衣，谁能向外夸精进。

从他谤，任他非，把火烧天徒自疲。我闻恰似饮甘露，销融顿入不思议。

观恶言，是功德，此则成吾善知识。不因讪谤起冤亲，何表无生慈忍力？

宗亦通，说亦通，定慧圆明不滞空。非但我今独达了，恒沙诸佛体皆同。

狮子吼，无畏说，百兽闻之皆脑裂。香象奔波失却威，天龙寂听生欣悦。

游江海，涉山川，寻师访道为参禅。自从认得曹溪路，了知生死不相关。

行亦禅，坐亦禅，语默动静体安然。纵遇锋刀常坦坦，假饶毒药也闲闲。我师得见燃灯佛，多劫曾为忍辱仙。

几回生，几回死，生死悠悠无定止。自从顿悟了无生，于诸荣辱何忧喜。

入深山，住兰若，岑崟幽邃长松下。优游静坐野僧家，阒寂安居实潇洒。

觉即了，不施功，一切有为法不同。住相布施生天福，犹如仰箭射虚空。势力尽，箭还坠，招得来生不如意。争似无为实相门，一超直入如来地。

但得本，莫愁末，如净琉璃含宝月。既能解此如意珠，自利利他终不竭。

江月照，松风吹，永夜清宵何所为。佛性戒珠心地印，雾露云霞体上衣。

降龙钵，解虎锡，两钴金环鸣历历。不是标形虚事持，如来宝杖亲踪迹。

不求真，不断妄，了知二法空无相。无相无空无不空，即是如来真实相。

心镜明，鉴无碍，廓然莹彻周沙界。万象森罗影现中，一颗圆光非内外。

豁达空，拨因果，莽莽荡荡招殃祸。弃有著空病亦然，还如避溺而投火。

舍妄心，取真理，取舍之心成巧伪。学人不了用修行，真成认贼将为子。

损法财，灭功德，莫不由斯心意识。是以禅门了却心，顿入无生知见力。

大丈夫，秉慧剑，般若锋兮金刚焰。非但空摧外道心，早曾落却天魔胆。

震法雷，击法鼓，布慈云兮洒甘露。龙象蹴踏润无边，三乘五性皆醒悟。雪山肥腻更无杂，纯出醍醐我常纳。

一性圆通一切性，一法遍含一切法。一月普现一切水，一切水月一月摄。诸佛法身入我性，我性同共如来合。一地具足一切地，非色非心非行业。弹指圆成八万门，刹那灭却三祇劫。一切数句非数句，与吾灵觉何交涉。

不可毁，不可赞，体若虚空勿涯岸。不离当处常湛然，觅即知君不可见。取不得，舍不得，不可得中恁么得。

默时说，说时默，大施门开无壅塞。有人问我解何宗，报道摩诃般若力。或是或非人不识，逆行顺行天莫测。吾早曾经多劫修，不是等闲相诳惑。

建法幢，立宗旨，明明佛敕曹溪是。第一迦叶首传灯，二十八代西天记。

法东流，入此土，菩提达摩为初祖。六代传衣天下闻，后人得道何穷数。

真不立，妄本空，有无俱遣不空空。二十空门元不著，一性如来体自同。

心是根，法是尘，两种犹如镜上痕。痕垢尽除光始现，心法双忘性即真。

嗟末法，恶时世，众生福薄难调制。去圣远兮邪见深，魔强法弱多冤害。闻说如来顿教门，恨不灭除令瓦碎。

作在心，殃在身，不须怨诉更尤人。欲得不招无间业，莫谤如来正法轮。

旃檀林，无杂树，郁密森沉狮子住。境静林闲独自游，走兽飞禽皆远去。

狮子儿，众随后，三岁便能大哮吼。若是野干逐法王，百年妖怪虚开口。

圆顿教，勿人情，有疑不决直须争。不是山僧逞人我，修行恐落断常坑。

非不非，是不是，差之毫厘失千里。是则龙女顿成佛，非则善星生陷坠。吾早年来积学问，亦曾讨疏寻经论。分别名相不知休，入海算沙徒自困。却被如来苦诃责，数他珍宝有何益。从来蹭蹬觉虚行，多年枉作风尘客。

种性邪，错知解，不达如来圆顿制。二乘精进没道心，外道聪明无智慧。

亦愚痴，亦小騃，空拳指上生实解。执指为月枉施功，根境法中虚捏怪。不见一法即如来，方得名为观自在。了即业障本来空，未了应须还宿债。饥逢王膳不能餐，病遇医王怎得瘥。在欲行禅知见力，火中生莲终不坏。勇施犯重悟无生，早时成佛于今在。

狮子吼，无畏说，深嗟懵懂顽皮靼。只知犯重障菩提，不见如来开秘诀。有二比丘犯淫杀，波离萤光增罪结。维摩大士顿除疑，犹如赫日销霜雪。

不思议，解脱力，妙用恒沙也无极。四事供养敢辞劳，万两黄金亦消得。粉骨碎身未足酬，一句了然超百亿。

法中王，最高胜，恒沙如来同共证。我今解此如意珠，信受之者皆相应。

了了见，无一物，亦无人，亦无佛。大千沙界海中沤，一切圣贤如电拂。假使铁轮顶上旋，定慧圆明终不失。

日可冷，月可热，众魔不能坏真说。象驾峥嵘谩进途，谁见螳螂能拒辙？大象不游于兔径，大悟不拘于小节。莫将管见谤苍苍，未了吾今为君诀。

Song of theEnlightenment Witness

ByYongjia Master Xuanjue (Tang Dynasty)

Translatedby Wang Yongli

Verse1

Haveyou not seen the unfettered Daoist, supreme learning laid aside, beyondstriving?

Hecasts no delusions, nor chases the true Reality.

Theessence of ignorance is none but Buddha-nature;

Thisillusory flesh, empty, is the Dharma Body pure.

Oncethe Dharma Body awakens, not a single thing remains;

Theprimal source, self-nature, is the Buddha innate, unfeigned.

Thefive aggregates drift like floating clouds, coming, going, vain;

Thethree poisons bubble like water, surfacing, fading, all inane.

Verse2

Witnesstrue Suchness, self and Dharma vanish away,

Inan instant, karmas of the Uninterrupted Hell decay.

IfI deceive all beings with lying words untrue,

Ishall reap tongues torn apart through aeons of sand’s endless hue.

Verse3

Suddenawakening dawns—this is the Tathagata’s Chan,

Allsix perfections, all myriad deeds, dwell complete within one span.

Withindreams, six realms stand clear and manifest to sight;

Onceawake, boundless cosmos dissolves into empty light.

Verse4

Nosin, no blessing, no gain, no loss to weigh or scan;

Withinthe quiescent nature, seek nor question, nor plan.

Thisdusty mirror lay unpolished through all days gone by;

Todayits truth stands clear—lay bare its depths, untie.

Verse5

Whoabides in thoughtlessness? Who dwells in unborn state?

Trulyknowing the unborn, all births integrate.

Goask wooden puppets strung with wires and spring’s device—

Toiland strive for Buddha; when shall your practice suffice?

Verse6

Releasethe four elements, grasp nothing tight or fast;

Withinquiescent nature, eat and drink as seasons cast.

Allconditioned things are transient, all are void and bare;

Thisis the Tathagata’s perfect, great complete awareness rare.

Verse7

Ispeak with certainty, revealing the true supreme vehicle;

Ifhearts refuse, let them argue, follow their own fickle article.

Itrace straight to the root, sealed by Buddha’s own affirmation;

Iwill not hunt mere leaves and twigs for shallow explanation.

Verse8

TheMani pearl, unknown to mortal eyes and mortal mind,

Houseddeep within the Tathagata Womb, securely confined.

Sixsupernatural powers function—empty yetnot empty core;

Oneround radiant glow, yet neither hue nor form it bore.

Verse9

Purifythe five eyes, attain the five powers strong;

Onlythose who witness know its depths, unmeasured, boundless, long.

Asone’s shape in mirror is no difficult feat to see;

Canyou seize the moon’s reflection in the rippling sea?

Verse10

Everwalk alone, ever tread the solitary way;

Thosewho comprehend roam the road of Nirvana day by day.

Ancienttune, clear spirit, lofty wind of self-reliant grace;

Haggardface, firm bone—worldly folk turn away their gaze.

Verse11

Poormonk, crying out of poverty’s unending strain,

Hisflesh is bare and needy, yet his Dao knows no lack or pain.

Hisbody wears rough hempen robes, frayed and thin to wear;

Hisheart holds a priceless gem, beyond all wealth and care.

Verse12

Thispriceless treasure, its use shall never run out dry;

Itbenefits all beings, adapting to their need, supply.

Threebodies, four wisdoms, all complete within one heart;

Eightliberations, six transcendental powers—sealed by mindful art.

Verse13

High-tierpractitioners resolve all truths in one instant clear;

Midand low ranks hear much learning, yet doubt and disbelief appear.

Removethe stained robe from your own bosom, first cleanse your inner core;

Whyboast outwardly of your progress, striving more and more?

Verse14

Letothers slander, let others blame, revile and criticize;

Youburn the sky with flame—only wear your own strength thin and rise.

Tomy ears their harsh words taste like sweet nectar’s gentle stream;

Meltedaway, I sink into wonder’s unfathomable dream.

Verse15

Beholdharsh speech as merit, a virtue to behold;

Thesecritics become my wise guides, my teachers manifold.

Ifslander and scorn stir no love nor hate within my breast,

Howshall I show the mercy and patience of the unborn rest?

Verse16

Igrasp the doctrinal core, master all explanatory speech;

Samadhiand wisdom shine bright, not trapped in empty breach.

NotI alone who comprehend this truth from age to age;

CountlessTathagatas share this single primal stage.

Verse17

TheLion’s Roar, fearless proclamation loud and free;

Allbeasts, upon its hearing, their very skulls shall crack and flee.

Greatfragrant elephants rush forth, their mighty might undone;

Heavenlydragons sit in silence, joy welling one by one.

Verse18

Iroamed rivers, crossed mountains, wandered far and wide apart,

Seekingmasters, searching Dao, to practice Chan within my heart.

SinceI found the road to Caoxi, Huineng’s hallowed ground,

Iknow birth and death no longer bind, their chains unbound.

Verse19

Walkingis Chan, sitting is Chan; speaking, silence, motion, rest—

Mytrue nature abides unperturbed, supremely calm and blessed.

Thoughblades of swords assail me, my heart remains unshaken still;

Thoughdeadly poison meet my lips, my peace shall never spill.

Myteacher met the Lamp-Lighting Buddha in ages long ago;

Throughcountless kalpas past, he practiced patience, the immortal sage below.

Verse20

Howmany births, how many deaths, endless cycles, unconfined;

Birthand death drift on forever, no fixed resting place to find.

Sincesudden awakening showed me the unborn truth complete,

Gloryand disgrace alike stir neither joy nor sorrow’s heat.

Verse21

Ienter deep mountains, dwell in quiet hermitage retreat,

Tallpines beneath steep cliffs, shadowed, quiet, cool and sweet.

Iwander, sit in peace, a lonely monk’s unhurried hour;

Quietabode, tranquil dwelling—free, unrestrained, with boundless power.

Verse22

Onceawakened, all labor fades, beyond striving need commence;

Allconditioned phenomena differ from this pure defense.

Meritgained from alms given clinging to outer shape,

Islike an arrow shot upward into empty sky’s expanse.

Whenits force is exhausted, the arrow plummets back to earth below;

Itbrings misfortune in your next life, sorrow, want and woe.

Howfar better the gate of unconditioned true Suchness’ light—

Oneleap, straight reach the Tathagata’s sacred perfect height.

Verse23

Graspthe root essence first; fret not over the trivial branches small;

Likeclear crystal glass enclosing a bright moon’s radiant ball.

Onceyou unlock this wish-granting pearl within your breast,

Self-benefitand aiding others flow without arrest.

Verse24

Rivermoon casts down its glow, pine winds caress the night;

Throughendless clear twilight, what idle toil or futile plight?

TheBuddha-nature, precept pearl, sealed within my mindful core;

Mist,dew, cloud and haze form my natural, unstitched robe.

Verse25

Thebowl that tames dragons, the staff that calms wild tigers’ rage;

Twogolden hoops ring clear, echoing from age to age.

Thisis no empty ornament, mere outward form to bear;

TheTathagata’s precious staff, trodden by his footsteps rare.

Verse26

Iseek no true reality, cast no delusions far away;

Iknow both states are void, no marks or forms to hold or stay.

Nomarks, no emptiness, yet nothing empty stands apart;

Thisis the Tathagata’s genuine, unmasked true heart.

Verse27

Themirror of my mind shines clear, reflecting unconfined;

Vast,translucent, permeating all the sand-realms of mankind.

Tenthousand phenomena show shadows in its glassy frame;

Oneround radiant light, with neither inner nor outer claim.

Verse28

Vagueempty nihilism, casting karmic cause aside;

Wild,reckless, boundless blindness, summoning disaster wide.

Clingingto void while rejecting form is sickness just as grave;

Likefleeing drowning floods, yet diving into fire’s harsh wave.

Verse29

Abandondeluded heart, grasp absolute truth’s pure glow—

Thisgrasping and rejecting breed deceit and crafty show.

Cultivatorsfail to see this, train in vain through every year;

Theytake the thief into their home, mistake him for their child dear.

Verse30

Drainingthe Dharma’s wealth, erasing all accumulated grace;

Allstem from conscious thought, the mind’s deceptive fleeting trace.

ThusChan school practitioners transcend all wandering thought,

Suddengrasp the unborn knowing, insight power fully wrought.

Verse31

Truegreat hero, wield the wisdom sword with steady, fearless grip;

Prajna’ssharp blade blazes forth with diamond’s unyielding whip.

Itshatters heretical paths’ deluded hearts in empty space;

Longago it struck the heavenly demons’ courage into disgrace.

Verse32

Ithunder forth the Dharma drum, strike the teaching bell aloud;

Spreadclouds of mercy wide, pour sweet nectar on the crowd.

Dragon-elephantsaints tread forth, their grace nourishing all lands;

Threevehicles, five natures wake, released from binding bands.

Snowmountain’s rich unadulterated cream, pure essence unalloyed;

Idrink the unmixed supreme ghee, my constant endless joy.

Verse33

Onenature fully permeates all natures everywhere;

Onesingle Dharma holds all Dharmas, hidden in its care.

Onemoon reflects its glow in every pool and stream below;

Allmoon reflections in all waters are wrapped within one moon’s glow.

AllTathagatas’ Dharma Bodies merge into my nature’s core;

Myown nature unites as one with every Buddha’s lore.

Onestage of practice holds all stages, complete and unconfined;

Neitherhue, nor thought, nor karmic deeds its essence can bind.

Snapa finger—eighty thousand gates of practice perfect stand;

Oneinstant burns away three great kalpas’ heavy karmic band.

Allwritten words, all phrases, are not true words at all;

Whatlink have they to my bright primal wakefulness’ inner call?

Verse34

Itcannot be defamed, nor praised with flattering word;

Itssubstance is like empty space, boundless, unbordered, unheard.

Itnever leaves where you stand, ever lucid, bright and clear;

Ifyou search and chase it hard, you shall not find it near.

Youcannot snatch it, cannot let it slip away unheld;

Withinthe ungraspable, you gain it, naturally, uncompelled.

Verse35

Silenceitself speaks; speech itself sinks into quiet rest;

Thegreat gate of giving opens wide, nobarrier, no arrest.

Ifmen ask what school of thought my understanding draws,

Itell them it springs from the power of Mahā-prajñā.

Whetherright or wrong, mortal eyes fail to discern its way;

Walkingforward or backward, heaven’s wisdom cannot survey.

Ipracticed through uncounted kalpas in ages long gone by;

Ido not idle, falsely fool you with deceptive lie.

Verse36

Iraise the Dharma banner, establish the teaching’s core;

Caoxi’shall bears Buddha’s clear command, plain to see, no hidden lore.

Kashyapafirst received the lamp of Dharma’s sacred flame;

Twenty-eightgenerations passed through Western heaven’s name.

Verse37

TheDharma stream flowed eastward, entering this earthly land;

Bodhidharmawas the first patriarch, holding the teaching’s stand.

Sixgenerations passed the robe, renowned through every nation;

Countlessseekers after truth shall gain awakening’s salvation.

Verse38

Noabsolute truth set firm, delusions empty from the start;

Castaside both being and void, yet do not cling to empty heart.

Twentygates of emptiness, none shall my spirit bind;

AllTathagatas share one single unified true mind.

Verse39

Themind is the root; all Dharma is mere dust upon its face;

Bothresemble smudges on a mirror’s polished glassy space.

Whenstains and grime are wiped away, pure radiance shines complete;

Forgetboth mind and Dharma—then your true nature stands replete.

Verse40

Alas,this final Dharma age, an era steeped in vice;

Allbeings’ blessings thin and faint, hard to discipline and guide.

Farfrom the sacred sages, twisted views take root and spread;

Demonsgrow strong, Dharma weak, harm and hatred widely bred.

Whenthey hear the Tathagata’s sudden teaching, bold and free,

Theyyearn to smash it all to shards, reduced to rubble utterly.

Verse41

Allevil deeds arise within your heart and inner thought;

Disasterstrikes your flesh and bones—blame no other, seek no fault.

Ifyou wish to escape karmas of the Uninterrupted Hell’s eternal pain,

Neverslander the Tathagata’s true Dharma wheel again.

Verse42

Agrove of sandalwood, no tangled weeds or lesser tree;

Dense,shadowed, quiet dwelling place where lion saints abide free.

Iwander alone through tranquil woods, serene and undisturbed;

Allbeasts and birds withdraw afar, no noisy crowd to curb.

Verse43

Thelion cubs follow their sire, walking in his mighty wake;

Atthree years old they roar aloud, their thunder loud to shake.

Ifjackals chase the holy lion, master of the Dharma way;

Hundred-year-oldfiends shall open empty mouths, their threats in vain decay.

Verse44

Thisperfect sudden teaching bends no rule to mortal whim;

Ifdoubt lingers unresolved, debate the truth with courage grim.

Itis not that this mountain monk craves ego’s trivial strife;

Ifear your practice falls into nihilism or eternalism.

Verse45

Neitherwrong nor right, neither yes nor no divides the way;

Missby a hair’s breadth, and you stray a thousand miles astray.

Whentruth dawns clear, the Dragon Maid attained Buddhahood in one flash;

Whenfalsehood binds, the Star Virtue monk fell straight to hell’s dark ash.

Inmy younger years I piled up learning, text and commentary sought;

Iparsed names and forms without cease, as if counting sand in ocean’s thought.

TheTathagata harshly chided me: what gain in counting others’ treasure?

Istumbled on empty futile paths, wasted years of worldly leisure.

Verse46

Twistedinnate nature, warped misinterpretation’s snare;

Theyfail to grasp the Tathagata’s perfect sudden teaching fair.

Two-vehiclesstrive hard yet lack the heart of Dao;

Hereticalpaths possess sharp wit, yet true wisdom they never know.

Foolish,shallow-minded souls, deluded by empty finger’s show;

Theygrasp the finger as the moon, laboring in vain, to and fro.

Theyconjure phantoms within sense realms, lost in false imagining’s haze;

Onlyseeing all things as the Buddha, you bear the name “Contemplator of Freedom.”

Ifawakened, all karmic barriers are empty at their core;

Ifunawakened, you must repay old debts you bore in lives before.

Starving,you stand before royal feasts yet cannot taste the fare;

Sick,you meet the divine physician, yet your ailment lingers there.

CultivateChan amid desire—this insight’s power shall sustain;

Alotus blooms amid hot flames, unbroken, uncorrupted, unchained.

Thehero Shramana committed grave crimes yet woke to unborn truth;

Heattained Buddhahood long ago, abiding still in endless youth.

Verse47

TheLion’s Roar, fearless proclamation echoing wide;

Igrieve for dull, stubborn souls, blinded by ignorant pride.

Theyonly see grave sins block the path to Buddha’s awakening glow;

Theymiss the secret key the Tathagata chose to bestow.

Twomonks once committed lust and murder, stained with heavy crime;

Bharadvaja’sfaint light wove their karmic bonds, binding time on time.

Vimalakirti’sgreat awakening dissolved all doubt in one glance;

Likebright sunlight melting frost and snow, no lingering cold advance.

Verse48

Theinconceivable power of liberation, freedom’s boundless art;

Itssubtle function stretches past all sand-realms, infinite in part.

Ido not shun fourfold offerings of food, clothes, bed and cure;

Tenthousand taels of gold are nothing to its power pure.

Grindmy bones to dust, shatter my flesh—still insufficient debt to pay;

Oneclear comprehending word transcends a hundred million kalpas’ sway.

Verse49

Kingof all Dharma, supreme above all other sacred ways;

CountlessTathagatas all witnessed this truth through endless days.

TodayI unlock this wish-granting pearl within my inner breast;

Allwho trust, accept, abide by it shall match its perfect rest.

Verse50

Seeclearly, not a single thing exists to grasp or see;

Nomortal self, no Buddha, no divinity.

Boundlesssand-realms are mere bubbles floating on the ocean’s tide;

Allsaints and sages vanish like lightning’s fleeting flash beside.

Thoughiron wheels spin crushing atop my head without release,

Samadhiand wisdom shine unmarred, unbroken, unceasing peace.

Verse51

Thesun may turn cold, the moon may burn with scorching heat;

Nodemon can corrupt this genuine teaching’s sacred beat.

Elephantcarriages advance majestic on their steady road;

Whatmantis dares block their wheels, to stand against their heavy load?

Greatelephants never tread the narrow paths fit for rabbit’s feet;

Thosefully awakened do not cling to trivial minor feats.

Donot judge the vast blue sky through narrow tube’s confined sight;

Ifyour truth is incomplete, I shall unfold its full light tonight.

原文长短句交错，英译同步调整诗行长短，不强行均齐，保留乐府歌行流动感。

长短歌行结构复刻《证道歌》二百四十七句杂言体例，分节对应原文分段，便于对照研读。

译者愿意尽绵薄之力，为中华文化出海减少“文化折扣”做出些许贡献。

愿这首文采斐然、媲美古乐府诗《孔雀东南飞》的《证道歌》跨越山海，在异语境熠熠生辉，滋润世上每一位读者的心田！（译者王永利）