Burning the first bunch of incense 上頭炷香

The coming Lunar New Year will start on February 10, 2024. People to go to one or more monasteries or temples and burn their first bunch of incense for the new year. So, what is the meaning of "burning the first bunch of incense" during the Lunar New Year?
即將到來的農曆新年將從2024年2月10日開始。人們會去一個或多個寺廟或寺廟燒新年的第一束香。那麼，過年「上頭炷香」是什麼意思？

Many Chinese people believe that they must strive to be the first one to put their own bunch of incense on the incense burner of the monasteries or temples in the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, so that they may show their sincerity. Some other people believe that their sincerity will be shown as long as their incense can be placed on the "first turn of the burner" (Before the first time the incense burner is filled up and needs to be cleaned).
許多中國人認為，在大年初一的清晨，必須爭做第一個把自己的一束香放在寺院香爐上的人，這樣才能表達自己的誠意。還有一些人認為，只要能把香放在「第一爐」上（在香爐第一次裝滿並需要清洗之前），就表明了自己的誠意。

In fact, the believers (especial those who have not converted to the religion or studied the doctrine) of Buddhism or Taoism are told every year that "burning the first bunch of incense" refers only to burning their own first bunch of incense with sincerity during the Lunar New Year, and they don’t have to rush to participate in activities in order to avoid the danger of the mixing of crowds and incense.
事實上，佛教或道教的信徒（特別是沒有皈依宗教、沒有學過教義的人）每年都會被告知，「上頭炷香」只是指在農曆新年期間真誠地燒自己的第一柱香，他們不必急於參加活動，以避免人群和香火混合造成的危險。

It is not necessary for me to "burn my first brunch of incense", as I have learned the meaning of "the Incense of the Quintessential Penta-Segmental Dharmic Corpus" from The Altar-Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, I may "burn" my incenses anytime and everywhere without any physical incense or burner.
我沒必要「燒第一香」，因為我從《六祖壇經》中學到了“五分法身香”的意思，隨時都可以在沒有任何實體的香與香爐下「燒」香。

The most important thing to showing one's sincerity to deities and Buddhas is mind, but not the time and location.
向神佛表達誠意，最重要的是心，而不是時間與地點。

A joyful week 喜樂的一周

There are two major celebrations in the coming week: December 25 is Christmas Day, when Christians celebrate the birthday of Jesus; and the other hand, November 17 on the lunar calendar, which corresponds to December 29 this year, is the birthday of Amitabha (one of the Buddhas in Mahayana Buddhism). In this joyful week, let’s find brightness and joy in our minds by following the guidance of these two saints!

未來一週有兩個重要的慶祝活動：12月25日是基督徒慶祝耶穌的生日的聖誕節；另外，農曆11月17日，對應今年的12月29日，是阿彌陀佛（大乘佛教諸佛之一）的誕辰。在這喜樂的一週裡，讓我們跟隨兩位聖人的指引，在心中找到光明和喜樂！

Taboo about death 對死亡的忌諱

Some people regard topics related to death as taboo and try to avoid talking about them. I don’t advocate joking about these topics, but it would be unwise if these topics could not be discussed rationally, since they involve a necessary process in life.
有些人將與死亡有關的話題視為禁忌，並試圖避免談論它們。我不提倡拿這些話題開玩笑，但如果不能理性地討論這些話題，那就是不明智的，因為它們涉及到人生的一個必然過程。

Where do people go after death? Materialists believe that as soon as a person dies, there will be nothing left.  Therefore, some people indulge in pleasure, others kill, steal, commit adultery, and do all kinds of evil.  This view of life is really a superficial and terribly evil view.
人死後會去哪裡？唯物論者認為，人死後就什麼都沒有了。因此，有的人沉溺於享樂，有的人則殺生、偷竊、邪淫，作種種惡事。這種人生觀實在是一種膚淺的、極度邪惡的觀點。

Catholicism and Christianity believe that after death, people will be judged by God, and the deceased will be arranged to go to heaven or hell according to their merits and demerits in life.
天主教和基督教認為，人死後會受到上帝的審判，根據生前的功過來安排死者上天堂或地獄。

Taoism believes that people with great meritorious deeds are directly awarded heavenly duties by the Emperor of Heaven after death. The others, after being judged by King Yama, will have different fates according to their merits and demerits, such as being reborn as a human or an animal, being thrown into a mountain of knives or a pan with hot oil, or subjected to other punishments inside hell.
道教認為，有大功德的人死後，由天帝直接授予天職。其他人經過閻羅王的審判後，會根據功過不同而有不同的命運，如投生為人或畜生，被扔進刀山或熱油鍋裡，或遭受其他在地獄中的懲罰。

In the view of Buddhism, when we are dead, we will be judged by our own karma. Those who are able to achieve their enlightenment before death are certainly reborn in the Pure Land and will no longer be trapped by reincarnation. Those who are not yet enlightened but have become accustomed to reciting any one of the Buddhas' name, or to thinking and acting according to scriptures, may temporarily avoid being trapped by reincarnation after their death under the lead and help of others who have been enlightened and continue their practice in the Pure Land. And those who are unable to escape from reincarnation, based on the good and bad karma they have created throughout their lives, also have the opportunity to be temporarily reincarnated in an environment with less painful consequences, until their new life is end and is judged by their karma again.
從佛教的觀點來看，死後我們會受到自己業力的審判。能在臨終前開悟的人，當然會往生淨土，不會被輪迴所束縛。那些尚未開悟，但已習慣念佛名號，或依經文來思考與行事的人，可在其他已經開悟的人的引導和幫助下，暫時避免輪迴之苦，死後在淨土繼續修行。而那些無法擺脫輪迴的人，根據一生所造的善惡業力，也有機會暫時轉生到一個不那麼痛苦後果的環境中，直到新的轉世結束再受業力的審判。

According to this concept, whatever we may escape from reincarnation or not, our life after our death can be optimized. It can be done if we may wake up from the nightmare or taboo of death, get rid of the impermanence and pain of present life with the help of karma, and create infinite vitality for our lives.
根據這個概念，無論我們能否逃脫輪迴，我們死後的生活都可以優化。如果我們能從死亡的惡夢或禁忌中醒來，借助業力擺脫今生的無常和痛苦，為生命創造無限的生機，就可以做到。

Many cases of near-death experiences or past life memories have been scientifically confirmed. Although these proofs do not reveal completely the possibilities of life after death, just like religions did, these should clearly show that death is only the end of present life, but not the end of all, as it is the path connected to life after death.
許多瀕死體驗或前世記憶的案例都已被科學證實。 雖然這些證據並沒有像宗教那樣完全揭示死後生命的可能性，但這些應該清楚地表明，死亡只是今生的終結，而不是一切的終結，因為它是連接死後生命的道路。 

We will prepare for certain cases, such as various assessments and reports that need to be carried out before the project starts, making savings plans for retirement, consulting insurance advisors for risks management on property or health... Should we need to do something for our life after death?  Should we explore these topics rationally? Or, should we still avoid talking about them?
我們會針對某些情況做準備，例如專案開始前需要進行的各種評估和報告、制定退休儲蓄計劃、諮詢保險顧問安排財產或健康風險管理……我們是否需要做一些事情我們死後的生活？我們應該理性地探討這些主題嗎？或者，我們仍然應該避免談論它們嗎？

"Self-realization" 「自內證」

 "Self-realization" (or "self-verification") is a term commonly used in Chinese Buddhism. It refers to the direct realization of the truth of Buddhism through external sources of learning, such as scriptures or teacher's teachings, as well as personal practice and experience.

「自內證」是漢傳佛教中常用的用語。它指透過外在的學習來源，如經典或老師的教誨，以及個人的修行和體驗，直接證悟佛教的真理。

On the other hand, "external paths" is a term used in Buddhism. It refers only to the practice of seeking salvation from external sources such as mercy or grace from the Mighty Saints, which are recorded in the scriptures or teachings of a teacher. (By the way, the term "external paths"  is only used to distinguish the practice that emphasizes less on direct realization. It is never equal to "heretic", which may have a derogatory connotation.)

另一方面，「外道」是佛教用語，只是用來區分不太強調直接開悟的修行方式。它指的是從外部（例如強大的聖人）尋求救贖的做法。這個用語不應該與「邪教」或「異端」混淆。

Both terms are important in distinguishing Buddhism from non-Buddhism, because they emphasize the importance of personal experience and direct realization in one's spiritual practice, rather than relying solely on external sources. While non-Buddhist traditions or teachings may have some value, they are ultimately considered to be incomplete, because they do not lead to the ultimate realization of enlightenment.

這兩個用語對於區分佛教與非佛教都很重要，因為它們強調個人經驗和直接實現精神修行的重要性，而不是僅僅依賴外部來源。雖然非佛教的傳統或教義可能有一定的價值，但它們最終被認為是不完整的，因為它們不會導致最終的證悟。

Therefore, "Self-realization" can be seen as a fundamental aspect of Buddhist practice, while "external paths" is used to distinguish between Buddhist and non-Buddhist spiritual practices. By understanding these concepts, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the importance of personal experience and direct realization in Buddhist practice, as well as the significance of the Buddha's teachings in guiding us towards enlightenment.

因此，「自內悟」可以被視為佛教修行的一個基本面，而「外道」則被用來區分佛教和非佛教的精神修行。透過了解這些概念，我們可以更深刻地認識到佛法修行中個人體驗和直接證悟的重要性，以及佛陀教義引導我們走向開悟的意義。

Translation and interpretation 筆譯與口譯

 In the field of interlingua communication, intermediary services are needed to convey messages from one language to another language. These intermediary services fall into two main categories:  Translating, which focuses on written content and requires a high level of accuracy and can take time to produce. Interpretation, which deals with the spoken word and is convey immediately, thus it prioritizes understanding and communication over a perfect outcome. Although translating and interpreting may not share their requirements of skill sets, both share the requirements for understanding of the deep culture between the source and target languages, expert knowledge of the subject being dealt with, and the ability to communicate clearly in multiple languages.

在跨語言交流的領域，需要中介服務將某種語言的訊息以另一種語言來傳達。這些中介服務分為兩大類： 筆譯（筆譯），著重於書面內容，需要很高的準確性，並且需要時間才能完成。口譯（傳譯），涉及口語並立即傳達，因此優先考慮理解和溝通，而不是完美的產出。儘管筆譯和口譯對技能的要求可能不同，但兩者都對理解源語言和目標語言之間的深層文化、所處理主題的專業知識以及用多種語言進行清晰交流的能力有共同的要求。

Translating is a service that converts any information in written form into another language. It is available for websites, print, video subtitles, software, multimedia...etc. The focus of translating is to create a translation that is as close as possible to the source message. It retains the core information of the source message, and also maximizes the import of the context (customs, tone, idioms, colloquialisms, etc.) through rhetorical techniques that help better comprehension for the readers of the target language. This is a service that takes time to process after getting a source message. To speed-up the translating processing, most professional translators nowadays use computer-aided tools in their work. This involves converting the source content by applying corpus, automatically translating tools, etc. As the translator goes through each section of text, they may refer to glossaries and translation style guide templates to ensure quality. Finally, for ensuring the translation is as close as possible to the source text, one or more proofreads will be processed by the translator himself or by another translator.

筆譯是將任何書面形式的信息轉換為另一種語言的服務。它可用於網站、印刷品、視訊字幕、軟體、多媒體...等。筆譯的重點是創建盡可能接近來源訊息的筆譯。它不單保留了源訊息的核心資訊，也透過修辭技巧最大限度地引入語境（習俗、語氣、習語、口語等），讓目標語言的讀者更好地理解。這是一項在收到來源訊息後需要時間來處理的服務。為了加快筆譯處理速度，現今大多數專業筆譯人員在工作中使用電腦輔助工具。涉及到透過應用語料庫、自動筆譯工具等來轉換來源內容。譯者在筆譯文章的每個部分時，可能會參考術語表和筆譯風格指南範本來確保品質。最後，為了確保譯文盡可能接近源文本，譯者將親自或由另一位譯者進行一次或多次校對。

Interpreting refers to the service of repeating speeches in another language on the spot of a conference or meeting, an address, litigation proceedings, live TV coverage, or an expression of sign language. There are two types of interpreting for different situations. Simultaneous interpretation (SI) refers to the oral translating starting at the same time when the original speech started, and consecutive interpretation (CI) refers to the oral translating starting immediately when the source speech pauses or stops. It is impossible for interpreters to ensure the content of the message they are repeating in another language is completely consistent with the source message, as they are limited by the facts such as the speaker's accent, speaking speed, and unknown terminology, further, reference materials such as a dictionary are unavailable in the real-time translating they are dealing with. However, to keep the conversation going, interpreters must guarantee the accuracy of the core contents of the message they are repeating with their experience, memory, contingency capacity and the knowledge of the subject that they are dealing with.

口譯是在會議、演講、訴訟程序、電視直播或手語表達的現場將發言內容以另一種語言覆述的服務。針對不同情況，有兩種口譯方式。 同聲傳譯（SI）是指在源語發言開始的同時開始口譯，交替傳譯（CI）是指在源語發言暫停或停止時立即開始口譯。口譯員無法確保他們用另一種語言覆述的內容與來源訊息完全一致，因為他們受到說話者的口音、語速和未知術語等事實的限制，同時，在他們處理即時翻譯時，無法用到諸如字典之類的參考用品。然而，為了使對話能夠繼續，口譯員必須利用自己的經驗、記憶、應變能力和所處理主題的知識來保證他們所重複的訊息的核心內容的準確性。

Compared with becoming an interpreter, the quality for becoming a translator are not too demanding, so, the income of translators/charges for translating services are also relatively low. Therefore, who are willing to have a good development in this field of interlingua
communication, should cultivate the ability of oral and of cultural contrast beside the learning of reading and comprehension from school.

與口譯員相比，筆譯員的素質要求並不高，因此，筆譯員的收入/翻譯服務費用也相對較低。 因此，想要在跨語言交流這一領域中得到良好的發展，除了學校學習的閱讀和理解能力外，還應該培養口語能力和文化對比能力。