翻聽Bob Dylan的《Desolation Row》湧起一股莫名的觸動，感覺就像走過了一條漫長的荒涼之路。頭兩句不知怎的讓我想到最近的香港：

They’re selling postcards of the hanging
They’re painting the passports brown

他們販售吊刑的名信片
他們把護照髹成啡色

然後我便分外留神聽接下來發生甚麼事：

The beauty parlor is filled with sailors
The circus is in town
Here comes the blind commissioner
They’ve got him in a trance
One hand is tied to the tight-rope walker
The other is in his pants
And the riot squad they’re restless
They need somewhere to go
As Lady and I look out tonight
From Desolation Row

美髮店擠滿了水手
馬戲團就在城後
然後來了一個特首
他們將他發入吽竇
一隻手綁住走鋼線高手
另一隻插在褲袋裡頭
還有防暴警察全在煩躁無休
他們需要某個地方抖抖
像這位小姐和我遍夜尋求
由荒涼之路口

然後找到哪裡去？似乎是酒館。

Cinderella, she seems so easy
“It takes one to know one,” she smiles
And puts her hands in her back pockets
Bette Davis style
And in comes Romeo, he’s moaning
“You Belong to Me I Believe”
And someone says, “You’re in the wrong place my friend
You better leave”
And the only sound that’s left
After the ambulances go
Is Cinderella sweeping up
On Desolation Row

灰姑娘，她似乎幾開放
「講嗰個就係嗰個。」佢笑咗
然後將雙手插進後袋
貝蒂戴維斯的風格
然後來了個羅密歐，佢喺度呻吟
「你係屬於我㗎我相信！」
然後有人話：「你來錯地方喇朋友，
你最好離開。」
然後唯一留低的聲音
在救護車走了之後
是灰姑娘的掃地聲
在荒涼之道上

我很喜歡這一種講故事的歌，因為這才叫做「吟遊」。當現在的歌失去了這種吟遊性，就空餘下一堆感質。我們已經不再用灰姑娘來形容負責打掃地方的女人，我喜歡這樣的形容，但設定跟原著是反轉的：掃完地，一到十二點，她就準時穿回自己的玻璃鞋。

然後已經好夜好夜了：

Now the moon is almost hidden
The stars are beginning to hide
The fortune-telling lady
Has even taken all her things inside
All except for Cain and Abel
And the hunchback of Notre Dame
Everybody is making love
Or else expecting rain
And the Good Samaritan, he’s dressing
He’s getting ready for the show
He’s going to the carnival tonight
On Desolation Row

現在月亮就快都看不見
繁星也開始隱淡
占卜未來的女人
甚已將她的所有東西收起
所有除了該隱和亞伯
以及聖母院的鐘樓佗俠
人人都在做愛
或其餘的在等雨
然後有個好撒馬利亞人，他在換裝
他已經準備好出騷
今晚他將會前往嘉年華
在荒涼之道上

突然輪到《哈姆雷特》的女主角奧菲利亞登場：

Now Ophelia, she’s ’neath the window
For her I feel so afraid
On her twenty-second birthday
She already is an old maid
To her, death is quite romantic
She wears an iron vest
Her profession’s her religion
Her sin is her lifelessness
And though her eyes are fixed upon
Noah’s great rainbow
She spends her time peeking
Into Desolation Row

現在奧菲利亞，她就倚在窗旁
我真為她擔心
在她廿二歲生日時
她已經是一個老女僕
對她，死亡是幾浪漫
她穿了一件鐵的背心
信仰就是她的自白
白活就是她的罪名
雖然她已定睛望着上方
那道挪亞的偉大彩虹
但她仍是費上時間來偷望
那條荒涼之路

而你有沒有聽過愛恩斯坦拉小提琴？這一個卻不是那一個，因為他太潦倒了：

Einstein, disguised as Robin Hood
With his memories in a trunk
Passed this way an hour ago
With his friend, a jealous monk
He looked so immaculately frightful
As he bummed a cigarette
Then he went off sniffing drainpipes
And reciting the alphabet
Now you would not think to look at him
But he was famous long ago
For playing the electric violin
On Desolation Row

愛恩斯坦扮成羅賓漢
帶着他車尾廂的回憶
在一小時前才經過這裡
和他的朋友、來自善妒寺的僧侶
他看起來不染得可怕
尤其在他討煙的時候
接着他走去嗅着水喉
叨唸着字母
現在你不會想望到他
但好耐之前他都風光過
奏着電子提琴
在那荒涼之路

從荒涼到荒淫？

Dr. Filth, he keeps his world
Inside of a leather cup
But all his sexless patients
They’re trying to blow it up
Now his nurse, some local loser
She’s in charge of the cyanide hole
And she also keeps the cards that read
“Have Mercy on His Soul”
They all play on pennywhistles
You can hear them blow
If you lean your head out far enough
From Desolation Row

猥褻醫生，他將他的世界
藏在一隻皮杯裡
但他所有無性的病人
他們正嘗試吹起它
現在他的護士，某個本地的失敗者
她是山埃孔的話事人
而她亦藏了一張卡片寫着
「願主垂憐他的靈魂」
他們全都玩着尖哨
你可以聽到他們在吹
如果你把頭傾得夠遠
從荒涼之道

卡薩諾瓦是意大利聞名的詩人情聖，這一段特別令我着迷：

Across the street they’ve nailed the curtains
They’re getting ready for the feast
The Phantom of the Opera
A perfect image of a priest
They’re spoonfeeding Casanova
To get him to feel more assured
Then they’ll kill him with self-confidence
After poisoning him with words
And the Phantom’s shouting to skinny girls
“Get Outa Here If You Don’t Know
Casanova is just being punished for going
To Desolation Row”

對面街他們已釘上帷幕
他們已準備好一場盛宴
《歌聲魅影》
牧師的完美形象
他們用湯匙向卡薩諾瓦灌藥
讓他稍為有安全感
然後他們用自信來殺掉他
之前用文字毒害他
然後魅影向瘦削的女孩們喊道：
「如果你不知道就請你們離開
卡薩諾瓦已經受罪因他
前往荒涼之道。」

接下來這一段，我懷疑是在描寫納粹的集中營：

Now at midnight all the agents
And the superhuman crew
Come out and round up everyone
That knows more than they do
Then they bring them to the factory
Where the heart-attack machine
Is strapped across their shoulders
And then the kerosene
Is brought down from the castles
By insurance men who go
Check to see that nobody is escaping
To Desolation Row

現在午夜所有特工
和超人類團隊
出來圍住了所有人
因為知道了不該知道的
然後把他們帶到工廠
那裡有心臟病機器
綁在他們的肩膊上
然之後那煤油
從城堡裡帶下來
有人會以防萬一
檢查一下看看是否無人能逃
逃往荒涼之路

Bob Dylan這首歌可能戲仿了英國詩人ES艾略特的長詩《荒原》，這首詩的一大特色是沒有人能看懂一個字——每個字都懂，湊起來卻不成意思。之前跟大家介紹過的艾茲拉龐德，勉強把《荒原》翻改成可讀的版本，加了很多註腳，務求令世人讀得通它的真意。這個情節，Bob Dylan也收錄在《Desolation Row》第九節裡面：

Praise be to Nero’s Neptune
The Titanic sails at dawn
And everybody’s shouting
“Which Side Are You On?”
And Ezra Pound and T. S. Eliot
Fighting in the captain’s tower
While calypso singers laugh at them
And fishermen hold flowers
Between the windows of the sea
Where lovely mermaids flow
And nobody has to think too much
About Desolation Row

讚美歸於尼祿的海王星
鐵達尼啟程於黎明
而每個人都發出喊聲
「你到底站哪一邊？」
而艾茲拉龐和ES艾略
在船長的塔上決鬥
卡利索普歌手取笑他們
漁民手執鮮花
在大海的窗戶之間
那裡有可愛的美人魚流過
此際沒有人想太多
關於那荒涼之路

是的，Bob Dylan是在模仿ES艾略特式的混亂，而在最後一節揭曉了混亂的原因：

Yes, I received your letter yesterday
(About the time the doorknob broke)
When you asked how I was doing
Was that some kind of joke?
All these people that you mention
Yes, I know them, they’re quite lame
I had to rearrange their faces
And give them all another name
Right now I can’t read too good
Don’t send me no more letters, no
Not unless you mail them
From Desolation Row

係呀，我尋日收到你嘅信
（大概在門鎖壞了的時候）
你問我最近過成怎樣
是一個需要笑的笑話嗎？
全部這些你所提及的人
係呀，我知道佢哋，佢哋都幾無趣
我需要重新構建他們的臉容
給他們全都搞混了名字
此際我已經不太擅於閱讀
不要再寄更多的信給我了，不要
除非它們是你寄自
於荒涼之路

聽過這麼多段，就像走完了一段漫長的荒涼的路，有一種想哭的感覺。Bob Dylan的音樂經常都給予的這種荒涼感，只有經歷很多的人才會有這種感覺，寫得出這種詞，流下了這滴淚。

作者

【業力的黑洞】THE BLACK HOLE OF KARMA

（一）

「我不是叫你帶筆記本嗎？」

我看著男客人擺在桌上的那僅僅一張A4紙。

男客人不好意思地說：「我忘了。這是跟櫃台取的。」

「我千里迢迢來到這裡，因為你說你要改命。你就拿這樣一張借來的紙，來改命？一個半小時的看八字，夠你寫嗎？還是你不夠寫時，又要浪費我的時間去借紙？你的認真在哪裡？」

我雙眼直視著男客人的眼睛。

他連忙站起來，去借了多幾張A4紙。

•

（二）

「你怎麼帶那麼小的本子？夠寫嗎？」

我不可思議的看著，那如信用卡一般大的記事本。

男客人答：「可以啦！我只寫重點！」

「你這個是懶。我的每一句話都是重點。你的八字在我手上，你是怎樣的人，你不要以為我不知道。你不要跟我瞎掰，更不要有寫沒寫的，然後事後又發私訊重覆性的問回我一樣的問題，因為你沒有用心思寫下來。樓上有書店，要嘛你現在去買，我給你十五分鐘，要嘛我們今天就不看你的八字。你自己選。」

男客人十分鐘內，買了A4本子。

•

（三）

我為即將結婚的男客人看新家風水。

他來過我的風水講座數次，閱讀我臉書也有兩年多時間，應該很熟悉我的性格。事前，我提醒過他兩次要帶筆記本，兩次兩次他都跟我說謝謝提醒。

站在客廳看風水時，他抽出那張A4的屋子平面圖，壓在手掌心寫。

「我不是已經叫你帶筆記本嗎？」

他笑笑不語，沒有解釋，沒有道歉。

新家風水那麼重要，關係到你和你家人未來至少五年的興旺，你就在這一張軟綿綿的紙上寫兩個小時的筆記嗎？

以我對客人的要求，我本會叫他到外頭買筆記本，我們才繼續看風水。

但那天，現任屋主還住在那個單位，是特別約好時間讓我們進去看風水，對方也在等著我們完事後就要出門。

想想他過去兩年來常在我臉書貼文按讚，就給他一點面子，讓他在女朋友面前好下台，也算是報答他的支持。

於是，我看在眼裡，記在心裡。依我的經驗，沒把筆記寫好的，必會再來問我。

幾天後，他來訊詢問。當中有幾個問題，我當天已解說過。

我回他：「我雖不介意回答已經回答過的問題，但如果你那一天有帶筆記本，你必會抄下來。」

也就不用再問。

我也寫道：「我對你有點失望。」

他回我：「我明白也注意到你的失望。以後會更留意自己的念頭和舉止。」

「你應該跟我道歉。你忽視我的善意提醒本就不對。」

也猶如騙了我。如果你當初不想帶，直說，不要以假謝謝敷衍。

男客人過後道歉，也大方的同意我把這件事情寫出來，警惕大家。

如果你的未來註定會坎坷，無論是婚姻、事業、家庭或財富，你要比任何人都更注意你的一舉一動。

因為你細小的念頭，細微的決定，會一步一步引你掉入你命中註定的歹運。

你會漏掉寫下我千交代萬交代的事情。

你會寫錯、聽錯、記錯、做錯。

你身邊的人會影響你，告訴你不要聽我或任何能幫你改命的話，你如何如何讓她他不開心不舒服。

你會有錢也不要出錢，只是一直想博取我的同情，得到免費的幫助，然後稱說自己沒有錢。

你會任性，你會執著，你會覺得風水命理沒那麼厲害，你自己說了算，雖然你根本不怎麼樣。

因為你已變成一個弦线上的小木偶，被你那無情的業力操控著。

我的嚴厲，是要及時拉你一把，不要「青青菜菜」的過活，不要拖累你的家人和你一起遭業報。

不是每個人跌倒後，都能夠爬得起來。

誰不想做好人，讓每個人都喜歡自己？但自古，慈母多敗兒。

在現今社會裡，男人女人的自信，都是來自於事業，但每個人的幸福，都是源自於家庭。

所以千萬千萬不要自私。

...................................

（1）

“Didn't I tell you to bring a notebook?"

I looked at the lonely piece of A4 paper the male client placed on the table.

Slightly embarrassed, the male client said, "I forgot. This was obtained from the counter."

"I come all the way here because you tell me you want to change your destiny. You bring this kind of paper to change your life? My consultation is 1.5 hour and you think it's enough for you to write? Or when you run out of space, are you going to waste my time to go and borrow paper? Where is your seriousness?"

I looked at the male client straight in the eyes.

He hurriedly stood up and borrowed a few more pieces of A4 paper.

•

（2）

"Why did you bring such a small notebook? How is it enough for you to write?"

I looked at the credit-card-sized notebook incredulously.

The male client replied, "Can! I only write the important points!"

"This is your sloth. Everything I said is important. Your Bazi is in my hands. Don't think that I do not know what kind of person you are. Don't talk nonsense to me. Don't write selectively and then later send me PMs asking me the same questions that I have answered in this consultation, just because you didn't put in effort to jot it down. There is a bookshop upstairs. Either you go and buy now. I will give you 15 minutes. Or we will cancel today's consultation. You decide."

The male client returned with a brand new A4 notebook in ten minutes.

•

（3）

I was doing a Feng Shui audit for a male client who was getting married.

He came to my Feng Shui workshops a few times and have read my Facebook for over 2 years. Prior to the audit, I reminded him twice to bring a notebook and twice, he thanked me for my reminders.

While standing in the living room doing the Feng Shui audit, he drew out a A4-sized floorplan and wrote on it, with his palm as the backing.

"Didn't I already tell you to bring a notebook?"

He smiled back at me. No explanation. No apology.

The Feng Shui of a new home is so important because it determines the future of your family luck for at least the next 5 years. And you are going to write on this floppy piece of paper for the next 2 hours?

Given my expectations of clients, I would have told him to go and buy a notebook before I continued my audit.

But that day, the current owner was still living in the unit. It was by appointment that we were let in to get the Feng Shui audit done. The family was also waiting for us to finish things up, as they were going out.

I thought of the many times that he had Liked my FB posts these two years. So I decided to give him some face, and not make things difficult for him in front of his girlfriend. Also a very tiny way of me thanking him for his support all these while.

Hence, I put this incident in my heart. From my experience, I know that anyone who did not write the notes well will definitely come back to ask me again.

A few days later, he sent me messages, some of which were raising the same questions that I had explained on the day of the audit.

I told him, "While I do not mind answering the same questions again, if you had brought a notebook that day, you would have written it down."

You and I would not need to repeat ourselves again.

I also wrote, "I am slightly disappointed in you."

His reply, "Well noted on your disappointment. Will pay attention to own thoughts/actions for better changes."

"You should apologise to me. It is wrong of you to ignore my reminders to bring a notebook."

This is akin to lying to me. If you do not wish to bring, say it outright. Don't brush me off with perfunctory thanks.

He did apologised later and graciously gave me the permission to write about this, to remind my readers.

If your future is destined to be difficult, be it in your marriage, career, family or wealth, you must be extra observant of your every action and deed.

Because every little thought of yours, every seemingly minor decision you made, will lead you step-by-step to fall into the manhole of your pre-destined bad fortune.

You will miss out on what I repeatedly tell you to do.

You will write wrongly, hear wrongly, remember wrongly and do wrongly.

The people around you will influence you. They will tell you not to listen to me, or any well-meaning advice to transform your destiny. They will say that you doing so is making them unhappy and uncomfortable.

You will be unwillingly to fork out money even when you can afford it. You want to live off the compassion of mine and get free help, on the empty claim that you have no money.

You will be wilful. You will be stubborn. You will think that there is no big deal about Chinese Metaphysics and that what you say matters the most in your life. Despite not having any ability or past achievement to support that fat bold claim.

Because you have already become that little string puppet, being dangled around mercilessly by your negative karma.

My sternness is to pull you away from that manhole of mishaps. Do not live your life in a blur. Do not drag your family down with you to suffer at the hands of karma.

Not everyone can stand up right again, after a really bad fall.

Who doesn't wish to be that well-liked person? But since ancient times, an overly loving mother often leads to a useless son.

In modern society, the self confidence of every man and woman tend to come from his/her career. But happiness and bliss will always come from your family.

So never ever choose to be selfish.

(English version below)

在歲末的某一天，有位慕名而來電的女士，向吾傾訴其身心的苦受。之後，吾請她移步到其家中的鏡子處，引啟其智慧。可是她卻不願與鏡子一會。原因是，長久的發怒及憂煩，使她暫時失去信心，面對鏡中的自己，認爲那畫面不會是好看的。

很多年前，吾就教導吾之門生，鏡子修練法。而吾本身早在二十年前，就常隨佛學，並立志改過遷善、利己利她他、冥陽兩利、成就佛果。因此，吾是越來越喜歡鏡裡鏡外的吾，清淨光明。

若有一天，妳你意思到內心的不妥與不安，也越來越不喜歡鏡中的自己，勸妳你快跟隨佛學，或是請教於善知識，以免百年之後的恆久苦受。

「鏡子本是修法用，無奈俗眾理念不同，今日玳瑚師父來歌頌，微妙鏡法天真童。」

.....................

Nearing the end of last year, I received a phone call from a lady, who heard of my reputation. She went on to confide in me her sufferings.

Later on, I asked her to step in front of a mirror in her house, to trigger the wisdom in her. Unfortunately, she refused to do so.

Due to her long-standing anger and depression, she momentarily lost the self-confidence to face herself in the mirror. She was convinced that her mirror image would be unpleasant to look at.

Many years ago, I taught my disciples the technique to use a mirror as a tool of self reflection in their spiritual practice.

I began my journey into the Dharma about 20 years ago, and had been following the Buddhas to learn. I vowed to turn over a new leaf, so as to benefit myself and others, both in the the human and nether realms, and attain Buddhahood.

As a result, I grew to like the reflection I see in the mirror everyday, as well as my actual self. They are both bathed in a radiance of purity.

Should you one day feel uneasy and not at peace in your heart, and a growing disdain for your image in the mirror, I strongly advise you to quickly learn the Dharma, or beseech a virtuous master to teach you, so that you will be spared the sufferings when you pass on this life.

A mirror is meant as a tool for spiritual cultivation. Alas, the sentient beings think otherwise. Today, Master Dai Hu sings the praises of this mirror technique, that subtly brings back the child-like innocence in you.