Meditation I: Of Things Doubtful
第一篇：關於可懷疑的事物
Some years ago, I realized that many of the things I believed to be true in my youth were actually false.
幾年前，我意識到自己年輕時所相信的許多事情，其實是錯誤的。
Because of that, I began to doubt everything I had built on those beliefs.
因此，我開始對自己根據那些信念所建立的一切產生懷疑。
So I thought it necessary—if I ever wanted to build something solid and lasting in the sciences—to once in my life completely clear away all my beliefs and start anew from first principles.
於是我認為，如果我希望在科學上建立堅固且持久的基礎，那我一生中至少應有一次，徹底清除所有舊有信念，從最根本的原則重新開始。
But this seemed like a massive task, and I kept putting it off, waiting for the right moment of maturity.
但這看起來是一項艱鉅的任務，我不斷推遲，等待自己更加成熟的時刻。
Eventually, I realized I could wait no longer—I had to take action.
最終我明白，我不能再等下去了，必須開始行動。
So today, I’ve freed my mind from all concerns, found a quiet time, and secluded myself from distractions.
因此今天，我讓自己的心靈從一切瑣事中解放，找到一段安靜的時間，遠離干擾。
Now, I will seriously and deliberately begin the demolition of all my former opinions.
現在，我要認真且有意識地推翻自己過去的所有觀念。
To do this, I don’t need to prove that every single belief I had is false.
要做到這點，我不需要逐一證明我所有的信念都是錯的。
Instead, I only need to stop believing in anything that is even slightly uncertain.
我只需要對任何有一絲不確定性的觀念，停止信任即可。
If there is any reason to doubt a belief, then I will treat it as untrue.
只要有任何理由可以懷疑它，我就視其為不真實。
I don’t have to examine every belief one by one—that would take forever.
我也不必一一檢查每個信念，否則永遠做不完。
Rather, if I can destroy the foundation of my beliefs, everything built upon it will fall on its own.
相反地，只要我能摧毀這些信念的根基，其上建構的一切自然會崩塌。
Now, everything I’ve believed until now has come from the senses—or through the senses.
我至今所相信的一切，幾乎都來自感官，或是經由感官而得。
But I’ve often found my senses to be deceptive, and it is wise never to trust those who have deceived us even once.
但我經常發現感官會欺騙我，而明智之舉是，連一次欺騙過我們的東西也不再信任。
First Doubt
第一個懷疑
Yes, the senses deceive us sometimes—when things are far away or very small.
沒錯，感官有時確實會欺騙我們，例如在觀察遙遠或微小的事物時。
But what about obvious, everyday things? Like that I’m sitting here, next to a fire, wearing this winter coat, holding this paper in my hands?
但對於那些顯而易見、每天都在發生的事情呢？像是我現在坐在這裡、旁邊有火、穿著冬衣、手上拿著這張紙？
Could I really doubt that these hands or this body are mine?
我真的能懷疑這雙手或這個身體是我的嗎？
Only if I were as crazy as people with mental illness who think they are kings while they are poor, or imagine they wear robes when they are naked.
除非我像精神錯亂的人一樣，自以為是國王卻身無分文，或以為穿著長袍卻其實一絲不掛。
But such people are clearly mad—and I would be no different if I doubted things so obvious.
但這些人顯然瘋了——若我也懷疑這些明確的事實，那我和他們有何不同？
First Solution
第一個解答
That would be convincing—if I never slept.
這種說法也許合理——如果我從來不做夢的話。
But in dreams, I have often believed that I was sitting here, wearing clothes, by the fire, when in fact I was lying undressed in bed.
但在夢裡，我經常相信自己坐在這裡、穿著衣服、在火爐旁，而實際上我只是躺在床上、一絲不掛。
Now, I think I’m awake—I can see the paper, I move my head, stretch out my hand.
現在，我認為自己是清醒的——我能看見這張紙、搖頭、伸出手。
But haven’t I had similar vivid experiences in dreams?
但我在夢中也曾有過同樣清晰的感受，不是嗎？
The more I think about it, the harder it is to tell the difference between dreaming and waking.
我越是仔細思考，就越難分辨夢境與清醒。
I’m amazed by this, and that very amazement almost convinces me that I’m dreaming right now.
這種驚訝本身，幾乎讓我相信我此刻還在夢中。
Second Doubt
第二個懷疑
So let’s assume I am dreaming, and everything I see and feel is not real—
那我們就假設我正在做夢，所有我看到和感受到的東西都不是真實的——
That I have no eyes, no hands, no body, and all of it is imagined.
我沒有眼睛、沒有雙手、沒有身體，一切只是幻想。
Even so, the things I see in dreams—like images in paintings—must still be based on something real.
即使如此，夢裡所見之物，就像畫作中的圖像，仍必須有某種真實的基礎。
A painter, even when painting a mythical creature like a mermaid or satyr, doesn’t invent everything from scratch.
畫家即使在描繪美人魚或半人半獸時，也不是全然無中生有。
They combine real features from different animals.
他們只是把不同動物的特徵拼湊在一起。
And even when the creature is completely made-up, the colors used to paint it still have to be real.
即使那生物本身完全虛構，畫中所使用的「顏色」至少仍是真實的。
In the same way, even if the body, hands, eyes, and so on are imaginary,
同樣地，即便身體、手、眼睛等等是想像的，
There must still be real, simple, and universal things that these images are made of—like shape, extension, quantity, number, place, and time.
構成這些影像的一些更基本的元素仍必須是真實的——例如形狀、延展、大小、數量、位置與時間。
So from this, I can reasonably conclude: sciences that depend on complex things—like physics, medicine, and astronomy—are doubtful.
因此，我可以合理推論：那些依賴複雜事物的科學——例如物理學、醫學、天文學——都是可以被懷疑的。
But disciplines like arithmetic and geometry, which deal only with the simplest and most abstract concepts, contain truth that seems beyond doubt.
但像算術與幾何這樣只處理最基本與抽象概念的學科，其真理似乎不容置疑。
Whether I am asleep or awake, two plus three is still five, a square still has four sides.
不論我是在睡夢中還是清醒時，二加三總是五，正方形總是有四個邊。
It seems impossible to doubt such obvious truths.
這樣明顯的道理，似乎不可能被懷疑。
Second Solution
第二個解答
But hold on—what if there’s a powerful God who created me, just as I am?
但且慢——如果有一位強大的神，祂創造了我，使我成為現在的樣子呢？
And what if He made it so that there’s no earth, no sky, no physical bodies at all—
而如果祂讓地球、天空、甚至所有物質根本都不存在——
But still made me think they do?
卻讓我誤以為它們存在呢？
People often think they understand something, but still make mistakes.
人們常常以為自己理解某件事，結果還是會犯錯。
So what if even in doing simple math—adding two and three, or counting sides of a shape—I’m being deceived?
那麼即使在做最簡單的數學運算——像是二加三，或是計算圖形的邊數時——我也可能正在被欺騙嗎？
Third Doubt
第三個懷疑
But maybe God would never deceive me—He’s supposed to be all good.
也許你會說：神不會欺騙我，因為祂是全善的。
Third Solution
第三個解答
Yes, but if it’s against God’s goodness to deceive me all the time,
沒錯，但如果神的善性讓祂不可能總是欺騙我，
Then it should also be against His goodness to deceive me even occasionally.
那麼祂即便偶爾欺騙我，也應該是不符合善的。
But we all agree that people do make mistakes.
可大家都同意，人是會犯錯的。
Some would rather deny that God is all-powerful than believe that everything is uncertain.
有些人甚至寧可否認神的全能，也不願承認萬事皆可懷疑。
Let’s set that argument aside for now.
這裡我們暫且不談這個問題。
Even if God doesn’t exist, and I came to be through chance, fate, or natural causes—
即使沒有神，而我是經由偶然、命運或自然法則產生的——
The less perfect my origin is, the more likely I am to be flawed and easily deceived.
我的來源越不完美，我本身就越可能充滿缺陷、容易受騙。
The Final Realization
最終的體悟
At this point, I have no solid reason to believe any of the things I once accepted as true.
到了這一步，我已經找不到任何充分理由來相信我過去所接受的「真理」。
And my doubt is not reckless—it is deliberate and based on strong reasoning.
而這份懷疑並非出於衝動，而是經過深思熟慮與理性推演。
So if I want to find real truth, I must suspend belief in everything—even the things that seem most certain.
因此，如果我真的想發現真理，我就必須暫時拒絕相信任何東西——即使那些看起來最確定的也不例外。
But just thinking about this once isn’t enough. I have to keep reminding myself.
但只思考一次是不夠的，我必須時時提醒自己。
Because old habits return—again and again—and try to reclaim my belief.
因為舊習慣會不斷回來，努力重新掌控我的信念。
And as long as I treat them as merely “highly probable,” I’ll never fully escape their grip.
只要我還把它們當作「非常可能是真的」，我就無法真正擺脫它們。demon hypothesis and final reflection.
A Strategy: Total Suspension of Belief
策略：全面暫停信念
So I think the best course is to deliberately take the opposite side—
因此我認為最好的做法，是刻意站到信念的反面——
To suppose, for a time, that everything I’ve ever believed is completely false and imaginary.
暫時假設我過去所相信的一切，全都是虛假的、想像出來的。
This will help me detach from old habits, and allow my judgment to become balanced and free.
這樣做有助於我擺脫舊有的習慣，使我的判斷變得中立與自由。
Once the scale of prejudice is even on both sides, I’ll be better able to recognize the truth.
一旦偏見的天秤兩邊平衡了，我才能更清楚地認出真理。
This kind of doubt won’t lead to any harm, since I’m only exploring ideas—not making decisions for action.
這樣的懷疑並不會造成什麼實際損害，因為我所進行的是觀念上的探索，而不是行動上的抉擇。
The Evil Demon Hypothesis
邪惡惡魔的假設
To go even further, I will imagine not a perfectly good God, but instead some malicious, all-powerful deceiver.
更進一步，我將不再想像有一位全善全能的神，而是假設有一位邪惡的、無所不能的騙子。
This being devotes all his energy to misleading me.
這個存在竭盡所能地要欺騙我。
He creates a false world around me: the sky, the air, the earth, the colors, shapes, sounds—all illusions.
他為我打造了一個虛假的世界：天空、空氣、大地、色彩、形狀、聲音——全都是幻覺。
He traps me in this dream-like reality to fool me at every turn.
他讓我陷入這如夢似幻的現實，無時無刻不在欺騙我。
I will suppose that I have no senses, no body, no flesh or blood—
我會假設自己沒有感官、沒有身體、沒有血肉——
But only wrongly believe that I do.
只是誤以為我有這些東西。
I will stick firmly to this meditation, pushing doubt as far as it can go.
我將堅定不移地持守這種冥想，將懷疑推向極限。
Even if I cannot discover a single truth, at least I can make sure I don’t believe in falsehoods.
即使我無法發現任何真理，我至少可以確保自己不會相信虛假之事。
And I will stay vigilant, so that this powerful deceiver—no matter how cunning—cannot trick me.
我會保持警覺，使這個再強大狡詐的騙子，也無法左右我的信念。
The Pull of Habit and the Final Struggle
習慣的拉力與最後的掙扎
But this effort is exhausting.
但這樣的努力非常耗神。
A kind of laziness pulls me back toward everyday life.
一種慣性懶惰正把我拉回日常生活。
I’m like a prisoner dreaming of freedom—
我就像一個囚犯，在夢中享有自由——
And when I start to suspect it’s only a dream, I hesitate to wake up.
當我開始懷疑那只是夢時，我卻猶豫是否要醒來。
I want to keep believing the illusion, because it feels comfortable.
我寧願繼續相信這個幻象，因為它很令人安心。
And so I slip back into old opinions.
於是我又滑回到舊有的觀念裡。
I’m afraid that waking up would mean a life not in the light of certainty,
我害怕若真的清醒了，生活將不再有確定的光明，
But in the dark fog of doubt I’ve just stirred up.
而是陷入我所挑起的懷疑之迷霧中。