記憶的方法中有一種是運用 mnemonic,字典的定義是:
Any memory trick used for helping one to
remember information is called a mnemonic.
Mnemonics can use systems of rhymes, acronyms,
diagrams or other techniques to aid a person
in recollecting names, dates, facts, figures, etc.
參考: 《思考和概念架構》
試舉一例說明:
佛教經典《楞嚴經》有一個長長的標題:
「大佛頂如來密因修證了義諸菩薩萬行首楞嚴經」。
如果用「大魚腹內收藏了一隻豬手」的圖像來記憶,
簡化成「大魚收豬手」五字,再變成「大如修諸首」,
就可以幫助我們記下這個標題。
另一種記憶的方法是運用詩句的形式和音韻,
去幫助記憶,例如孔子的周易六十四卦的卦序:
乾坤屯蒙,需訟師比,小畜履泰否;
同人大有,謙豫隨蠱,臨觀噬嗑賁;
剝複無妄大畜,頤大過坎離。
咸恒遁大壯,晉明夷家人睽;
蹇解損益夬姤,萃升困井革鼎;
震艮漸歸妹,豐旅巽兌渙節;
中孚小過,既濟未濟。
筆者嘗試用房子來記憶生命哲學的重點,
靈感來自同學傳來分享,一封寫得錯漏百出的電郵,
筆者靈機一觸,立即將之改寫成這篇文章。
創意思考,很多時都來自別人的失誤,所以到處都是學問。
☆ The Foundation said:
Build your thoughts and faith on solid ground.
地基說:
「要將思考和信仰建設在盤石之上,
慎防錯誤的假設和信念令地基不穩,隨時動搖。」
「博學之,審問之,慎思之,明辨之,篤行之。」《中庸》
☆ The Roof said: Aim high.
屋頂說:
「樓底要高,才能夠容納高人入住;
樓層要高,才能夠高瞻遠矚,目光遠大。
換言之,就是要學習歷史上巨人的思想,
經過去蕪存菁之後,將它們變成自己的智慧;
否則只好安心做一個低層次的庸人。」
☆ The Floor said: Make sure that I am clean.
And always be down to earth.
地板說:
「地板代表你的思考基礎,動機必須純正乾淨,
而且思考必須嚴謹和腳踏實地,不能好高騖遠。」
☆ The Walls said: Select reliable bricks
and then share each others’ load. .
牆壁說:
「人以類聚,概念亦有優劣之分,這些都是磚頭。
必須先選擇好的磚頭來做牆壁,然後諸牆壁才能分工合作,
同心同德,一同承擔責任。」
牆壁又說:
「全賴歷史上思考界的巨人分工合作,
承擔了艱鉅的思考工作,製造可靠的磚頭來做牆壁,
才能夠讓平庸者不勞而獲地享用成果。」
牆壁內的樑柱說:
「必須培養出足夠的實力,肩負起人生中個人應負的責任。」
It is a profoundly erroneous truism that we should
cultivate the habit of thinking of what we are doing.
The precise opposite is the case. Civilization advances
by extending the number of important operations
which we can perform without thinking about them.
( Alfred North Whitehead )
☆ The Doors said: Our function is to keep your
body safe and to let your soul have its solitude.
We cannot protect your ego. So remember that
slamming the doors will not make them close
any firmer than a push.
門說:
「我們的職責是保障你身體安全和讓你的心靈享用孤獨的空間。
請勿將你的怒氣發洩在我們的身上!」
☆ The Stairs said: Watch each step you take.
樓梯說:
「很多真理都有應用範疇,所以要謹慎思考,戰戰兢兢,
步步為營,而且一旦欠缺了嚴謹的思考訓練,就未必能夠掌握真理;
至於待人方面,緊記害人之心不可有,防人之心不可無。」
There are truths which are not for all men,
nor for all times.
( Voltaire )
☆ The Sitting Room said: Select your friends
and judge their thoughts carefully. Beware of wolves.
客廳說:
「要謹慎選擇思考上交流者,亦需要判斷他們的概念,
切忌將錯誤的思想和歪理引狼入室。」
Bad company corrupts good character.
( Menander )
Wisdom attracts wisdom;
hypocrisy elicits hypocrisy;
mediocrity begets mediocrity.
( Jason Ling )
☆ The Bedroom said: Take a rest and dream.
Be fruitful and increase in number.
寢室說 :
「人需要有充裕的休息,又需要有腳踏實地的夢想。
除此之外,優秀思考要生養眾多,遍布大地。」
No one ever died from sleeping in an unmade bed.
I have known mothers who remake the bed after
their children do it because there is wrinkle in the
spread or the blanket is on crooked. This is sick.
( Erma Bombeck )
☆ The Study Room said: Life is precious.
A study room without good books is like
a body without a soul.
Select your readings carefully.
A study room must be quiet so that you can
develop independent thinking in your solitude.
書房說 :
「書房內一定要有好書,心靈才可以成長。
吾生有涯,人生苦短,書籍太多,空間有限,
所以要丟棄所有不能夠幫助自己做學問或者增添智慧的書籍。
除此之外,一間安靜的書房可以幫助我們在孤獨之中,
培養出獨立思考的能力。」
A house without books is like a room without
windows. No man has a right to bring up his
children without surrounding them with books,
if he has the means to buy them.
( Horace Mann )
☆ In the Kitchen,
the Freezer and cupboard said:
Always save food for the future.
冰箱和廚櫃說:
「訓練思考宜未雨綢繆,就好像積穀防飢;
到需要的時才去學習思考就未免太遲了。」
The Kitchen Utensils said:
All the tools and energy for cooking
are required to prepare a meal.
廚具說:
「我們需要不同的工具來幫助思考。
做學問和鍛煉技巧,有如烹調美食,除了工具之外,
還需要有熱誠,才能眼到,耳到,口到,手到,心到。」
Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat.
( Marcus Tullius Cicero )
☆ In the Bathroom,
The Bathtub said: Remember to clean yourself.
浴缸說:「去蕪存菁,苟日新,日日新,又日新。」
The Toilet bowl said: Get rid of garbage.
When it’s time to let go, just let it go.
馬桶說:
「不論是人或者概念,必須懂得如何判斷蕪菁,
知道是垃圾之後,就要懂得放下,這就是去蕪存菁。」
Just as we must clean, order, and maintain
our homes to move forward with anything;
we need to do the same with our minds.
( Sharon Lebell )
還記得六個人大便的故事嗎?
六個人在同一廁所裡大便,
一位心理學家走進來,問他們在幹甚麼?
一個人回答說:我正在大便,你看不見嗎?
一個人回答說:我正在減肥!
一個人回答說:我正在排毒!
一個人回答說:我正在學習放下!
一個人回答說:我正在為兩小時後吃飯作出準備!
最有創意的一個人回答說:我正在為人類生產肥料!
你的「廢物」可以是別人的「肥料」,
所以「放下」其實並不環保,
因為「廢物」可以被愚蠢人再循環利用!
如果龔自珍的「落紅不是無情物,化作春泥更護花」是文學,
那麼「屎尿不是無用物,化作肥料更護糧」就是生物學、
環境保護學、哲學,和打出有機耕種招牌的賺錢學。
Time to say goodbye
這六個人都是在放下一些東西,
但對於所放下的東西卻有不同的認知和看法,
幸好大腸一早已經替他們解決了問題,
所以即使不同的認知也沒有關係。
但可惜一般人的腦裡沒有大腸去蕪存菁的智慧,
難以判斷甚麼是廢物,甚麼不完全是廢物!
事實上,很多人既不懂得甚麼東西有營養,
也不懂得甚麼東西已經成為廢物,
所以有時會放下了有營養的東西,反而去抓緊廢物,
有時則把有營養的東西和廢物一起抓緊,
有時則把有營養的東西和廢物一起放下!
☆ The Window said: Expand your vision.
Breadth of vision is important.
窗戶說:
「窗戶一定要多,四面都有,才能擴寬視野,
利於培育森林思維和根源思維,
而且窗戶的玻璃必須夠乾淨和清晰,才能夠看得清楚。」
The glass of the window must be clear so that
on a clear day you can see all the details.
That means your thoughts, spoken and
written words must be clean and clear.
其後所有傢俱都開始發言:
☆ The Telescope said: Deepen your vision.
Depth of vision is important.
望遠鏡說:「要培育思考工具,才能放遠和加深視野。」
☆ The Microscope said:
Everything human is perishable
except Truth and Hypocrisy.
But small is the gate and narrow the road
that leads to life, and only a few find it.
(Matthew 7:14)
顯微鏡說:
「所有人類世界的事物都會消失,
只有真理和虛偽長存,因為它們都是永恆的。
由於虛偽是雅俗共賞的普世價值,
所以進天國的門是窄的,入到去的人只是少數。」
Therefore you shall be perfect
just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
(Matthew 5:48)
☆ The Air Conditioner said:
Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.
( Proverbs 4:23 )
空氣溫度調節機說:
「要保守你的心,因為有真人然後有真知。
天熱時要保持內心冷靜;天冷時要保持內心溫暖。
換言之,愛和智慧必須手牽手,並肩作戰。」
Intuition is the intelligence of the heart and
the knowledge of the soul. It knows instantly
and constantly what can take decades of
experience for the mind to logically sort out
and understand. Trust it, and the reason will
follow in time.
( Doe Zantamata )
☆ The Clock said: Value your time.
Develope accuracy and precision in thoughts.
時鐘說:
「要珍惜光陰,將時間、精神和毅力花在刀鋒之上;
同時要盡力讓思考、語言和文字好像時鐘那般準確。」
☆ The Calendar said: Life is short.
Be up to date and learn timeless truths
as much as possible.
日曆說:
「生命有限,世界日新月異,要與時俱進,亦要追求真理。
生命的無常同樣會告訴你需要珍惜光陰,
努力地去思考甚麼是人生中最重要的東西。」
Life is too short to worry about stupid and
unimportant things, so learn the wisdom to
decide on what is important and what is not.
( Jason Ling )
☆ The Mirror said: Always observe yourself,
honestly, courageously, both within and without.
鏡子說:
「要有勇氣自我批判,自我反省,要努力鍛鍊,
磨利 [我 I] 這件關鍵的思考工具。」
We only see what we want to see;
we only hear what we want to hear.
Our belief system is just like a mirror
that only shows us what we believe.
( Don Miguel Ruiz )
☆ The Lamps and Candles said:
Let us light up other’s life.
燈和蠟燭說:
「要燃燒自己,照亮別人,分享智慧,薪火相傳。」
☆ The Wardrobe said: You need 6W1H clothes.
衣櫃說:
「要擁有六件衣服:What, Why, When, Where,
Who, Whom, How,但絕對不需要擁有六頂帽子。」
☆ The Lock said: Be vigilant.
Beware of laziness in thinking,
watch your intentions, protect your integrity.
門鎖說:
「要謹慎警惕,慎防思考上疏懶,慎防錯漏百出的思想,
慎防自己動機不良,要堅持保守自己的心,堅持人格。」
Idleness is the stupidity of the body,
and stupidity is the idleness of the mind.
( Johann Gottfried Seume )
Good people are not those who lack flaws,
the brave are not those who feel no fear,
and the generous are not those who never
feel selfish. Extraordinary people are not
extraordinary because they are invulnerable
to unconscious biases. They are extraordinary
because they choose to do something about it.
( Shankar Vedantam )
參考:《贏在起跑線上》