Lesson 46 Hobbies業(yè)余愛好

　　A gifted American psychologist has said, Worry is aspasm of the emotion; the mind catches hold of something and will not let itgo. It is useless to argue with the mind in this condition. Thestronger the will, the more futile the task. One can only gently insinuatesomething else into its convulsive grasp. And if this something else is rightlychosen, if it is really attended by the illumination of another field ofinterest, gradually, and often quite swiftly, the old undue grip relaxes andthe process of recuperation and repair begins.

　　The cultivation of a hobby and new forms of interest is therefore apolicy of the first importance to a public man. But this is not a business thatcan be undertaken in a day or swiftly improvised by a mere command of the will.The growth of alternative mental interests is a long process. The seeds must becarefully chosen; they must fall on good ground; they must be sedulouslytended, if the vivifying fruits are to be at hand when needed.

　　To be really happy and really safe, one ought to have at least twoor three hobbies, and they must all be real. It is no use starting late in lifeto say: I will take an interest in this or that. Such anattempt only aggravates the strain of mental effort. A man may acquire greatknowledge of topics unconnected with his daily work, and yet get hardly anybenefit or relief. It is no use doing what you like; you have got to like whatyou do. Broadly speaking, human beings may be divided into three classes: thosewho are toiled to death, those who are worried to death, and those who arebored to death. It is no use offering the manual laborer, tired out with a hardweeks sweat and effort, the chance of playing a game of football or baseballon Saturday afternoon. It is no use inviting the politician or the professionalor business man, who has been working or worrying about serious things for sixdays, to work or worry about trifling things at the weekend.

　　As for the unfortunate people who can command everything they want,who can gratify every caprice and lay their hands on almost every object ofdesire----for them a new pleasure, a new excitement is only an additionalsatiation. In vain they rush frantically round from place to place, trying toescape from avenging boredom by mere clatter and motion. For them discipline inone form or another is the most hopeful path.

　　It may also be said that rational, industrious, useful human beingsare divided into two classes: first, those whose work is work and whosepleasure is pleasure; and secondly, those whose work and pleasure are one. Ofthese the former are the majority. They have their compensations. The longhours in the office or the factory bring with them as their reward, not onlythe means of sustenance, but a keen appetite for pleasure even in its simplestand most modest forms. But Fortunes favored children belong to the secondclass.Their life is a natural harmony. For them the working hours are neverlong enough. Each day is a holiday, and ordinary holidays, when they come, aregrudged as enforced interruptions in an absorbing vocation. Yet to bothclasses, the need of an alternative outlook, of a change of atmosphere, of adiversion of effort, is essential. Indeed, it may well be that those whose workis their pleasure are those who most need the means of banishing it atintervals from their minds.

　　一位天才的美國心理學(xué)家曾經(jīng)說過：煩惱是感情的發(fā)作，此時(shí)腦子糾纏住了某種東西又不肯松手。在這種情況下，你和頭腦爭吵讓它松手是無濟(jì)于事的。這種意志越是強(qiáng)烈，這種嘗試越是徒勞。你只能緩和而巧妙地讓另一種東西進(jìn)入痙攣僵持的頭腦中。如果選得合適，而且的確受到別的領(lǐng)域的情趣的啟迪，那么漸漸地，往往也是很順利地，原先不適當(dāng)?shù)木o張就會(huì)松弛下來，恢復(fù)和修整的過程就會(huì)開始。

　　因此，對(duì)一個(gè)從事社會(huì)活動(dòng)的人來說，培養(yǎng)一種業(yè)馀愛好和各種新的興趣是頭等重要的作法。但這并非一日之功，也不是單憑意志一蹴而就的事。精神上多種情趣的培養(yǎng)是一個(gè)長期的過程。要想在需要的時(shí)候可隨手摘取充滿生機(jī)的果實(shí)，那就必然從精選良種做起，然后將其植入肥沃的土地，還需要勤勉地護(hù)理。

　　一個(gè)人要想真正感到幸福和平安，至少應(yīng)有兩三種愛好，而且都比較實(shí)際。到了晚年才開始說：我會(huì)對(duì)這個(gè)或那個(gè)發(fā)生興趣，已沒有用了。這種愿望只能加劇精神緊張。一個(gè)人可能會(huì)獲得與其日常工作無關(guān)的某些課題的淵博知識(shí)，而沒有從中得到什么實(shí)益或?qū)捨俊８赡闼矚g的事是沒有用的，你得喜歡你所干的事。泛泛地說，人可以分為 3類：勞累至死的人、憂慮至死的人、無聊至死的人。對(duì)于流汗出力干了一周苦活的體力勞動(dòng)者來說，讓他們?cè)谛瞧诹挛缭偬咦闱蚧虼驂厩蚴遣缓线m的;同樣，對(duì)于為嚴(yán)肅的公務(wù)操勞或煩惱了6天的政界人士、專業(yè)技術(shù)人員、商人來說，在周末再讓他們?yōu)楝嵤露鴦?dòng)腦子和憂慮也是無益的。

　　至于那些能任意支配一切的可憐的人，他們能夠恣意妄為，能染指一切追求的目標(biāo)。對(duì)這種人來說，多一種新的樂趣、多一種新的刺激只是增加一分厭膩而已。他們到處狂奔亂跑，企圖以閑聊和亂竄來擺脫無聊對(duì)他們的報(bào)復(fù)，但這是徒勞的。對(duì)他們來說，用某種形式的紀(jì)律約束他們一下才能有希望使他們走上正道。

　　也可以這樣說，理智的、勤勞的、有用的人可以分為兩類：第一類是分清工作是工作，娛樂是娛樂的人;第二類人的工作和娛樂是一回事。這兩類人當(dāng)中，第一類人是大多數(shù)，他們能夠得到補(bǔ)償。在辦公室或工廠里長時(shí)間的工作給他們帶來了酬勞，這不僅是謀生的手段，而且還帶來了尋找樂趣的強(qiáng)烈欲望。那怕是最簡單的、最低等的樂趣。但是，命運(yùn)之神的寵兒是第二類人，他們的生活是一種自然的和諧，對(duì)他們來說，工作時(shí)間總不會(huì)太長，每天都是假日，而通常的假期到來時(shí)，他們卻惋惜這假期強(qiáng)制打斷了他們埋頭從事的工作。然而對(duì)這兩種人來說，都需要換一換腦子，改變一下氣氛，轉(zhuǎn)移一下注意力，這是不可缺少的。說實(shí)在的，把工作當(dāng)作享受的那些人可能最需要每隔一段時(shí)間把工作從頭腦中撇開。

　　Lesson 46 Hobbies業(yè)余愛好

　　A gifted American psychologist has said, Worry is aspasm of the emotion; the mind catches hold of something and will not let itgo. It is useless to argue with the mind in this condition. Thestronger the will, the more futile the task. One can only gently insinuatesomething else into its convulsive grasp. And if this something else is rightlychosen, if it is really attended by the illumination of another field ofinterest, gradually, and often quite swiftly, the old undue grip relaxes andthe process of recuperation and repair begins.

　　The cultivation of a hobby and new forms of interest is therefore apolicy of the first importance to a public man. But this is not a business thatcan be undertaken in a day or swiftly improvised by a mere command of the will.The growth of alternative mental interests is a long process. The seeds must becarefully chosen; they must fall on good ground; they must be sedulouslytended, if the vivifying fruits are to be at hand when needed.

　　To be really happy and really safe, one ought to have at least twoor three hobbies, and they must all be real. It is no use starting late in lifeto say: I will take an interest in this or that. Such anattempt only aggravates the strain of mental effort. A man may acquire greatknowledge of topics unconnected with his daily work, and yet get hardly anybenefit or relief. It is no use doing what you like; you have got to like whatyou do. Broadly speaking, human beings may be divided into three classes: thosewho are toiled to death, those who are worried to death, and those who arebored to death. It is no use offering the manual laborer, tired out with a hardweeks sweat and effort, the chance of playing a game of football or baseballon Saturday afternoon. It is no use inviting the politician or the professionalor business man, who has been working or worrying about serious things for sixdays, to work or worry about trifling things at the weekend.

　　As for the unfortunate people who can command everything they want,who can gratify every caprice and lay their hands on almost every object ofdesire----for them a new pleasure, a new excitement is only an additionalsatiation. In vain they rush frantically round from place to place, trying toescape from avenging boredom by mere clatter and motion. For them discipline inone form or another is the most hopeful path.

　　It may also be said that rational, industrious, useful human beingsare divided into two classes: first, those whose work is work and whosepleasure is pleasure; and secondly, those whose work and pleasure are one. Ofthese the former are the majority. They have their compensations. The longhours in the office or the factory bring with them as their reward, not onlythe means of sustenance, but a keen appetite for pleasure even in its simplestand most modest forms. But Fortunes favored children belong to the secondclass.Their life is a natural harmony. For them the working hours are neverlong enough. Each day is a holiday, and ordinary holidays, when they come, aregrudged as enforced interruptions in an absorbing vocation. Yet to bothclasses, the need of an alternative outlook, of a change of atmosphere, of adiversion of effort, is essential. Indeed, it may well be that those whose workis their pleasure are those who most need the means of banishing it atintervals from their minds.

　　一位天才的美國心理學(xué)家曾經(jīng)說過：煩惱是感情的發(fā)作，此時(shí)腦子糾纏住了某種東西又不肯松手。在這種情況下，你和頭腦爭吵讓它松手是無濟(jì)于事的。這種意志越是強(qiáng)烈，這種嘗試越是徒勞。你只能緩和而巧妙地讓另一種東西進(jìn)入痙攣僵持的頭腦中。如果選得合適，而且的確受到別的領(lǐng)域的情趣的啟迪，那么漸漸地，往往也是很順利地，原先不適當(dāng)?shù)木o張就會(huì)松弛下來，恢復(fù)和修整的過程就會(huì)開始。

　　因此，對(duì)一個(gè)從事社會(huì)活動(dòng)的人來說，培養(yǎng)一種業(yè)馀愛好和各種新的興趣是頭等重要的作法。但這并非一日之功，也不是單憑意志一蹴而就的事。精神上多種情趣的培養(yǎng)是一個(gè)長期的過程。要想在需要的時(shí)候可隨手摘取充滿生機(jī)的果實(shí)，那就必然從精選良種做起，然后將其植入肥沃的土地，還需要勤勉地護(hù)理。

　　一個(gè)人要想真正感到幸福和平安，至少應(yīng)有兩三種愛好，而且都比較實(shí)際。到了晚年才開始說：我會(huì)對(duì)這個(gè)或那個(gè)發(fā)生興趣，已沒有用了。這種愿望只能加劇精神緊張。一個(gè)人可能會(huì)獲得與其日常工作無關(guān)的某些課題的淵博知識(shí)，而沒有從中得到什么實(shí)益或?qū)捨俊８赡闼矚g的事是沒有用的，你得喜歡你所干的事。泛泛地說，人可以分為 3類：勞累至死的人、憂慮至死的人、無聊至死的人。對(duì)于流汗出力干了一周苦活的體力勞動(dòng)者來說，讓他們?cè)谛瞧诹挛缭偬咦闱蚧虼驂厩蚴遣缓线m的;同樣，對(duì)于為嚴(yán)肅的公務(wù)操勞或煩惱了6天的政界人士、專業(yè)技術(shù)人員、商人來說，在周末再讓他們?yōu)楝嵤露鴦?dòng)腦子和憂慮也是無益的。

　　至于那些能任意支配一切的可憐的人，他們能夠恣意妄為，能染指一切追求的目標(biāo)。對(duì)這種人來說，多一種新的樂趣、多一種新的刺激只是增加一分厭膩而已。他們到處狂奔亂跑，企圖以閑聊和亂竄來擺脫無聊對(duì)他們的報(bào)復(fù)，但這是徒勞的。對(duì)他們來說，用某種形式的紀(jì)律約束他們一下才能有希望使他們走上正道。

　　也可以這樣說，理智的、勤勞的、有用的人可以分為兩類：第一類是分清工作是工作，娛樂是娛樂的人;第二類人的工作和娛樂是一回事。這兩類人當(dāng)中，第一類人是大多數(shù)，他們能夠得到補(bǔ)償。在辦公室或工廠里長時(shí)間的工作給他們帶來了酬勞，這不僅是謀生的手段，而且還帶來了尋找樂趣的強(qiáng)烈欲望。那怕是最簡單的、最低等的樂趣。但是，命運(yùn)之神的寵兒是第二類人，他們的生活是一種自然的和諧，對(duì)他們來說，工作時(shí)間總不會(huì)太長，每天都是假日，而通常的假期到來時(shí)，他們卻惋惜這假期強(qiáng)制打斷了他們埋頭從事的工作。然而對(duì)這兩種人來說，都需要換一換腦子，改變一下氣氛，轉(zhuǎn)移一下注意力，這是不可缺少的。說實(shí)在的，把工作當(dāng)作享受的那些人可能最需要每隔一段時(shí)間把工作從頭腦中撇開。