A disciple and his teacher were walking through the forest. The disciple was disturbed by the fact that his mind was in constant unrest.
一对师徒正在一片森林中行走。徒弟因自己的思绪纷乱而感到烦恼不已。
He asked his teacher, "Why most people’s minds are restless, and only a few possess a calm mind? What can one do to still the mind?”
于是他请教师父：“为什么只有一小部分人能够心如止水，而大多数人的思想都是焦躁不安的呢?要怎么做才能平静下来呢?”
The teacher looked at the disciple, smiled and said, "I will tell you a story. An elephant was standing and picking leaves from a tree. A small fly came，flying and buzzing near his ear. The elephant waved it away with his long ears. Then the fly came again, and the elephant waved it away once more.
师父看着徒弟，笑着说：“我给你讲一个故事。一头大象站在一棵树下，摘取叶子进食。一只小苍蝇飞了过来，在大象的耳朵旁环绕并嗡嗡作响。大象挥动它的长耳朵把苍蝇赶走。不久苍蝇又来了，大象再一次把它赶走。
This was repeated several times. Then the elephant asked the fly, "Why are you so restless and noisy? Why can't you stay for a while in one place?"
这样的动作持续了几次，大象不禁向苍蝇问道：“为什么你这么吵闹停不下来呢?你不能静静地呆在一个地方吗?”
The fly answered, "I am attracted to whatever I see, hear or smell. My five senses pull me constantly in all directions and I cannot resist them．What is your secret? How can you stay so calm and still?"
苍蝇回答道，“我无论看到什么，听见什么或是闻到什么，都会被吸引过去。我的五种感官总是吸引我飞往不同的方向，而我抵抗不了。为什么你能保持这么平静，一动也不动呢?你的秘诀是什么呢?”
The elephant stopped eating and said, "My five senses do not rule my attention. Whatever I do, I get immersed in it. Now that I am eating, I am completely immersed in eating. In this way I can enjoy my food and chew it better. I rule and control my attention, and not the other way around."
大象停止了进食，说道：“我的注意力并不受五种感官的影响。无论做什么，我都全神贯注。(比如)现在我在吃东西，那么我就完全专注于吃东西。这样我就能好好享受我的食物并且细嚼慢咽。我掌控自己的注意力，而不是屈服于它。”
Upon hearing these words, the disciple’s eyes opened wide and a smile appeared on his face. He looked at his teacher and said, "I understand! If my five senses are in control of my mind and attention, then my mind is in constant unrest. If I am in charge of my five senses and attention, then my mind becomes calm."
听到这些话，徒弟眼睛一亮，脸上漾起了笑容。他看着他的师父说，“我明白了!如果我让我的五种感官控制我的思想与注意力，那么我的思想就会不停地波动。反之，如果我掌控了我的五种感官，那么我的思绪就会平静下来。”
"Yes, that's right," answered the teacher, "The mind is restless and goes wherever the attention is. Control your attention, and you control your mind."
“是的，就是这样，”师父回答道，“思想是动态的并随着注意力移动。控制了你的注意力便控制了你的思想。”