of the Danish Existential philosopher Soren Kierkegaard.

丹麥存在主義哲學家索倫-克爾凱郭爾的作品。

In a book entitled Works of Love, published in Copenhagen in 1847, Kierkegaard — then

在1847年於哥本哈根出版的《愛的作品》一書中，克爾凱郭爾--當時的

thirty-four years old — proposed a theory which deliberately upset every leading idea

三十四歲的他提出了一個理論，故意打亂了每一個領先的想法

that his own age (in this respect very similar to our own) liked to entertain about this

他自己的年齡（在這方面與我們的年齡非常相似）喜歡對這個問題進行娛樂。

hallowed concept.

神聖的概念。

First and most importantly, Kierkegaard insisted that most of us have no idea what love is

首先，最重要的是，克爾凱郭爾堅持認為，我們大多數人都不知道什麼是愛

— even though we refer to the term incessantly.

- 儘管我們不停地提到這個詞。

The first half of the nineteenth century in Europe saw the triumph of what we today call

十九世紀上半葉的歐洲見證了我們今天所稱的勝利。

‘Romantic love’, involving a veneration and worship of one very special person with

浪漫的愛情"，涉及到對一個非常特別的人的崇敬和崇拜，有

whose soul and body we hope to unite our own.

我們希望將自己的靈魂和身體與之結合。

Kierkegaard insisted that through concentrating on Romantic love, we develop a narrow and

克爾凱郭爾堅持認為，通過專注於浪漫主義的愛情，我們會發展出一種狹隘和

impoverished sense of what love can actually be.

對什麼是真正的愛有一種貧乏的感覺。

Love is not, Kierkegaard insisted, the special excitement we feel when in the presence of

克爾凱郭爾堅持認為，愛並不是我們在遇到以下情況時感到的特別興奮

someone unusually beautiful, pure, clever or accomplished.

異常美麗、純潔、聰明或有成就的人。

He proposed that we return instead to an exacting version of Christian love, which commands

他提議，我們應該回到一個嚴格的基督教之愛的版本，其中命令

us to love everyone, starting — most arduously — with all those who we by instinct consider

我們要愛每一個人，從那些我們本能地認為的人開始--最艱難地--愛他們。

to be unworthy of love.

是不值得愛的。

He made a distinction between what in Danish is termed kaerlighed — true love, the kind

他對丹麥語中的 "真愛"（kaerlighed）進行了區分。

Christians are commanded to give and elskov — erotic love.

基督徒被命令給予和elskov--色情的愛。

For Kierkegaard, we should learn to love all the many people it would be so tempting to

對於克爾凱郭爾來說，我們應該學會愛所有的人，這將是非常誘人的。

curse and to hate; those whom we believe are mistaken, ugly, irritating, venal, wrong-headed

詛咒和憎恨；那些我們認為是錯誤的、醜陋的、令人討厭的、卑鄙的、頭腦錯誤的人

or ridiculous; those who may have made some truly serious mistakes and offended our moral

或荒謬的人；那些可能犯了一些真正嚴重的錯誤並冒犯了我們的道德的人。

codes.

代碼。

To learn to love such people, to practise kaerlighed, this is the real accomplishment

學會愛這樣的人，練就一雙慧眼，這才是真正的成就。

— and the summit of our humanity.

- 和我們人類的頂點。

It is love when we can look at someone who appears misguided, lazy, entitled, angry or

當我們能夠看著一個看起來被誤導、懶惰、有權利、憤怒或的人，這就是愛。

proud and instead of labelling them despicable, can wonder with imagination and sympathy how

驕傲，而不是給他們貼上卑鄙的標籤，可以用想象力和同情心去想，他們是如何

they might have come to be this way; when we can perceive the lost, vulnerable or hurt

他們可能會變成這樣；當我們能夠察覺到迷失的、脆弱的或受傷的

child that must lie somewhere within the perplexing or dispiriting adult.

在這個令人困惑或沮喪的成年人身上，一定存在著孩子的影子。

Love means making the effort to extend our compassion beyond the bounds of attraction

愛意味著努力將我們的同情心擴展到吸引力的範圍之外

so that we may look generously on all those we might at first glance have deemed beyond

這樣，我們就可以慷慨地看待所有那些我們乍一看可能認為是不可能的人。

the pale or ‘undeserving’.

蒼白或 "不值得 "的人。

Kierkegaard tells us that if we understood love properly, when we said we loved a person,

克爾凱郭爾告訴我們，如果我們正確理解愛，當我們說愛一個人的時候。

we wouldn’t mean that we admired them but that we had a handle on all the many difficulties

我們的意思不是說我們欽佩他們，而是說我們掌握了所有的許多困難。

that underpinned their troubling and objectionable sides.

這支撐著他們令人不安和令人反感的一面。

Kierkegaard was especially aggrieved by how his contemporaries had replaced the Christian-inspired

克爾凱郭爾對他同時代的人如何取代受基督教啟發的

emphasis on forgiveness with the pursuit of something that feels a great deal more objective,

強調寬恕與追求一些感覺更客觀的東西。

hard-edged and rational: justice.

堅硬和理性：正義。

The pursuers of justice want to give everyone what they actually deserve.

正義的追求者希望給每個人以他們實際應得的東西。

This sounds extremely reasonable — until one comes face to face with an uncomfortable

這聽起來非常合理--直到人們面對一個令人不安的

fact: that if we all actually ended up with what we truly ‘deserved’, the world would

事實是：如果我們最終都能得到我們真正 "應得的 "東西，那麼世界將

at once be rendered entirely unlivable.

瞬間就會變得完全無法生存。

The attempt to pursue justice at all costs, and the belief that doing so is theoretically

試圖不惜一切代價追求正義，並認為這樣做在理論上是

possible, gives rise to appalling intolerance, for if one really believes that one can be

導致令人震驚的不容忍，因為如果一個人真的認為他可以

a flawless instrument of righteousness, then there is logically no limit to the degree

一個無缺陷的正義工具，那麼在邏輯上就沒有限制的程度

of rage or the sternness of punishments that can be brought to bear upon ‘wrong doers’.

憤怒或懲罰的嚴厲性，可以對 "做錯事的人 "產生影響。

For Kierkegaard, our goal should not be to create a world in which everyone gets exactly

對於克爾凱郭爾來說，我們的目標不應該是創造一個每個人都能完全得到的世界。

what they deserve; it is to try to ensure that as many of us as possible get the kindness

他們應得的東西；這是為了努力確保我們中儘可能多的人得到善意的幫助。

we need.

我們需要。

Applied to children, concepts of justice quickly reveal their absurdities, Kierkegaard could

應用在兒童身上，正義的概念很快就會顯示出其荒謬性，克爾凱郭爾可以

see.

見。

If parents were to give their children exactly what they ‘deserved’, most small people

如果父母完全給他們的孩子 "應得 "的東西，大多數小人物

would at a stroke be put out on hillsides to die.

一下子就會被扔到山坡上等死。

The pursuit of justice may spring from the noblest of motives but it is a quick route

追求正義可能來自於最崇高的動機，但這是一條快速的道路。

to an unloving hell.

到一個沒有愛心的地獄。

Kierkegaard proposed that there is a ladder of love, from the most undemanding to the

克爾凱郭爾提出，有一個愛的階梯，從最沒有要求的到最有要求的。

true.

確實如此。

On the first rung of the ladder, we love those who love us; then we love those who do not

在階梯的第一層，我們愛那些愛我們的人；然後我們愛那些不愛我們的人。

love us, then we love those who persecute us and finally, and triumphantly, we should

愛我們，然後我們愛那些迫害我們的人，最後，我們應該勝利地

love everyone without exception.

毫無例外地愛每一個人。

Kierkegaard mocks those who say they believe in love but add that they haven't found someone

克爾凱郭爾嘲笑那些說他們相信愛情但又說他們沒有找到對象的人

they can love.

他們可以愛。

There are millions of people around.

周圍有數以百萬計的人。

If we say that they are not worthy of love, we haven’t understood love.

如果我們說他們不值得愛，我們就沒有理解愛。

We need to love those we can actually see, not ‘invisible beings.’

我們需要愛那些我們實際能看到的人，而不是'看不見的生命'。

A Kierkegaardian dating site would force us to love utterly random candidates, not based

一個克爾凱郭爾式的約會網站將迫使我們去愛完全隨機的候選人，而不是基於

on admiration or virtue, but on the basis of our shared humanity.

仰慕或美德，而是在我們共同的人性基礎上。

He bemoaned ‘the selfishness of preferential love.’

他哀嘆'偏愛的自私'。

‘Christianity has never taught that one must admire his neighbour,’ he wrote, ‘one

他寫道："基督教從未教導人們必須敬佩他的鄰居，"他說，"一個人

shall simply love him.’

將僅僅愛他'。

Kierkegaard detects an appalling snobbishness in Romantic love.

克爾凱郭爾在浪漫主義愛情中發現了一種令人震驚的勢利眼。

People who otherwise pride themselves on their lack of prejudice will apply terrifyingly

那些原本以沒有偏見為榮的人，會以可怕的方式運用

strict criteria to their choice of partner: they want someone with just a certain sort

他們對伴侶的選擇有嚴格的標準：他們希望對方具有某種

of face or income or sense of humour.

臉、收入或幽默感。

They think of themselves as kind and tolerant but when it comes to love, they have all the

他們認為自己是善良和寬容的，但當涉及到愛情時，他們有所有的

broad-mindedness of a believer in ‘a caste system whereby men are inhumanly separated

一個信仰 "種姓制度的人被非人道地分開 "的人的寬廣胸懷

through the distinctions of earthly life.’

通過世俗生活的區別'。

Kierkegaard adds: ‘Christians don’t only love the poor; they love everyone.

克爾凱郭爾還說：'基督徒不僅愛窮人，他們還愛所有人。

The rich, the corrupt, the powerful: “He who in truth loves his neighbour loves also

富有的人、腐敗的人、有權勢的人："真正愛鄰人的人也愛

his enemy…”

他的敵人......"

Love is the fulfilment of a law…’

愛是一種法律的實現......'

Kierkegaard talks about Christ’s love for his disciple Peter, who repeatedly lets him

克爾凱郭爾談到了基督對他的門徒彼得的愛，他一再讓他

down: ‘Christ did not say: “Peter must change first and become another man before

下。'基督並沒有說："彼得必須先改變，在成為另一個人之前

I can love him again.”

我可以再次愛他。"

No, just the opposite, he said: “Peter is Peter, and I love him; love if anything will

不，正好相反，他說。"彼得就是彼得，我愛他；愛如果有什麼能

help him to become another man.”’

幫助他成為另一個人。"'

So, in imitation of Christ, we should love people especially if they are hateful: doing

是以，為了效法基督，我們應該愛別人，特別是在他們可憎的時候：做

something hateful does not disqualify anyone from love, in fact it makes them all the more

仇恨的東西並不會使任何人失去愛的資格，事實上，它使他們更加

deserving of it.

應得的。

‘We speak continually about perfection and the perfect person.

'我們不斷地談論完美和完美的人。

But Christianity […] speaks about being the perfect person who limitlessly loves the

但基督教[......]講的是做一個完美的人，無限地愛。

person he sees […] with all his imperfections and weaknesses.’

他看到的人[......]的所有不完美和弱點。

Ultimately, Kierkegaard wants us to do something that sounds both utterly odd and yet entirely

歸根結底，克爾凱郭爾希望我們做一些聽起來非常奇怪，但又完全是

kind: ‘To be a Christian means to be the imitator of Christ […] and to be an imitator

樣："成為一名基督徒意味著模仿基督[......]，成為一名模仿者

means that your life has as much similarity to his as it is possible to human life to

意味著你的生活與他的生活有儘可能多的相似之處，因為人類的生活有可能是這樣的。

have.’

有'。

Danish readers of the 1840s who came across Kierkegaard’s writings on love must have

19世紀40年代的丹麥讀者在看到克爾凱郭爾關於愛情的著作時，一定是

been as surprised as we are on what this philosopher had to say on the subject — because his

我們對這位哲學家在這個問題上的說法感到驚訝--因為他的

perspective is so different from that we ordinarily operate with.

觀點與我們通常的操作是如此不同。

But however arduous his message to us may be, we can see how relevant it remains.

但是，無論他給我們的資訊多麼艱鉅，我們都可以看到它是多麼相關。

We too so often get stuck on the idea that we have not found ‘the one’ and on that

我們也經常陷入這樣的想法，即我們還沒有找到 "那個人"，並且在這個問題上

basis refuse to love anyone; we too judge and moralise rather than forgive and lend

拒絕愛任何人；我們也判斷和道德化，而不是原諒和借出。

sympathy.

同情。

We may still be at the dawn of understanding what true love really offers, and requires

我們可能仍然處於瞭解真愛真正提供的曙光之中，並且需要

of, us.

的，我們。