And I like to immerse myself in my topics.

我喜歡完全投入我的研究題目。

I just like to dive right in and become sort of a human guinea pig.

我直接切入題目中，以自己為白老鼠。

And I see my life as a series of experiments.

我的生活像是一系列的實驗。

So, I work for Esquire magazine, and a couple of years ago,

幾年前我為Esquire(風尚)雜誌工作。

I wrote an article called "My Outsourced Life,"

我寫了一篇文章叫做"我的外包生活"

where I hired a team of people in Bangalore, India,

我雇用了在印度班加羅爾的一個團隊,

to live my life for me.

來過我的生活。

So, they answered my emails.

所以他們幫我回電子郵件。

They answered my phone.

他們幫我聽電話。

They argued with my wife for me, and they read my son bedtime stories.

他們為我和我的老婆吵嘴，且幫我替兒子讀床邊故事。

It was the best month of my life,

這是我生活中最美好的一個月,

because I just sat back and I read books and watched movies.

因為我只要放輕鬆，看書或看電影。

It was a wonderful experience.

這是一個很棒的經驗。

More recently, I wrote an article for Esquire called --

到最近我為 Esquire 雜誌寫了一篇文章叫做--

about radical honesty.

關於絕對誠實。

And this is a movement where --

這是個風潮--

this is started by a psychologist in Virginia,

由一位維吉尼亞的心理學家開始的,

who says that you should never, ever lie,

他說人應該絕不能說謊,

except maybe during poker and golf, his only exceptions.

除非在打牌或是高爾夫球中例外。

And, more than that, whatever is on your brain

並且甚至，當任何事情出現在你的腦中

should come out of your mouth.

應該大聲說出來。

So, I decided I would try this for a month.

我決定要來試試看這種方式生活一個月。

This was the worst month of my life.

這是我一生命中最糟的一個月。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

I do not recommend this at all.

我完全不建議這樣做。

To give you a sense of the experience,

我這樣講你就瞭解了，

the article was called, "I Think You're Fat."

這篇文章叫《我覺得你很胖》

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

So, that was hard.

所以這是很困難的。

My most recent book -- my previous book was called "The Know-It-All,"

我最近期的一本書--我的前一本書叫做《全部都知道》

and it was about the year I spent reading the Encyclopedia Britannica

這是我花了一年的時間閱讀大英百科全書

from A to Z in my quest to learn everything in the world,

從A到Z想要學習世界上的一切事物,

or more precisely from Aak, which is a type of East Asian music,

或更精確的說從 "雅樂"(A-ak)一種東亞的音樂,

all the way to Zwyiec, which is -- well, I don't want to ruin the ending.

到最後一條"日維茨"(Zywiec)這是--我不想搞砸了演講的結尾。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

It's a very exciting twist ending, like an O. Henry novel, so I won't ruin it.

能夠在結尾做轉折是令人興奮的,像是O. Henry的小說,所以我不想搞砸它。

But I love that one,

但我喜歡這想法

because that was an experiment about how much information

因為那是一個關於人腦能吸收多少資訊

one human brain could absorb.

的實驗,

Although, listening to Kevin Kelly, you don't have to remember anything.

雖然,根據Kevin Kelly的說法,你只要能夠在Google查到它

You can just Google it.

就不需要記得這件事了。

So, I wasted some time there.

所以我浪費了點時間在這。

I love those experiments,

我喜歡那些實驗,

but I think that the most profound

但是我覺得最奧妙

and life-changing experiment that I've done

且改變生命的實驗是

is my most recent experiment, where I spent a year

我最近剛完成的實驗,我花了一年的時間

trying to follow all of the rules of the Bible,

嘗試按照聖經上指導的原則生活--

"The Year of Living Biblically."

《依照聖經指導原則生活的一年》

And I undertook this for two reasons.

並且我想這樣做有兩個原因。

The first was that I grew up with no religion at all.

第一我成長在一個完全沒有宗教的環境。

As I say in my book, I'm Jewish in the same way

並且如同我書上所說, 說我是個猶太人

the Olive Garden is Italian.

就像《橄欖花園》美式義大利餐廳)被當成義大利餐廳，一樣離譜

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

So, not very.

所以,當然不是這樣。

But I've become increasingly interested in religion.

但是我已經對宗教越來越有興趣。

I do think it's the defining issue of our time,

我認為, 在我們的生活中, 這是一個明確的議題,

or one of the main ones.

或者說是主要的議題之一。

And I have a son. I want to know what to teach him.

而且我有一個兒子。我想要知道拿什麼去教他。

So, I decided to dive in head first, and try to live the Bible.

所以我決定投入其中，並且嘗試依照聖經而活。

The second reason I undertook this is because

第二個原因我決定這樣做，是因為

I'm concerned about the rise of fundamentalism,

我對基督教基本教義的興起有興趣,

religious fundamentalism, and people who say

很多人聲稱

they take the Bible literally, which is, according to some polls,

他們完全依照聖經。根據調查

as high as 45 or 50 percent of America.

有百分之45或50的美國人，按著聖經的教導過生活。

So I decided, what if you really did take the Bible literally?

所以我決定看看，真正依照聖經教導行事會怎樣?

I decided to take it to its logical conclusion

我決定接受它和它的邏輯上的推論

and take everything in the Bible literally,

接受一切聖經上字面的說法,

without picking and choosing.

不去挑選。

The first thing I did was I got a stack of bibles.

首先，我找到一堆聖經。

I had Christian bibles.

我有基督教聖經。

I had Jewish bibles.

我有猶太教聖經。

A friend of mine sent me something called a hip-hop bible,

我的一個朋友送我一本叫做「嘻哈聖經」,

where the twenty-third Psalm is rendered as, "The Lord is all that,"

其中詩篇第23中所稱「神是一切」

as opposed to what I knew it as, "The Lord is my shepherd."

相對的，就我所知應該是「神是我的牧者」

Then I went down and I read several versions,

然後我閱讀了幾個版本,

and I wrote down every single law that I could find.

並且我寫下每一我能找到的律法。

And this was a very long list -- over 700 rules.

這是一個很長的清單--超過700條律法。

And they range from the famous ones that I had heard of --

並且這些包含一些有名的律法一些我曾經聽過的--

The Ten Commandments, love your neighbor, be fruitful and multiply.

《十戒》、「愛你的鄰人」、「多結果子和生養眾多」。

So I wanted to follow those.

所以我要遵循這些。

And actually, I take my projects very seriously,

我很認真執行這個計畫

because I had twins during my year,

因為這年，我生了雙胞胎,

so I definitely take my projects seriously.

所以我確實認真的執行這計劃。

But I also wanted to follow the hundreds

但是我想按照

of arcane and obscure laws that are in the Bible.

這上百條在聖經中神秘且晦澀的律法。

There is the law in Leviticus,

這些是在利未記中的律法--

"You cannot shave the corners of your beard."

「鬍鬚的周圍不可損壞。」

I didn't know where my corners were,

我不知道哪裡是我的周圍,

so I decided to let the whole thing grow,

所以我決定留鬍鬚,

and this is what I looked like by the end.

這是我最後看起來的樣子。

As you can imagine, I spent a lot of time at airport security.

你可想而知,我花了很長的時間在機場安檢部門。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

My wife wouldn't kiss me for the last two months.

最後的二個月，我太太不肯親我。

So, certainly the challenge was there.

所以,當然這是一項挑戰。

The Bible says you cannot wear clothes made of mixed fibers,

聖經上說，不能穿混合纖維的衣物。

so I thought, "Sounds strange, but I'll try it."

所以我想："這聽起來很奇怪，但是我要試試看。"

You only know if you try it.

你只知道如果你嘗試它。

I got rid of all my poly-cotton T-shirts.

我處理掉所有混棉的T恤。

The Bible says that if two men are in a fight,

聖經上說，如果有兩個男人在打架,

and the wife of one of those men grabs the testicles of the other man,

且其中一個男人的太太抓另一個男人睪丸,

then her hand shall be cut off.

那麼她的手就要砍斷。

So, I wanted to follow that rule.

所以,我想要遵循這個律法。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

That one I followed by default,

我遵循這律法的方式就是 --

by not getting in a fight with a man whose wife was standing nearby,

不要和人打架，如果他的太太就站在附近的話,

looking like she had a strong grip.

且她看起來有很強的抓力。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

So -- oh, there's another shot of my beard.

所以--喔,這是另一張我鬍子的照片。

I will say it was an amazing year

我會說這是驚奇的一年。

because it really was life changing, and incredibly challenging.

因為這真正是生活的改變，且是難以想像的挑戰。

And there were two types of laws that were particularly challenging.

並且還有兩種律法，特別挑戰。

The first was avoiding the little sins that we all commit every day.

第一是避免一些我們每天都會犯的小錯。

You know, I could spend a year not killing,

我能夠一整年不殺生,

but spending a year not gossiping, not coveting, not lying --

但是一整年不說閒話,不貪心,不說謊--

you know, I live in New York, and I work as a journalist,

我生活在紐約，而且我是一個記者,

so this was 75, 80 percent of my day I had to do it.

所以我的生活中有75至80%，要做這些。

But it was really interesting, because I was able to make some progress,

但是這是很有趣的，因為我能夠做一些改善

because I couldn't believe how much

因為我不相信

my behavior changed my thoughts.

我的行為能改變多少我的想法。

This was one of the huge lessons of the year,

這是這一年，我學到的重大學習之一

is that I almost pretended to be a better person,

我幾乎假裝成一個比較好的人,

and I became a little bit of a better person.

且我真的有一點點變好。

So I had always thought, you know, "You change your mind,

以前，我總是認為,"你改變了內心,

and you change your behavior," but it's often the other way around.

然後行為才會改變",但是我發現，經常是相反的。

You change your behavior, and you change your mind.

當你改變行為,然後你改變了你的內心。

So, you know, if you want to become more compassionate,

所以,你知道的,如果你想要變得更有同情心,

you visit sick people in the hospital,

你去醫院探望生病的人,

and you will become more compassionate.

然後你會變得比較慈善。

You donate money to a cause,

為某件事捐錢,

and you become emotionally involved in that cause.

然後你就放感情在那件事裡面，

So, it really was cognitive psychology --

所以,這是認知心裡學 --

you know, cognitive dissonance -- that I was experiencing.

認知的不一致--這是我經歷的。

The Bible actually talks about cognitive psychology,

聖經實際上是關於認知心裡學,

very primitive cognitive psychology.

非常基礎的認知心裡學。

In the Proverbs, it says that if you smile, you will become happier,

箴言 這樣說,如果你微笑,你會變得比較快樂,

which, as we know, is actually true.

就像我們知道的一樣,這是真的。

The second type of rule that was difficult to obey

第二種非常難去遵循的律法是

was the rules that will get you into a little trouble

這些律法會讓我們遇到小麻煩

in twenty-first-century America.

在21世紀的美國。

And perhaps the clearest example of this is stoning adulterers.

一個明顯的例子是：拿石頭打通姦的人。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

But it's a big part of the Bible,

但是，這是聖經的很大一部份,

so I figured I had to address it.

所以我認為我必需行出來。

So, I was able to stone one adulterer.

所以,我真的拿石頭打了一個通姦者。

It happened -- I was in the park, and I was dressed in my biblical clothing,

它發生了--我當時在公園而且我穿著我聖經式的裝扮--

so sandals and sort of a white robe,

涼鞋和白長袍 --

you know, because again, the outer affects the inner.

你知道,因為剛剛所說,外在影響內心。

I wanted to see how dressing biblically affected my mind.

我想了解聖經式的裝扮，如何影響我的內心。

And this man came up to me and he said,

然後這個男人過來找我並說,

"Why are you dressed like that?"

"你為什麼要穿成這樣?"

And I explained my project,

然後我解釋我的這個計畫,

and he said, "Well, I am an adulterer, are you going to stone me?"

然後他說："喔,我是一個姦夫,你打算拿石頭打我嗎?"

And I said, "Well, that would be great!"

然後我說："哇! 這很棒喔!"

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

And I actually took out a handful of stones from my pocket

然後我從口袋中拿出滿手的石頭

that I had been carrying around for weeks,

那是我已經帶著這些石頭幾個禮拜了,

hoping for just this interaction -- and, you know, they were pebbles --

期待這種情況發生-- 然後,你知道的,這些是小卵石--

but he grabbed them out of my hand.

但是那個男人把石頭從我手中奪走。

He was actually an elderly man, mid-70s, just so you know.

他其實是一個年長者,七十多歲

But he's still an adulterer, and still quite angry.

但是他仍然是姦夫，而且看起來很生氣。

He grabbed them out of my hand

他把石頭從我手上奪走

and threw them at my face, and I felt that I could --

並且往我臉上丟,然後我感到我能--

eye for an eye -- I could retaliate, and throw one back at him.

"以眼還眼",我能報復,我就往他後背丟一個。

So that was my experience stoning, and it did allow me

所以這就是我的丟石頭經驗。

to talk about, in a more serious way, these big issues.

這讓我更能嚴肅的談論這些重要議題，如：

How can the Bible be so barbaric in some places,

為何聖經在某些部分這麼的野蠻?

and yet so incredibly wise in others?

且又在其他部分又難以置信的有智慧?

How should we view the Bible?

我們該如何看待聖經?

Should we view it, you know, as original intent,

我們應該看待它,你知道的,就當成它的本意,

like a sort of a Scalia version of the Bible?

像是一種Scalia(美國大法官)版本的聖經?

How was the Bible written?

聖經是如何寫成?

And actually, since this is a tech crowd,

然而,既然這是一個技術集會,

I talk in the book about how the Bible actually reminds me

讓我想這麼說

of the Wikipedia, because it has all of these authors and editors

聖經讓我想起維基百科,因為它是由許多人編輯、撰寫而成的

over hundreds of years.

並橫跨數百年之久。

And it's sort of evolved.

撰寫聖經可以說是一種演進過程，

It's not a book that was written and came down from on high.

而不是一本從天上掉下來、已經寫好的書。

So I thought I would end by telling you

所以我想在結尾告訴你們

just a couple of the take-aways, the bigger lessons

只是幾個像可外帶，且比較大的學習

that I learned from my year.

從我這一年學來的

The first is, thou shalt not take the Bible literally.

第一個是--諸位切莫逐字的理解聖經。

This became very, very clear, early on.

這是一開始就很清楚的。

Because if you do, then you end up acting like a crazy person,

因為如果你這樣做你最終會像個瘋子,

and stoning adulterers, or -- here's another example.

拿石頭丟姦夫,或者--這裡有一另個例子--

Well, that's another. I did spend some time shepherding.

好的,這是另一個--我花了很多時間牧羊。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

It's a very relaxing vocation. I recommend it.

這是一個很令人輕鬆的職業。我很推薦。

But this one is -- the Bible says that you cannot touch women

但這一個是,聖經告訴我們不能碰女人

during certain times of the month, and more than that,

在每個月的某些時間，更甚者--

you cannot sit on a seat where a menstruating woman has sat.

你不能坐在經期婦女曾做過的椅子。

And my wife thought this was very offensive,

我太太覺得這很侮辱女人,

so she sat in every seat in our apartment,

所以她把我們家裡的每一個椅子都做了一遍,

and I had to spend much of the year standing

所以我必須在這一年大部分時間都站著

until I bought my own seat and carried it around.

直到我買了一張自己的椅子並且隨身攜帶。

So, you know, I met with creationists.

所以,你知道的,我遇到一個相信創世紀的人(反對進化論的人)。

I went to the creationists' museum.

我去了關於創世紀的博物館。

And these are the ultimate literalists.

他們是最會咬文嚼字的人。

And it was fascinating, because they were not stupid people at all.

然而這很有趣，因為他們並不是笨蛋。

I would wager that their IQ is exactly the same as the average evolutionist.

我敢打賭他們的智商，完全跟相信進化論的人一樣。

It's just that their faith is so strong

只是他們有著很強的信仰

in this literal interpretation of the Bible

執著於聖經上的字面解釋

that they distort all the data to fit their model.

所以扭曲事實資料，來符合他們的理論。

And they go through these amazing mental gymnastics to accomplish this.

然後他們經由神奇的心理訓練來達成。

And I will say, though, the museum is gorgeous.

然而我要說的是,這博物館相當華麗。

They really did a fantastic job.

他們真的完成了一個很棒的工作。

If you're ever in Kentucky,

如果你曾經去過美國肯塔基州,

there's, you can see a movie of the flood,

就是這--你會看到一個關於大洪水的電影,

and they have sprinklers in the ceiling

他們在天花板上裝灑水器

that will sprinkle on you during the flood scenes.

當播放到洪水畫面時，你就會被噴到水。

So, whatever you think of creationism -- and I think it's crazy --

所以,不管你對創世紀論者看法怎樣 (我是覺得這蠻瘋狂)

they did a great job.

他們做了一個很出色的工作。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

Another lesson is that thou shalt give thanks.

另一個教訓是：諸位應當心存感恩。

And this one was a big lesson because I was praying,

這是一個很重要的教誨，因為我禱告,

giving these prayers of thanksgiving, which was odd for an agnostic.

獻上感謝,這對於不可知論者來說 很怪。

But I was saying thanks all the time, every day,

但是我嘴上常掛著感謝,無論何時,

and I started to change my perspective.

然而我開始改變我的看法,

And I started to realize the hundreds of little things

而且開始了解數以百計的小事情

that go right every day, that I didn't even notice,

那些順遂的事,那些我不曾注意到的小事。

that I took for granted, as opposed to focusing

那些被當作裡所當然的--而不是

on the three or four that went wrong.

去注意那些出錯的三四件事情。

So, this is actually a key to happiness for me,

所以,這是幸福的秘訣,對我來說,

is to just remember when I came over here,

只要提醒自己：當我來這裡的時候

the car didn't flip over, and I didn't trip coming up the stairs.

車子沒有翻覆,我沒被階梯絆倒。

It's a remarkable thing.

這是件很棒的事。

Third, that thou shall have reverence.

第三,諸位應心存尊敬。

This one was unexpected because I started the year

這事件意外的體會。因為我剛開始

as an agnostic, and by the end of the year,

是一個不可知論者，但是到這一年結束時