精美英文欣赏:珍爱生命,远离毒品

Some of the parents I know with teenage children who use cannabis are fairly relaxed about what's happening.

在我认识的父母中，有些并不在意孩子吸食大麻。

"It isn't doing any harm", one tells me, "Alcohol's much worse."

“这又没什么害处，”其中一人跟我说，“酒精比这可怕多了。”

Others would really like their children to stop but are at their wits end.

有的父母想阻止孩子却无计可施。

"It's OK", they say, "but not in the house, not on weekdays, or only after you've done your homework."

“没问题，”他们说，“但不要在房间里抽”，“不要在工作日抽”，或者，“把作业做完才行”。

I don't envy them and no doubt the scientific study reported this week will fuel their worries.

我并不羡慕他们，而且本周公布的科研报告无疑会加重他们的担心。

It finds that, true to the stoner stereotype¹, cannabis users have problems with memory, attention and processing information.

报告表明，吸食大麻的人和所有瘾君子一样，会记忆力衰退，注意力无法集中，处理信息的能力下降。

Most worryingly, the IQs of people who start using cannabis before 18 drop by an average 8%, and the damage persists even if they later stop.

更令人担忧的是，未满18岁就开始吸食大麻会使智商平均下降8%，就算之后不再吸食，其造成的危害仍将继续。

Cannabis users I know usually want to chill out, escape stress and access a state of mellow² relaxation³.

我认识的人里，有人抽大麻是想借此放松，逃避压力，沉浸在半梦半醒的状态中。

Some say it's natural, a herb, not a drug, an alternative to harried⁴ modern living.

有人认为像这样不用药物，而靠药草在忙碌现代生活中偷得片刻清闲是正常可取的方式。

In fact, some believe, it's rather like meditation⁵.

还有人觉得这相当于冥想。

However, Buddhism⁶ has five main ethical⁷ precepts⁹ and the last is abstaining¹⁰ from intoxicants.

可是，佛教的五大戒律中最后一个即为饮酒戒。

This isn't a rigorous prohibition¹¹, and Buddhists¹³ aren't always strictly¹⁴ teetotal or drug-free.

这并非是什么严格的戒律，佛教徒也并非始终滴酒不沾，不吸食毒品，

It's a principle of training, as we say, that encourages people to avoid drink and drugs because they cloud the mind and cause heedlessness.

这是一个信条，鼓励人们不要喝酒、吸毒，因为它们会麻痹神经，使人精神恍惚。

The positive counterpart of the precept⁸ is the practice of mindfulness,

另一个和此类似的理念也对我们十分有益，即正念。

the capacity to be fully¹⁵ present and attentive¹⁶ to whatever's happening in our experience.

它要求我们有意识地觉察自己正在经历的事情。

In other words, Buddhism posits¹⁷ a choice in our mental lives

换句话说，佛教让我们在精神上做出选择，

between avoiding what's happening if it's difficult or troubling, and acknowledging or even accepting it.

是避开困难麻烦的事情，还是承认并接受它。

People who use drugs to circumvent¹⁸ serious emotional difficulties are choosing avoidance,

选择用药物来回避烦恼的人就是在选择逃避，

and the work of therapists is helping¹⁹ them to find alternatives to escaping their problems.

精神治疗就是在帮助他们找到回避问题的其它方法。

But the Buddhist¹² perspective is also relevant to those for whom smoking cannabis is just an enjoyable way to relax and be with friends.

但是佛家思想对那些为了和朋友们寻欢作乐而抽大麻的人同样有效。

This has become increasingly acceptable because it seems harmless.

吸食大麻由于危害性小，已被越来越多人接受。

However, the new research suggests that, in the case of teenage cannabis use, that's far from the truth.

然而，最新研究表明，对青少年而言，这样的观念并不正确。

If the research withstands scrutiny²⁰, laissez faire attitudes will have to change.

如果此研究能通过严格验证，人们则必须改变自己放任的态度。

But alongside physiological²¹ dangers are the emotional and psychological effects of drug use.

吸毒不仅仅危害人们的生理健康，还危害人们的心理健康。

The fundamental choice we all face

我们最终要面临一项选择：

is whether to inhabit a haze²² filled by dope smoke or some other form of sedative²³, intoxicant, entertainment or distraction²⁴,

是被毒品、镇静剂、酒精和各项娱乐包围，

or to engage with our lives wholeheartedly, with all their frustrations²⁵ and all their beauty.

还是坦然面对所有快乐和忧愁，用心生活。

1 stereotype   

n.固定的形象，陈规，老套，旧框框

参考例句：

• He's my stereotype of a schoolteacher.他是我心目中的典型教师。
• There's always been a stereotype about successful businessmen.人们对于成功商人一直都有一种固定印象。

2 mellow   

adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟

参考例句：

• These apples are mellow at this time of year.每年这时节，苹果就熟透了。
• The colours become mellow as the sun went down.当太阳落山时，色彩变得柔和了。

3 relaxation   

n.松弛，放松；休息；消遣；娱乐

参考例句：

• The minister has consistently opposed any relaxation in the law.部长一向反对法律上的任何放宽。
• She listens to classical music for relaxation.她听古典音乐放松。

4 harried   

v.使苦恼( harry的过去式和过去分词 )；不断烦扰；一再袭击；侵扰

参考例句：

• She has been harried by the press all week. 整个星期她都受到新闻界的不断烦扰。
• The soldiers harried the enemy out of the country. 士兵们不断作骚扰性的攻击直至把敌人赶出国境为止。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

6 Buddhism   

n.佛教（教义）

参考例句：

• Buddhism was introduced into China about 67 AD.佛教是在公元67年左右传入中国的。
• Many people willingly converted to Buddhism.很多人情愿皈依佛教。

7 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

8 precept   

n.戒律；格言

参考例句：

• It occurs to me that example is always more efficacious than precept.我想到身教重于言教。
• The son had well profited by the precept and example of the father.老太爷的言传身教早已使他儿子获益无穷。

9 precepts   

n.规诫，戒律，箴言( precept的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They accept the Prophet's precepts but reject some of his strictures. 他们接受先知的教训，但拒绝他的种种约束。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The legal philosopher's concern is to ascertain the true nature of all the precepts and norms. 法哲学家的兴趣在于探寻所有规范和准则的性质。 来自辞典例句

10 abstaining   

戒（尤指酒），戒除( abstain的现在分词 )； 弃权（不投票）

参考例句：

• Abstaining from killing, from taking what is not given, & from illicIt'sex. 诸比丘！远离杀生，远离不与取，于爱欲远离邪行。
• Abstaining from arguments was also linked to an unusual daily cortisol pattern. 压抑争吵也造成每日异常的皮质醇波动。

11 prohibition   

n.禁止；禁令，禁律

参考例句：

• The prohibition against drunken driving will save many lives.禁止酒后开车将会减少许多死亡事故。
• They voted in favour of the prohibition of smoking in public areas.他们投票赞成禁止在公共场所吸烟。

12 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

13 Buddhists   

n.佛教徒( Buddhist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Jesuits in a phase of ascendancy, persecuted and insulted the Buddhists with great acrimony. 处于地位上升阶段的耶稣会修士迫害佛教徒，用尖刻的语言辱骂他们。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The return of Saivite rule to central Java had brought no antagonism between Buddhists and Hindus. 湿婆教在中爪哇恢复统治后，并没有导致佛教徒与印度教徒之间的对立。 来自辞典例句

14 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

15 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

16 attentive   

adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的

参考例句：

• She was very attentive to her guests.她对客人招待得十分周到。
• The speaker likes to have an attentive audience.演讲者喜欢注意力集中的听众。

17 posits   

v.假定，设想，假设( posit的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• If a book is hard going, it ought to be good. If it posits a complex moral situation, it ought to be even better. 如果一本书很难读，那么它应该是一本好书；如果它提出了一个复杂的道德状况，那么它就更应该是本好书了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ray posits that this miracle is an object lesson for the disciples. 雷把这个奇事当作教训信徒们的事件。 来自互联网

18 circumvent   

vt.环绕，包围；对…用计取胜，智胜

参考例句：

• Military planners tried to circumvent the treaty.军事策略家们企图绕开这一条约。
• Any action I took to circumvent his scheme was justified.我为斗赢他的如意算盘而采取的任何行动都是正当的。

19 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

20 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

21 physiological   

adj.生理学的，生理学上的

参考例句：

• He bought a physiological book.他买了一本生理学方面的书。
• Every individual has a physiological requirement for each nutrient.每个人对每种营养成分都有一种生理上的需要。

22 haze   

n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊

参考例句：

• I couldn't see her through the haze of smoke.在烟雾弥漫中，我看不见她。
• He often lives in a haze of whisky.他常常是在威士忌的懵懂醉意中度过的。

23 sedative   

adj.使安静的，使镇静的；n. 镇静剂，能使安静的东西

参考例句：

• After taking a sedative she was able to get to sleep.服用了镇静剂后，她能够入睡了。
• Amber bath oil has a sedative effect.琥珀沐浴油有镇静安神效用。

24 distraction   

n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。
• Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。

25 frustrations   

挫折( frustration的名词复数 )； 失败； 挫败； 失意

参考例句：

• The temptation would grow to take out our frustrations on Saigon. 由于我们遭到挫折而要同西贡算帐的引诱力会增加。
• Aspirations will be raised, but so will frustrations. 人们会产生种种憧憬，但是种种挫折也会随之而来。