老子道德经的翻译与佛教自然观的融合

老子道德经，作为中国哲学史上的一部重要著作，其思想深刻影响了中华民族几千年的文化发展。佛教自两汉之际传入中国后，也不断进行了中国化的过程。在这一过程中，佛教自然观与老子道德经中的自然观相互融合，形成了一种独特的人文生态价值体系。

在古代，我国众多先哲如老子、庄周等提出了许多保护自然和生态环境、人与自然和谐共生的思想。以“天人合一”为核心的生态自然观是我国传统哲学体系的精髓，为解决现代社会面临的人与自然关系问题提供了重要的思想原则和方法。“天地与我并生，而万物与我为一”正是这一观念的体现。

佛教传入中国后，在其缘起论、整体论、众生平等以及“无情有性说”等理论基础上，积极吸收了“天人合一”、“万物一体”等思想，大量融进儒、道两家的自然观，形成了中国佛教独特的本土化自然观，即崇尚自然、追求人与自然和谐统一。

魏晋南北朝时期是佛教naturalism萌芽阶段，其主要体现在早期佛经翻译中对中国传统文化中“naturalness”的借用和对老庄玄学“naturalism”的运用。例如，《般若波罗蜜经》将“般若波罗蜜”理解为一种直接而不经过思考的心灵状态；《华严经》、《光赞经》使用“naturalness”来形容诸法实相；《光赞经》及《无量寿經》的各种译本则用此词来形容佛国土中的色身楼阁宫殿微妙不可思议之处。

东晋时期僧肇、竺道生等名僧在其著述中，将利用“naturalness”的概念来阐释佛性。竺道生是最早把这个概念融入到 “Buddha-nature”的内涵中的僧人，他借助于中国传统文化中的 “Naturalness 观念”，解释Buddha-nature：“法即然然，一切诸法莫不皆然，所以法为Buddha-nature也。”这里，“Law,” “Naturalness,” 和 “Buddha-nature three concepts are of the same meaning and significance.

到了唐宋时期禅宗进一步突出并强化了Naturalism. 宗被认为是最典型代表着Buddhism China's most typical school, its Naturalism is a fusion of absorption and deep integration of "Natural" views from Confucian and Daoist philosophies. The Zen sect emphasizes reaching a state in which one dissolves the distinction between oneself and others, achieves unity with all things, through meditation practice. This is the state referred to as "Zen." It also refers to the harmony between people and nature, emphasizing that all living beings have inherent Buddha-natures.

In China, Buddhism has been an active participant in environmental protection since ancient times. Song Dynasty Buddhist monk Daxing planted 10,000 cypress trees around his temple; later generations of monks continued this tradition by planting trees around temples. These actions not only beautified their surroundings but also protected local ecosystems.

Throughout Chinese history, Buddhist temples have always been surrounded by lush forests and fragrant flowers - symbols of harmony between human society and nature. The emphasis on compassion for all living beings in Buddhism has led to efforts to protect animals such as releasing captive animals back into the wild (放生). In Tibet's high-altitude regions where Tibetan Buddhism flourishes, environmental conservation is deeply rooted in religious beliefs promoting eco-friendly practices like sustainable agriculture.

The Four Great Buddhist Mountains - Five-Tai Shan (Wutai Mountain), Emei Mountain (E' mei Shan), Putuo Mountain (P'u t'o Shan) & Lingyin Temple at Hangzhou Bayou area - serve as symbols embodying these values while providing spiritual retreats for practitioners seeking enlightenment amidst natural beauty.