體育健身:從瑜伽中汲取投資智慧

When the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a new record this past March, Brent Kessel awoke at 3:30 a.m.

在今年3月份道瓊斯指數觸及紀錄新高的那一天，布倫特•凱塞爾(Brent Kessel)凌晨三點半就醒來了。

But the financial adviser, who co-founded a firm that manages more than $800 million, wasn't up early because he was giddy about the market. He was hopping on a motor scooter in Mysore, India, to stand on one leg with the other leg behind his head and chant in Sanskrit at the school where a branch of modern yoga has its origins.

但這位財務顧問（他是一家財務管理公司的聯合創始人，該公司管理着逾八億美元資產）這麼早醒來並不是因爲市況讓他激動得忘乎所以。凱塞爾當時是在印度邁索爾(Mysore)的一所學校裏（現代瑜伽的一個分支源自這裏），他騎在一輛踏板摩托車上，一條腿站立，另一條腿放在腦後，一邊用梵語吟唱着。

Mr. Kessel, who devoted himself to responding to emails from his clients and colleagues later that day, shrugs off the bull market.

凱塞爾當天晚些時候忙於回覆來自客戶和同事的電子郵件。他沒有理會當日的牛市。

'Everything is impermanent, especially the market's level,' says Mr. Kessel, whose firm is Abacus Wealth Partners in Santa Monica, Calif.

凱塞爾說：“任何東西都是暫時的，尤其是市場價位。”凱塞爾的公司名爲Abacus Wealth Partners，位於加州聖莫尼卡(Santa Monica)。

Spencer Sherman, Abacus's other founder, teaches his clients a breathing technique called 'the Money Breath,' to get through tough financial situations: clients typically inhale for three counts, hold the breath for one count, and exhale for six counts.

Abacus的另一位創始人斯潘塞•舍曼(Spencer Sherman)向客戶傳授一種名爲“理財呼吸法”(the Money Breath)的呼吸技巧，以幫助他們度過財務難關：一般先吸氣，數三下，接着屏住呼吸，數一下，然後再吐氣，數六下。

Non-clients can buy 'the Money and Spirit Workshop' home study course from the duo, available for $66.97 on a website that sells New Age products.

如果不是該公司的客戶，可以從兩人手中購買名爲“金錢和靈魂工作坊”(the Money and Spirit Workshop)的自學課程，該課程在一個出售新時代運動(New Age)相關產品的網站上有售，售價66.96美元。

Some clients come to the firm through its advertisements in Yoga Journal, which in its April 2001 issue featured a bare-chested Mr. Kessel on the cover balancing on his hands with his legs tucked behind his arms in a perfectly executed 'crow' pose.

一些客戶是看了《瑜伽》雜誌(Yoga Journal)上刊登的廣告後找上門來的。《瑜伽》2001年4月號封面上刊登了凱塞爾的照片，他上身裸露，雙手撐地保持平衡，雙腿蜷曲在手臂後面，擺出了一個完美的瑜伽“烏鴉式”。

'I think the very common reaction, even 15 years ago, would have been, 'These guys are California quack jobs,'' says Mr. Kessel. 'But if you actually came in and were a client, you'd find that we're much more disciplined than a lot of the firms out there.'

凱塞爾說：“我覺得人們很常見的反應是（即使在15年前也是一樣），‘這幫傢伙是加州的江湖騙子’。但如果你真正走進我們公司，成爲我們的客戶，你會發現我們比許多公司都要自律得多。”

He is one of a breed of financial advisers who are taking yoga and meditation out of the ashram and putting them into Excel spreadsheets. The values and teachings of these Eastern-inspired traditions, proponents say, impart a special kind of financial wisdom that, among other benefits, allows them to stay calm in crises and make holistic financial plans for clients.

像凱塞爾這樣的財務顧問還有很多，他們把瑜伽和冥想從靜修處帶出來，把它們與Excel電子表格結合在了一起。支持此道的人稱，這些源於東方的傳統所傳達的價值觀和教義賦予他們一種特殊的財務智慧，這種智慧帶來的好處之一是使他們能夠在危機中保持冷靜，爲客戶制訂整體理念的財務規劃。

George Kinder, a certified financial planner and Buddhist teacher who spends his time in Maui, Hawaii, London and Littleton, Mass., is widely considered the guru of this financial 'mindfulness' movement, which has guided financial advisers seeking to add a spiritual element to their practices.

喬治•金德(George Kinder)是一名註冊財務規劃師兼佛學教師，他的身影活躍在毛伊島(Maui)、夏威夷、倫敦和馬薩諸塞州利特爾頓(Littleton)。他被普遍視爲財務“正念”運動領袖。該運動爲尋求在業務實踐中加入心靈元素的財務顧問提供了指導。

Mr. Kinder's 1999 book, 'The Seven Stages of Money Maturity,' applies ancient Buddhist principles known as the Six Perfections, which include patience and generosity, to contemporary money management, among other things. Mr. Kinder later developed 'financial life planner' training, which teaches advisers to focus on the client's life goals and use empathic listening skills when working with them.

金德1999年撰寫的《通往財務成熟的七個階段》(The Seven Stages of Money Maturity)一書將佛教中的“六度”(Six Perfections，其中包括忍辱和佈施)應用到了現代財務管理等領域。金德之後又創立了“財務人生規劃師”培訓，教導財務顧問關注客戶的人生目標，在與客戶溝通時將心比心地傾聽。

The tradition is older than it might appear. The integration of yoga and money is seen in Eastern history, says Mark Singleton, who wrote his Ph.D. thesis at the University of Cambridge on the history of modern yoga.

這一傳統比人們想象的要古老。馬克•辛格爾頓(Mark Singleton)曾在劍橋大學(University of Cambridge)撰寫過關於現代瑜伽史的博士論文，他說，東方歷史上有過瑜伽與金錢的融合。

While many ancient yogis renounced material possessions, others used yoga to gain money and influence. 'They were the power brokers of medieval India because of these powers you can accumulate by doing yoga,' says Mr. Singleton.

儘管古代許多瑜伽修行者棄絕物質財產，但也有一些人用瑜伽謀取金錢和勢力。辛格爾頓說：“他們是印度中世紀的權力掮客，因爲你能夠通過修煉瑜伽來積聚這些權力。”

The number of planners who have gone through at least one of Mr. Kinder's programs, which always include a group meditation, has more than doubled in the past five years to more than 2,000, he says. So far, 307 have obtained the top 'Registered Life Planner' designation, up from about 100 five years ago.

他說，在過去五年裏，至少參加過金德的一個培訓項目（任何項目都有一次集體冥想）的規劃師人數增加了逾一倍，達到2,000人以上。到目前爲止，已有307人獲得頂級的“註冊人生規劃師”稱號，而五年前只有約100人獲得這一稱號。

'People leave our training exhilarated,' says Mr. Kinder. 'That's very similar to a very deep yoga or meditative retreat. You go so deep inside yourself you're sparkling.'

金德說：“人們參加過我們的訓練後會精神振奮，這與完成非常深入的瑜伽或冥想靜修後的感覺非常相似。你會走進自己的內心深處，會精神煥發。”

Messrs. Kessel and Sherman use a Kinder-influenced financial-planning approach at Abacus, and say they buy stocks and bonds based on research instead of 'emotions and hot tips.' They typically prefer passive index funds to actively managed ones, and unlike panicked investors who fled equities during the financial crisis, they say they bought stocks the day the market hit its bottom in 2009, a move the firm attributes to disciplined rebalancing.

凱塞爾和舍曼在Abacus採取的財務規劃方式受到了金德的影響，兩人表示，他們根據研究，而非“情緒和熱門建議”來購買股票和債券。他們一般更喜歡被動型指數基金，而非積極管理型基金。他們也不像恐慌的投資者那樣在金融危機時逃離股市，兩人表示，他們在2009年股市觸底當天買進了股票，該公司將此舉歸因於有序再平衡策略。

Jeff Bogart, like Messrs. Kessel and Sherman a Kinder disciple, launched Yogic Investing, a yoga-inspired branch of his Cleveland-area financial-advisory firm last year. 'George Kinder's stuff is groundbreaking and fascinating. Sometimes it makes me aware if people are stuck in the root chakra with their money issues,' says Mr. Bogart. The root chakra, an energy point located at the base of the spine, is associated with primitive survival needs, he says.

與凱塞爾和舍曼一樣，傑夫•博加特(Jeff Bogart)也是金德的門徒。博加特去年創建了Yogic Investing，這是他位於克利夫蘭(Cleveland)地區的財務顧問公司的分部，是受瑜伽思想啓發而建立的。博加特說：“金德的東西有突破性，令人着迷，有時候能讓我認識到人們在金錢方面是否卡在了海底輪上。”他說，海底輪是位於脊椎底部的能量點，與原始生存需求相關。

Those interested fill out a brief questionnaire online to 'find out if you are a yogic investor!' He presented a workshop on yoga and money at the Finger Lakes Yoga Festival in New York state last summer.

有興趣的人可以在線填寫一份簡短的問卷，以“瞭解你是否是瑜伽型投資者”。去年夏季，博加特在紐約州芬格湖羣瑜伽節(Finger Lakes Yoga Festival)上推出了一個有關瑜伽和理財的工作坊。

Some financial advisers revel in yoga's revelations.

一些財務顧問着迷於瑜伽所帶來的啓示。

While standing on one leg and attempting to lift his other leg perpendicular to the ground, Rick Salmeron, a certified financial planner who is president of Salmeron Financial in Dallas and who practices Bikram yoga, a type of yoga traditionally practiced in 105-degree heat, says, 'I'm thinking of my clients who can't help but be attracted to Apple at $600 a share or oil at $140 a barrel.'

註冊財務規劃師、達拉斯的財務管理公司Salmeron Financial的總裁裏克•薩爾梅龍(Rick Salmeron)練習比克拉姆瑜伽(Bikram)，這種瑜伽傳統上是在105華氏度（約合41攝氏度）的高溫下練習的。他說：“我想到了我那些被600美元一股的蘋果公司(Apple)股票或者140美元一桶的石油吸引的客戶。”說這番話時，他正單腿站立，並嘗試將另一條腿擡起來，與地面垂直。

Mr. Salmeron recently considered holding a Bikram class for his clients, though only a fraction of them are regular yoga practitioners. 'Investing is very emotional. Yoga keeps it all balanced,' he says.

薩爾梅龍最近在考慮爲他的客戶舉辦比克拉姆熱瑜伽訓練班，雖然只有一部分客戶經常練瑜伽。他說：“投資是非常情緒化的，瑜伽能夠讓一切保持平衡。”

He recommends Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Paschimotthanasana, a pose in which he stands with legs spread wide and grabs his feet in an effort to pull his head to the floor. 'It gives my brain a tourniquet effect. It clears out a lot of the dead brain cells,' Mr. Salmeron says.

他建議採取分腿站立伸展式(Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Paschimotthanasana)，這種姿勢是兩腿張開站立，抓住雙腳，努力把頭靠向地面。薩爾梅龍說：“這一姿勢就像頭腦的止血帶。它清除了許多死亡的腦細胞。”

Other advisers try to be discreet about the New Age influence on their work. Nicholas Lee of Worcester, England, who trained with Mr. Kinder, meditates and faithfully uses a notepad with 'Breathe in' printed on top of the pages and 'Breathe out' at the bottom.

還有一些顧問在談到新時代運動對他們工作的影響時持謹慎態度。英國伍斯特(Worcester)的尼古拉斯•李(Nicholas Lee)曾接受過金德的培訓，他做冥想，還一直使用一個頁面頂端印着“吸氣”，底部印着“吐氣”的記事本。

Still, he says, 'you can't put a sign outside your office that says, 'Hello, I'm a financial life planner. I do yoga and meditation.' I'm always a little bit cautious talking about it. You can very quickly appear flaky.'

但他說：“你不能在辦公室門外貼一個標誌，說：‘你好，我是一名財務人生規劃師。我做瑜伽和冥想。’談這方面的事情我一直是比較謹慎的，因爲很容易給人留下不靠譜的印象。”