第十三回 · 長老辭葷 The Monk Who Eats No Meat — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

長老辭葷 The Monk Who Eats No Meat

說shuō話huà間jiān，不bù覺jué的de天tiān色sè將jiāng晚wǎn。小xiǎo的de們men排pái開kāi桌zhuō凳dèng，拿ná幾jǐ盤pán爛làn熟shú虎hǔ肉ròu，熱rè騰téng騰téng的de放fàng在zài上shàng面miàn。伯bó欽qīn請qǐng三sān藏zàng權quán用yòng，再zài另lìng辦bàn飯fàn。三sān藏zàng合hé掌zhǎng當dāng胸xiōng道dào：「善shàn哉zāi！貧pín僧sēng不bù瞞mán太tài保bǎo說shuō，自zì出chū娘niáng胎tāi，就jiù做zuò和hé尚shàng，更gèng不bù曉xiǎo得dé吃chī葷hūn。」伯bó欽qīn聞wén得dé此cǐ說shuō，沉chén吟yín了le半bàn晌shǎng道dào：「長zhǎng老lǎo，寒hán家jiā歷lì代dài以yǐ來lái，不bù曉xiǎo得dé吃chī素sù。就jiù是shì有yǒu些xiē竹zhú筍sǔn，採cǎi些xiē木mù耳ěr，尋xún些xiē乾gān菜cài，做zuò些xiē豆dòu腐fu，也yě都dōu是shì獐zhāng鹿lù虎hǔ豹bào的de油yóu煎jiān，卻què無wú甚shèn素sù處chù。有yǒu兩liǎng眼yǎn鍋guō灶zào，也yě都dōu是shì油yóu膩nì透tòu了le。這zhè等děng奈nài何hé？反fǎn是shì我wǒ請qǐng長zhǎng老lǎo的de不bú是shì。」三sān藏zàng道dào：「太tài保bǎo不bú必bì多duō心xīn，請qǐng自zì受shòu用yòng。我wǒ貧pín僧sēng就jiù是shì三sān五wǔ日rì不bù吃chī飯fàn，也yě可kě忍rěn餓è，只zhǐ是shì不bù敢gǎn破pò了le齋zhāi戒jiè。」伯bó欽qīn道dào：「倘tǎng或huò餓è死sǐ，卻què如rú之zhī何hé？」三sān藏zàng道dào：「感gǎn得de太tài保bǎo天tiān恩ēn，搭dā救jiù出chū虎hǔ狼láng叢cóng裡lǐ，就jiù是shì餓è死sǐ，也yě強qiáng如rú喂wèi虎hǔ。」说shuō话huà间jiān，不bù觉jué的de天tiān色sè将jiāng晚wǎn。小xiǎo的de们men排pái开kāi桌zhuō凳dèng，拿ná几jǐ盘pán烂làn熟shú虎hǔ肉ròu，热rè腾téng腾téng的de放fàng在zài上shàng面miàn。伯bó钦qīn请qǐng三sān藏zàng权quán用yòng，再zài另lìng办bàn饭fàn。三sān藏zàng合hé掌zhǎng当dāng胸xiōng道dào：「善shàn哉zāi！贫pín僧sēng不bù瞒mán太tài保bǎo说shuō，自zì出chū娘niáng胎tāi，就jiù做zuò和hé尚shàng，更gèng不bù晓xiǎo得dé吃chī荤hūn。」伯bó钦qīn闻wén得dé此cǐ说shuō，沉chén吟yín了le半bàn晌shǎng道dào：「长zhǎng老lǎo，寒hán家jiā历lì代dài以yǐ来lái，不bù晓xiǎo得dé吃chī素sù。就jiù是shì有yǒu些xiē竹zhú笋sǔn，采cǎi些xiē木mù耳ěr，寻xún些xiē干gān菜cài，做zuò些xiē豆dòu腐fu，也yě都dōu是shì獐zhāng鹿lù虎hǔ豹bào的de油yóu煎jiān，却què无wú甚shèn素sù处chù。有yǒu两liǎng眼yǎn锅guō灶zào，也yě都dōu是shì油yóu腻nì透tòu了le。这zhè等děng奈nài何hé？反fǎn是shì我wǒ请qǐng长zhǎng老lǎo的de不bú是shì。」三sān藏zàng道dào：「太tài保bǎo不bú必bì多duō心xīn，请qǐng自zì受shòu用yòng。我wǒ贫pín僧sēng就jiù是shì三sān五wǔ日rì不bù吃chī饭fàn，也yě可kě忍rěn饿è，只zhǐ是shì不bù敢gǎn破pò了le斋zhāi戒jiè。」伯bó钦qīn道dào：「倘tǎng或huò饿è死sǐ，却què如rú之zhī何hé？」三sān藏zàng道dào：「感gǎn得de太tài保bǎo天tiān恩ēn，搭dā救jiù出chū虎hǔ狼láng丛cóng里lǐ，就jiù是shì饿è死sǐ，也yě强qiáng如rú喂wèi虎hǔ。」

逐句解 Line by line

As they were talking, evening came on before they knew it. The servants set out table and benches and brought several dishes of well-cooked tiger meat, steaming hot, and laid them above. Boqin invited Sanzang to take some for the present, saying he would have other food prepared. Sanzang, pressing his palms together at his breast, said: "Bless you! I will not deceive the Guardian: from the time I left my mother's womb I have been a monk, and have never so much as known how to eat flesh." Hearing this, Boqin pondered a good while and said: "Elder, in my house, for generations back, we have not known how to eat vegetarian fare. We have a little bamboo shoot, and gather some wood-ears, and look out some dried greens, and make a little bean-curd — but they are all fried in the fat of roe and deer, of tiger and leopard, so there is hardly anything vegetarian about them. Even our two cooking-pots and their stoves are soaked through with grease. What is to be done? It turns out I have done wrong in inviting the elder at all."

A problem every host dreads, scaled up to farce. 葷 (hūn) is meat, and also the pungent alliums — garlic, onion, leek — that Buddhist discipline rules out; 素 (sù) is the vegetarian food that is left. Boqin's inventory of his kitchen is the joke: yes, there are bamboo shoots and wood-ear fungus and dried greens and bean-curd, and every one of them is fried in the fat of deer and tiger, and the pots themselves have been soaking up grease for generations. He arrives, honestly, at the conclusion that inviting the monk was his own mistake.

三sān藏zàng道dào：「太tài保bǎo不bú必bì多duō心xīn，請qǐng自zì受shòu用yòng。我wǒ貧pín僧sēng就jiù是shì三sān五wǔ日rì不bù吃chī飯fàn，也yě可kě忍rěn餓è，只zhǐ是shì不bù敢gǎn破pò了le齋zhāi戒jiè。」伯bó欽qīn道dào：「倘tǎng或huò餓è死sǐ，卻què如rú之zhī何hé？」三sān藏zàng道dào：「感gǎn得de太tài保bǎo天tiān恩ēn，搭dā救jiù出chū虎hǔ狼láng叢cóng裡lǐ，就jiù是shì餓è死sǐ，也yě強qiáng如rú喂wèi虎hǔ。」三sān藏zàng道dào：「太tài保bǎo不bú必bì多duō心xīn，请qǐng自zì受shòu用yòng。我wǒ贫pín僧sēng就jiù是shì三sān五wǔ日rì不bù吃chī饭fàn，也yě可kě忍rěn饿è，只zhǐ是shì不bù敢gǎn破pò了le斋zhāi戒jiè。」伯bó钦qīn道dào：「倘tǎng或huò饿è死sǐ，却què如rú之zhī何hé？」三sān藏zàng道dào：「感gǎn得de太tài保bǎo天tiān恩ēn，搭dā救jiù出chū虎hǔ狼láng丛cóng里lǐ，就jiù是shì饿è死sǐ，也yě强qiáng如rú喂wèi虎hǔ。」

Sanzang said: "The Guardian need not trouble himself — pray take your own meal. Even were I this poor monk to go three or five days without eating, I could bear the hunger; only I dare not break my vow of abstinence." Boqin said: "But what if you should starve to death?" Sanzang said: "By the Guardian's Heaven-sent grace I have been saved out of the very thicket of tigers and wolves; and even were I to starve to death, it would be better than being fed to a tiger."

齋戒 (zhāi jiè) is the monastic rule of abstinence, and Xuanzang will not break it to save his life — which he says out loud, and means. The reply is more pointed than it looks: starving, he says, would still beat being fed to a tiger. He watched that happen last night. And the resolve is exactly what the Gold Star's gāthā had asked of him — do not let the hardships turn you against the errand.

總評 Commentary

Gentle comedy, and underneath it a test. The situation is entirely domestic — a vegetarian guest in a house that has never cooked anything but game — and it is worked out with real comic patience: the earnest catalogue of everything in the kitchen, the discovery that even the vegetables are fried in tiger fat, the flustered conclusion that the whole invitation was a blunder.

Against that, Xuanzang's refusal is quiet and absolute. Three days, five days without food; he can bear hunger; he will not break the rule. The comedy suddenly has a floor under it.

And it is of a piece with the portrait the chapter has been building. This is a man with no power to protect himself, carried through every danger by somebody else — and immovable on the one thing that is actually his to hold. The exchange also warms the friendship: each of them is worrying about the other.