第二十一回 · 變作花腳蚊蟲 A Speckle-Legged Mosquito — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition 含詞賦 With rhapsody

變作花腳蚊蟲 A Speckle-Legged Mosquito

他tā將jiāng身shēn一yí縱zòng，徑jìng到dào他tā門mén首shǒu，門mén尚shàng關guān著zhe睡shuì覺jué。行xíng者zhě不bú叫jiào門mén，且qiě不bù驚jīng動dòng妖yāo怪guài，捻niǎn著zhe訣jué，念niàn個gè咒zhòu語yǔ，搖yáo身shēn一yí變biàn，變biàn做zuò一yí個gè花huā腳jiǎo蚊wén蟲chóng，真zhēn個gè小xiǎo巧qiǎo。有yǒu詩shī為wèi證zhèng。詩shī曰yuē：他tā将jiāng身shēn一yí纵zòng，径jìng到dào他tā门mén首shǒu，门mén尚shàng关guān著zhe睡shuì觉jué。行xíng者zhě不bú叫jiào门mén，且qiě不bù惊jīng动dòng妖yāo怪guài，捻niǎn著zhe诀jué，念niàn个gè咒zhòu语yǔ，摇yáo身shēn一yí变biàn，变biàn做zuò一yí个gè花huā脚jiǎo蚊wén虫chóng，真zhēn个gè小xiǎo巧qiǎo。有yǒu诗shī为wèi证zhèng。诗shī曰yuē：

擾rǎo擾rǎo微wēi形xíng利lì喙huì，嚶yīng嚶yīng聲shēng細xì如rú雷léi。扰rǎo扰rǎo微wēi形xíng利lì喙huì，嘤yīng嘤yīng声shēng细xì如rú雷léi。

蘭lán房fáng紗shā帳zhàng善shàn通tōng隨suí，正zhèng愛ài炎yán天tiān暖nuǎn氣qì。兰lán房fáng纱shā帐zhàng善shàn通tōng随suí，正zhèng爱ài炎yán天tiān暖nuǎn气qì。

只zhǐ怕pà薰xūn煙yān撲pū扇shàn，偏piān憐lián燈dēng火huǒ光guāng輝huī。只zhǐ怕pà薰xūn烟yān扑pū扇shàn，偏piān怜lián灯dēng火huǒ光guāng辉huī。

輕qīng輕qīng小xiǎo小xiǎo忒tè鑽zuān疾jí，飛fēi入rù妖yāo精jīng洞dòng裡lǐ。轻qīng轻qīng小xiǎo小xiǎo忒tè钻zuān疾jí，飞fēi入rù妖yāo精jīng洞dòng里lǐ。

逐句解 Line by line

他tā將jiāng身shēn一yí縱zòng，徑jìng到dào他tā門mén首shǒu，門mén尚shàng關guān著zhe睡shuì覺jué。他tā将jiāng身shēn一yí纵zòng，径jìng到dào他tā门mén首shǒu，门mén尚shàng关guān著zhe睡shuì觉jué。

He gave his body a leap and came straight to the fiend's gate, and the gate was still shut, for they were sleeping within.

將身一縱: 將 the disposal marker jiāng. 關著睡覺 — 著 is zhe, the state maintained.

行xíng者zhě不bú叫jiào門mén，且qiě不bù驚jīng動dòng妖yāo怪guài，捻niǎn著zhe訣jué，念niàn個gè咒zhòu語yǔ，搖yáo身shēn一yí變biàn，變biàn做zuò一yí個gè花huā腳jiǎo蚊wén蟲chóng，真zhēn個gè小xiǎo巧qiǎo。行xíng者zhě不bú叫jiào门mén，且qiě不bù惊jīng动dòng妖yāo怪guài，捻niǎn著zhe诀jué，念niàn个gè咒zhòu语yǔ，摇yáo身shēn一yí变biàn，变biàn做zuò一yí个gè花huā脚jiǎo蚊wén虫chóng，真zhēn个gè小xiǎo巧qiǎo。

The Pilgrim did not call at the door, and would not disturb the fiends. He made the finger-sign, spoke a spell, shook himself, and changed into a speckle-legged mosquito, a very neat small thing.

捻著訣, to pinch the fingers into the sign; 著 again zhe. 花腳蚊蟲, a "flower-legged" or speckle-legged mosquito. 真個小巧, "truly neat and small," a phrase of approval.

有yǒu詩shī為wèi證zhèng。詩shī曰yuē：有yǒu诗shī为wèi证zhèng。诗shī曰yuē：

There is a poem to prove it. The poem says:

有詩為證。詩曰： — the double verse tag, 為 reading wèi. Both clauses stay in the prose segment, per house rule.

擾rǎo擾rǎo微wēi形xíng利lì喙huì，嚶yīng嚶yīng聲shēng細xì如rú雷léi。扰rǎo扰rǎo微wēi形xíng利lì喙huì，嘤yīng嘤yīng声shēng细xì如rú雷léi。

A shape too small to trouble with, and a sharp proboscis; / a thin singing voice, and it comes like thunder.

擾擾, "swarming, bothersome," and 利喙, the keen bill. The poem never names the mosquito, which is the convention of the riddling descriptive verse.

Through orchid chamber and gauze bed-curtain it passes at its ease, / loving best the warm airs of the burning summer.

蘭房紗帳 — the orchid chamber and the gauze curtain are the furniture of a lady's bedroom in erotic poetry, and the mosquito passes them without hindrance. This unit and the next carry the two stray ASCII spaces of the 維基文庫 text, here removed.

只zhǐ怕pà薰xūn煙yān撲pū扇shàn，偏piān憐lián燈dēng火huǒ光guāng輝huī。只zhǐ怕pà薰xūn烟yān扑pū扇shàn，偏piān怜lián灯dēng火huǒ光guāng辉huī。

It fears only the smoke and the beating fan, / and dotes upon the brightness of the lamp.

撲扇: 扇 reads shàn, the fan. The couplet is built on a pair of opposed verbs, 怕 and 憐 — the insect fears what men use against it and loves what draws it in.

Light, light, and small, small, and far too quick at boring in — / it flew into the fiend's cave.

忒 (tè) the intensifier again, as in Bajie's speech two passages back. 鑽疾, quick at boring through. The last clause drops the riddle and states the fact.

總評 Commentary

The mosquito-poem is a small tour de force of a genre this novel keeps quoting: the 詠物, the verse on a thing, which describes its subject exactly and refuses to name it. Every couplet is a pair of opposites — tiny shape against thunderous voice, gauze curtain against summer heat, feared smoke against beloved lamp — and only in the last line, when it flies into the cave, does the poem admit whose shape this is.

Note where the Pilgrim has been put. Two passages ago he could not see; now he takes the form of a creature that navigates by smell and heat in the dark, and goes in through a shut door. The chapter has taken his eyes from him and then, with the guardian spirits' ointment, given them back sharper than before — 比常更有百分光明 — so that he may use them at the size of an insect. This is the last thing the wind-demon would have wished for.