第二十五回 · 戀土難移 Clinging Fast to the Earth — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

戀土難移 Clinging Fast to the Earth

只zhǐ見jiàn那nà小xiǎo仙xiān報bào道dào：「師shī父fù，油yóu鍋guō滾gǔn透tòu了le。」大dà仙xiān教jiào：「把bǎ孫sūn行xíng者zhě擡tái下xià去qù。」四sì個gè仙xiān童tóng擡tái不bú動dòng，八bā個gè來lái也yě擡tái不bú動dòng，又yòu加jiā四sì個gè也yě擡tái不bú動dòng。眾zhòng仙xiān道dào：「這zhè猴hóu子zi戀liàn土tǔ難nán移yí，小xiǎo自zì小xiǎo，倒dào也yě結jié實shí。」只zhǐ见jiàn那nà小xiǎo仙xiān报bào道dào：「师shī父fù，油yóu锅guō滚gǔn透tòu了le。」大dà仙xiān教jiào：「把bǎ孙sūn行xíng者zhě擡tái下xià去qù。」四sì个gè仙xiān童tóng擡tái不bú动dòng，八bā个gè来lái也yě擡tái不bú动dòng，又yòu加jiā四sì个gè也yě擡tái不bú动dòng。众zhòng仙xiān道dào：「这zhè猴hóu子zi恋liàn土tǔ难nán移yí，小xiǎo自zì小xiǎo，倒dào也yě结jié实shí。」

逐句解 Line by line

只zhǐ見jiàn那nà小xiǎo仙xiān報bào道dào：「師shī父fù，油yóu鍋guō滾gǔn透tòu了le。」只zhǐ见jiàn那nà小xiǎo仙xiān报bào道dào：「师shī父fù，油yóu锅guō滚gǔn透tòu了le。」

Then that little immortal reported: "Master, the oil-cauldron has come to a rolling boil."

油鍋滾透了 (yóu guō gǔn tòu le) "the oil-pot boiling through"—ready for the frying.

大dà仙xiān教jiào：「把bǎ孫sūn行xíng者zhě擡tái下xià去qù。」大dà仙xiān教jiào：「把bǎ孙sūn行xíng者zhě擡tái下xià去qù。」

The Great Immortal ordered: "Carry Sun the Pilgrim down into it."

擡下去 (tái xiàqù) "carry [him] down"—into the cauldron.

四sì個gè仙xiān童tóng擡tái不bú動dòng，八bā個gè來lái也yě擡tái不bú動dòng，又yòu加jiā四sì個gè也yě擡tái不bú動dòng。四sì个gè仙xiān童tóng擡tái不bú动dòng，八bā个gè来lái也yě擡tái不bú动dòng，又yòu加jiā四sì个gè也yě擡tái不bú动dòng。

Four immortal lads could not lift it; eight more came, and still could not lift it; another four were added, and still they could not lift it.

擡不動 (tái bú dòng) "could not lift it"—the stone lion's weight defeats them, twelve strong.

眾zhòng仙xiān道dào：「這zhè猴hóu子zi戀liàn土tǔ難nán移yí，小xiǎo自zì小xiǎo，倒dào也yě結jié實shí。」众zhòng仙xiān道dào：「这zhè猴hóu子zi恋liàn土tǔ难nán移yí，小xiǎo自zì小xiǎo，倒dào也yě结jié实shí。」

The immortals said, "This monkey clings to the earth and is hard to shift—small as he is, he is solid after all."

戀土難移 (liàn tǔ nán yí) "clinging to the earth, hard to move." 倒也結實 (dào yě jiēshi) "solid, after all," 倒 (dào) "rather, after all"—their baffled explanation for the stone's weight.

總評 Commentary

The immortals' vain efforts to lift the "monkey"—four, then eight, then twelve, all defeated—is broad physical comedy, and their solemn misexplanation ("he clings to the earth, solid after all") is the joke's punchline: they have mistaken a stone lion for their prisoner. The scene sets up the disaster of the next passage, when they finally heave the stone into the oil.