第二十五回 · 縱雲趕逐 The Pursuit on the Clouds — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

縱雲趕逐 The Pursuit on the Clouds

大dà仙xiān與yǔ明míng月yuè、清qīng風fēng縱zòng起qǐ祥xiáng光guāng，來lái趕gǎn三sān藏zàng，頃qǐng刻kè間jiān就jiù有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遙yáo。大dà仙xiān在zài雲yún端duān裡lǐ向xiàng西xī觀guān看kàn，不bú見jiàn唐táng僧sēng。及jí轉zhuǎn頭tóu向xiàng東dōng看kàn時shí，倒dào多duō趕gǎn了le九jiǔ百bǎi餘yú里lǐ。大dà仙xiān与yǔ明míng月yuè、清qīng风fēng纵zòng起qǐ祥xiáng光guāng，来lái赶gǎn三sān藏zàng，顷qǐng刻kè间jiān就jiù有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遥yáo。大dà仙xiān在zài云yún端duān里lǐ向xiàng西xī观guān看kàn，不bú见jiàn唐táng僧sēng。及jí转zhuǎn头tóu向xiàng东dōng看kàn时shí，倒dào多duō赶gǎn了le九jiǔ百bǎi余yú里lǐ。

逐句解 Line by line

大dà仙xiān與yǔ明míng月yuè、清qīng風fēng縱zòng起qǐ祥xiáng光guāng，來lái趕gǎn三sān藏zàng，頃qǐng刻kè間jiān就jiù有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遙yáo。大dà仙xiān与yǔ明míng月yuè、清qīng风fēng纵zòng起qǐ祥xiáng光guāng，来lái赶gǎn三sān藏zàng，顷qǐng刻kè间jiān就jiù有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遥yáo。

The Great Immortal, with Bright Moon and Clear Wind, sprang up on auspicious light to overtake Sanzang, and in a moment had covered a thousand li.

縱起祥光 (zòng qǐ xiáng guāng) "sprang up on auspicious light." 頃刻間 (qǐngkè jiān) "in an instant." 千里之遙 (qiān lǐ zhī yáo) "a distance of a thousand li."

大dà仙xiān在zài雲yún端duān裡lǐ向xiàng西xī觀guān看kàn，不bú見jiàn唐táng僧sēng。大dà仙xiān在zài云yún端duān里lǐ向xiàng西xī观guān看kàn，不bú见jiàn唐táng僧sēng。

From the cloud's edge the Great Immortal looked away west, but saw no sign of the Tang Monk.

向西觀看 (xiàng xī guān kàn) "looked off to the west," 觀 (guān) "to observe" (not the abbey 觀 (guàn)).

及jí轉zhuǎn頭tóu向xiàng東dōng看kàn時shí，倒dào多duō趕gǎn了le九jiǔ百bǎi餘yú里lǐ。及jí转zhuǎn头tóu向xiàng东dōng看kàn时shí，倒dào多duō赶gǎn了le九jiǔ百bǎi余yú里lǐ。

And when he turned his head to look east, he had, on the contrary, overshot by nine hundred li and more.

倒多趕了 (dào duō gǎn le) "had instead overshot by," 倒 (dào) "on the contrary." 九百餘里 (jiǔ bǎi yú lǐ) "nine hundred li and more."

總評 Commentary

The pursuit turns on a neat comic disproportion: the Great Immortal's cloud is so swift that in an instant it overleaps its quarry by nine hundred li, and he must double back to find the plodding pilgrims. The gap between the immortal's speed and the monk's pace measures, lightly, the futility of the pilgrims' night flight.