第三十一回 · 吐出內丹 The Inner Elixir Disgorged — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

吐出內丹 The Inner Elixir Disgorged

行xíng者zhě聞wén言yán，心xīn中zhōng暗àn笑xiào道dào：「這zhè潑pō怪guài，倒dào也yě老lǎo實shí，不bú動dòng刑xíng法fǎ，就jiù自zì家jiā供gòng了le。等děng他tā拿ná出chū寶bǎo貝bèi來lái，我wǒ試shì彈tán他tā一yì彈tán，看kàn他tā是shì個gè甚shén麼me妖yāo怪guài。」那nà怪guài攜xié著zhe行xíng者zhě，一yì直zhí行xíng到dào洞dòng裡lǐ深shēn遠yuǎn密mì閉bì之zhī處chù。卻què從cóng口kǒu中zhōng吐tǔ出chū一yí件jiàn寶bǎo貝bèi，有yǒu雞jī子zi大dà小xiǎo，是shì一yì顆kē舍shè利lì子zi玲líng瓏lóng內nèi丹dān。行xíng者zhě心xīn中zhōng暗àn喜xǐ道dào：「好hǎo東dōng西xī耶yé。這zhè件jiàn物wù不bù知zhī打dǎ了le多duō少shǎo坐zuò工gōng，煉liàn了le幾jǐ年nián磨mó難nàn，配pèi了le幾jǐ轉zhuǎn雌cí雄xióng，煉liàn成chéng這zhè顆kē內nèi丹dān舍shè利lì。今jīn日rì大dà有yǒu緣yuán法fǎ，遇yù著zháo老lǎo孫sūn。」行xíng者zhě闻wén言yán，心xīn中zhōng暗àn笑xiào道dào：「这zhè泼pō怪guài，倒dào也yě老lǎo实shí，不bú动dòng刑xíng法fǎ，就jiù自zì家jiā供gòng了le。等děng他tā拿ná出chū宝bǎo贝bèi来lái，我wǒ试shì弹tán他tā一yì弹tán，看kàn他tā是shì个gè甚shén么me妖yāo怪guài。」那nà怪guài携xié著zhe行xíng者zhě，一yì直zhí行xíng到dào洞dòng里lǐ深shēn远yuǎn密mì闭bì之zhī处chù。却què从cóng口kǒu中zhōng吐tǔ出chū一yí件jiàn宝bǎo贝bèi，有yǒu鸡jī子zi大dà小xiǎo，是shì一yì颗kē舍shè利lì子zi玲líng珑lóng内nèi丹dān。行xíng者zhě心xīn中zhōng暗àn喜xǐ道dào：「好hǎo东dōng西xī耶yé。这zhè件jiàn物wù不bù知zhī打dǎ了le多duō少shǎo坐zuò工gōng，炼liàn了le几jǐ年nián磨mó难nàn，配pèi了le几jǐ转zhuǎn雌cí雄xióng，炼liàn成chéng这zhè颗kē内nèi丹dān舍shè利lì。今jīn日rì大dà有yǒu缘yuán法fǎ，遇yù著zháo老lǎo孙sūn。」

逐句解 Line by line

行xíng者zhě聞wén言yán，心xīn中zhōng暗àn笑xiào道dào：「這zhè潑pō怪guài，倒dào也yě老lǎo實shí，不bú動dòng刑xíng法fǎ，就jiù自zì家jiā供gòng了le。行xíng者zhě闻wén言yán，心xīn中zhōng暗àn笑xiào道dào：「这zhè泼pō怪guài，倒dào也yě老lǎo实shí，不bú动dòng刑xíng法fǎ，就jiù自zì家jiā供gòng了le。

Pilgrim, hearing this, laughed to himself, “This vile fiend is honest enough — with no rack applied, he confesses of his own accord.

潑怪 (pō guài), vile fiend. 倒也老實 (dào yě lǎoshi), honest after all; 倒 read dào. 供 (gòng), to confess, to give testimony; here read gòng. 心中 with 中 as zhōng.

等děng他tā拿ná出chū寶bǎo貝bèi來lái，我wǒ試shì彈tán他tā一yì彈tán，看kàn他tā是shì個gè甚shén麼me妖yāo怪guài。」等děng他tā拿ná出chū宝bǎo贝bèi来lái，我wǒ试shì弹tán他tā一yì弹tán，看kàn他tā是shì个gè甚shén么me妖yāo怪guài。」

Let him bring out the treasure, and I will give it a trial flick, and see what manner of fiend he is.”

彈他一彈 (tán tā yì tán), to give it a flick; 彈 read tán, hence 一 as yì. 甚 read shén.

那nà怪guài攜xié著zhe行xíng者zhě，一yì直zhí行xíng到dào洞dòng裡lǐ深shēn遠yuǎn密mì閉bì之zhī處chù。那nà怪guài携xié著zhe行xíng者zhě，一yì直zhí行xíng到dào洞dòng里lǐ深shēn远yuǎn密mì闭bì之zhī处chù。

The fiend led Pilgrim by the hand straight to a deep, remote, close-sealed recess of the cave.

攜著 (xié zhe), leading by the hand — durative; 著 read zhe. 深遠密閉 (shēn yuǎn mì bì), deep, far, and tightly closed. 那 read nà.

卻què從cóng口kǒu中zhōng吐tǔ出chū一yí件jiàn寶bǎo貝bèi，有yǒu雞jī子zi大dà小xiǎo，是shì一yì顆kē舍shè利lì子zi玲líng瓏lóng內nèi丹dān。却què从cóng口kǒu中zhōng吐tǔ出chū一yí件jiàn宝bǎo贝bèi，有yǒu鸡jī子zi大dà小xiǎo，是shì一yì颗kē舍shè利lì子zi玲líng珑lóng内nèi丹dān。

Then from his mouth he brought forth a treasure, of the bigness of a hen’s egg — a lustrous inner cinnabar, a relic-pearl.

雞子 (jī zǐ), a hen’s egg. 舍利子 (shèlì zǐ), a śarīra, a Buddhist relic-pearl; 舍 read shè. 玲瓏內丹 (línglóng nèidān), an exquisite inner elixir. 口中 with 中 as zhōng.

行xíng者zhě心xīn中zhōng暗àn喜xǐ道dào：「好hǎo東dōng西xī耶yé。行xíng者zhě心xīn中zhōng暗àn喜xǐ道dào：「好hǎo东dōng西xī耶yé。

Pilgrim rejoiced within, “What a fine thing!

暗喜 (àn xǐ), to rejoice inwardly. 心中 with 中 as zhōng.

這zhè件jiàn物wù不bù知zhī打dǎ了le多duō少shǎo坐zuò工gōng，煉liàn了le幾jǐ年nián磨mó難nàn，配pèi了le幾jǐ轉zhuǎn雌cí雄xióng，煉liàn成chéng這zhè顆kē內nèi丹dān舍shè利lì。这zhè件jiàn物wù不bù知zhī打dǎ了le多duō少shǎo坐zuò工gōng，炼liàn了le几jǐ年nián磨mó难nàn，配pèi了le几jǐ转zhuǎn雌cí雄xióng，炼liàn成chéng这zhè颗kē内nèi丹dān舍shè利lì。

This thing — who knows how many sittings of meditation went to its making, how many years of refining ordeal, how many cyclings of male and female matched together — to forge this pellet of inner elixir, this relic.

坐工 (zuò gōng), the labour of seated meditation. 磨難 (mónàn), ordeal, tribulation; 難 read nàn. 幾轉雌雄 (jǐ zhuǎn cíxióng), several alchemical cyclings of yin and yang; 轉 read zhuǎn, the alchemical unit of a refining cycle, as in the “nine-cycled golden elixir” (九轉金丹). 舍 read shè.

今jīn日rì大dà有yǒu緣yuán法fǎ，遇yù著zháo老lǎo孫sūn。」今jīn日rì大dà有yǒu缘yuán法fǎ，遇yù著zháo老lǎo孙sūn。」

Today, by great good fortune, it has met with old Sun.”

緣法 (yuánfǎ), karmic affinity, destined chance. 遇著 (yù zháo), to meet with; 著 read zháo.

總評 Commentary

Wukong’s inner glee, given in a pair of gloating asides, both mocks the demon’s naivety — confessing without the rack — and appraises the prize with a connoisseur’s eye. His catalogue of the elixir’s making, the sittings of meditation, the years of ordeal, the alchemical cyclings of yin and yang, is steeped in the language of internal alchemy (內丹) that runs through the whole novel, and marks the inner cinnabar as the concentrated fruit of the demon’s long cultivation.

That the treasure is at once a Buddhist relic-pearl (舍利) and a Daoist inner elixir (內丹) is characteristic of the novel’s syncretic imagination, which freely blends the two traditions’ vocabularies of attainment. The demon’s power resides in this single distilled object, and in disgorging it before his supposed wife he places the source of his strength within his enemy’s reach — the theft that the next passage accomplishes in a stroke.