第三十二回 · 對石唱喏 Bowing to the Rocks — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

對石唱喏 Bowing to the Rocks

好hǎo大dà聖shèng，搖yáo身shēn又yòu一yí變biàn，還hái變biàn做zuò個gè蟭jiāo蟟liáo蟲chóng，釘dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo後hòu面miàn，不bù離lí他tā身shēn上shàng。那nà獃dāi子zi入rù深shēn山shān，又yòu行xíng有yǒu四sì五wǔ里lǐ，只zhǐ見jiàn山shān凹āo中zhōng有yǒu桌zhuō面miàn大dà的de四sì四sì方fāng方fāng三sān塊kuài青qīng石shí頭tóu。獃dāi子zi放fàng下xià鈀pá，對duì石shí頭tóu唱chàng個gè大dà喏rě。行xíng者zhě暗àn笑xiào道dào：「這zhè獃dāi子zi，石shí頭tóu又yòu不bú是shì人rén，又yòu不bú會huì說shuō話huà，又yòu不bú會huì還huán禮lǐ的de，唱chàng他tā喏rě怎zěn的de，可kě不bú是shì個gè瞎xiā帳zhàng？」好hǎo大dà圣shèng，摇yáo身shēn又yòu一yí变biàn，还hái变biàn做zuò个gè蟭jiāo蟟liáo虫chóng，钉dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo后hòu面miàn，不bù离lí他tā身shēn上shàng。那nà呆dāi子zi入rù深shēn山shān，又yòu行xíng有yǒu四sì五wǔ里lǐ，只zhǐ见jiàn山shān凹āo中zhōng有yǒu桌zhuō面miàn大dà的de四sì四sì方fāng方fāng三sān块kuài青qīng石shí头tóu。呆dāi子zi放fàng下xià钯pá，对duì石shí头tóu唱chàng个gè大dà喏rě。行xíng者zhě暗àn笑xiào道dào：「这zhè呆dāi子zi，石shí头tóu又yòu不bú是shì人rén，又yòu不bú会huì说shuō话huà，又yòu不bú会huì还huán礼lǐ的de，唱chàng他tā喏rě怎zěn的de，可kě不bú是shì个gè瞎xiā帐zhàng？」

逐句解 Line by line

好hǎo大dà聖shèng，搖yáo身shēn又yòu一yí變biàn，還hái變biàn做zuò個gè蟭jiāo蟟liáo蟲chóng，釘dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo後hòu面miàn，不bù離lí他tā身shēn上shàng。好hǎo大dà圣shèng，摇yáo身shēn又yòu一yí变biàn，还hái变biàn做zuò个gè蟭jiāo蟟liáo虫chóng，钉dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo后hòu面miàn，不bù离lí他tā身shēn上shàng。

The great Sage gave his body another shake and changed back into a jiaoliao gnat, fixing himself behind the pig's ear, never leaving his person.

Back into the gnat. 蟭蟟蟲, jiāo liáo chóng, the gnat again. 還變做 takes 還 as hái, "back into" — the third transformation of the chapter, and the surveillance resumes exactly where it left off.

那nà獃dāi子zi入rù深shēn山shān，又yòu行xíng有yǒu四sì五wǔ里lǐ，只zhǐ見jiàn山shān凹āo中zhōng有yǒu桌zhuō面miàn大dà的de四sì四sì方fāng方fāng三sān塊kuài青qīng石shí頭tóu。那nà呆dāi子zi入rù深shēn山shān，又yòu行xíng有yǒu四sì五wǔ里lǐ，只zhǐ见jiàn山shān凹āo中zhōng有yǒu桌zhuō面miàn大dà的de四sì四sì方fāng方fāng三sān块kuài青qīng石shí头tóu。

The blockhead went into the deep mountains, and after another four or five lǐ, he saw in a hollow of the hills three squarish blue rocks, each the size of a tabletop.

Another four or five lǐ — a couple of miles more. 四四方方, sì sì fāng fāng, "squarish, four-square all round," the doubling giving it the vagueness of an eyeballed estimate. 那 is nà; 中 in 山凹中 is zhōng. Three blue-grey rocks the size of tabletops: the stage is set, though the reader does not yet know for what.

獃dāi子zi放fàng下xià鈀pá，對duì石shí頭tóu唱chàng個gè大dà喏rě。呆dāi子zi放fàng下xià钯pá，对duì石shí头tóu唱chàng个gè大dà喏rě。

The blockhead set down his rake and made the rocks a great bow of greeting.

唱喏, chàng rě, is a Song and Ming courtesy that has since died out entirely — you bowed with your hands joined and said the greeting aloud at the same time, the voiced part being the 唱. A 大喏 is the full-dress version. Eight Rules performs it, at some length, to three rocks.

行xíng者zhě暗àn笑xiào道dào：「這zhè獃dāi子zi，石shí頭tóu又yòu不bú是shì人rén，又yòu不bú會huì說shuō話huà，又yòu不bú會huì還huán禮lǐ的de，唱chàng他tā喏rě怎zěn的de，可kě不bú是shì個gè瞎xiā帳zhàng？」行xíng者zhě暗àn笑xiào道dào：「这zhè呆dāi子zi，石shí头tóu又yòu不bú是shì人rén，又yòu不bú会huì说shuō话huà，又yòu不bú会huì还huán礼lǐ的de，唱chàng他tā喏rě怎zěn的de，可kě不bú是shì个gè瞎xiā帐zhàng？」

Pilgrim laughed to himself: "This blockhead! The rocks are not men, cannot speak, cannot return his salute — what's the good of bowing to them? Isn't it a piece of blind nonsense?"

Pilgrim supplies the obvious objection. 還禮, huán lǐ, "to return a courtesy" — 還 here is huán, giving back, not the hái of "still." 瞎帳, "blind nonsense," from the 帳 of accounts: a set of books that makes no sense. Rocks cannot speak and cannot bow back, so what is the point?

總評 Commentary

Pilgrim resumes gnat form and rides along for another couple of miles, whereupon Eight Rules comes upon three flat rocks in a hollow and makes them a full formal bow — the 唱喏, a Song and Ming courtesy where you joined your hands, inclined, and said the greeting out loud, all at once. The image is absurd on its face: a truant paying his respects to geology.

Pilgrim's aside is the reader's own reaction — the rocks cannot talk and cannot bow back, so what is this but nonsense? But the folly turns out to be methodical. Eight Rules is using the stones as stand-ins, and he is not bowing so much as blocking a scene. The next passage explains what for.