第三十二回 · 罵路 Railing on the Road — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

罵路 Railing on the Road

嚶yīng的de一yí翅chì飛fēi將jiāng去qù，趕gǎn上shàng八bā戒jiè，釘dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo後hòu面miàn鬃zōng根gēn底dǐ下xià。那nà獃dāi子zi只zhǐ管guǎn走zǒu路lù，怎zěn知zhī道dào身shēn上shàng有yǒu人rén。行xíng有yǒu七qī八bā里lǐ路lù，把bǎ釘dīng鈀pá撇piē下xià，吊diào轉zhuǎn頭tóu來lái，望wàng著zhe唐táng僧sēng，指zhǐ手shǒu畫huà腳jiǎo的de罵mà道dào：「你nǐ罷bà軟ruǎn的de老lǎo和hé尚shàng，捉zhuō掐qiā的de弼bì馬mǎ溫wēn，面miàn弱ruò的de沙shā和hé尚shàng，他tā都dōu在zài那nà裡lǐ自zì在zài，捉zhuō弄nòng我wǒ老lǎo豬zhū來lái蹡qiāng路lù。大dà家jiā取qǔ經jīng，都dōu要yào望wàng成chéng正zhèng果guǒ，偏piān是shì教jiào我wǒ來lái巡xún甚shén麼me山shān。哈hā哈hā哈hā，曉xiǎo得de有yǒu妖yāo怪guài，躲duǒ著zhe些xiē兒er走zǒu，還hái不bú夠gòu一yí半bàn，卻què教jiào我wǒ去qù尋xún他tā，這zhè等děng晦huì氣qì哩li。嘤yīng的de一yí翅chì飞fēi将jiāng去qù，赶gǎn上shàng八bā戒jiè，钉dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo后hòu面miàn鬃zōng根gēn底dǐ下xià。那nà呆dāi子zi只zhǐ管guǎn走zǒu路lù，怎zěn知zhī道dào身shēn上shàng有yǒu人rén。行xíng有yǒu七qī八bā里lǐ路lù，把bǎ钉dīng钯pá撇piē下xià，吊diào转zhuǎn头tóu来lái，望wàng着zhe唐táng僧sēng，指zhǐ手shǒu画huà脚jiǎo的de骂mà道dào：「你nǐ罢bà软ruǎn的de老lǎo和hé尚shàng，捉zhuō掐qiā的de弼bì马mǎ温wēn，面miàn弱ruò的de沙shā和hé尚shàng，他tā都dōu在zài那nà里lǐ自zì在zài，捉zhuō弄nòng我wǒ老lǎo猪zhū来lái蹡qiāng路lù。大dà家jiā取qǔ经jīng，都dōu要yào望wàng成chéng正zhèng果guǒ，偏piān是shì教jiào我wǒ来lái巡xún甚shén么me山shān。哈hā哈hā哈hā，晓xiǎo得de有yǒu妖yāo怪guài，躲duǒ着zhe些xiē儿er走zǒu，还hái不bú够gòu一yí半bàn，却què教jiào我wǒ去qù寻xún他tā，这zhè等děng晦huì气qì哩li。

逐句解 Line by line

嚶yīng的de一yí翅chì飛fēi將jiāng去qù，趕gǎn上shàng八bā戒jiè，釘dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo後hòu面miàn鬃zōng根gēn底dǐ下xià。嘤yīng的de一yí翅chì飞fēi将jiāng去qù，赶gǎn上shàng八bā戒jiè，钉dīng在zài他tā耳ěr朵duo后hòu面miàn鬃zōng根gēn底dǐ下xià。

With a whir of his wings he flew off, caught up with Eight Rules, and fixed himself behind his ear, at the root of the bristles.

嚶, yīng, is the sound of the wings. 鬃根, zōng gēn, "the roots of the bristles" — he lands behind the ear, in the coarse hair, which on a pig is thick enough to hide in. 飛將去 takes 將 as the directional jiāng.

那nà獃dāi子zi只zhǐ管guǎn走zǒu路lù，怎zěn知zhī道dào身shēn上shàng有yǒu人rén。那nà呆dāi子zi只zhǐ管guǎn走zǒu路lù，怎zěn知zhī道dào身shēn上shàng有yǒu人rén。

The blockhead just kept walking, never guessing he carried a rider.

只管, zhǐ guǎn, "to just carry straight on." 那 is nà. The line is doing something sly: it says he never knew there was a person on him, which is true, and lets the reader enjoy knowing better.

行xíng有yǒu七qī八bā里lǐ路lù，把bǎ釘dīng鈀pá撇piē下xià，吊diào轉zhuǎn頭tóu來lái，望wàng著zhe唐táng僧sēng，指zhǐ手shǒu畫huà腳jiǎo的de罵mà道dào：「你nǐ罷bà軟ruǎn的de老lǎo和hé尚shàng，捉zhuō掐qiā的de弼bì馬mǎ溫wēn，面miàn弱ruò的de沙shā和hé尚shàng，他tā都dōu在zài那nà裡lǐ自zì在zài，捉zhuō弄nòng我wǒ老lǎo豬zhū來lái蹡qiāng路lù。行xíng有yǒu七qī八bā里lǐ路lù，把bǎ钉dīng钯pá撇piē下xià，吊diào转zhuǎn头tóu来lái，望wàng着zhe唐táng僧sēng，指zhǐ手shǒu画huà脚jiǎo的de骂mà道dào：「你nǐ罢bà软ruǎn的de老lǎo和hé尚shàng，捉zhuō掐qiā的de弼bì马mǎ温wēn，面miàn弱ruò的de沙shā和hé尚shàng，他tā都dōu在zài那nà里lǐ自zì在zài，捉zhuō弄nòng我wǒ老lǎo猪zhū来lái蹡qiāng路lù。

When he had gone seven or eight lǐ, he flung down his rake, turned his head about, and, gesturing back toward the Tang Monk, railed: "You spineless old monk; you nit-picking Bimawen; you soft-faced Sha Monk — they are all back there at their ease, while they put Old Hog to tramping the road.

Seven or eight lǐ along — a couple of miles — and out it all comes. 弼馬溫, Bì mǎ wēn, is the stable-groom post Heaven fobbed Pilgrim off with in the early chapters, and the title has followed him ever since as a permanent insult; the characters also sound like 避馬瘟, "keeps horse-plague away," which was one of the folk reasons for keeping a monkey in a stable. 罷軟, "limp, spineless"; 蹡路, "to trudge." 望著 takes 著 as zhe; 都 is dōu; 那 is nà. Note who he insults, and in which order, and that he does it with his back turned.

大dà家jiā取qǔ經jīng，都dōu要yào望wàng成chéng正zhèng果guǒ，偏piān是shì教jiào我wǒ來lái巡xún甚shén麼me山shān。大dà家jiā取qǔ经jīng，都dōu要yào望wàng成chéng正zhèng果guǒ，偏piān是shì教jiào我wǒ来lái巡xún甚shén么me山shān。

We are all fetching scriptures, all hoping to attain the right fruit — and yet it's just me they send off to patrol some mountain or other.

正果, zhèng guǒ, "the true fruit" — the attainment the whole pilgrimage is for. 都 is dōu; 甚麼 takes 甚 as shén. His grievance in one line: everybody gets the reward, so why does he get the walking?

哈hā哈hā哈hā，曉xiǎo得de有yǒu妖yāo怪guài，躲duǒ著zhe些xiē兒er走zǒu，還hái不bú夠gòu一yí半bàn，卻què教jiào我wǒ去qù尋xún他tā，這zhè等děng晦huì氣qì哩li。哈hā哈hā哈hā，晓xiǎo得de有yǒu妖yāo怪guài，躲duǒ着zhe些xiē儿er走zǒu，还hái不bú够gòu一yí半bàn，却què教jiào我wǒ去qù寻xún他tā，这zhè等děng晦huì气qì哩li。

Ha, ha, ha! Knowing there are fiends, one ought to give them a wide berth — and that's not the half of it: instead they send me to go looking for them. What wretched luck!

晦氣, huì qì, "rotten luck" — still current, and still said exactly like this. 曉得 takes 得 as de; 躲著 takes 著 as zhe; the 兒 of 些兒 is the light er; 還 is hái. His stated policy on monsters — if you know they are there, walk the other way — is the exact opposite of the job description, and he sees no problem with that at all.

總評 Commentary

With a gnat lodged in his ear bristles, Eight Rules walks a couple of miles and then, believing himself entirely alone, says what he really thinks. He works through the party one by one: the spineless old monk, the nit-picking Bimawen, the soft-faced Sha Monk, all of them lounging in comfort while he does the walking. It is worth noting that he waits until he is out of sight, and that he turns round to face back down the road before starting — even his mutiny is performed for an audience.

The complaint is not baseless. He really has been manoeuvred into this. But the reasoning underneath it is pure self-interest: everyone is going to get the true fruit, so why should he take the dangerous part? And the policy he proposes — if you know there are monsters, give them a wide berth, and instead they send me looking for them — is the exact inversion of what he was asked to do, delivered with the air of a man stating the obvious. In four lines the novel has fixed him as the pilgrim least committed to the pilgrimage.