第三十三回 · 鐵棒萬夫 An Iron Rod Ten-Thousand Cannot Withstand — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

鐵棒萬夫 An Iron Rod Ten-Thousand Cannot Withstand

眾zhòng怪guài道dào：「大dà王wáng，你nǐ沒méi手shǒu段duàn，等děng我wǒ們men著zhuó幾jǐ個gè去qù報bào大dà大dà王wáng，教jiào點diǎn起qǐ本běn洞dòng大dà小xiǎo兵bīng來lái，擺bǎi開kāi陣zhèn勢shì，合hé力lì齊qí心xīn，怕pà他tā走zǒu了le那nǎ裡lǐ去qù？」二èr魔mó道dào：「你nǐ們men不bù曾céng見jiàn他tā那nà條tiáo鐵tiě棒bàng，有yǒu萬wàn夫fū不bù當dāng之zhī勇yǒng。我wǒ洞dòng中zhōng不bú過guò有yǒu四sì五wǔ百bǎi兵bīng，怎zěn禁jīn得de他tā那nà一yí棒bàng？」众zhòng怪guài道dào：「大dà王wáng，你nǐ没méi手shǒu段duàn，等děng我wǒ们men著zhuó几jǐ个gè去qù报bào大dà大dà王wáng，教jiào点diǎn起qǐ本běn洞dòng大dà小xiǎo兵bīng来lái，摆bǎi开kāi阵zhèn势shì，合hé力lì齐qí心xīn，怕pà他tā走zǒu了le那nǎ里lǐ去qù？」二èr魔mó道dào：「你nǐ们men不bù曾céng见jiàn他tā那nà条tiáo铁tiě棒bàng，有yǒu万wàn夫fū不bù当dāng之zhī勇yǒng。我wǒ洞dòng中zhōng不bú过guò有yǒu四sì五wǔ百bǎi兵bīng，怎zěn禁jīn得de他tā那nà一yí棒bàng？」

逐句解 Line by line

眾zhòng怪guài道dào：「大dà王wáng，你nǐ沒méi手shǒu段duàn，等děng我wǒ們men著zhuó幾jǐ個gè去qù報bào大dà大dà王wáng，教jiào點diǎn起qǐ本běn洞dòng大dà小xiǎo兵bīng來lái，擺bǎi開kāi陣zhèn勢shì，合hé力lì齊qí心xīn，怕pà他tā走zǒu了le那nǎ裡lǐ去qù？」众zhòng怪guài道dào：「大dà王wáng，你nǐ没méi手shǒu段duàn，等děng我wǒ们men著zhuó几jǐ个gè去qù报bào大dà大dà王wáng，教jiào点diǎn起qǐ本běn洞dòng大dà小xiǎo兵bīng来lái，摆bǎi开kāi阵zhèn势shì，合hé力lì齐qí心xīn，怕pà他tā走zǒu了le那nǎ里lǐ去qù？」

The fiends said: “Great King, if you've no means for it, let us send a few to report to the Great Great King, that he may muster all the soldiers of the cave, high and low, deploy them in battle-array, and join every force with a single heart — then where could he escape to?”

著幾個去 (zhuó jǐ gè qù) takes 著 as zhuó, the causative “to dispatch, to send” — distinct from durative zhe or resultative zháo. 走了那裡去 (zǒu le nǎ lǐ qù) is rhetorical, “escape to where?” — implying nowhere — so 那 is read nǎ. 大大王, the “Great Great King,” is the demons' overlord.

二èr魔mó道dào：「你nǐ們men不bù曾céng見jiàn他tā那nà條tiáo鐵tiě棒bàng，有yǒu萬wàn夫fū不bù當dāng之zhī勇yǒng。二èr魔mó道dào：「你nǐ们men不bù曾céng见jiàn他tā那nà条tiáo铁tiě棒bàng，有yǒu万wàn夫fū不bù当dāng之zhī勇yǒng。

The second fiend said: “You've not seen that iron rod of his — it has a valor ten thousand men could not withstand.

萬夫不當之勇 (wàn fū bù dāng zhī yǒng), “valor that ten thousand men cannot oppose,” a stock phrase of martial praise; 當 here is dāng, “to withstand, to face.” 那條, “that (length of),” the measure-word 條 for the rod.

我wǒ洞dòng中zhōng不bú過guò有yǒu四sì五wǔ百bǎi兵bīng，怎zěn禁jīn得de他tā那nà一yí棒bàng？」我wǒ洞dòng中zhōng不bú过guò有yǒu四sì五wǔ百bǎi兵bīng，怎zěn禁jīn得de他tā那nà一yí棒bàng？」

“In my cave there are no more than four or five hundred soldiers — how could they bear up under a single blow of that cudgel?”

禁得 (jīn de), “to withstand, to bear up under” — 禁 read jīn, “to endure,” not the jìn of prohibition; the potential 得 (de). 那一棒, “that one strike,” 那 deictic nà.

總評 Commentary

The rank-and-file demons offer the obvious martial remedy: summon the overlord's full garrison, deploy in formation, and overwhelm the pilgrim by numbers — “then where could he escape to?” Their confidence is the confidence of those who have not fought Pilgrim; the rhetorical question betrays how little they grasp the odds.

The second fiend, who has just watched the cudgel-routine, knows better. His two objections — the rod's ten-thousand-man valor and his own paltry four or five hundred troops — dismiss the frontal assault as suicide. The exchange completes the case against force begun in the previous passage and clears the ground for the stratagem of guile to come. Note 禁 read jīn, “to endure”: a single blow is more than his whole garrison could survive.