第三十四回 · 鬆繩反扣 The Cord Loosed and Turned — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

鬆繩反扣 The Cord Loosed and Turned

原yuán來lái那nà魔mó頭tóu有yǒu個gè緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，有yǒu個gè鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu。若ruò扣kòu住zhù別bié人rén，就jiù念niàn緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，莫mò能néng得dé脫tuō；若ruò扣kòu住zhù自zì家jiā人rén，就jiù念niàn鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu，不bù得dé傷shāng身shēn。他tā認rèn得de是shì自zì家jiā的de寶bǎo貝bèi，即jí念niàn鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu，把bǎ繩shéng鬆sōng動dòng，便biàn脫tuō出chū來lái，反fǎn望wàng行xíng者zhě拋pāo將jiāng去qù，卻què早zǎo扣kòu住zhù了le大dà聖shèng。大dà聖shèng正zhèng要yào使shǐ「瘦shòu身shēn法fǎ」，想xiǎng要yào脫tuō身shēn，卻què被bèi那nà魔mó念niàn動dòng緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，緊jǐn緊jǐn扣kòu住zhù，怎zěn能néng得dé脫tuō？原yuán来lái那nà魔mó头tóu有yǒu个gè紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，有yǒu个gè松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu。若ruò扣kòu住zhù别bié人rén，就jiù念niàn紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，莫mò能néng得dé脱tuō；若ruò扣kòu住zhù自zì家jiā人rén，就jiù念niàn松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu，不bù得dé伤shāng身shēn。他tā认rèn得de是shì自zì家jiā的de宝bǎo贝bèi，即jí念niàn松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu，把bǎ绳shéng松sōng动dòng，便biàn脱tuō出chū来lái，反fǎn望wàng行xíng者zhě抛pāo将jiāng去qù，却què早zǎo扣kòu住zhù了le大dà圣shèng。大dà圣shèng正zhèng要yào使shǐ「瘦shòu身shēn法fǎ」，想xiǎng要yào脱tuō身shēn，却què被bèi那nà魔mó念niàn动dòng紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，紧jǐn紧jǐn扣kòu住zhù，怎zěn能néng得dé脱tuō？

逐句解 Line by line

原yuán來lái那nà魔mó頭tóu有yǒu個gè緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，有yǒu個gè鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu。若ruò扣kòu住zhù別bié人rén，就jiù念niàn緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，莫mò能néng得dé脫tuō；若ruò扣kòu住zhù自zì家jiā人rén，就jiù念niàn鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu，不bù得dé傷shāng身shēn。原yuán来lái那nà魔mó头tóu有yǒu个gè紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，有yǒu个gè松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu。若ruò扣kòu住zhù别bié人rén，就jiù念niàn紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，莫mò能néng得dé脱tuō；若ruò扣kòu住zhù自zì家jiā人rén，就jiù念niàn松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu，不bù得dé伤shāng身shēn。

Now that demon lord had a Cord-Tightening Spell and a Cord-Loosening Spell. If the cord bound a stranger, he chanted the Cord-Tightening Spell, and there was no getting free; if it bound one of his own kind, he chanted the Cord-Loosening Spell, and it could not harm the body.

緊繩咒／鬆繩咒 jǐn shéng zhòu / sōng shéng zhòu, the Cord-Tightening and Cord-Loosening spells. The mechanism is stated with a folklorist's precision because the plot is about to run on it: one spell for strangers, one for one's own people, and the cord knows the difference. 莫能得脫 mò néng dé tuō, no getting free, and 不得傷身 bù dé shāng shēn, cannot injure the body, both take 得 as dé, attainment.

他tā認rèn得de是shì自zì家jiā的de寶bǎo貝bèi，即jí念niàn鬆sōng繩shéng咒zhòu，把bǎ繩shéng鬆sōng動dòng，便biàn脫tuō出chū來lái，反fǎn望wàng行xíng者zhě拋pāo將jiāng去qù，卻què早zǎo扣kòu住zhù了le大dà聖shèng。大dà聖shèng正zhèng要yào使shǐ「瘦shòu身shēn法fǎ」，想xiǎng要yào脫tuō身shēn，卻què被bèi那nà魔mó念niàn動dòng緊jǐn繩shéng咒zhòu，緊jǐn緊jǐn扣kòu住zhù，怎zěn能néng得dé脫tuō？他tā认rèn得de是shì自zì家jiā的de宝bǎo贝bèi，即jí念niàn松sōng绳shéng咒zhòu，把bǎ绳shéng松sōng动dòng，便biàn脱tuō出chū来lái，反fǎn望wàng行xíng者zhě抛pāo将jiāng去qù，却què早zǎo扣kòu住zhù了le大dà圣shèng。大dà圣shèng正zhèng要yào使shǐ「瘦shòu身shēn法fǎ」，想xiǎng要yào脱tuō身shēn，却què被bèi那nà魔mó念niàn动dòng紧jǐn绳shéng咒zhòu，紧jǐn紧jǐn扣kòu住zhù，怎zěn能néng得dé脱tuō？

He recognized it as his own treasure, and at once chanted the Cord-Loosening Spell, worked the cord slack, and slipped free — then flung it back at Pilgrim instead, and in a trice it had bound the Great Sage fast. The Great Sage was just about to work his Body-Slimming Method and slip his bonds, when the fiend chanted the Cord-Tightening Spell, and it clamped him tight — how could he get free?

他認得 tā rèn de, he recognised it — the everyday de of knowing a thing by sight — whereas 怎能得脫 zěn néng dé tuō, how could he get free, takes 得 as dé. 反望行者拋將去 fǎn wàng xíng zhě pāo jiāng qù, flung it back at Pilgrim instead, with 將 once more supplying the throw's momentum. The Body-Slimming Method has got him out of a hundred bonds; it does not get him out of this one.

總評 Commentary

The proverb of the last passage comes home with a vengeance. The gold-glinting cord, being the demon's own, answers to the demon's spells and not to Wukong's grip: the fiend loosens it with a word, slips the noose, and turns the Great Sage's capture back on him. It is exact poetic justice, the stolen weapon betraying the thief precisely as the maxim warned.

The novel spells out the machinery — two spells, one to bind strangers, one to spare kin — so that the cord's loyalty to its owner is a rule established and then enforced rather than a convenient surprise. Wukong's counter meets its match in the Tightening Spell, and for once his repertoire of escapes is checked by a treasure that knows its true master. The trickster is trussed by the very thing he thought he had won.