第四十一回 · 六健將 The Six Valiant Generals — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

六健將 The Six Valiant Generals

正zhèng欲yù設shè法fǎ拯zhěng救jiù八bā戒jiè出chū來lái，只zhǐ聽tīng得de妖yāo王wáng叫jiào道dào：「六liù健jiàn將jiàng何hé在zài？」時shí有yǒu六liù個gè小xiǎo妖yāo是shì他tā知zhī己jǐ的de精jīng靈líng，封fēng為wéi健jiàn將jiàng，都dōu有yǒu名míng字zì：一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò雲yún裡lǐ霧wù，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò霧wù裡lǐ雲yún；一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò急jí如rú火huǒ，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò快kuài如rú風fēng；一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò興xīng烘hōng掀xiān，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò掀xiān烘hōng興xīng。六liù健jiàn將jiàng上shàng前qián跪guì下xià。正zhèng欲yù设shè法fǎ拯zhěng救jiù八bā戒jiè出chū来lái，只zhǐ听tīng得de妖yāo王wáng叫jiào道dào：「六liù健jiàn将jiàng何hé在zài？」时shí有yǒu六liù个gè小xiǎo妖yāo是shì他tā知zhī己jǐ的de精jīng灵líng，封fēng为wéi健jiàn将jiàng，都dōu有yǒu名míng字zì：一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò云yún里lǐ雾wù，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò雾wù里lǐ云yún；一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò急jí如rú火huǒ，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò快kuài如rú风fēng；一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò兴xīng烘hōng掀xiān，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò掀xiān烘hōng兴xīng。六liù健jiàn将jiàng上shàng前qián跪guì下xià。

逐句解 Line by line

正zhèng欲yù設shè法fǎ拯zhěng救jiù八bā戒jiè出chū來lái，只zhǐ聽tīng得de妖yāo王wáng叫jiào道dào：「六liù健jiàn將jiàng何hé在zài？」正zhèng欲yù设shè法fǎ拯zhěng救jiù八bā戒jiè出chū来lái，只zhǐ听tīng得de妖yāo王wáng叫jiào道dào：「六liù健jiàn将jiàng何hé在zài？」

Just as he was about to devise a means to rescue Eight Rules, he heard the demon king call: ‘Where are my Six Valiant Generals?’

He is about to free Bajie when the demon calls for his generals, and Wukong does the right thing: he waits and listens. The rescue can hold; information cannot.

時shí有yǒu六liù個gè小xiǎo妖yāo是shì他tā知zhī己jǐ的de精jīng靈líng，封fēng為wéi健jiàn將jiàng，都dōu有yǒu名míng字zì：一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò雲yún裡lǐ霧wù，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò霧wù裡lǐ雲yún；时shí有yǒu六liù个gè小xiǎo妖yāo是shì他tā知zhī己jǐ的de精jīng灵líng，封fēng为wéi健jiàn将jiàng，都dōu有yǒu名míng字zì：一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò云yún里lǐ雾wù，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò雾wù里lǐ云yún；

Now there were six little demons, sprites in his close confidence, whom he had made his Valiant Generals, and each had a name: one was called Mist-in-the-Cloud, one Cloud-in-the-Mist;

Six trusted sprites promoted to Valiant Generals, and the novel gives every one a name. The first pair are mirror images -- 雲裡霧, Mist-in-the-Cloud, and 霧裡雲, Cloud-in-the-Mist. The same three characters in reverse order. 將 is jiàng here, a general, the noun.

一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò急jí如rú火huǒ，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò快kuài如rú風fēng；一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò急jí如rú火huǒ，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò快kuài如rú风fēng；

one was called Swift-as-Fire, one Quick-as-Wind;

The second pair name speed instead: Swift-as-Fire and Quick-as-Wind. Fire and wind are, of course, exactly the two things this demon commands, so his staff are named after his own weapons.

一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò興xīng烘hōng掀xiān，一yí個gè叫jiào做zuò掀xiān烘hōng興xīng。一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò兴xīng烘hōng掀xiān，一yí个gè叫jiào做zuò掀xiān烘hōng兴xīng。

one was called Kindle-Bake-Fan, one Fan-Bake-Kindle.

And the third pair is the best joke. 興烘掀 and 掀烘興 -- Kindle-Bake-Fan and Fan-Bake-Kindle, the same three characters run forwards and backwards. 烘 hōng is to bake or warm by fire, 掀 xiān is to lift or fan up, and 興 is read xīng, to kindle or stir up, rather than the xìng that means high spirits. They are named after the business of getting a fire going, and one is the other spelled the other way round.

六liù健jiàn將jiàng上shàng前qián跪guì下xià。六liù健jiàn将jiàng上shàng前qián跪guì下xià。

The Six Valiant Generals stepped forward and knelt.

All six kneel. After the elaborate names, the actual scene is four characters of ordinary obedience.

總評 Commentary

The Six Valiant Generals arrive with the sort of names the novel loves handing out. Three pairs, and each pair is the same characters reversed: Mist-in-the-Cloud and Cloud-in-the-Mist, then Swift-as-Fire and Quick-as-Wind, then Kindle-Bake-Fan and Fan-Bake-Kindle.

The names are not decoration. Cloud and mist, fire and wind, and the specific business of fanning a blaze into life -- the demon's household is named after the demon's weapon, right down to the two lieutenants whose names describe stoking a fire and differ only in which end you start from.