Canonical Classics ← 第四十五回
第四十五回
sānqīngguànshèngliúmíng
chēchíguóhóuwángxiǎn

At the Abbey of the Three Pure Ones the Great Sage leaves his name; in the Kingdom of Cart-Slow the Monkey King displays his magic.

眾道叩求
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原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

眾道叩求 The Daoists' Entreaty

zhòngdàowényánkòutóudào:「wànwàngtiānzūnniàngōngjìngzhīqiānxiēguǎngxuāndàozòuguówángjìngxuánmén。」xíngzhědào:「mǐnlái。」dàoshìdùnshǒuxièēnzhòngdàowényánkòutóudào:「wànwàngtiānzūnniàngōngjìngzhīqiānxiē广guǎngxuāndàozòuguówángjìngxuánmén。」xíngzhědào:「mǐnlái。」dàoshìdùnshǒuxièēn


逐句解 Line by line

zhòngdàowényánkòutóudào:「wànwàngtiānzūnniàngōngjìngzhīqiānxiē zhòngdàowényánkòutóudào:「wànwàngtiānzūnniàngōngjìngzhīqiānxiē

Hearing this, the Daoists all bowed their heads to the ground and knocked them, saying, “We beg the Venerable to regard your disciples' reverent hearts and graciously grant us a little.

一齊: the rising tone of keeps at . 弟子: = . 千乞 "we beg a thousand times over."

guǎngxuāndàozòuguówángjìngxuánmén。」 广guǎngxuāndàozòuguówángjìngxuánmén。」

We disciples will broadly proclaim the Way and its Power, and move the king to honour the Daoist gate everywhere.”

弟子: = . 廣宣道德 "proclaim the Way and its Power far and wide." 玄門 "the Dark Gate" -- Daoism's name for itself.

xíngzhědào:「mǐnlái。」 xíngzhědào:「mǐnlái。」

Pilgrim said, “If that is so, fetch some vessels.”

既如此 "since that is how things stand." 器皿 "vessels, containers."

dàoshìdùnshǒuxièēn dàoshìdùnshǒuxièēn

The Daoists all knocked their heads in thanks.

那道士: = . 一齊頓首: = . 謝恩 "to give thanks for a favour granted" -- court language again, the phrase for thanking a sovereign, keeping up the fiction that a god is in the room.


總評 Commentary

The Daoists negotiate. They offer to preach the faith more widely and to work on the king, in exchange for a few drops of elixir -- which is the arc's target in miniature: devotion as a transaction, with terms.

Their word for thanks is 謝恩, the formula for acknowledging a favour from the throne. It is the right register for the imaginary god they think they are dealing with, and quite wrong for the one they have got. When Wukong calls for vessels, the trap is baited and they fetch the bait themselves.