第四十五回 · 缸樁符牌 Vats, Stakes, and Talismans — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

缸樁符牌 Vats, Stakes, and Talismans

底dǐ下xià有yǒu五wǔ個gè大dà缸gāng，都dōu注zhù著zhe滿mǎn缸gāng清qīng水shuǐ，水shuǐ上shàng浮fú著zhe楊yáng柳liǔ枝zhī，楊yáng柳liǔ枝zhī上shàng托tuō著zhe一yí面miàn鐵tiě牌pái，牌pái上shàng書shū的de是shì雷léi霆tíng都dū司sī的de符fú字zì。左zuǒ右yòu有yǒu五wǔ個gè大dà樁zhuāng，樁zhuāng上shàng寫xiě著zhe五wǔ方fāng蠻mán雷léi使shǐ者zhě的de名míng錄lù。底dǐ下xià有yǒu五wǔ个gè大dà缸gāng，都dōu注zhù着zhe满mǎn缸gāng清qīng水shuǐ，水shuǐ上shàng浮fú着zhe杨yáng柳liǔ枝zhī，杨yáng柳liǔ枝zhī上shàng托tuō着zhe一yí面miàn铁tiě牌pái，牌pái上shàng书shū的de是shì雷léi霆tíng都dū司sī的de符fú字zì。左zuǒ右yòu有yǒu五wǔ个gè大dà桩zhuāng，桩zhuāng上shàng写xiě着zhe五wǔ方fāng蛮mán雷léi使shǐ者zhě的de名míng录lù。

逐句解 Line by line

底dǐ下xià有yǒu五wǔ個gè大dà缸gāng，都dōu注zhù著zhe滿mǎn缸gāng清qīng水shuǐ，水shuǐ上shàng浮fú著zhe楊yáng柳liǔ枝zhī，楊yáng柳liǔ枝zhī上shàng托tuō著zhe一yí面miàn鐵tiě牌pái，牌pái上shàng書shū的de是shì雷léi霆tíng都dū司sī的de符fú字zì。底dǐ下xià有yǒu五wǔ个gè大dà缸gāng，都dōu注zhù着zhe满mǎn缸gāng清qīng水shuǐ，水shuǐ上shàng浮fú着zhe杨yáng柳liǔ枝zhī，杨yáng柳liǔ枝zhī上shàng托tuō着zhe一yí面miàn铁tiě牌pái，牌pái上shàng书shū的de是shì雷léi霆tíng都dū司sī的de符fú字zì。

Below were five great vats, all filled to the brim with clear water; on the water floated willow-sprigs, and on the willow-sprigs rested an iron tablet, on which was written the talisman-script of the Thunder Bureau.

A single sentence gives both readings of one character. 都注著 has 都 = dōu, "all"; 雷霆都司 has the same character as dū, a bureau or directorate -- the Thunder Bureau, a named office of the celestial government. Two jobs, one written form, thirty-four characters apart. 著 = zhe three times over, in 注著, 浮著 and 托著, each holding a thing in place. 符字 "talisman writing," the looping quasi-script of Daoist charms, which looks like characters and is not quite.

左zuǒ右yòu有yǒu五wǔ個gè大dà樁zhuāng，樁zhuāng上shàng寫xiě著zhe五wǔ方fāng蠻mán雷léi使shǐ者zhě的de名míng錄lù。左zuǒ右yòu有yǒu五wǔ个gè大dà桩zhuāng，桩zhuāng上shàng写xiě着zhe五wǔ方fāng蛮mán雷léi使shǐ者zhě的de名míng录lù。

To left and right were five great stakes, on which were written the roster of the barbarian-thunder envoys of the five directions.

寫著: 著 = zhe. 五方蠻雷使者 "the wild thunder envoys of the five directions." 名錄 "a name register" -- a staff list, pinned up where the staff can see it.

總評 Commentary

These are the working parts. Five vats of clear water with willow sprigs floating on them and an iron tablet resting on the sprigs; five stakes to be hammered, each carrying the roster of the thunder envoys. Water and willow invite the rain; the hammer-strokes call the Thunder Bureau to work.

The passage also puts 都 through both its jobs inside one sentence: the everyday dōu that means "all," and the official dū of a government bureau. Given that the whole contest turns on which authority the thunder gods actually report to, that is a well-placed piece of vocabulary.