第五十七回 · 滿滿一缽 A Bowlful of Crusted Rice — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

滿滿一缽 A Bowlful of Crusted Rice

好hǎo獃dāi子zi，捻niǎn著zhe訣jué，念niàn個gè咒zhòu，把bǎ身shēn搖yáo了le七qī八bā搖yáo，變biàn作zuò一yí個gè食shí癆láo病bìng黃huáng胖pàng和hé尚shàng，口kǒu裡lǐ哼hēng哼hēng唧jī唧jī的de挨āi近jìn門mén前qián，叫jiào道dào：「施shī主zhǔ，廚chú中zhōng有yǒu剩shèng飯fàn，路lù上shàng有yǒu饑jī人rén。貧pín僧sēng是shì東dōng土tǔ來lái，往wǎng西xī天tiān取qǔ經jīng的de。我wǒ師shī父fù在zài路lù饑jī渴kě了le，家jiā中zhōng有yǒu鍋guō巴bā冷lěng飯fàn，千qiān萬wàn化huà些xiē兒er救jiù口kǒu。」原yuán來lái那nà家jiā子zi男nán人rén不bú在zài，都dōu去qù插chā秧yāng種zhòng穀gǔ去qù了le。只zhǐ有yǒu兩liǎng個gè女nǚ人rén在zài家jiā，正zhèng才cái煮zhǔ了le午wǔ飯fàn，盛chéng起qǐ兩liǎng盆pén，卻què收shōu拾shí送sòng下xià田tián去qù，鍋guō裡lǐ還hái有yǒu些xiē飯fàn與yǔ鍋guō巴bā，未wèi曾céng盛chéng了le。那nà女nǚ人rén見jiàn他tā這zhè等děng病bìng容róng，卻què又yòu說shuō東dōng土tǔ往wǎng西xī天tiān去qù的de話huà，只zhǐ恐kǒng他tā是shì病bìng昏hūn了le胡hú說shuō，又yòu怕pà跌diē倒dǎo，死sǐ在zài門mén首shǒu。只zhǐ得dé哄hǒng哄hǒng翕xī翕xī，將jiāng些xiē剩shèng飯fàn鍋guō巴bā，滿mǎn滿mǎn的de與yǔ了le一yì缽bō。獃dāi子zi拿ná轉zhuǎn來lái，現xiàn了le本běn像xiàng，徑jìng回huí舊jiù路lù。好hǎo呆dāi子zi，捻niǎn着zhe诀jué，念niàn个gè咒zhòu，把bǎ身shēn摇yáo了le七qī八bā摇yáo，变biàn作zuò一yí个gè食shí痨láo病bìng黄huáng胖pàng和hé尚shàng，口kǒu里lǐ哼hēng哼hēng唧jī唧jī的de挨āi近jìn门mén前qián，叫jiào道dào：「施shī主zhǔ，厨chú中zhōng有yǒu剩shèng饭fàn，路lù上shàng有yǒu饥jī人rén。贫pín僧sēng是shì东dōng土tǔ来lái，往wǎng西xī天tiān取qǔ经jīng的de。我wǒ师shī父fù在zài路lù饥jī渴kě了le，家jiā中zhōng有yǒu锅guō巴bā冷lěng饭fàn，千qiān万wàn化huà些xiē儿er救jiù口kǒu。」原yuán来lái那nà家jiā子zi男nán人rén不bú在zài，都dōu去qù插chā秧yāng种zhòng谷gǔ去qù了le。只zhǐ有yǒu两liǎng个gè女nǚ人rén在zài家jiā，正zhèng才cái煮zhǔ了le午wǔ饭fàn，盛chéng起qǐ两liǎng盆pén，却què收shōu拾shí送sòng下xià田tián去qù，锅guō里lǐ还hái有yǒu些xiē饭fàn与yǔ锅guō巴bā，未wèi曾céng盛chéng了le。那nà女nǚ人rén见jiàn他tā这zhè等děng病bìng容róng，却què又yòu说shuō东dōng土tǔ往wǎng西xī天tiān去qù的de话huà，只zhǐ恐kǒng他tā是shì病bìng昏hūn了le胡hú说shuō，又yòu怕pà跌diē倒dǎo，死sǐ在zài门mén首shǒu。只zhǐ得dé哄hǒng哄hǒng翕xī翕xī，将jiāng些xiē剩shèng饭fàn锅guō巴bā，满mǎn满mǎn的de与yǔ了le一yì钵bō。呆dāi子zi拿ná转zhuǎn来lái，现xiàn了le本běn像xiàng，径jìng回huí旧jiù路lù。

逐句解 Line by line

Fine Idiot! He pinched the finger-sign, recited a spell, gave his body seven or eight shakes, and turned into a monk sallow and bloated with a wasting sickness; and moaning and whimpering he edged up to the door and called: “Benefactor, there is rice left over in your kitchen, and there is a hungry man on the road.

The disguise, in seven or eight shakes. 哼哼唧唧 is a sound-word -- moaning and whimpering -- and sound-words keep their ordinary readings here, since no dictionary records a special one; the 的 after it is the 的 written where a modern text would write 地, turning the phrase into a description of how he moves. 挨近 takes 挨 at its fixed āi, to edge up to. 捻著 is the held-in-progress 著, zhe -- the finger-sign pinched and kept pinched.

貧pín僧sēng是shì東dōng土tǔ來lái，往wǎng西xī天tiān取qǔ經jīng的de。贫pín僧sēng是shì东dōng土tǔ来lái，往wǎng西xī天tiān取qǔ经jīng的de。

“This poor monk has come from the Land of the East and goes west to fetch scriptures.

貧僧 -- "this poor monk" -- is the standard humble first person for a monk, and it is Tripitaka's own formula. Bajie is wearing somebody else's face and speaking in his master's voice.

我wǒ師shī父fù在zài路lù饑jī渴kě了le，家jiā中zhōng有yǒu鍋guō巴bā冷lěng飯fàn，千qiān萬wàn化huà些xiē兒er救jiù口kǒu。」我wǒ师shī父fù在zài路lù饥jī渴kě了le，家jiā中zhōng有yǒu锅guō巴bā冷lěng饭fàn，千qiān万wàn化huà些xiē儿er救jiù口kǒu。」

“My master is famished and parched on the road. If there is crusted rice or cold rice in the house, I beg you spare a little to save a mouth.”

鍋巴 is the crust of scorched rice stuck to the bottom of the pot: the poorest thing in any kitchen, which is exactly what makes the request modest enough to be granted. 些兒 takes the ending er.

原yuán來lái那nà家jiā子zi男nán人rén不bú在zài，都dōu去qù插chā秧yāng種zhòng穀gǔ去qù了le。原yuán来lái那nà家jiā子zi男nán人rén不bú在zài，都dōu去qù插chā秧yāng种zhòng谷gǔ去qù了le。

As it happened the men of that household were away; they had all gone off to transplant the seedlings and sow the grain.

The household is sketched in one clause and every stroke is practical. 種穀 takes 種 as the verb "to sow", zhòng, not the noun zhǒng meaning seed or kind that an automatic reading supplies. 那家子 takes 子 as the worn-down ending, zi.

只zhǐ有yǒu兩liǎng個gè女nǚ人rén在zài家jiā，正zhèng才cái煮zhǔ了le午wǔ飯fàn，盛chéng起qǐ兩liǎng盆pén，卻què收shōu拾shí送sòng下xià田tián去qù，鍋guō裡lǐ還hái有yǒu些xiē飯fàn與yǔ鍋guō巴bā，未wèi曾céng盛chéng了le。只zhǐ有yǒu两liǎng个gè女nǚ人rén在zài家jiā，正zhèng才cái煮zhǔ了le午wǔ饭fàn，盛chéng起qǐ两liǎng盆pén，却què收shōu拾shí送sòng下xià田tián去qù，锅guō里lǐ还hái有yǒu些xiē饭fàn与yǔ锅guō巴bā，未wèi曾céng盛chéng了le。

There were only two women at home. They had just cooked the midday meal and ladled out two basins of it, and were making ready to carry it down to the fields; there was still some rice and some crust in the pot that had not yet been ladled out.

盛 twice, both chéng -- to ladle or fill into a vessel -- against an automatic reading that supplies the shèng of "abundant" at both. The character sat in no guard list until this stretch and was caught by hand. It genuinely does take shèng twice more later in the chapter, so both readings are licensed and the sense has to decide each time.

那nà女nǚ人rén見jiàn他tā這zhè等děng病bìng容róng，卻què又yòu說shuō東dōng土tǔ往wǎng西xī天tiān去qù的de話huà，只zhǐ恐kǒng他tā是shì病bìng昏hūn了le胡hú說shuō，又yòu怕pà跌diē倒dǎo，死sǐ在zài門mén首shǒu。那nà女nǚ人rén见jiàn他tā这zhè等děng病bìng容róng，却què又yòu说shuō东dōng土tǔ往wǎng西xī天tiān去qù的de话huà，只zhǐ恐kǒng他tā是shì病bìng昏hūn了le胡hú说shuō，又yòu怕pà跌diē倒dǎo，死sǐ在zài门mén首shǒu。

The women saw how sick he looked, and heard him talking besides of coming from the East and going to the West, and feared he might be raving in a fever, or fall down and die at their door.

Their reasoning is given plainly and it is not piety. 跌倒 is the toppling 倒, dǎo. 病昏了胡說 -- raving in a fever -- is what they think they are hearing; what they are afraid of is a body on the doorstep.

只zhǐ得dé哄hǒng哄hǒng翕xī翕xī，將jiāng些xiē剩shèng飯fàn鍋guō巴bā，滿mǎn滿mǎn的de與yǔ了le一yì缽bō。只zhǐ得dé哄hǒng哄hǒng翕xī翕xī，将jiāng些xiē剩shèng饭fàn锅guō巴bā，满mǎn满mǎn的de与yǔ了le一yì钵bō。

So they bustled and fussed, took the leftover rice and crust, and gave him a brimming bowlful.

哄哄翕翕 is a sound-word for flustered bustling and keeps its ordinary readings. 滿滿的 is again 的 standing in for 地, describing how the bowl is filled. 只得 takes 得 at dé: they give because there is no comfortable way not to.

獃dāi子zi拿ná轉zhuǎn來lái，現xiàn了le本běn像xiàng，徑jìng回huí舊jiù路lù。呆dāi子zi拿ná转zhuǎn来lái，现xiàn了le本běn像xiàng，径jìng回huí旧jiù路lù。

The Idiot carried it back, resumed his own shape, and went straight along the old road.

現了本像 undoes the whole transformation in four characters, with no comment at all. The disguise was a tool and it is dropped the instant it has worked.

總評 Commentary

This is one of the small domestic scenes the novel does better than almost anything else. The household is drawn in a few strokes and every stroke is practical: the men are out transplanting rice, the women have cooked and portioned the midday meal, the pot is not yet empty. Nothing supernatural happens and the passage is the better for it.

The women's reasoning is the sharpest touch. They do not give out of piety, and the text says so -- they think the sick monk may be delirious, and they are afraid he will collapse and die at their door. The charity is real and the motive is self-protective, and the novel records both without a word of comment.

The bargain is worth totting up. Bajie asked for the poorest thing in the kitchen, in a borrowed body, in his master's own humble phrasing, and got a brimming bowl of it. Every part of the errand works. Hold that against the cheerfulness of the passage that follows, because the man it was all done for has been lying face down in the road since before Bajie knocked.