第五十九回 · 毛臉大聖 The Hairy Faced Sage Returns — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

毛臉大聖 The Hairy Faced Sage Returns

正zhèng躊chóu躇chú間jiān，又yòu聽tīng得dé鐘zhōng聲shēng響xiǎng亮liàng，急jí下xià山shān坡pō，徑jìng至zhì禪chán院yuàn。那nà門mén前qián道dào人rén認rèn得dé行xíng者zhě的de形xíng容róng，即jí入rù裡lǐ面miàn報bào道dào：「前qián年nián來lái請qǐng菩pú薩sà去qù降xiáng黃huáng風fēng怪guài的de那nà個gè毛máo臉liǎn大dà聖shèng又yòu來lái了le。」菩pú薩sà知zhī是shì悟wù空kōng，連lián忙máng下xià寶bǎo座zuò相xiāng迎yíng，入rù內nèi施shī禮lǐ道dào：「恭gōng喜xǐ，取qǔ經jīng來lái耶yé？」悟wù空kōng答dá道dào：「正zhèng好hǎo未wèi到dào，早zǎo哩li，早zǎo哩li。」靈líng吉jí道dào：「既jì未wèi曾céng得dé到dào雷léi音yīn，何hé以yǐ回huí顧gù荒huāng山shān？」正zhèng踌chóu躇chú间jiān，又yòu听tīng得dé钟zhōng声shēng响xiǎng亮liàng，急jí下xià山shān坡pō，径jìng至zhì禅chán院yuàn。那nà门mén前qián道dào人rén认rèn得dé行xíng者zhě的de形xíng容róng，即jí入rù里lǐ面miàn报bào道dào：「前qián年nián来lái请qǐng菩pú萨sà去qù降xiáng黄huáng风fēng怪guài的de那nà个gè毛máo脸liǎn大dà圣shèng又yòu来lái了le。」菩pú萨sà知zhī是shì悟wù空kōng，连lián忙máng下xià宝bǎo座zuò相xiāng迎yíng，入rù内nèi施shī礼lǐ道dào：「恭gōng喜xǐ，取qǔ经jīng来lái耶yé？」悟wù空kōng答dá道dào：「正zhèng好hǎo未wèi到dào，早zǎo哩li，早zǎo哩li。」灵líng吉jí道dào：「既jì未wèi曾céng得dé到dào雷léi音yīn，何hé以yǐ回huí顾gù荒huāng山shān？」

逐句解 Line by line

正zhèng躊chóu躇chú間jiān，又yòu聽tīng得dé鐘zhōng聲shēng響xiǎng亮liàng，急jí下xià山shān坡pō，徑jìng至zhì禪chán院yuàn。正zhèng踌chóu躇chú间jiān，又yòu听tīng得dé钟zhōng声shēng响xiǎng亮liàng，急jí下xià山shān坡pō，径jìng至zhì禅chán院yuàn。

While he was still hesitating, he heard the sound of a bell ringing clear. He hurried down the slope and came straight to the Chan monastery.

躊躇 is to hesitate, to pace about undecided. 禪院 is a Chan establishment. The bell does the work of an invitation, and the novel moves him from the crag to the gate in nineteen characters.

那nà門mén前qián道dào人rén認rèn得dé行xíng者zhě的de形xíng容róng，即jí入rù裡lǐ面miàn報bào道dào：「前qián年nián來lái請qǐng菩pú薩sà去qù降xiáng黃huáng風fēng怪guài的de那nà個gè毛máo臉liǎn大dà聖shèng又yòu來lái了le。」那nà门mén前qián道dào人rén认rèn得dé行xíng者zhě的de形xíng容róng，即jí入rù里lǐ面miàn报bào道dào：「前qián年nián来lái请qǐng菩pú萨sà去qù降xiáng黄huáng风fēng怪guài的de那nà个gè毛máo脸liǎn大dà圣shèng又yòu来lái了le。」

The Daoist at the gate knew Pilgrim's face, and went in at once to report: 'That hairy-faced Great Sage who came the year before last to ask the Bodhisattva to subdue the Yellow Wind Fiend is here again.'

Both 那 point rather than ask, fixed by their position. 道人 here is a lay attendant of the monastery rather than a Daoist priest. 毛臉大聖, "the hairy-faced Great Sage," is how the establishment remembers him, and it is not quite respectful.

菩pú薩sà知zhī是shì悟wù空kōng，連lián忙máng下xià寶bǎo座zuò相xiāng迎yíng，入rù內nèi施shī禮lǐ道dào：「恭gōng喜xǐ，取qǔ經jīng來lái耶yé？」菩pú萨sà知zhī是shì悟wù空kōng，连lián忙máng下xià宝bǎo座zuò相xiāng迎yíng，入rù内nèi施shī礼lǐ道dào：「恭gōng喜xǐ，取qǔ经jīng来lái耶yé？」

The Bodhisattva, knowing it was Wukong, came down from his jewelled throne at once to meet him, brought him inside and greeted him: 'Congratulations! Have you come back with the scriptures?'

相 is xiāng in 相迎, going out to meet somebody. 耶 is a bookish question-marker, yé. Lingji's opening assumption is that anybody turning up again after this long must have finished the job.

悟wù空kōng答dá道dào：「正zhèng好hǎo未wèi到dào，早zǎo哩li，早zǎo哩li。」悟wù空kōng答dá道dào：「正zhèng好hǎo未wèi到dào，早zǎo哩li，早zǎo哩li。」

Wukong answered, 'Not yet, not by a long way — early days, early days!'

正好未到, "precisely not yet arrived," and 早哩 twice over for emphasis. Both 哩 here are the weightless sentence-closer — the reading that the foreign place name 斯哈哩 early in the chapter had to be protected from.

靈líng吉jí道dào：「既jì未wèi曾céng得dé到dào雷léi音yīn，何hé以yǐ回huí顧gù荒huāng山shān？」灵líng吉jí道dào：「既jì未wèi曾céng得dé到dào雷léi音yīn，何hé以yǐ回huí顾gù荒huāng山shān？」

Lingji said, 'If you have not yet reached the Thunderclap, what brings you back to this poor hill?'

雷音 is the Thunderclap Monastery, the journey's destination. 荒山, "waste mountain," is the humble form for one's own dwelling, matching the 敝地 with which the farmer described his district.

總評 Commentary

The gatekeeper's announcement is the best joke in the passage and it is entirely without malice. That hairy-faced Great Sage who came the year before last about the Yellow Wind Fiend is here again — accurate, weary, wholly unimpressed reporting from a lay attendant who has seen him before and formed a view.

Lingji's welcome is warmer and no less pointed. He comes down from his throne, brings his visitor inside, and opens with congratulations: have you come back with the scriptures? It is the natural assumption on seeing a pilgrim reappear, and it lands as a question about how long all this is taking.

Wukong's 早哩，早哩 — early days, early days — is as close as the novel comes to letting him admit how far there is still to go. The two weightless sentence-closers here are the same character that had to be kept from being flattened in the foreign place name Sihali early in the chapter, and hearing the two uses side by side is a small reward for the reader who noticed.