第六十一回 · 力倦神疲 Strength Spent And Spirit Weary — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

力倦神疲 Strength Spent And Spirit Weary

那nà牛niú王wáng，一yī則zé是shì與yǔ行xíng者zhě鬥dòu了le一yí日rì，力lì倦juàn神shén疲pí；二èr則zé是shì見jiàn八bā戒jiè的de釘dīng鈀pá兇xiōng猛měng，遮zhē架jià不bú住zhù：敗bài陣zhèn就jiù走zǒu。只zhǐ見jiàn那nà火huǒ焰yàn山shān土tǔ地dì帥shuài領lǐng陰yīn兵bīng，當dāng面miàn擋dǎng住zhù道dào：「大dà力lì王wáng，且qiě住zhù手shǒu。那nà牛niú王wáng，一yī则zé是shì与yǔ行xíng者zhě斗dòu了le一yí日rì，力lì倦juàn神shén疲pí；二èr则zé是shì见jiàn八bā戒jiè的de钉dīng钯pá凶xiōng猛měng，遮zhē架jià不bú住zhù：败bài阵zhèn就jiù走zǒu。只zhǐ见jiàn那nà火huǒ焰yàn山shān土tǔ地dì帅shuài领lǐng阴yīn兵bīng，当dāng面miàn挡dǎng住zhù道dào：「大dà力lì王wáng，且qiě住zhù手shǒu。

逐句解 Line by line

那nà牛niú王wáng，一yī則zé是shì與yǔ行xíng者zhě鬥dòu了le一yí日rì，力lì倦juàn神shén疲pí；二èr則zé是shì見jiàn八bā戒jiè的de釘dīng鈀pá兇xiōng猛měng，遮zhē架jià不bú住zhù：敗bài陣zhèn就jiù走zǒu。那nà牛niú王wáng，一yī则zé是shì与yǔ行xíng者zhě斗dòu了le一yí日rì，力lì倦juàn神shén疲pí；二èr则zé是shì见jiàn八bā戒jiè的de钉dīng钯pá凶xiōng猛měng，遮zhē架jià不bú住zhù：败bài阵zhèn就jiù走zǒu。

As for the Bull King: for one thing he had fought Pilgrim a whole day and his strength was spent and his spirit weary; for another he saw that Eight Rules' rake was fierce and could not fend it off. So he broke and ran.

Two reasons for the defeat, in balance, and neither of them is that he was outfought. 一則 holds at yī, the counting word, and this is the second such site in the chapter after 一則火氣蒸人. (The second 一, in 一日, shifts regularly to yí before the falling tone of 日.) The two members are joined across the semicolon as a single list.

只zhǐ見jiàn那nà火huǒ焰yàn山shān土tǔ地dì帥shuài領lǐng陰yīn兵bīng，當dāng面miàn擋dǎng住zhù道dào：「大dà力lì王wáng，且qiě住zhù手shǒu。只zhǐ见jiàn那nà火huǒ焰yàn山shān土tǔ地dì帅shuài领lǐng阴yīn兵bīng，当dāng面miàn挡dǎng住zhù道dào：「大dà力lì王wáng，且qiě住zhù手shǒu。

Then the local god of the Fiery Mountain, at the head of his shadow-troops, blocked him to his face and said: "King of Great Strength, hold your hand.

陰兵 are troops of the unseen world, the local god's levy. 大力王, King of Great Strength, is the Bull King's proper style, and the local god uses it — which makes what follows a formal summons rather than a taunt. 當面 takes dāng.

總評 Commentary

The Bull King's defeat is given two causes in a balanced pair, and neither of them is that he was outfought. He had been at it a full day, and the rake was fierce. The novel is careful to let him lose to exhaustion and numbers rather than to skill, which keeps the poem's verdict of parity intact.

敗陣就走 — he broke and ran — is the plainest possible way of saying it, and the flatness is the point after thirteen lines of rhapsody. What follows is not a pursuit but an interception: the local god has been standing by with shadow-troops since the previous passage, and the Bull King runs straight into them.