第六十二回 · 敗國傾君 They Have Ruined The State — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

敗國傾君 They Have Ruined The State

那nà國guó王wáng將jiāng關guān文wén看kàn了le一yí遍biàn，心xīn中zhōng喜xǐ悅yuè道dào：「似sì你nǐ大dà唐táng王wáng有yǒu疾jí，能néng選xuǎn高gāo僧sēng，不bú避bì路lù途tú遙yáo遠yuǎn，拜bài佛fó取qǔ經jīng；寡guǎ人rén這zhè裡lǐ和hé尚shàng，專zhuān心xīn只zhǐ是shì做zuò賊zéi，敗bài國guó傾qīng君jūn。」三sān藏zàng聞wén言yán，合hé掌zhǎng道dào：「怎zěn見jiàn得dé敗bài國guó傾qīng君jūn？」國guó王wáng道dào：「寡guǎ人rén這zhè國guó，乃nǎi是shì西xī域yù上shàng邦bāng，常cháng有yǒu四sì夷yí朝cháo貢gòng，皆jiē因yīn國guó內nèi有yǒu個gè金jīn光guāng寺sì，寺sì內nèi有yǒu座zuò黃huáng金jīn寶bǎo塔tǎ，塔tǎ上shàng有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi沖chōng天tiān。近jìn被bèi本běn寺sì賊zéi僧sēng暗àn竊qiè了le其qí中zhōng之zhī寶bǎo，三sān年nián無wú有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi，外wài國guó這zhè三sān年nián也yě不bù來lái朝cháo，寡guǎ人rén心xīn痛tòng恨hèn之zhī。」那nà国guó王wáng将jiāng关guān文wén看kàn了le一yí遍biàn，心xīn中zhōng喜xǐ悦yuè道dào：「似sì你nǐ大dà唐táng王wáng有yǒu疾jí，能néng选xuǎn高gāo僧sēng，不bú避bì路lù途tú遥yáo远yuǎn，拜bài佛fó取qǔ经jīng；寡guǎ人rén这zhè里lǐ和hé尚shàng，专zhuān心xīn只zhǐ是shì做zuò贼zéi，败bài国guó倾qīng君jūn。」三sān藏zàng闻wén言yán，合hé掌zhǎng道dào：「怎zěn见jiàn得dé败bài国guó倾qīng君jūn？」国guó王wáng道dào：「寡guǎ人rén这zhè国guó，乃nǎi是shì西xī域yù上shàng邦bāng，常cháng有yǒu四sì夷yí朝cháo贡gòng，皆jiē因yīn国guó内nèi有yǒu个gè金jīn光guāng寺sì，寺sì内nèi有yǒu座zuò黄huáng金jīn宝bǎo塔tǎ，塔tǎ上shàng有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi冲chōng天tiān。近jìn被bèi本běn寺sì贼zéi僧sēng暗àn窃qiè了le其qí中zhōng之zhī宝bǎo，三sān年nián无wú有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi，外wài国guó这zhè三sān年nián也yě不bù来lái朝cháo，寡guǎ人rén心xīn痛tòng恨hèn之zhī。」

逐句解 Line by line

The king read the travel document through once, and said with pleasure, "Your Tang king, being sick, could pick out an eminent monk who would not shrink from the length of the road but go and worship the Buddha and fetch scriptures; whereas the monks I have here set their whole minds on thieving, and have ruined the state and brought its sovereign down."

The sentence is one comparison cut in half by the printing, and the halves are set back together here: 似你 against 寡人這裡, subject answering subject. 似 holds sì. The Tang emperor's illness, mentioned in passing, is the reason Tripitaka was sent out at all.

三sān藏zàng聞wén言yán，合hé掌zhǎng道dào：「怎zěn見jiàn得dé敗bài國guó傾qīng君jūn？」三sān藏zàng闻wén言yán，合hé掌zhǎng道dào：「怎zěn见jiàn得dé败bài国guó倾qīng君jūn？」

Tripitaka heard it and said with his palms together, "How is it shown that they have ruined the state and brought its sovereign down?"

怎見得 is a how-can-it-be-seen shape, so its 得 is the light linking de and not the dé of attaining. The question is put with the palms together and it is a flat challenge.

國guó王wáng道dào：「寡guǎ人rén這zhè國guó，乃nǎi是shì西xī域yù上shàng邦bāng，常cháng有yǒu四sì夷yí朝cháo貢gòng，皆jiē因yīn國guó內nèi有yǒu個gè金jīn光guāng寺sì，寺sì內nèi有yǒu座zuò黃huáng金jīn寶bǎo塔tǎ，塔tǎ上shàng有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi沖chōng天tiān。国guó王wáng道dào：「寡guǎ人rén这zhè国guó，乃nǎi是shì西xī域yù上shàng邦bāng，常cháng有yǒu四sì夷yí朝cháo贡gòng，皆jiē因yīn国guó内nèi有yǒu个gè金jīn光guāng寺sì，寺sì内nèi有yǒu座zuò黄huáng金jīn宝bǎo塔tǎ，塔tǎ上shàng有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi冲chōng天tiān。

The king said, "This kingdom of mine is a sovereign state of the Western Regions, and the four tribes used to come with tribute — all because within the kingdom there is a Temple of Golden Light, and within the temple a golden treasure pagoda, and on the pagoda a radiance that went up to the sky.

The king's account is the monks' account almost word for word, and it reaches the same chain of cause: the tribute came because of the light, and the light came off the pagoda. The two versions differ only in who gets blamed at the end.

近jìn被bèi本běn寺sì賊zéi僧sēng暗àn竊qiè了le其qí中zhōng之zhī寶bǎo，三sān年nián無wú有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi，外wài國guó這zhè三sān年nián也yě不bù來lái朝cháo，寡guǎ人rén心xīn痛tòng恨hèn之zhī。」近jìn被bèi本běn寺sì贼zéi僧sēng暗àn窃qiè了le其qí中zhōng之zhī宝bǎo，三sān年nián无wú有yǒu光guāng彩cǎi，外wài国guó这zhè三sān年nián也yě不bù来lái朝cháo，寡guǎ人rén心xīn痛tòng恨hèn之zhī。」

"Lately the thieving monks of that temple secretly made away with the treasure in the middle of it. For three years there has been no radiance, and for these three years the foreign states have not come to court; and my heart is sore with hatred of it."

暗竊, stolen in secret, answers 暗失 in the pagoda poem, lost in secret — and the difference between those two words is the whole of the king's error. 中 is the middle of the pagoda, the same phrase the poem used.

總評 Commentary

The king starts by praising the Tang and ends by denouncing his own clergy, and the two halves are one sentence. He has the facts almost entirely right — there was a light, the light brought tribute, the treasure went, the light stopped, the tribute stopped. Only the culprit is wrong.

That is the chapter's design. Nothing the court believes is stupid. The reasoning is sound at every link but the last, and the last was never tested because nobody climbed the stairs. The king is about to be corrected by a man who has been in his kingdom for one evening.