第六十七回 · 夜行以燭 Travel By Night With A Candle — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

夜行以燭 Travel By Night With A Candle

沙shā僧sēng道dào：「這zhè般bān黑hēi夜yè，又yòu不bù曾céng覿dí面miàn相xiāng逢féng，怎zěn麼me就jiù知zhī好hǎo歹dǎi？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún：『夜yè行xíng以yǐ燭zhú，無wú燭zhú則zé止zhǐ。』你nǐ看kàn他tā打dǎ一yí對duì燈dēng籠lóng引yǐn路lù，必bì定dìng是shì個gè好hǎo的de。」沙shā僧sēng道dào：「你nǐ錯cuò看kàn了le，那nà不bú是shì一yí對duì燈dēng籠lóng，是shì妖yāo精jīng的de兩liǎng隻zhī眼yǎn亮liàng。」沙shā僧sēng道dào：「这zhè般bān黑hēi夜yè，又yòu不bù曾céng觌dí面miàn相xiāng逢féng，怎zěn么me就jiù知zhī好hǎo歹dǎi？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún：『夜yè行xíng以yǐ烛zhú，无wú烛zhú则zé止zhǐ。』你nǐ看kàn他tā打dǎ一yí对duì灯dēng笼lóng引yǐn路lù，必bì定dìng是shì个gè好hǎo的de。」沙shā僧sēng道dào：「你nǐ错cuò看kàn了le，那nà不bú是shì一yí对duì灯dēng笼lóng，是shì妖yāo精jīng的de两liǎng只zhī眼yǎn亮liàng。」

逐句解 Line by line

沙shā僧sēng道dào：「這zhè般bān黑hēi夜yè，又yòu不bù曾céng覿dí面miàn相xiāng逢féng，怎zěn麼me就jiù知zhī好hǎo歹dǎi？」沙shā僧sēng道dào：「这zhè般bān黑hēi夜yè，又yòu不bù曾céng觌dí面miàn相xiāng逢féng，怎zěn么me就jiù知zhī好hǎo歹dǎi？」

Sha Monk said, "On a night as black as this, and without our having met him face to face, how can you tell the good of him from the bad?"

覿面 is face to face. 相 is xiāng in 相逢, to meet one another — automatic transcription supplies the xiàng that means appearance.

八bā戒jiè道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún：『夜yè行xíng以yǐ燭zhú，無wú燭zhú則zé止zhǐ。』八bā戒jiè道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún：『夜yè行xíng以yǐ烛zhú，无wú烛zhú则zé止zhǐ。』

Eight Rules said, "The ancients say: 'travel by night with a candle; without a candle, stop.'

The old man introduced the persimmon's seven virtues with the shorter form of this tag, 古云, "the ancients say." Eight Rules uses the three-character version some two and a half thousand characters later.

你nǐ看kàn他tā打dǎ一yí對duì燈dēng籠lóng引yǐn路lù，必bì定dìng是shì個gè好hǎo的de。」你nǐ看kàn他tā打dǎ一yí对duì灯dēng笼lóng引yǐn路lù，必bì定dìng是shì个gè好hǎo的de。」

"Look at him carrying a pair of lanterns to light his road. He must be a good sort."

一對 takes its ordinary tone slide before a falling tone.

沙shā僧sēng道dào：「你nǐ錯cuò看kàn了le，那nà不bú是shì一yí對duì燈dēng籠lóng，是shì妖yāo精jīng的de兩liǎng隻zhī眼yǎn亮liàng。」沙shā僧sēng道dào：「你nǐ错cuò看kàn了le，那nà不bú是shì一yí对duì灯dēng笼lóng，是shì妖yāo精jīng的de两liǎng只zhī眼yǎn亮liàng。」

Sha Monk said, "You have looked wrong. Those are no pair of lanterns. That is the shine of the demon's two eyes."

那 is nà, pointing at the thing they are both looking at.

總評 Commentary

Eight Rules produces a proverb to back his reading, and the proverb is real enough — it is the argument from it that fails. A creature carrying lights at night is behaving properly by the maxim, therefore it is proper. The reasoning holds and the premise is false.

It is the fourth saying in the chapter introduced by a 云 tag — after the persimmon's seven virtues, the physiognomy manuals and the proverb about the three metals. Each is produced to settle a question the speaker has an interest in, and this is the only one the reader can already see being misapplied.

Sha Monk's correction takes four words and destroys the whole edifice. He is the only one of the three who has been looking at the thing rather than reasoning about it.