第六十九回 · 積滯之物 Three Years Of Lodged Matter — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

積滯之物 Three Years Of Lodged Matter

寡guǎ人rén為wèi此cǐ著zháo了le驚jīng恐kǒng，吃chī那nà粽zòng子zi，凝níng滯zhì在zài內nèi；況kuàng又yòu晝zhòu夜yè憂yōu思sī不bù息xī：所suǒ以yǐ成chéng此cǐ苦kǔ疾jí三sān年nián。今jīn得dé神shén僧sēng靈líng丹dān服fú後hòu，行xíng了le數shù次cì，盡jìn是shì那nà三sān年nián前qián積jī滯zhì之zhī物wù，所suǒ以yǐ這zhè會huì體tǐ健jiàn身shēn輕qīng，精jīng神shén如rú舊jiù。今jīn日rì之zhī命mìng，皆jiē是shì神shén僧sēng所suǒ賜cì，豈qǐ但dàn如rú泰tài山shān之zhī重zhòng而ér已yǐ乎hū！」寡guǎ人rén为wèi此cǐ着zháo了le惊jīng恐kǒng，吃chī那nà粽zòng子zi，凝níng滞zhì在zài内nèi；况kuàng又yòu昼zhòu夜yè忧yōu思sī不bù息xī：所suǒ以yǐ成chéng此cǐ苦kǔ疾jí三sān年nián。今jīn得dé神shén僧sēng灵líng丹dān服fú后hòu，行xíng了le数shù次cì，尽jìn是shì那nà三sān年nián前qián积jī滞zhì之zhī物wù，所suǒ以yǐ这zhè会huì体tǐ健jiàn身shēn轻qīng，精jīng神shén如rú旧jiù。今jīn日rì之zhī命mìng，皆jiē是shì神shén僧sēng所suǒ赐cì，岂qǐ但dàn如rú泰tài山shān之zhī重zhòng而ér已yǐ乎hū！」

逐句解 Line by line

寡guǎ人rén為wèi此cǐ著zháo了le驚jīng恐kǒng，吃chī那nà粽zòng子zi，凝níng滯zhì在zài內nèi；寡guǎ人rén为wèi此cǐ着zháo了le惊jīng恐kǒng，吃chī那nà粽zòng子zi，凝níng滞zhì在zài内nèi；

"For this We were struck with terror, and the rice dumplings We had eaten congealed and lodged within;

著 is zháo here — struck by something, hit by it — the same reading as in "struck by panic" or "caught by a spell". 為 keeps wèi, the causal.

況kuàng又yòu晝zhòu夜yè憂yōu思sī不bù息xī：所suǒ以yǐ成chéng此cǐ苦kǔ疾jí三sān年nián。况kuàng又yòu昼zhòu夜yè忧yōu思sī不bù息xī：所suǒ以yǐ成chéng此cǐ苦kǔ疾jí三sān年nián。

"and moreover the anxious brooding did not cease by day or night: and so this bitter sickness of three years was formed.

The cause of the illness is now complete, and it is in two parts: a thing lodged in the body and a grief that would not stop. The chapter has been treating those as one illness since the pulse reading.

今jīn得dé神shén僧sēng靈líng丹dān服fú後hòu，行xíng了le數shù次cì，盡jìn是shì那nà三sān年nián前qián積jī滯zhì之zhī物wù，所suǒ以yǐ這zhè會huì體tǐ健jiàn身shēn輕qīng，精jīng神shén如rú舊jiù。今jīn得dé神shén僧sēng灵líng丹dān服fú后hòu，行xíng了le数shù次cì，尽jìn是shì那nà三sān年nián前qián积jī滞zhì之zhī物wù，所suǒ以yǐ这zhè会huì体tǐ健jiàn身shēn轻qīng，精jīng神shén如rú旧jiù。

"Now, having taken the divine monk's magic elixir, We have voided several times, and it was all the matter lodged there three years ago — and so at this hour Our body is sound and light and Our spirits are as they were.

And the king identifies the lump himself — the matter that lodged three years ago. That closes the loop the consorts opened when they examined the close-stool. 行 is the medical xíng, to pass through, and 數 is shù, several.

今jīn日rì之zhī命mìng，皆jiē是shì神shén僧sēng所suǒ賜cì，豈qǐ但dàn如rú泰tài山shān之zhī重zhòng而ér已yǐ乎hū！」今jīn日rì之zhī命mìng，皆jiē是shì神shén僧sēng所suǒ赐cì，岂qǐ但dàn如rú泰tài山shān之zhī重zhòng而ér已yǐ乎hū！」

"Our life this day is wholly the divine monk's gift. How should it be no more than the weight of Mount Tai!"

The speech ends where it began, on the weight of a mountain — and by now it has confessed everything. 重 is zhòng, heavy.

總評 Commentary

Now the cause of the illness, and it is in two parts that the chapter has been treating as one thing since the pulse reading. Terror struck him and the dumplings he had been eating congealed and lodged; and the anxious brooding never stopped, day or night. A thing in the body and a grief in the mind, and three years of sickness out of both.

Then the king identifies the lump himself: what came out was the matter that had lodged three years ago. That closes a loop the consorts opened when they examined the close-stool and found glutinous rice — and the chapter has run more than a thousand characters between the finding and the explanation without once pointing at the connection.

The speech ends where it began, on the weight of a mountain. In between, a king has confessed to a stranger that he gave his wife to a monster to save his own skin and his kingdom, and has been ill ever since with the fright of it and a dumpling.