第七十三回 · 謹言謹言 Mind Your Tongue — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

謹言謹言 Mind Your Tongue

三sān藏zàng捻niǎn他tā一yì把bǎ道dào：「謹jǐn言yán，謹jǐn言yán。我wǒ們men不bù與yǔ他tā相xiāng識shí，又yòu不bú認rèn親qīn，左zuǒ右yòu暫zàn時shí一yí會huì，管guǎn他tā怎zěn的de？」說shuō不bù了liǎo，進jìn了le二èr門mén，只zhǐ見jiàn那nà正zhèng殿diàn謹jǐn閉bì，東dōng廊láng下xià坐zuò著zhe一yí個gè道dào士shì，在zài那nà裡lǐ丸wán藥yào。三sān藏zàng捻niǎn他tā一yì把bǎ道dào：「谨jǐn言yán，谨jǐn言yán。我wǒ们men不bù与yǔ他tā相xiāng识shí，又yòu不bú认rèn亲qīn，左zuǒ右yòu暂zàn时shí一yí会huì，管guǎn他tā怎zěn的de？」说shuō不bù了liǎo，进jìn了le二èr门mén，只zhǐ见jiàn那nà正zhèng殿diàn谨jǐn闭bì，东dōng廊láng下xià坐zuò着zhe一yí个gè道dào士shì，在zài那nà里lǐ丸wán药yào。

逐句解 Line by line

三sān藏zàng捻niǎn他tā一yì把bǎ道dào：「謹jǐn言yán，謹jǐn言yán。三sān藏zàng捻niǎn他tā一yì把bǎ道dào：「谨jǐn言yán，谨jǐn言yán。

Tripitaka gave him a pinch. "Mind your tongue. Mind your tongue."

捻 is niǎn, to pinch or twist between finger and thumb — a small, private, entirely recognisable gesture, and the Tang Monk's usual way of managing his loudest disciple in public. The doubling of 謹言 is how spoken Chinese does urgency: say it twice and it becomes a hiss.

我wǒ們men不bù與yǔ他tā相xiāng識shí，又yòu不bú認rèn親qīn，左zuǒ右yòu暫zàn時shí一yí會huì，管guǎn他tā怎zěn的de？」我wǒ们men不bù与yǔ他tā相xiāng识shí，又yòu不bú认rèn亲qīn，左zuǒ右yòu暂zàn时shí一yí会huì，管guǎn他tā怎zěn的de？」

"We are not acquainted with the man, and we are no kin of his. Either way it is a short call — what business is he of ours?"

相識 takes 相 as xiāng, mutually: to be known to each other. 左右 is not left and right here but "in any case", "either way" — a small vernacular hinge that survives into modern speech. And 管他怎的 is as close as the Tang Monk comes to slang: never mind him, what does it matter.

說shuō不bù了liǎo，進jìn了le二èr門mén，只zhǐ見jiàn那nà正zhèng殿diàn謹jǐn閉bì，東dōng廊láng下xià坐zuò著zhe一yí個gè道dào士shì，在zài那nà裡lǐ丸wán藥yào。说shuō不bù了liǎo，进jìn了le二èr门mén，只zhǐ见jiàn那nà正zhèng殿diàn谨jǐn闭bì，东dōng廊láng下xià坐zuò着zhe一yí个gè道dào士shì，在zài那nà里lǐ丸wán药yào。

Before he had finished speaking they were through the inner gate, and there they saw the main hall shut fast, and under the eastern gallery a Daoist sitting rolling pills.

Two 了 within seven characters, and two different words. 說不了 is liǎo, to finish — he had not finished speaking. 進了 is le, the little marker that an action has happened. Then the detail that should stop a reader: 正殿謹閉, the main hall shut fast, in a house that has just advertised itself on its gate. 丸 is doing duty as a verb — to roll into pills — and 坐著 takes 著 as zhe, sitting there and going on sitting.

總評 Commentary

The pinch is the whole relationship in one gesture. Tripitaka cannot control Pilgrim by authority and both of them know it, so he manages him the way a parent manages a child in a shop — a squeeze on the arm and a whispered word, twice. His reasoning is impeccable and entirely beside the point: we do not know him, we are not related to him, we will not be long. Every clause of that will be false within the hour.

Then the staging turns. The main hall is shut — the one room a religious house keeps open — and the master of the place is not in it. He is off to the side, under a gallery, making pills. A Daoist rolling pills is the most ordinary sight imaginable and also, in a book where every poison arrives as medicine, a loaded one. The narrator does not comment. He simply puts the man where you can see his hands.

Hold on to the shut hall. It opens later in the chapter, and what is behind it is the three pure ones on an altar, in front of which this Daoist will offer his guests tea.