第七十五回 · 分身法 Then There Would Be Four — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

分身法 Then There Would Be Four

豬zhū八bā戒jiè遠yuǎn遠yuǎn望wàng見jiàn，笑xiào道dào：「老lǎo魔mó好hǎo砍kǎn兩liǎng刀dāo的de，卻què不bú是shì四sì個gè人rén了le？」老lǎo魔mó指zhǐ定dìng行xíng者zhě道dào：「聞wén你nǐ能néng使shǐ分fēn身shēn法fǎ，怎zěn麼me把bǎ這zhè法fǎ兒ér拿ná出chū在zài我wǒ面miàn前qián使shǐ？」大dà聖shèng道dào：「何hé為wéi分fēn身shēn法fǎ？」猪zhū八bā戒jiè远yuǎn远yuǎn望wàng见jiàn，笑xiào道dào：「老lǎo魔mó好hǎo砍kǎn两liǎng刀dāo的de，却què不bú是shì四sì个gè人rén了le？」老lǎo魔mó指zhǐ定dìng行xíng者zhě道dào：「闻wén你nǐ能néng使shǐ分fēn身shēn法fǎ，怎zěn么me把bǎ这zhè法fǎ儿ér拿ná出chū在zài我wǒ面miàn前qián使shǐ？」大dà圣shèng道dào：「何hé为wéi分fēn身shēn法fǎ？」

逐句解 Line by line

豬zhū八bā戒jiè遠yuǎn遠yuǎn望wàng見jiàn，笑xiào道dào：「老lǎo魔mó好hǎo砍kǎn兩liǎng刀dāo的de，卻què不bú是shì四sì個gè人rén了le？」猪zhū八bā戒jiè远yuǎn远yuǎn望wàng见jiàn，笑xiào道dào：「老lǎo魔mó好hǎo砍kǎn两liǎng刀dāo的de，却què不bú是shì四sì个gè人rén了le？」

Bajie, watching from a distance, laughed: "Old fiend, better take two more cuts — wouldn't that make four of him?"

The Idiot has been standing on the sidelines since he was sent there, and his one contribution to the battle is heckling. It is also, arithmetically, correct.

老lǎo魔mó指zhǐ定dìng行xíng者zhě道dào：「聞wén你nǐ能néng使shǐ分fēn身shēn法fǎ，怎zěn麼me把bǎ這zhè法fǎ兒ér拿ná出chū在zài我wǒ面miàn前qián使shǐ？」老lǎo魔mó指zhǐ定dìng行xíng者zhě道dào：「闻wén你nǐ能néng使shǐ分fēn身shēn法fǎ，怎zěn么me把bǎ这zhè法fǎ儿ér拿ná出chū在zài我wǒ面miàn前qián使shǐ？」

The old fiend pointed at Wukong: "I have heard you can work the body-dividing art. How dare you bring that trick out and use it in front of me?"

法兒 keeps 兒 at full weight as ér. And the objection is wonderfully beside the point — not that the trick worked, but that it was used in his presence. He is offended rather than beaten.

大dà聖shèng道dào：「何hé為wéi分fēn身shēn法fǎ？」大dà圣shèng道dào：「何hé为wéi分fēn身shēn法fǎ？」

The Great Sage said, "What is the body-dividing art?"

何為 takes 為 at wéi, the copula — what IS — against the wèi of 為何, for what reason, which turned up in the same argument a few passages ago. Two compounds, the same two characters in opposite order, opposite readings.

總評 Commentary

Wukong's innocent question is the funniest line he has. He has just been cut in half and become two people, and he asks what the body-dividing art might be. The pretence is transparent and is meant to be.

Bajie's heckle deserves its place too. He was brought along to stiffen a nerve and sent away before the first blow, and from the sidelines he has worked out the implication of the demon's problem faster than the demon has.