第七十七回 · 於燈光前 Before The Lamp He Saw — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

於燈光前 Before The Lamp He Saw

此cǐ時shí有yǒu二èr更gēng時shí候hòu，眾zhòng怪guài一yì齊qí相xiāng見jiàn畢bì，把bǎ唐táng僧sēng推tuī下xià殿diàn來lái。那nà長zhǎng老lǎo於yú燈dēng光guāng前qián，忽hū見jiàn三sān個gè徒tú弟dì都dōu綑kǔn在zài地dì下xià，老lǎo師shī父fù伏fú於yú行xíng者zhě身shēn邊biān，哭kū道dào：「徒tú弟dì啊a，常cháng時shí逢féng難nán，你nǐ卻què在zài外wài運yùn用yòng神shén通tōng，到dào那nà裡lǐ取qǔ救jiù降xiáng魔mó；今jīn番fān你nǐ亦yì遭zāo擒qín，我wǒ貧pín僧sēng怎zěn麼me得dé命mìng？」此cǐ时shí有yǒu二èr更gēng时shí候hòu，众zhòng怪guài一yì齐qí相xiāng见jiàn毕bì，把bǎ唐táng僧sēng推tuī下xià殿diàn来lái。那nà长zhǎng老lǎo于yú灯dēng光guāng前qián，忽hū见jiàn三sān个gè徒tú弟dì都dōu捆kǔn在zài地dì下xià，老lǎo师shī父fù伏fú于yú行xíng者zhě身shēn边biān，哭kū道dào：「徒tú弟dì啊a，常cháng时shí逢féng难nán，你nǐ却què在zài外wài运yùn用yòng神shén通tōng，到dào那nà里lǐ取qǔ救jiù降xiáng魔mó；今jīn番fān你nǐ亦yì遭zāo擒qín，我wǒ贫pín僧sēng怎zěn么me得dé命mìng？」

逐句解 Line by line

此cǐ時shí有yǒu二èr更gēng時shí候hòu，眾zhòng怪guài一yì齊qí相xiāng見jiàn畢bì，把bǎ唐táng僧sēng推tuī下xià殿diàn來lái。此cǐ时shí有yǒu二èr更gēng时shí候hòu，众zhòng怪guài一yì齐qí相xiāng见jiàn毕bì，把bǎ唐táng僧sēng推tuī下xià殿diàn来lái。

By this time it was the second watch of the night. When the demons had all greeted one another they pushed the Tang Monk down from the hall.

更 is gēng, a watch of the night, not gèng, still more. The night ran to five watches of roughly two hours each, so the second watch is around nine to eleven in the evening. The chapter keeps time by these all the way to dawn, so it is worth starting the clock here.

那nà長zhǎng老lǎo於yú燈dēng光guāng前qián，忽hū見jiàn三sān個gè徒tú弟dì都dōu綑kǔn在zài地dì下xià，老lǎo師shī父fù伏fú於yú行xíng者zhě身shēn邊biān，哭kū道dào：「徒tú弟dì啊a，常cháng時shí逢féng難nán，你nǐ卻què在zài外wài運yùn用yòng神shén通tōng，到dào那nà裡lǐ取qǔ救jiù降xiáng魔mó；那nà长zhǎng老lǎo于yú灯dēng光guāng前qián，忽hū见jiàn三sān个gè徒tú弟dì都dōu捆kǔn在zài地dì下xià，老lǎo师shī父fù伏fú于yú行xíng者zhě身shēn边biān，哭kū道dào：「徒tú弟dì啊a，常cháng时shí逢féng难nán，你nǐ却què在zài外wài运yùn用yòng神shén通tōng，到dào那nà里lǐ取qǔ救jiù降xiáng魔mó；

Before the lamplight the elder suddenly saw his three disciples all bound on the ground. The old master threw himself down at Pilgrim's side and wept, saying, "Disciple! In the ordinary way, when we met trouble, you were outside working your powers, going off to fetch rescue and subdue the fiend;

降 is xiáng, to subdue, not jiàng, to descend — the novel keeps these apart, and most of the 降 in the book are the subduing one. The word 伏, to lie prostrate, is doing quiet work too: Tripitaka does not kneel beside Wukong, he lies down.

今jīn番fān你nǐ亦yì遭zāo擒qín，我wǒ貧pín僧sēng怎zěn麼me得dé命mìng？」今jīn番fān你nǐ亦yì遭zāo擒qín，我wǒ贫pín僧sēng怎zěn么me得dé命mìng？」

but this time you are taken as well, and how is a poor monk like me to keep his life?"

貧僧, poor monk, is the humble self-reference a cleric uses in polite speech, and by now it has become Tripitaka's tic. He is being formally modest while asking who is going to save him.

總評 Commentary

The lamp is the best thing in the passage. Everything until now has happened in fog and darkness, and the first clear sight anyone gets is this one: an old man in a lit room, looking at three tied-up bodies on the floor.

Tripitaka's lament is worth reading twice, because it is not quite a lament for his disciples. He notices Wukong is captured, and the thought it produces is about his own survival. That is not a slip by the author. This master has been written the same way for seventy-odd chapters, and the book is neither excusing him nor pretending otherwise.

What saves the moment from being merely unflattering is the posture. He does not stand over Wukong to complain; he lies down beside him in the dirt of a demon's hall. The body is more honest than the speech, and both are allowed to stand.