更不行禮 He Made No Bow At All
那國丈到寶殿前,更不行禮,昂昂烈烈,徑到殿上。國王欠身道:「國丈仙蹤,今喜早降。」就請左手繡墩上坐。那国丈到宝殿前,更不行礼,昂昂烈烈,径到殿上。国王欠身道:「国丈仙踪,今喜早降。」就请左手绣墩上坐。
逐句解 Line by line
The Royal Father-in-Law came before the precious hall and made no bow at all, but went straight up into it, haughty and fierce.
更 is gèng, reinforcing the negative — not so much as a bow. Everyone else in this chapter has bowed to somebody: the sentry to Wukong, Tripitaka at the foot of the steps, the king to this man, the whole court in the poem. 昂昂烈烈 is two more doubled words, head-up and blazing.
The king inclined his body and said, "The Royal Father-in-Law's immortal presence — I am glad you have come down early today."
降 is jiàng, to descend, the verb you use of a deity arriving. 仙蹤 — immortal traces — is a term of address for a transcendent being. A reigning monarch is speaking to his own subject as though to a visiting god, and thanking him for coming early.
He then invited him to sit on the embroidered stool at his left hand.
The left-hand seat is the place of honour in a Chinese hall. Eight characters, and the seating plan tells you who is running this kingdom.
Three sentences, and the balance of power in the Kingdom of Bhikshu is entirely clear without a word of comment. He does not bow. The king does. The king thanks him for being early. The king seats him on his left.
The contrast with the passage before last is exact and deliberate. Tripitaka — who really is what he appears to be, and whose vestments came from a Bodhisattva — made his obeisance at the bottom of the steps and waited to be invited up. This man walks past the same steps without stopping.