第八回 · 官法佛法 The Magistrate's Law and the Buddha's — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

官法佛法 The Magistrate's Law and the Buddha's

菩pú薩sà道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún，『若ruò要yào有yǒu前qián程chéng，莫mò做zuò沒méi前qián程chéng。』你nǐ既jì上shàng界jiè違wéi法fǎ，今jīn又yòu不bù改gǎi兇xiōng心xīn，傷shāng生shēng造zào孽niè，卻què不bú是shì二èr罪zuì俱jù罰fá？」那nà怪guài道dào：「前qián程chéng，前qián程chéng，若ruò依yī你nǐ，教jiào我wǒ喝hē風fēng？常cháng言yán道dào：『依yī著zhe官guān法fǎ打dǎ殺shā，依yī著zhe佛fó法fǎ餓è殺shā。』去qù也yě，去qù也yě，還hái不bù如rú捉zhuō個gè行xíng人rén，肥féi膩nì膩nì的de吃chī他tā家jiā娘niáng，管guǎn甚shèn麼me二èr罪zuì三sān罪zuì，千qiān罪zuì萬wàn罪zuì！」菩pú薩sà道dào：「『人rén有yǒu善shàn願yuàn，天tiān必bì從cóng之zhī。』汝rǔ若ruò肯kěn歸guī依yī正zhèng果guǒ，自zì有yǒu養yǎng身shēn之zhī處chù。世shì有yǒu五wǔ穀gǔ，可kě以yǐ濟jì饑jī，為wèi何hé吃chī人rén度dù日rì？」菩pú萨sà道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún，『若ruò要yào有yǒu前qián程chéng，莫mò做zuò没méi前qián程chéng。』你nǐ既jì上shàng界jiè违wéi法fǎ，今jīn又yòu不bù改gǎi凶xiōng心xīn，伤shāng生shēng造zào孽niè，却què不bú是shì二èr罪zuì俱jù罚fá？」那nà怪guài道dào：「前qián程chéng，前qián程chéng，若ruò依yī你nǐ，教jiào我wǒ喝hē风fēng？常cháng言yán道dào：『依yī着zhe官guān法fǎ打dǎ杀shā，依yī着zhe佛fó法fǎ饿è杀shā。』去qù也yě，去qù也yě，还hái不bù如rú捉zhuō个gè行xíng人rén，肥féi腻nì腻nì的de吃chī他tā家jiā娘niáng，管guǎn甚shèn么me二èr罪zuì三sān罪zuì，千qiān罪zuì万wàn罪zuì！」菩pú萨sà道dào：「『人rén有yǒu善shàn愿yuàn，天tiān必bì从cóng之zhī。』汝rǔ若ruò肯kěn归guī依yī正zhèng果guǒ，自zì有yǒu养yǎng身shēn之zhī处chù。世shì有yǒu五wǔ谷gǔ，可kě以yǐ济jì饥jī，为wèi何hé吃chī人rén度dù日rì？」

逐句解 Line by line

菩pú薩sà道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún，『若ruò要yào有yǒu前qián程chéng，莫mò做zuò沒méi前qián程chéng。』菩pú萨sà道dào：「古gǔ人rén云yún，『若ruò要yào有yǒu前qián程chéng，莫mò做zuò没méi前qián程chéng。』

The Bodhisattva said: "The ancients say, 'If you would have a future, do nothing that forfeits a future.'

A proverb about consequences: what you do now decides what you get later. 前程 is your prospects, the road out in front of you.

你nǐ既jì上shàng界jiè違wéi法fǎ，今jīn又yòu不bù改gǎi兇xiōng心xīn，傷shāng生shēng造zào孽niè，卻què不bú是shì二èr罪zuì俱jù罰fá？」你nǐ既jì上shàng界jiè违wéi法fǎ，今jīn又yòu不bù改gǎi凶xiōng心xīn，伤shāng生shēng造zào孽niè，却què不bú是shì二èr罪zuì俱jù罚fá？」

You broke the law in the upper realm, and now, unrepentant of your savage heart, you harm life and pile up sin — is this not crime to be doubly punished?"

In 不改 the 不 keeps bù before the dipping tone of 改; in 不是 it takes bú before 是.

那nà怪guài道dào：「前qián程chéng，前qián程chéng，若ruò依yī你nǐ，教jiào我wǒ喝hē風fēng？那nà怪guài道dào：「前qián程chéng，前qián程chéng，若ruò依yī你nǐ，教jiào我wǒ喝hē风fēng？

The monster said: "A future, a future! If I did as you say, would you have me feed on wind?

喝風 is to drink wind, meaning to have nothing to eat. Modern Chinese still says it, with a direction added: drinking the northwest wind is what you do at the end of the month when the money has gone.

常cháng言yán道dào：『依yī著zhe官guān法fǎ打dǎ殺shā，依yī著zhe佛fó法fǎ餓è殺shā。』常cháng言yán道dào：『依yī着zhe官guān法fǎ打dǎ杀shā，依yī着zhe佛fó法fǎ饿è杀shā。』

As the common saying goes: 'Follow the magistrate's law and be beaten to death; follow the Buddha's law and be starved to death.'

Here is the best line in the chapter, and it is a piece of peasant cynicism: follow the magistrate's law and you get beaten to death, follow the Buddha's law and you starve to death. Both laws kill you; only the method differs. 依著 is following or according to, with the ongoing-action 著 read zhe.

去qù也yě，去qù也yě，還hái不bù如rú捉zhuō個gè行xíng人rén，肥féi膩nì膩nì的de吃chī他tā家jiā娘niáng，管guǎn甚shèn麼me二èr罪zuì三sān罪zuì，千qiān罪zuì萬wàn罪zuì！」去qù也yě，去qù也yě，还hái不bù如rú捉zhuō个gè行xíng人rén，肥féi腻nì腻nì的de吃chī他tā家jiā娘niáng，管guǎn甚shèn么me二èr罪zuì三sān罪zuì，千qiān罪zuì万wàn罪zuì！」

Away, away! Better to catch a traveler and eat him, fat and greasy, than to mind your 'double crime, triple crime, a thousand crimes, ten thousand crimes'!"

還 is the adverb hái; in 不如 the 不 keeps bù before the rising tone of 如. He piles the crimes up himself — double, triple, a thousand, ten thousand — to show how little the arithmetic weighs against one hot meal.

菩pú薩sà道dào：「『人rén有yǒu善shàn願yuàn，天tiān必bì從cóng之zhī。』菩pú萨sà道dào：「『人rén有yǒu善shàn愿yuàn，天tiān必bì从cóng之zhī。』

The Bodhisattva said: "'If a man has a good wish, Heaven will surely grant it.'

She answers his fatalism with a maxim of her own: mean well and Heaven will meet you halfway.

汝rǔ若ruò肯kěn歸guī依yī正zhèng果guǒ，自zì有yǒu養yǎng身shēn之zhī處chù。汝rǔ若ruò肯kěn归guī依yī正zhèng果guǒ，自zì有yǒu养yǎng身shēn之zhī处chù。

If you will take refuge in the right fruit, you shall have the means to nourish yourself.

處 is chù. 養身之處 offers him a living, not a doctrine. The argument that actually converts the boar is a practical one, and the text makes no effort to dress it up.

世shì有yǒu五wǔ穀gǔ，可kě以yǐ濟jì饑jī，為wèi何hé吃chī人rén度dù日rì？」世shì有yǒu五wǔ谷gǔ，可kě以yǐ济jì饥jī，为wèi何hé吃chī人rén度dù日rì？」

The world has the five grains to relieve hunger; why live by eating men?"

五穀 are the five staple grains. 為何 is why, 為 read wèi. Her clinching argument is that rice exists.

總評 Commentary

This short exchange is the sharpest writing in the chapter, because it is an actual argument rather than a surrender. The boar resists not out of defiance but out of a kind of peasant despair, and he puts it in a jingle: 依著官法打殺，依著佛法餓殺 — obey the magistrate and be beaten dead, obey the Buddha and be starved dead. Either law is a death sentence. He is not being wicked; he is being realistic.

Guanyin meets fatalism with providence. Against the proverb that crime invites doubled punishment she sets another — 人有善願，天必從之, mean well and Heaven will follow — and then dissolves his false choice with something entirely practical: there are five grains in the world, so you need not eat people. The theology comes down to the level of a hungry animal's next meal, and that is where it wins.

Yu reads the passage as the novel's central argument about reform, staged in miniature. Plaks finds Bajie's resistance the most humanly persuasive of any disciple's, the voice of ordinary appetite and ordinary hopelessness — which is exactly what makes Guanyin's patient answer, and his eventual yielding, worth something.