第八回 · 盂蘭盆會 The Ullambana Feast — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

盂蘭盆會 The Ullambana Feast

佛fó祖zǔ居jū於yú靈líng山shān大dà雷léi音yīn寶bǎo剎chà之zhī間jiān。一yí日rì，喚huàn聚jù諸zhū佛fó、阿ā羅luó、揭jiē諦dì、菩pú薩sà、金jīn剛gāng、比bǐ丘qiū僧sēng尼ní等děng眾zhòng曰yuē：「自zì伏fú乖guāi猿yuán安ān天tiān之zhī後hòu，我wǒ處chù不bù知zhī年nián月yuè，料liào凡fán間jiān有yǒu半bàn千qiān年nián矣yǐ。今jīn值zhí孟mèng秋qiū望wàng日rì，我wǒ有yǒu一yì寶bǎo盆pén，盆pén中zhōng具jù設shè百bǎi樣yàng奇qí花huā、千qiān般bān異yì果guǒ等děng物wù，與yǔ汝rǔ等děng享xiǎng此cǐ盂yú蘭lán盆pén會huì，如rú何hé？」概gài眾zhòng一yí個gè個gè合hé掌zhǎng，禮lǐ佛fó三sān匝zā領lǐng會huì。如rú來lái卻què將jiāng寶bǎo盆pén中zhōng花huā果guǒ品pǐn物wù，著zhuó阿ā儺nuó捧pěng定dìng，著zhuó迦jiā葉shè佈bù散sàn。佛fó祖zǔ居jū于yú灵líng山shān大dà雷léi音yīn宝bǎo刹chà之zhī间jiān。一yí日rì，唤huàn聚jù诸zhū佛fó、阿ā罗luó、揭jiē谛dì、菩pú萨sà、金jīn刚gāng、比bǐ丘qiū僧sēng尼ní等děng众zhòng曰yuē：「自zì伏fú乖guāi猿yuán安ān天tiān之zhī后hòu，我wǒ处chù不bù知zhī年nián月yuè，料liào凡fán间jiān有yǒu半bàn千qiān年nián矣yǐ。今jīn值zhí孟mèng秋qiū望wàng日rì，我wǒ有yǒu一yì宝bǎo盆pén，盆pén中zhōng具jù设shè百bǎi样yàng奇qí花huā、千qiān般bān异yì果guǒ等děng物wù，与yǔ汝rǔ等děng享xiǎng此cǐ盂yú兰lán盆pén会huì，如rú何hé？」概gài众zhòng一yí个gè个gè合hé掌zhǎng，礼lǐ佛fó三sān匝zā领lǐng会huì。如rú来lái却què将jiāng宝bǎo盆pén中zhōng花huā果guǒ品pǐn物wù，着zhuó阿ā傩nuó捧pěng定dìng，着zhuó迦jiā叶shè布bù散sàn。

逐句解 Line by line

佛fó祖zǔ居jū於yú靈líng山shān大dà雷léi音yīn寶bǎo剎chà之zhī間jiān。佛fó祖zǔ居jū于yú灵líng山shān大dà雷léi音yīn宝bǎo刹chà之zhī间jiān。

The Buddha-Patriarch dwelt within the Great Thunderclap Treasure Monastery of the Spirit Mountain.

寶剎, the treasure-precinct. 剎 is chà, consecrated ground, not shā.

一yí日rì，喚huàn聚jù諸zhū佛fó、阿ā羅luó、揭jiē諦dì、菩pú薩sà、金jīn剛gāng、比bǐ丘qiū僧sēng尼ní等děng眾zhòng曰yuē：一yí日rì，唤huàn聚jù诸zhū佛fó、阿ā罗luó、揭jiē谛dì、菩pú萨sà、金jīn刚gāng、比bǐ丘qiū僧sēng尼ní等děng众zhòng曰yuē：

One day he called together the buddhas, arhats, guardian-spirits, bodhisattvas, vajra-warriors, monks and nuns, and all the rest, and said:

揭諦 (jiē dì) are guardian spirits who take their name from the syllable gate in the mantra that closes the Heart Sūtra — the escort named after the password. In 一日 the 一 takes yí before the falling tone of 日.

「自zì伏fú乖guāi猿yuán安ān天tiān之zhī後hòu，我wǒ處chù不bù知zhī年nián月yuè，料liào凡fán間jiān有yǒu半bàn千qiān年nián矣yǐ。「自zì伏fú乖guāi猿yuán安ān天tiān之zhī后hòu，我wǒ处chù不bù知zhī年nián月yuè，料liào凡fán间jiān有yǒu半bàn千qiān年nián矣yǐ。

"Since the unruly ape was subdued and Heaven secured, here we have lost all count of months and years; I reckon a full half-thousand years have passed in the world of men.

Heaven keeps no calendar, so nobody up here has been counting; below, five hundred years have gone by. That figure is exactly the sentence the monkey is serving under the mountain.

今jīn值zhí孟mèng秋qiū望wàng日rì，我wǒ有yǒu一yì寶bǎo盆pén，盆pén中zhōng具jù設shè百bǎi樣yàng奇qí花huā、千qiān般bān異yì果guǒ等děng物wù，與yǔ汝rǔ等děng享xiǎng此cǐ盂yú蘭lán盆pén會huì，如rú何hé？」今jīn值zhí孟mèng秋qiū望wàng日rì，我wǒ有yǒu一yì宝bǎo盆pén，盆pén中zhōng具jù设shè百bǎi样yàng奇qí花huā、千qiān般bān异yì果guǒ等děng物wù，与yǔ汝rǔ等děng享xiǎng此cǐ盂yú兰lán盆pén会huì，如rú何hé？」

"Now, on the full-moon day of early autumn, I have a precious basin set with a hundred kinds of rare flowers and a thousand sorts of strange fruits and the like — shall we share this Ullambana Feast together?"

The Buddha proposes a party, and the party has a theme. 盂蘭盆會 (yú lán pén) is Ullambana, held at the full moon of the seventh month to get suffering beings out of where they are stuck — the Ghost Festival, when families still burn offerings for the dead. In 一寶盆 the 一 takes yì before the dipping tone of 寶. He calls a feast about rescue on the eve of deciding to rescue the world.

概gài眾zhòng一yí個gè個gè合hé掌zhǎng，禮lǐ佛fó三sān匝zā領lǐng會huì。概gài众zhòng一yí个gè个gè合hé掌zhǎng，礼lǐ佛fó三sān匝zā领lǐng会huì。

The whole assembly, every one, pressed their palms together and, circling the Buddha thrice in homage, grasped his intent.

三匝 is walking round him three times, the standard way of showing respect to a holy person or thing. In 一個個 the 一 takes yí before the falling tone of 個.

如rú來lái卻què將jiāng寶bǎo盆pén中zhōng花huā果guǒ品pǐn物wù，著zhuó阿ā儺nuó捧pěng定dìng，著zhuó迦jiā葉shè佈bù散sàn。如rú来lái却què将jiāng宝bǎo盆pén中zhōng花huā果guǒ品pǐn物wù，着zhuó阿ā傩nuó捧pěng定dìng，着zhuó迦jiā叶shè布bù散sàn。

The Tathāgata then had Ānanda hold up the flowers and fruits of the basin, and Kāśyapa scatter them abroad.

著 here is the dispatching one, zhuó — to have somebody do a thing. 阿儺 is Ānanda, the character 儺 read nuó; 迦葉 is Mahākāśyapa, where 葉 takes its special reading shè rather than the everyday yè.

總評 Commentary

The register drops to something quieter. The Buddha reckons up five hundred mortal years and proposes an Ullambana feast, a festival whose traditional business is getting suffering beings released. Nobody says so, but the theme of the party is the theme of the decision he is about to make.

Pairing 阿儺 (Ānanda) and 迦葉 (Kāśyapa) as the attendants is a deliberate touch. These two will turn up again in the novel's last chapters and demand a present before they hand the scriptures over. Serving flowers and fruit here, they plant a thread the hundred-chapter design pays off thousands of li and many years later.

The half-thousand-year measure also syncs the novel's two clocks: the monkey's sentence under the mountain and the slow ripening of the world's need for a pilgrimage. Yu notes how such markers knit the episodes into one providential scheme. The feast is its calm hinge.