第八十回 · 大鬧天宮 When He Wrecked Heaven — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

大鬧天宮 When He Wrecked Heaven

「若ruò我wǒ老lǎo孫sūn，方fāng五wǔ百bǎi年nián前qián大dà鬧nào天tiān宮gōng之zhī時shí，雲yún遊yóu海hǎi角jiǎo，放fàng蕩dàng天tiān涯yá；聚jù群qún精jīng，自zì稱chēng齊qí天tiān大dà聖shèng；降xiáng龍lóng伏fú虎hǔ，消xiāo了le死sǐ籍jí。「若ruò我wǒ老lǎo孙sūn，方fāng五wǔ百bǎi年nián前qián大dà闹nào天tiān宫gōng之zhī时shí，云yún游yóu海hǎi角jiǎo，放fàng荡dàng天tiān涯yá；聚jù群qún精jīng，自zì称chēng齐qí天tiān大dà圣shèng；降xiáng龙lóng伏fú虎hǔ，消xiāo了le死sǐ籍jí。

逐句解 Line by line

「若ruò我wǒ老lǎo孫sūn，方fāng五wǔ百bǎi年nián前qián大dà鬧nào天tiān宮gōng之zhī時shí，雲yún遊yóu海hǎi角jiǎo，放fàng蕩dàng天tiān涯yá；「若ruò我wǒ老lǎo孙sūn，方fāng五wǔ百bǎi年nián前qián大dà闹nào天tiān宫gōng之zhī时shí，云yún游yóu海hǎi角jiǎo，放fàng荡dàng天tiān涯yá；

"As for Old Monkey, five hundred years ago at the time I made havoc in Heaven, I roamed the corners of the sea as a cloud roams and ranged loose to the ends of the sky;

大鬧天宮, making havoc in Heaven, is the title Chinese gives the whole opening arc of the novel, and it has long since escaped the book. It is the name of operas, films and cartoons, and most people who use it have never read chapter 7.

聚jù群qún精jīng，自zì稱chēng齊qí天tiān大dà聖shèng；聚jù群qún精jīng，自zì称chēng齐qí天tiān大dà圣shèng；

I gathered the host of spirits about me and styled myself Great Sage Equal to Heaven;

The title 齊天大聖 is a demand as much as a name — level with Heaven, and therefore owed a seat at its table. Heaven eventually granted it, on the reasoning that a title costs nothing.

降xiáng龍lóng伏fú虎hǔ，消xiāo了le死sǐ籍jí。降xiáng龙lóng伏fú虎hǔ，消xiāo了le死sǐ籍jí。

I subdued dragons and tamed tigers, and struck my name off the register of the dead.

Here 降 is xiáng, to make submit, not the jiàng of coming down. The register of the dead is the underworld ledger of everyone's allotted span; Pilgrim once went down and crossed his own name out of it by hand, which is the most characteristic thing he has ever done.

總評 Commentary

Pilgrim has been alone in the sky for about three sentences and he is already reminiscing. The speech has no listener and no purpose beyond pleasure, which is what makes it endearing rather than boastful.

It also does necessary work for a reader who has come this far. Chapters 1 to 7 are a different book — a monkey against the whole machinery of Heaven — and the seventy-three chapters since have been about a servant with a headache-inducing band on his skull. Letting him tell the old story to nobody in particular keeps both versions of him in view at once.