第八十八回 · 轉換艱難 Hard to Turn and Handle — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

轉換艱難 Hard to Turn and Handle

次cì日rì，三sān個gè王wáng子zǐ又yòu來lái稱chēng謝xiè道dào：「感gǎn蒙méng神shén師shī授shòu賜cì了le膂lǚ力lì，縱zòng然rán掄lūn得dé師shī的de兵bīng器qì，只zhǐ是shì轉zhuǎn換huàn艱jiān難nán。意yì欲yù命mìng匠jiàng依yī神shén師shī兵bīng器qì式shì樣yàng，減jiǎn削xuē斤jīn兩liǎng，打dǎ造zào一yì般bān，未wèi知zhī師shī父fù肯kěn容róng否fǒu？」次cì日rì，三sān个gè王wáng子zǐ又yòu来lái称chēng谢xiè道dào：「感gǎn蒙méng神shén师shī授shòu赐cì了le膂lǚ力lì，纵zòng然rán抡lūn得dé师shī的de兵bīng器qì，只zhǐ是shì转zhuǎn换huàn艰jiān难nán。意yì欲yù命mìng匠jiàng依yī神shén师shī兵bīng器qì式shì样yàng，减jiǎn削xuē斤jīn两liǎng，打dǎ造zào一yì般bān，未wèi知zhī师shī父fù肯kěn容róng否fǒu？」

逐句解 Line by line

次cì日rì，三sān個gè王wáng子zǐ又yòu來lái稱chēng謝xiè道dào：「感gǎn蒙méng神shén師shī授shòu賜cì了le膂lǚ力lì，縱zòng然rán掄lūn得dé師shī的de兵bīng器qì，只zhǐ是shì轉zhuǎn換huàn艱jiān難nán。次cì日rì，三sān个gè王wáng子zǐ又yòu来lái称chēng谢xiè道dào：「感gǎn蒙méng神shén师shī授shòu赐cì了le膂lǚ力lì，纵zòng然rán抡lūn得dé师shī的de兵bīng器qì，只zhǐ是shì转zhuǎn换huàn艰jiān难nán。

Next day the three princes came again to give thanks. "We are deeply grateful that the divine masters have granted us strength. Even so, though we can swing the masters' weapons, they are hard to turn and handle.

轉換 is to shift from one movement to the next — the changes of grip and direction that make a sequence rather than a swing. It is a precise complaint from someone who has actually trained: they can lift the thing, and they cannot flow with it. 膂力, spinal strength, is the same word the transmission scene used.

意yì欲yù命mìng匠jiàng依yī神shén師shī兵bīng器qì式shì樣yàng，減jiǎn削xuē斤jīn兩liǎng，打dǎ造zào一yì般bān，未wèi知zhī師shī父fù肯kěn容róng否fǒu？」意yì欲yù命mìng匠jiàng依yī神shén师shī兵bīng器qì式shì样yàng，减jiǎn削xuē斤jīn两liǎng，打dǎ造zào一yì般bān，未wèi知zhī师shī父fù肯kěn容róng否fǒu？」

We should like to order smiths to follow the pattern of the divine masters' weapons, cut down the weight, and forge us the same. We do not know whether our masters would allow it."

式樣 is the pattern or model to be copied — the shape without the substance. 減削斤兩, cutting down the catties and taels, is the whole solution in four characters: make the same weapon, lighter. It is an entirely practical proposal from three boys who have thought about the problem overnight.

總評 Commentary

The princes have worked out for themselves what the narrator explained to the reader: the weapons cannot be mastered, only borrowed. So they ask for copies.

Their proposal is modest and sensible and it is what causes everything that follows. Making the copies requires the originals to be brought out and left in a yard as patterns.

It is worth noticing that nobody does anything wrong here. The boys are being diligent, Bajie is being agreeable, and the prince is being generous, and the chapter ends in disaster.