第九回 · 立誓尋親 The Vow to Seek His Mother — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

立誓尋親 The Vow to Seek His Mother

玄xuán奘zàng讀dú罷bà，不bù覺jué哭kū倒dào在zài地dì道dào：「父fù母mǔ之zhī仇chóu，不bù能néng報bào復fù，何hé以yǐ為wéi人rén？十shí八bā年nián來lái，不bù識shí生shēng身shēn父fù母mǔ，至zhì今jīn日rì方fāng知zhī有yǒu母mǔ親qīn。此cǐ身shēn若ruò非fēi師shī父fù撈lāo救jiù撫fǔ養yǎng，安ān有yǒu今jīn日rì？容róng弟dì子zǐ去qù尋xún見jiàn母mǔ親qīn，然rán後hòu頭tóu頂dǐng香xiāng盆pén，重chóng建jiàn殿diàn宇yǔ，報bào答dá師shī父fù之zhī深shēn恩ēn也yě。」師shī父fù道dào：「你nǐ要yào去qù尋xún母mǔ，可kě帶dài這zhè血xuè書shū與yǔ汗hàn衫shān前qián去qù。只zhǐ做zuò化huà緣yuán，徑jìng往wǎng江jiāng州zhōu私sī衙yá，才cái得dé你nǐ母mǔ親qīn相xiāng見jiàn。」玄xuán奘zàng读dú罢bà，不bù觉jué哭kū倒dào在zài地dì道dào：「父fù母mǔ之zhī仇chóu，不bù能néng报bào复fù，何hé以yǐ为wéi人rén？十shí八bā年nián来lái，不bù识shí生shēng身shēn父fù母mǔ，至zhì今jīn日rì方fāng知zhī有yǒu母mǔ亲qīn。此cǐ身shēn若ruò非fēi师shī父fù捞lāo救jiù抚fǔ养yǎng，安ān有yǒu今jīn日rì？容róng弟dì子zǐ去qù寻xún见jiàn母mǔ亲qīn，然rán后hòu头tóu顶dǐng香xiāng盆pén，重chóng建jiàn殿diàn宇yǔ，报bào答dá师shī父fù之zhī深shēn恩ēn也yě。」师shī父fù道dào：「你nǐ要yào去qù寻xún母mǔ，可kě带dài这zhè血xuè书shū与yǔ汗hàn衫shān前qián去qù。只zhǐ做zuò化huà缘yuán，径jìng往wǎng江jiāng州zhōu私sī衙yá，才cái得dé你nǐ母mǔ亲qīn相xiāng见jiàn。」

逐句解 Line by line

玄xuán奘zàng讀dú罷bà，不bù覺jué哭kū倒dào在zài地dì道dào：玄xuán奘zàng读dú罢bà，不bù觉jué哭kū倒dào在zài地dì道dào：

When Xuanzang had finished reading, he fell weeping to the ground despite himself, saying:

讀罷, the reading finished. He gets all the way through the letter before he goes down.

「父fù母mǔ之zhī仇chóu，不bù能néng報bào復fù，何hé以yǐ為wéi人rén？「父fù母mǔ之zhī仇chóu，不bù能néng报bào复fù，何hé以yǐ为wéi人rén？

'The wrong done my parents, left unavenged — how then am I a man?'

何以為人, by what am I to count as a person, with 為 as wéi. He has just been called 業畜, not properly human, and his answer is that failing to avenge his parents is the thing that would make the charge true. The insult has been accepted and converted into an obligation.

十shí八bā年nián來lái，不bù識shí生shēng身shēn父fù母mǔ，至zhì今jīn日rì方fāng知zhī有yǒu母mǔ親qīn。十shí八bā年nián来lái，不bù识shí生shēng身shēn父fù母mǔ，至zhì今jīn日rì方fāng知zhī有yǒu母mǔ亲qīn。

'For eighteen years I have not known the parents who gave me birth; only today do I learn that I have a mother.'

生身父母, the parents from whose bodies you came, as distinct from the ones who raised you. He is careful about the distinction, because he owes both.

此cǐ身shēn若ruò非fēi師shī父fù撈lāo救jiù撫fǔ養yǎng，安ān有yǒu今jīn日rì？此cǐ身shēn若ruò非fēi师shī父fù捞lāo救jiù抚fǔ养yǎng，安ān有yǒu今jīn日rì？

'Had not my master rescued and reared this body, where should I be today?'

撈 is specifically to fish a thing out of water, the verb you would use with a net. He is not reaching for a figure of speech. His master scooped him out of the Yangzi.

容róng弟dì子zǐ去qù尋xún見jiàn母mǔ親qīn，然rán後hòu頭tóu頂dǐng香xiāng盆pén，重chóng建jiàn殿diàn宇yǔ，報bào答dá師shī父fù之zhī深shēn恩ēn也yě。」容róng弟dì子zǐ去qù寻xún见jiàn母mǔ亲qīn，然rán后hòu头tóu顶dǐng香xiāng盆pén，重chóng建jiàn殿diàn宇yǔ，报bào答dá师shī父fù之zhī深shēn恩ēn也yě。」

'Let your disciple go and find his mother; then I shall bear the incense-basin on my head and rebuild the temple halls, to repay my master's deep kindness.'

He balances the books before he goes. 弟子, disciple, keeps 子 full as zǐ. 頭頂香盆 is carrying an incense-basin on your head, an act of extravagant public devotion and a promise to be visibly grateful. 重建, rebuild, takes 重 as chóng, again, rather than zhòng, heavy. The debt to his birth-parents is paid in revenge; the debt to his rescuer, in a new roof.

師shī父fù道dào：「你nǐ要yào去qù尋xún母mǔ，可kě帶dài這zhè血xuè書shū與yǔ汗hàn衫shān前qián去qù。师shī父fù道dào：「你nǐ要yào去qù寻xún母mǔ，可kě带dài这zhè血xuè书shū与yǔ汗hàn衫shān前qián去qù。

His master said, 'If you would go to seek your mother, take this blood-letter and undershirt with you.'

尋母, go and look for your mother. The abbot does not argue either. He simply hands over the evidence he has been keeping in a box for eighteen years against exactly this morning.

只zhǐ做zuò化huà緣yuán，徑jìng往wǎng江jiāng州zhōu私sī衙yá，才cái得dé你nǐ母mǔ親qīn相xiāng見jiàn。」只zhǐ做zuò化huà缘yuán，径jìng往wǎng江jiāng州zhōu私sī衙yá，才cái得dé你nǐ母mǔ亲qīn相xiāng见jiàn。」

'Go only as a monk begging alms, straight to the private yamen at Jiangzhou, and so you may come to see your mother.'

化緣 is a monk begging alms, and the plan turns on how unremarkable that is: a begging monk can walk up to any gate in the country without anyone thinking to ask a question. 私衙 is the private, residential part of a government compound, as against its public halls. 相見 takes the mutual 相, xiāng, and 才得 takes 得 as dé: only that way will you get to see her.

總評 Commentary

Grief turns into a vow inside a single speech. 何以為人, he asks — by what would I count as a person? The question does something deft with the insult that started all this. He has been called a karma-beast, less than human, and his answer is that leaving his parents unavenged is the one thing that would make the charge stick.

It is worth noticing how un-Buddhist this is. A monk under vows works out, by his own reasoning, that he must go and get a man killed, and neither he nor his abbot pauses over it. The chapter runs on Confucian obligation from end to end, and the robes sit on top of that rather than replacing it. He settles his two debts with care: revenge for the parents who made him, and for the master who fished him out, a promise to carry the incense-basin and rebuild the temple halls, 重建殿宇.

Faming's plan is refreshingly practical. Go as a begging monk, carry the proofs, walk up to the private yamen at Jiangzhou. No disguise could work better, given that it is not a disguise.