《红楼梦》翻译（七十二）

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twin05 2010-07-30 13:48 | 只看楼主 树型| 收藏| 小中大 1 ^#

《红楼梦》翻译（七十二）

原著
　　彼时合家皆知，无不纳罕，都有些疑心．那长一辈的想他素日孝顺，平一辈的想他素日和睦亲密，下一辈的想他素日慈爱，以及家中仆从老小想他素日怜贫惜贱，慈老爱幼之恩，莫不悲嚎痛哭者．

　　闲言少叙，却说宝玉因近日林黛玉回去，剩得自己孤в，也不和人顽耍，每到晚间便索然睡了．如今从梦中听见说秦氏**了，连忙翻身爬起来，只觉心中似戳了一刀的不忍，哇的一声，直奔出一口血来．袭人等慌慌忙忙上来д扶，问是怎么样，又要回贾母来请大夫．宝玉笑道：“不用忙，不相干，这是急火攻心，血不归经。”说着便爬起来，要衣服换了，来见贾母，即时要过去．袭人见他如此，心中虽放不下，又不敢拦，只是由他罢了．贾母见他要去，因说：“才г气的人，那里不干净，二则夜里风大，等明早再去不迟。”宝玉那里肯依．贾母命人备车，多派跟随人役，拥护前来．一直到了宁国府前，只见府门洞开，两边灯笼照如白昼，乱烘烘人来人往，里面哭声摇山振岳．宝玉下了车，忙忙奔至停灵之室，痛哭一番．然后见过尤氏．谁知尤氏正犯了胃疼旧疾，睡在床上．然后又出来见贾珍．彼时贾代儒，代修，贾敕，贾效，贾敦，贾赦，贾政，贾琮，贾е，贾珩，贾ё，贾琛，贾琼，贾ж，贾蔷，贾菖，贾菱，贾芸，贾芹，贾蓁，贾萍，贾藻，贾蘅，贾芬，贾芳，贾兰，贾菌，贾芝等都来了．贾珍哭的泪人一般，正和贾代儒等说道：“合家大小，远**友，谁不知我这媳妇比儿子还强十倍．如今伸腿去了，可见这长房内绝灭无人了。”说着又哭起来．众人忙劝：“人已辞世，哭也无益，且商议如何料理要紧。”贾珍拍手道：“如何料理，不过尽我所有罢了！"正说着，只见秦业，秦钟并尤氏的几个眷属尤氏姊妹也都来了．贾珍便命贾琼，贾琛，贾ж，贾蔷四个人去陪客，一面吩咐去请钦天监**阳司来择日，择准停灵七七四十九日，三日后开丧送讣闻．这四十九日，单请一百单八众禅僧在大厅上拜大悲忏，超度前亡后化诸魂，以免亡者之罪，另设一坛于天香楼上，是九十九位全真道士，打四十九日解冤洗业醮．然后停灵于会芳园中，灵前另外五十众高僧，五十众高道，对坛按七作好事．那贾敬闻得长孙媳**了，因自为早晚就要飞升，如何肯又回家染了红尘，将前功尽弃呢，因此并不在意，只凭贾珍料理．

　　贾珍见父亲不管，亦发恣意奢华．看板时，几副杉木板皆不中用．可巧薛蟠来吊问，因见贾珍寻好板，便说道：“我们木店里有一副板，叫作什么樯木，出在潢海铁网山上，作了棺材，万年不坏．这还是当年先父带来，原系义忠亲王老千岁要的，因他坏了事，就不曾拿去．现在还封在店内，也没有人出价敢买．你若要，就抬来使罢。”贾珍听说，喜之不尽，即命人抬来．大家看时，只见帮底皆厚八寸，纹若槟榔，味若檀麝，以手扣之，玎з如金玉．大家都奇异称赞．贾珍笑问：“价值几何？"薛蟠笑道：“拿一千两银子来，只怕也没处买去．什么价不价，赏他们几两工钱就是了。”贾珍听说，忙谢不尽，即命解锯糊漆．贾政因劝道：“此物恐非常人可享者，殓以上等杉木也就是了。”此时贾珍恨不能代秦氏之**，这话如何肯听．因忽又听得秦氏之丫鬟名唤瑞珠者，见秦氏**了，他也触柱而亡．此事可罕，合族人也都称叹．贾珍遂以孙女之礼敛殡，一并停灵于会芳园中之登仙阁．小丫鬟名宝珠者，因见秦氏身无所出，乃甘心愿为义女，誓任摔丧驾灵之任．贾珍喜之不尽，即时传下，从此皆呼宝珠为小姐．那宝珠按未嫁女之丧，在灵前哀哀欲绝．于是，合族人丁并家下诸人，都各遵旧制行事，自不得紊乱．
霍克斯译文
By this time the entire household had heard the news. All seemed bewildered by it and all were in one way or another deeply distressed. Those older than Qin-shi thought of how dutiful she had always been; those in her own generation thought of her warmth and friendliness; her juniors remem bered how kindly and lovingly she had treated them; even the servants, irrespective of sex and age, remembering her com passion for the poor and humble and her gentle concern for the old and the very young, all wept and lamented as loud and bitterly as the rest.

But we digress.

During the last few days, since Dai-yu’s return to her father had deprived him of her companionship, Bao-yu, far from seeking diversion in the company of the others, had kept to himself, going to bed early every night and sleeping dis consolately on his own. The news of Qin-shi’s death came to him in the midst of his dreams, causing him to start up in bed with a jerk. A sudden stabbing pain shot through his heart. He retched involuntarily and spat out a mouthful of blood. Aroma and the maids clung to him, terrified, and asked him what was the matter. They wanted to tell Grandmother Jia and ask her to send for a doctor; but Bao-yu would not hear of it.

‘Don’t worry, it’s of no consequence!’ he told them. ‘Something that happens when a sudden rush of fire to the heart prevents the blood from getting back into the right channels.’

He climbed out of bed as he spoke and told them to bring him some clean clothes, so that he could see his grandmother and then go straight on to the other house. Aroma was still concerned for him, but seeing him so determined, allowed him to have his way.

Grandmother Jia did not want him to go, either.

‘It won’t be clean there,’ she said, ‘with her scarcely yet cold. And besides, there’s a nasty wind at this time of night. It will be soon enough if you go there first thing tomorrow.’

But Bao-yu would not be gainsaid, so she gave instructions for a carriage to be made ready for him and a numerous retinue of servants to attend him there.

Arriving in haste at the entrance of the Ning-guo mansion, they found the gates flung wide open and lanterns on either side turning the night into noonday. Despite the hour, a multitude of people were hurrying through it in both direc tions, while from inside the house issued a sound of lamenta tion that seemed to shake the very buildings to their founda tions.

Alighting from his carriage, Bao-yu hurried through to the room in which Qin-shi lay and wept there for a while very bitterly. He then went to call on You-shi, whom he found ill in bed, struck down by a sudden attack of some gastric trouble from which she had occasionally suffered in the past. After leaving You-shi, he went to look for Cousin Zhen.

By now Jia Dai-ru, Jia Dai-xiu, Jia Chi, Jia Xiao, Jia Dun, Jia She, Jia Zheng, Jia Cong, JiaBin, Jia Heng (I), Jia Guang, Jia Chen, Jia Qiong, Jia Lin, Jia Qiang, Jia Chang, Jia Ling, Jia Yun, Jia Qin, Jia Jin, Jia Ping, Jia Zao, Jia Heng (II), Jia Fen, Jia Fang, Jia Lan, Jia Jun and Jia Zhi had all arrived, and Bao-yu found Cousin Zhen in their midst addressing them, though well-nigh choked with tears:

‘Everyone, young or old, kinsman or friend, knows that my daughter-in-law was ten times better than any son. Now that she has been taken from us it’s plain to see that this senior branch of the family is doomed to extinction!’ and he broke down once more into incontrollable weeping.

The men present tried to console him:

‘Now that she’s gone, crying isn’t going to bring her back again. The important thing now is to make your plans for the funeral.’

‘Plans? What plans?’ Cousin Zhen cried, somewhat theatrically. ‘Just take everything I have—everything!’

As he was speaking Qin Bang-ye and Qin Zhong arrived, and various members of You-shi’s family, including her two younger sisters. Cousin Zhen deputed Jia Qiong, Jia Chen, Jia Lin and Jia Qiang from among the younger men present to look after them and any other guests who might arrive.

He also instructed someone to invite an expert from the Board of Astronomy to select dates for the funeral and the ceremonies preceding it. With the approval of this official it was decided that the lying in state should be for forty-nine days and that the notification of bereavement indicating the family’s readiness to receive official visits of condolence should be made in three days’ time. A hundred and eight Buddhist monks were engaged to perform a Grand Miseri cordia for the salvation of all departed souls in the main reception hall of the mansion during these forty-nine days, while at the same time ninety-nine Taoist priests of the Quan zhen sect were to perform ceremonies of purification and absolution at a separate altar in the Celestial Fragrance pavilion. These arrangements having been made, the body was moved to a temporary shrine in another pavilion of the All-scents Garden. Fifty high-ranking Buddhist monks and fifty high-ranking Taoist priests took turns in chanting and intoning before it on every seventh day.

Nothing would induce old Jia Jing to return home when he learned of the death of his grandson’s wife. Immortality was within his grasp and he was not going to impair his hard-won sanctity with the taint of earthly pollution. Accordingly he left all these matters to Cousin Zhen to order as he wished.

Free to indulge his own extravagant tastes, Cousin Zhen had inspected several sets of deal coffin-boards without finding any to his liking. Xue Pan heard of his problem when he came round to condole.

‘We’ve got a set in our timber-yard,’ he told Cousin Zhen. ‘It’s in a wood supposed to have come from the Iron Net Mountains. They say that a coffin made from it will last forever without rotting. It was brought here years ago by my father. Prince Zhong-yi was going to have it, but when he came unstuck it didn’t get used. It’s still locked up in store because no one has ever been found who could afford to buy it. If you are interested, I can have it carried round for you to look at.’

Cousin Zhen was delighted, and the timber was brought over at once for everyone to inspect. The planks for the base and sides were at least eight inches thick. The wood had a grain like areca palm and a fragrance suggestive of musk and sandalwood. When rapped with the knuckles it gave off a hard, ringing sound like jade or stone. Everyone was impressed and Cousin Zhen eagerly inquired the price. Xue Pan laughed.

‘I doubt you could buy a set like this for a thousand taels of silver cash down,’ he said. ‘Blow the price! Give the workmen a couple of taels for carrying it here and it’s yours.’

Cousin Zhen thanked him profusely and at once gave orders for the planks to be sawn up and made into a coffin. Jia Zheng doubted the propriety of using such material for the burial of a person not of royal blood and insisted that it would be sufficient to use the best quality deal; but Cousin Zhen refused to listen.

News was suddenly brought that Qin-shi’s little maid Gem, on hearing that her mistress was dead, had taken her own life by dashing her head against a pillar. Such rare devotion excited the wondering admiration of the entire clan. Cousin Zhen at once had her laid out and encoffined with the rites appropriate to a granddaughter and ordered her coffin to be placed in the Ascension Pavilion of the All-scents Garden side by side with Qin-shi’s.

As Qin-shi had died without issue, another of her little maids called Jewel volunteered to stand in as her daughter and perform the chief mourner’s duties of smashing the bowl when the bearers came in to take up the coffin and walking in front of it in the funeral procession. Cousin Zhen was very pleased and gave orders that thenceforth everyone was to address her as ‘Miss Jewel’ just as if she were Qin-shi’s real daughter. In the meantime she installed herself by the coffin and, comporting herself in the manner prescribed for an unmarried daughter, wept and wailed until she had almost lost her voice.

Following these preliminaries, the rest of the clan together with the family servants all proceeded to carry out their mourning duties according to long-established precedents and in a correct and orderly manner.
杨宪益译文
By that time the whole household was lamenting, distressed by this shocking news. The old people recalled Keqing’s filial behaviour, the young people her affectionate ways and the children her kindness; while not one of the servants but wept for grief recollecting her compassion for the poor and humble and her loving goodness to old and young alike.

But let us return to Baoyu, who was so desolate after Daiyu’s depar ture that he had given up playing with his companions and went disconso late to bed each night. Roused from sleep by the announcement of Keqing’s death, he sprang suddenly from his bed. At once he felt a stab of pain in his heart, and with a cry spat out a mouthful of blood.
Xiren and his other maids rushed up to help him back to bed, asking anxiously what was the matter. Should they get the Lady Dowager to send for a doctor?
“There’s no need, it’s nothing,” he said. “A hot humour seized on my heart and stopped the normal flow of blood.” He got up again and demanded to be dressed so that he could go to his grandmother and then to the other mansion.
Anxious though Xiren was, she dared not stop him when he was in this mood.
The Lady Dowager however protested, “Just after a death their house is unclean. Besides, at night the wind is high. You may just as well go tomorrow.”
When Baoyu insisted, she ordered a carriage and plenty of attendants for him. They found the gates of the Ning Mansion wide open and brilliantly lit with lanterns on either side. There was an excited coming and going of people and the air was rent by the vociferous wailing from inside the house.
Alighting from his carriage Baoyu hurried to the room in which Keqing lay and having wept there went in to see Madam You, who happened to be laid up with another bout of dyspepsia. He then paid his respects to Jia Zhen.
By now Jia Dairu had arrived with Jia Daixiu, Jia Chi, Jia Xiao, Jia Dun, Jia She, Jia Zheng, Jia Cong, Jia Bin, Jia Heng, Jia Guang, Jia Chen, Jia Qiong, Jia Lin, Jia Qiang, Jia Chang, Jia Ling, Jia Yun, Jia Qin, Jia Zhen, Jia Ping, Jia Zao, Jia Heng, Jia Fen, Jia Fang, Jia Lan, Jia Jun and Jia Zhi.
Bathed in tears, Jia Zhen was telling Jia Dairu and the others, “Every one in the family, old and young, distant kin or close friends, knows that my daughter-in-law was infinitely superior to my son. Now that she has gone, my branch of the family is fated to die out.” With that he broke down again.
The men present tried to console him: “Since she has departed this world it is useless to weep. The main thing now is to decide what must be done.”
“What must be done?” Jia Zhen clapped his hands. “I’m ready to dispose of all in my possession.”
He was interrupted by the arrival of Qin Ye, Qin Zhong and some relatives of Madam You as well as her younger sisters. Leaving Jia Qiong, Jia Cen, Jia Lin and Jia Qiang to keep the guests company, Jia Zhen sent to invite someone from the Department of Astrology to choose auspi cious days.
It was decided that the body should remain in the house for seven times seven or forty-nine days, and mourning should start the third day after her death with the issue of obituary notices. During the forty-nine days a hundred and eight Buddhist monks were to perform the Litany of Great Compassion in the main hail to release the souls of those passed away before and after her and win remission for the sins of the de ceased. At an altar erected in the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, ninety-nine Taoists of the Perfect Truth Sect should pray for forty-nine days for absolution. The coffin would then be taken to the Garden of Concen trated Fragrance, where another fifty high bonzes and fifty high Taoists would sacrifice before it once every seventh day during the forty-nine days.
Jia Jing alone was untouched by the death of his eldest grandson’s wife. Expecting to attain immortality shortly himself, how could he go home to be soiled by mundane dust and squander all the merit he had acquired? So he left all the funeral arrangements to his son.
His father’s indifference gave Jia Zhen a free hand to indulge his extravagance. He decided that the cedar-boards he had seen would not do for the coffin and was searching for something better when Xue Pan called to offer condolences.
“In our timber-yard is some qiang wood from the Iron-Net Mountain across the sea,” said the young man. “A coffin made of this would last for ten thousand years. My father bought this timber for Prince Yi Zhong, but after his disgrace the prince didn’t take it. It’s still stored with us because no one has ventured to buy it. If you like, I’ll have it sent over.”
Overjoyed by this news, Jia Zhen had the timber fetched without de lay. Everyone gathered round and exclaimed in wonder, for the planks for the sides and the base were eight inches thick with a grain like that of the areca palm and the perfume of sandalwood or musk. When tapped they gave off a clear ringing sound like metal or jade.
Jia Zhen, his face radiant, inquired the price.
“You couldn’t buy this for a thousand taels,” replied Xue Pan with a smile. “Don’t worry about the price. All you need pay for is having it made up.”
After copious thanks Jia Zhen lost no time in giving directions for the wood to be sawn and varnished.
Jia Zheng objected, “This seems too sumptuous for ordinary people. The best quality cedar-boards would be quite adequate.”
But Jia Zhen, who would gladly have died in Keqing’s place, would not listen to this suggestion.
Word was brought that after Keqing’s death one of her maids, Ruizhu, had dashed out her own brains against a pillar. The whole clan praised this act of rare loyalty and Jia Zhen ordered that she be buried with the rites befitting a grandchild, her coffin resting in the Pavilion of Attained Immortality in the Garden of Concentrated Fragrance.
Another maid, Baozhu, offered to act as Keqing’s god-daughter and take the chief mourner’s part, since her mistress had no child. This pleased Jia Zhen so much that he directed that henceforward Baozhu should be addressed as “miss”, as if she were a daughter of the house.
Then Baozhu mourned like an unmarried daughter, weeping by the coffin as if her heart would break, while all the clansmen and servants observed the etiquette traditionally prescribed for such occasions with unimpeachable propriety.

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《红楼梦》翻译 （七十二）

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《红楼梦》翻译（七十二）

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