SH14翻譯：荷塘月色（朱自清）

SH14翻譯：荷塘月色（朱自清）

Translation: Lotus Pond Under Moonlight (Zhu Ziqing)

(translated by: alexcwlin; edited by: Adam Lam)

這幾天心裡頗不寧靜。

In recent days, I had been feeling a bit agitated.

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今晚在院子里坐著乘涼，忽然想起日日走過的荷塘，

This night, I was sitting around in the garden to catch the breeze when out of the blue, the lotus pond which I passed by every day came to mind.

在這滿月的光里，總該另有一番樣子吧。

I wondered if it would look any different under light of the full moon.

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月亮漸漸地升高了，

The moon was creeping higher.

牆外馬路上孩子們的歡笑，已經聽不見了；

Children』s laughter on the street outside of the walls was gone.

妻在屋裡拍著閏兒，迷迷糊糊地哼著眠歌。

The wife was patting our son Little Run to sleep while murmuring a lullaby.

我悄悄地披了大衫，帶上門出去。

I put on a coat quietly, closed the door behind me and headed out.

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沿著荷塘，是一條曲折的小煤屑路。這是一條幽僻的路；

Alongside the lotus pond was a winding, off-the-beaten-track cinder trail.

白天也少人走，夜晚更加寂寞。

Passers-by were few during the day, and fewer during the night.

荷塘四面，長著許多樹，蓊蓊鬱郁的。

Densely-grown and shady trees surrounded the lotus pond in all directions.

路的一旁，是些楊柳，和一些不知道名字的樹。沒有月光的晚上，這路上陰森森的，有些怕人。

Willow and no-name trees lined the trail which would, on moonless nights, look dreary and spooky.

今晚卻很好，雖然月光也還是淡淡的。

That night was fine, albeit the moonlight was somewhat dim.

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路上只我一個人，背著手踱著。

I was strolling alone on the road with hands clasped together behind my back.

這一片天地好象是我的；我也象超出了平常的自己，到了另一個世界裡。

It seemed everything around was all mine, and I had sublimed to another dimension.

我愛熱鬧，也愛冷靜；

I liked excitement, but I also liked quietness.

愛群居，也愛獨處。

I liked crowds, but I also liked solitude.

象今晚上，一個人在這蒼茫的月下，什麼都可以想，什麼都可以不想，便覺是個自由的人。

At a time like that night under ubiquitous moonlight, I was at liberty to let my mind fly free or draw a blank.

白天里一定要做的事，一定要說的話，現在都可以不理。

I could put aside the things I needed to do or say during daytime.

這是獨處的妙處，我且受用這無邊的荷香月色好了。

Such was the beauty of being alone, and besides, I could indulge myself in the sweet aroma of lotuses and the immense beauty of moonlight.

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曲曲折折的荷塘上面，彌望的是田田的葉子。

Across the undulating surface of the lotus pond was a field of leaves filling the landscape.

葉子出水很高，象亭亭的舞女的裙。

The leaves reached high above water like skirts of tiptoeing ballerinas.

層層的葉子中間，零星地點綴著些白花，

Sprinkled among them were white flowers.

有裊娜地開著的，有羞澀地打著朵兒的；正如一粒粒的明珠，又如碧天里的星星，又如剛出浴的美人。

Some were showily in bloom while others were sheepishly in bud, all of which resembled glittery pearls, twinkly stars, or freshly-bathed beauties.

微風過處，送來屢屢清香，彷彿遠處高樓上渺茫的歌聲似的。

Breezes continually delivered dainty fragrance much like faint music from a distant tower.

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月光如流水一般，靜靜地瀉在這一片葉子和花上。

Moonlight, seemingly like streaming water, gently doused the patch of leaves and flowers.

薄薄的青霧浮起在荷塘里。葉子和花彷彿在牛乳中洗過一樣；又象籠著輕紗的夢。

Adding the soft mist rising in the pond to the mix, the leaves and flowers appeared as if they had been rinsed in milk or they were dreams draped in fine silk.

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雖然是滿月，天上卻有一層淡淡的雲，所以不能朗照；

Even though a full moon was in the sky, it could not shine with total brightness because the sky was splattered with wispy clouds.

但我以為這恰是到了好處——酣眠固不可少，小睡也別有風味的。

To me it was just right, much like a good night』s sleep would be an essential but a short nap would be a gratification of sort.

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月光是隔了樹照過來的，高處叢生的灌木，落下參差的班駁的黑影，峭楞楞如鬼一般；

Moonlight shone through the trees and cast jagged irregular shadows of those tall, bushy shrubs standing vertically like ghostly figures.

彎彎的楊柳的稀疏的倩影，卻又是畫在荷葉上。

Sparsely-leafed willows projected their bowing and shapely images on lotus foliage.

塘中的月色並不均勻；但光與影有著和諧的旋律，如梵婀玲上奏著的名曲。

Reflection of the moonshine was unevenly dispersed in the pond, but lights and shades meshed harmoniously in rhythm just like a musical masterpiece played on violin.

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荷塘的四面，遠遠近近，高高低低都是樹，

All sides of the lotus pond were full of trees at varying distances and heights.

而楊柳最多。

Willow trees were the most plentiful.

這些樹將一片荷塘重創圍住；只在小路一旁，漏著幾段空隙，象是特為月光留下的。

Those trees tightly barricaded the lotus pond and left a few openings next to the pathways as if they were reserved for the moonlight to go through.

樹色一律是陰陰的，乍看象一團煙霧；但楊柳的丰姿，便在煙霧裡也辨得出。

Trees looked homogeneously shadowy seemingly enveloped in fog, and yet the curvaceous contours of willows were still distinguishable.

樹梢上隱隱約約的是一帶遠山，只有些大意罷了。

Vaguely visible over the tree tops were mountains from afar, even though in outline only.

樹縫裡也漏著一兩點路燈光，沒精打採的，是渴睡人的眼。

A couple of street lights peeked through the trees lethargically looking like sleepy eyes.

這時候最熱鬧的，要數樹上的蟬聲與水裡的蛙聲；

The most vivacious at the time were the buzzing from cicadas and the croaking from frogs.

但熱鬧是它們的，我什麼也沒有。

But while they were partying away, I was left in the cold.

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忽然想起採蓮的事情來了。採蓮是江南的舊俗，似乎很早就有，

All of a sudden my mind switched to lotus-seed picking, which was an old tradition of Jiangnan from way back.

而六朝時為盛；

It was most prevalent during the era of the Six Dynasties.

從詩歌里可以約略知道。採蓮的是少年的女子，她們是盪的小船，唱著艷歌去的，

Poems and songs more or less could tell us lotus seed pickers were teenage girls drifting around in small boats while humming beautiful melodies.

採蓮人不用說很多，還有看採蓮的人。

Needless to say there were plenty of pickers and spectators.

那是有個熱鬧的季節，也是一個風流的季節。

That was an exciting festival full of romances.

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梁元帝《採蓮賦》里說得好：

於是妖童媛女，蕩舟心許；

Emperor Yuan of the Liang Dynasty, in his 「Ode to Lotus Picking」, described it well:

「And so the handsome lad and sweet maiden drifted around in a small boat while pledging their undying love to each other.

鷁首徐回，兼傳羽杯；

Back and forth the little craft was rowed and wine glasses were passed.

棹將移而藻掛，船欲動而萍開。

Algae draped over the paddling oars and floating duckweed made way for the moving boat.

爾其纖腰束素，遷延顧步；

With a white ribbon tied around her slender waist, she hesitated in advancing the boat and kept looking back at where she started.

夏始春余，葉嫩花初，

The time was late spring and early summer when leaves were greening and flowers were budding.

恐沾裳而淺笑，畏傾船而斂裙。

She giggled when her dress was at risk of getting wet, and she lifted up the bottom of her skirt in fear the boat might tilt.」

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可見當時嬉遊的光景了。

That was a glimpse of frolicking then.

這真是有趣的事，可惜我們現在早已無福消受了。

It was a fun event, but regretfully we could no longer enjoy it nowadays.

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於是又記起《西洲曲》里的句子：採蓮南塘秋，蓮花過人頭；低頭弄蓮子，蓮子清如水。

And then I recall verses in 「Ballad of Xizhou」: 「In picking lotus seeds in South Pond during the fall, the plants measured in excess of man』s height. Looking down at those seeds being handled, they were as clear as water.」

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今晚若有採蓮人，這兒的蓮花也算得「過人頭」了；

If there were lotus-seed pickers that night, they would consider the plants there to be taller than a man.

只不見一些流水的影子，是不行的。這令我到底惦著江南了。

However, it just didn』t seem right that streams of flowing water were missing from the scene; that brought back memory of Jiangnan.

——這樣想著，猛一抬頭，不覺已是自己的門前；

While deep in thought, I abruptly looked up and unawares I had arrived at my home doorstep.

輕輕地推門進去，

I softly pushed open the door.

什麼聲息也沒有，妻已睡熟好久了。

It was quiet, and my wife had already been deep in sleep for quite some time.

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