作者：王曉輝

東晉義熙元年（405年）冬，陶淵明辭去彭澤縣令，歸隱田園。臨行之前，寫下了這首《歸去來(lái)兮辭》：

歸去來(lái)兮，田園將蕪胡不歸？既自以心為形役，奚惆悵而獨(dú)悲！悟已往之不諫，知來(lái)者之可追；實(shí)迷途其未遠(yuǎn)，覺(jué)今是而昨非。舟遙遙以輕飏，風(fēng)飄飄而吹衣。問(wèn)征夫以前路，恨晨光之熹微。

乃瞻衡宇，載欣載奔。僮仆歡迎，稚子候門。三徑就荒，松菊猶存。攜幼入室，有酒盈樽。引壺觴以自酌，眄庭柯以怡顏。倚南窗以寄傲，審容膝之易安。園日涉以成趣，門雖設(shè)而常關(guān)。策扶老以流憩，時(shí)矯首而遐觀。云無(wú)心以出岫，鳥倦飛而知還。景翳翳以將入，撫孤松而盤桓。

歸去來(lái)兮，請(qǐng)息交以絕游。世與我而相違，復(fù)駕言兮焉求？悅親戚之情話，樂(lè)琴書以消憂。農(nóng)人告余以春及，將有事于西疇。或命巾車，或棹孤舟。既窈窕以尋壑，亦崎嶇而經(jīng)丘。木欣欣以向榮，泉涓涓而始流。善萬(wàn)物之得時(shí)，感吾生之行休。

已矣乎，寓形宇內(nèi)復(fù)幾時(shí)！曷不委心任去留？胡為乎遑遑欲何之？富貴非吾愿，帝鄉(xiāng)不可期。懷良辰以孤往，或植杖而耘耔。登東皋以舒嘯，臨清流而賦詩(shī)。聊乘化以歸盡，樂(lè)夫天命復(fù)奚疑！

【配圖：彭靖雯】

在我讀過(guò)的中國(guó)古代文學(xué)作品中，能讓我百讀不厭且讀后感到神清氣爽的，就是陶淵明的這首《歸去來(lái)兮辭》。文章一開頭，陶淵明就大聲喊出“歸去來(lái)兮”——“我要回家啦！”陶淵明是文化人，換個(gè)粗人，喊出來(lái)的就是“老子不干了！”這是怎樣舒心的一聲吶喊啊！估計(jì)今天職場(chǎng)上很多人都想喊這么一嗓子，但又不敢喊，萬(wàn)一讓老板聽(tīng)見(jiàn)了怎么辦？

這是陶淵明踏上歸途之前寫下的一首辭賦，前八句，也就是從“歸去來(lái)兮”到“覺(jué)今是而昨非”，交代了自己的心路歷程。接下來(lái)，都是他想象自己在路上和回到家中的情景以及對(duì)生命的感悟和思想的升華，感情真摯，音節(jié)諧美，一氣呵成，有如天籟，呈現(xiàn)出一種天然真色之美。

這么優(yōu)美的《歸去來(lái)兮辭》，能夠翻譯成同樣優(yōu)美的英文嗎？我們先看看林語(yǔ)堂先生的譯文。

Ah, homeward bound I go! Why not go home, seeing that my field and garden with weeds are overgrown? Myself have made my soul serf to my body: why have vain regrets and mourn alone?

Fret not over bygones and the forward journey take. Only a short distance have I gone astray, and I know today I am right, if yesterday was a complete mistake.

Lightly floats and drifts the boat, and the wind gently flows and flaps my gown. I inquire the road of a wayfarer, and sulk at the dimness of the dawn.

Then when I catch sight of my old roofs, joy will my steps quicken. Servants will be there to bid me welcome, and waiting at the door are the greeting children.

Gone to seed, perhaps, are my garden paths, but there will still be the chrysanthemums and the pines! I shall lead the youngest boy in by the hand, and on the table there stands a cup full of wine!

Holding the pot and cup I give myself a drink, happy to see in the courtyard the hanging bough. I lean upon the southern window with an immense satisfaction, and note that the little place is cosy enough to walk around. 

The garden grows more familiar and interesting with the daily walks. What if no one ever knocks at the always closed door! Carrying a cane I wander at peace, and now and then look aloft to gaze at the blue above.

There the clouds idle away from their mountain recesses without any intent or purpose, and birds, when tired of their wandering flights, will think of home. Darkly then fall the shadows and, ready to come home, I yet fondle the lonely pines and loiter around.

Ah, homeward bound I go! Let me from now on learn to live alone! The world and I are not made for one another, and why drive round like one looking for what he has not found?

Content shall I be with conversations with my own kin, and there will be music and books to while away the hours. The farmers will come and tell me that spring is here and there will be work to do at the western farm.

Some order covered wagons; some row in small boats. Sometimes we explore quiet, unknown ponds, and sometimes we climb over steep, rugged mounds. 

There the trees, happy of heart, grow marvelously green, and spring water gushes forth with a gurgling sound. I admire how things grow and prosper according to their seasons, and feel that thus, too, shall my life go its round.

Enough! How long yet shall I this mortal shape keep? Why not take life as it comes, and why hustle and bustle like one on an errand bound?

Wealth and power are not my ambitions, and unattainable is the abode of the gods! I would go forth alone on a bright morning, or perhaps, planting my cane, begin to pluck the weeds and till the ground. 

Or I would compose a poem beside a clear stream, or perhaps go up Tungkao and make a long-drawn call on the top of the hill. So would I be content to live and die, and without questionings of the heart, gladly accept Heaven's will. 

“歸去來(lái)兮”，是發(fā)自內(nèi)心的感嘆，中文借助“兮”字表達(dá)，英文只能在句子前面加上一個(gè)感嘆詞Ah。“田園將蕪”就是長(zhǎng)滿野草（overgrown with weeds），為了韻律和諧，調(diào)整次序，變成with weeds are overgrown。“自以心為形役”，林語(yǔ)堂譯為Myself have made my soul serf to my body，心靈成了身體的奴隸，也就是被欲望所驅(qū)使。

“悟已往之不諫，知來(lái)者之可追”，過(guò)去的已經(jīng)過(guò)去，只能面向未來(lái)，譯為Fret not over bygones and the forward journey take。fret not over bygones是不為往事煩惱，英語(yǔ)里有個(gè)成語(yǔ)Let bygones be bygones（過(guò)去的就讓它過(guò)去），也是這個(gè)意思。

“舟遙遙以輕飏，風(fēng)飄飄而吹衣”（Lightly floats and drifts the boat, and the wind gently flows and flaps my gown）。這句話林語(yǔ)堂先生翻譯得非常考究，lightly floats and drifts和gently flows and flaps將扁舟蕩漾、衣袂飄飄的感覺(jué)翻譯得活靈活現(xiàn)，而且float-flow-flap三個(gè)f開頭的單詞形成了流暢的頭韻。

“乃瞻衡宇，載欣載奔”（Then when I catch sight of my old roofs, joy will my steps quicken）。“衡宇”就是門上的橫木和屋檐，陶淵明遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)望見(jiàn)自家的屋頂，興奮地加快了腳步。因?yàn)樘諟Y明的家很窮，房子一定是老破小，所以林語(yǔ)堂先生將其譯成old roof，這是合理的邏輯推論。joy will my steps quicken，正常語(yǔ)序應(yīng)該是joy will quicken my steps（快樂(lè)使我加快了腳步），調(diào)整了語(yǔ)序，既富于變化，又與后面的waiting at the door are the greeting children（稚子候門）押韻。

“三徑就荒”（Gone to seed, perhaps, are my garden paths）。gone to seed不能理解為播種。這個(gè)短語(yǔ)是指植物自播，雜亂生長(zhǎng)的意思，也可以用來(lái)形容人，意思是不修邊幅。

“云無(wú)心以出岫”（There the clouds idle away from their mountain recesses without any intent or purpose）。idle away一般指人的行為，如idle away one's youth（虛度青春），idle away time（無(wú)所事事）。用來(lái)表示云朵的慢慢浮動(dòng)，也十分形象。

“木欣欣以向榮，泉涓涓而始流”（There the trees, happy of heart, grow marvelously green, and spring water gushes forth with a gurgling sound）。這是陶淵明的名句，成語(yǔ)“欣欣向榮”就是從這里來(lái)的。happy of heart，譯出了“欣欣”；with a gurgling sound, 譯出了“涓涓”。這些細(xì)致入微的地方，體現(xiàn)出了林語(yǔ)堂深湛的語(yǔ)言功夫。

“已矣乎，寓形宇內(nèi)復(fù)幾時(shí)！曷不委心任去留？胡為乎遑遑欲何之？”（Enough! How long yet shall I this mortal shape keep? Why not take life as it comes, and why hustle and bustle like one on an errand bound?）作為凡人，我還能活多久呢？何不坦然接受生活和命運(yùn)的安排呢？為什么還要像個(gè)當(dāng)差的那樣匆匆忙忙呢？連續(xù)三個(gè)問(wèn)題，答案已在其中。take life as it comes，坦然接受，順其自然。hustle and bustle既可以指城市的喧囂，也可以指生活的忙碌，在這里用作動(dòng)詞。

這首《歸去來(lái)兮辭》通篇押韻，句子長(zhǎng)短錯(cuò)落有致，有極強(qiáng)的節(jié)奏感。這樣的文字翻譯起來(lái)難度極大，一味追求押韻，有可能“因聲害意”；翻譯成大白話，又失去了原文的典雅。從林語(yǔ)堂先生的譯文來(lái)看，他是真的做到了左右逢源，既有辭藻之美，又有音韻之美，更有意境之美。

我在核對(duì)林語(yǔ)堂先生譯文時(shí)發(fā)現(xiàn)，“攜幼入室，有酒盈樽”（I shall lead the youngest boy in by the hand, and on the table there stands a cup full of wine!）這句話，他還翻譯過(guò)另一個(gè)版本：“I take the youngest boy in by the hand, and on the table there stands a pot full of wine.”“攜”與“樽”二字如何翻譯更加妥帖準(zhǔn)確，請(qǐng)讀者斟酌。大師級(jí)的人物對(duì)一兩個(gè)小詞都如此認(rèn)真，也難怪能有那么高的建樹。

Herbert Giles（翟理思）、方重、許淵沖等幾位先生均翻譯過(guò)《歸去來(lái)兮辭》，精彩紛呈，各盡其妙。讀者如果感興趣，可以找來(lái)對(duì)照學(xué)習(xí)，一定會(huì)有所收獲。