本帖最后由 ヮ成熟、羙° 于 2014-8-10 18:59 编辑
三个托钵僧的故事（8.1） 荷叶/译 “是的，陛下，”托钵僧答道：“如果我没猜错的话，是公主的病使我获得这份殊荣的。” “你猜对了，”苏丹王回答道：“如果你的祈祷能够拯救我那被怪病控制的女儿，你就如同给了我一次新的生命。” “请陛下您命令她到这里来，我会看看我能做点什么。” 满怀希望的苏丹王派人去传令，让公主由常侍卫队陪同，尽快动身。当公主到来时，她戴着厚厚的面纱，托钵僧无法看清她的脸。他要求把一个火盆举到她头顶，他把七根头发放到炭火上。头发一烧焦，立刻传来可怕的叫声。但没有人知道声音从何而来。只有托钵僧猜出这一定是魔鬼发现公主逃走时发出的哀号。 公主似乎从始至终都没有意识到自己在做什么，但此时，她抬起手臂，揭开面纱，露出了脸。“我在哪里？”她困惑地问：“我怎么会来到这里？” 听到这些话，苏丹王非常高兴，他不但拥抱了女儿，还吻了托钵僧的手。然后，他转过身来，问簇拥着他们的卫士：“我该怎样报答这个治好我女儿疾病的人呢？” 他们异口同声地回答：“他应该娶公主为妻。” “正合我意，”他说：“我宣布从即刻起，他就是我的乘龙快婿。” 此后不久，大元老去世了，他的职位被托钵僧取代了。但时隔不久，苏丹王也因病去世，由于他没有儿子，士兵和牧师都决定把王位传给托钵僧，这令所有人都欢欣鼓舞。 一天，当已经做了苏丹王的托钵僧带上他的文武大臣出行时，我发现了站在人群中的那个嫉妒他的人。他示意一个元老过来，对他耳语：“把站在那里的那个人找来，但当心不要吓着他。”元老照做了，当嫉妒的人被带到苏丹王面前时，君王对他说：“又见到你非常高兴，我的朋友。”然后，他转向一个官员，继续说：“从我的金库中给他取一千块金子，从我的私人店铺中给他拉二十车货物。让一队卫兵护送他回家。”随后，他离开嫉妒他的人，继续前行。 现在我讲完了我的故事，我继续向魔鬼说明如何把这个故事应用在他自己身上。“哦，魔鬼，”我说：“你瞧，这个苏丹王不仅仅满足于只是宽恕一个想谋害他性命的嫉妒他的人，而且给了他享用不尽的荣华富贵。” 但魔鬼已经决定，不再有缓和的余地。“不要梦想你会如此轻松地逃脱惩罚，”他说：“我只能给你留条活命，你必须知道干涉我的生活，将是什么下场。” 他一边说，一边猛烈地抓住了我的手臂，王宫顶部裂开一条缝，为我们让路。我们越升越高，直到地球看起来像一片小小的云。然后，和上次一样，他像闪电一样降落下来，我们落在一个山顶上。 然后，他弯腰抓了一把泥土，口中念念有词。随后，他把土摔到我脸上，边做边说：“去人形，呈猴形。”做完这些，他就消失了。我变成了一个类人猿的样子，出现在一个以前从没见过的国度。 然而，呆在原地已没有意义了，于是，我下了山，来到了一个广阔的平原，平原与大海相接。我朝大海走去，高兴地看到离岸半英里处，停泊着一艘大船。海上风平浪静，因此，我折下一根树枝，把它托到水边。我坐在上面，用两根木棍做浆，向大船划去。 甲板上站满了人，大家都饶有兴趣的观看我的进展。但当我抓住一根绳子，荡到大船上时，我才知道我刚刚逃脱了魔鬼的魔爪，又落到了海员的手里。他们生怕我给大船和船上的商人带来恶运。一个人叫道：“把他扔到海里去！”“用锤子砸它的脑袋，”另一个人大叫。“我用箭射它。”又有一个人说。如果不是我匍匐在船长脚下，紧紧抓住他的衣服的话，一定会有个人按他说的去做。船长似乎被我的行为感动了，他拍拍我的头，向大家宣布，他会保护我，任何人也不允许伤害我。 附：原文 "Yes, sire," answered the dervish; "if I am not mistaken,it is the illness of the princess which has procured me this honour." "You are right," returned the Sultan, "and you will give mefresh life if you can by your prayers deliver my daughter from the strange malady thathas taken possession of her." "Let your highness command her to come here, and I will see what Ican do." The Sultan, full of hope, sent orders at once that the princess was to setout as soon as possible, accompanied by her usual staff of attendants. When shearrived, she was so thickly veiled that the dervish could not see her face, buthe desired a brazier to be held over her head, and laid the seven hairs on the burning coals. The instant they were consumed, terrific cries were heard, butno one could tell from whom they proceeded. Only the dervish guessed that they wereuttered by Maimoum the son of Dimdim, who felt the princess escaping him. All this time she had seemed unconscious of what she was doing, but nowshe raised her hand to her veil and uncovered her face. "Where am I?"she said in a bewildered manner; "and how did I get here?" The Sultan was so delighted to hear these words that he not only embraced his daughter, but kissed the hand of the dervish. Then, turning to his attendants who stood round, he said to them, "What reward shall I give tothe man who has restored me my daughter?" They all replied with one accord that he deserved the hand of the princess. "That is my own opinion," said he, "and from this moment I declare him to be my son-in-law." Shortly after these events, the grand-vizir died, and his post was given to the dervish. But he did not hold it for long, for the Sultan fell a victim to an attack of illness, and as he had no sons, the soldiers and priests declared the dervish heir to the throne, to the great joy of all the people. One day, when the dervish, who had now become Sultan, was making a royal progress with his court, he perceived the envious man standing in the crowd. Hem ade a sign to one of his vizirs, and whispered in his ear, "Fetch me that man who is standing out there, but take great care not to frighten him."The vizir obeyed, and when the envious man was brought before the Sultan, the monarch said to him, "My friend, I am delighted to see you again."Then turning to an officer, he added, "Give him a thousand pieces of gold out of my treasury, and twenty waggon-loads of merchandise out of my private stores, and let an escort of soldiers accompany him home." He then took leave of the envious man, and went on his way. Now when I had ended my story, I proceeded to show the genius how to applyit to himself. "O genius," I said, "you see that this Sultan was not content with merely forgiving the envious man for the attempt on his life;he heaped rewards and riches upon him." But the genius had made up his mind, and could not be softened. "Do not imagine that you are going to escape so easily," he said. "All Ican do is to give you bare life; you will have to learn what happens to people who interfere with me." As he spoke he seized me violently by the arm; the roof of the palace openedto make way for us, and we mounted up so high into the air that the earth looked like a little cloud. Then, as before, he came down with the swiftness of lightning, and we touched the ground on a mountain top. Then he stooped and gathered a handful of earth, and murmured some words over it, after which he threw the earth in my face, saying as he did so,"Quit the form of a man, and assume that of a monkey." This done, he vanished, and I was in the likeness of an ape, and in a country I had neverseen before. However there was no use in stopping where I was, so I came down the mountain and found myself in a flat plain which was bounded by the sea. I travelled towards it, and was pleased to see a vessel moored about half a mile from shore. There were no waves, so I broke off the branch of a tree, and dragging it down to the waters edge, sat across it, while, using two sticks foroars, I rowed myself towards the ship. The deck was full of people, who watched my progress with interest, but when I seized a rope and swung myself on board, I found that I had only escaped death at the hands of the genius to perish by those of the sailors, lest I should bring ill-luck to the vessel and the merchants. "Throw him into the sea!" cried one. "Knock him on the head with a hammer,"exclaimed another. "Let me shoot him with an arrow," said a third;and certainly somebody would have had his way if I had not flung myself at the captain's feet and grasped tight hold of his dress. He appeared touched by myaction and patted my head, and declared that he would take me under his protection, and that no one should do me any harm. | 
发表于 2014-8-9 21:44:17
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