近来颇为痴迷于翻译英文诗,也颇痴迷于唐诗,这几日数白居易尤甚。昨夜今晨百无聊赖罔甚事,中有戚戚不能言,故译叶芝这首我最爱的诗之一,选七言句式翻之,稍顾平仄,个别处略有对原文增删。以严肃之心作此,但只求博看官一笑。
伏羲谶
当年夏末凭闲坐,映水憔悴已秋莲。
闺中淑友娥眉细,随君对坐听我言。
倚马锦绣诚不易,日斜几度一行诗。
然恐雕琢反自欺,百虑千思输一时。
莫若伏阶问青苔,饮风啖雨忙采石。
独攀青云揽字句,等闲万事苦勉励。
苦心孤诣人不识,斥之簸蝩可怜虫。
西席掌柜拜佛僧,谓我不肖学众生。
此言才罢声未销,娥眉秀口续宫商。
嘈嘈切切琴瑟心,燕燕莺莺帛玉嗓。
语我但凡女儿家,向来其实少闲暇。
若想修得东床共,夜夜西窗学女红。
娥眉语罢我陈言,言之溯至上古仙。
自当伏羲破天伦,谁人逐美废耕田。
情人枉把情人事,视若高仪作主宾。
霜风雾雨吟诗紧,李杜元白用典勤。
三杯两盏隔夜酒,五车八斗充数闻。
方知此术有时尽,点水蜻蜓不认真。
言及情字天忽晚,远山秋水两茫茫。
坐中相顾无人语,烛泪黄昏落潇湘。
翠云蓝波因风涌,月白如贝正徘回。
千古轻舟浮星汉,日日年年减清辉。
我有情思暗相种,盼君闻香折一枝。
树老高举望云殿,落尽花冠君不知。
天公劝我应参透,倾城难免错倾人。
倾城烟起三生浅,倾人泪下两行深。
君不知我喜此生两相全,爱恨双生对弄弦。
又不知我悲此景最伤神,中空意懒月一轮。
郑博文
甲午暮春,四月廿五日
威廉·巴特勒·叶芝(1865-1939)原诗:
Adam’s Curse
We sat together at one summer’s end,
That beautiful mild woman, your close friend,
And you and I, and talked of poetry.
I said, ‘A line will take us hours maybe;
Yet if it does not seem a moment’s thought,
Our stitching and unstitching has been naught.
Better go down upon your marrow-bones
And scrub a kitchen pavement, or break stones
Like an old pauper, in all kinds of weather;
For to articulate sweet sounds together
Is to work harder than all these, and yet
Be thought an idler by the noisy set
Of bankers, schoolmasters, and clergymen
The martyrs call the world.’
And thereupon
That beautiful mild woman for whose sake
There’s many a one shall find out all heartache
On finding that her voice is sweet and low
Replied, ‘To be born woman is to know—
Although they do not talk of it at school—
That we must labour to be beautiful.’
That woman then
Murmured with her young voice, for whose mild sake
There’s many a one shall find out all heartache
In finding that it’s young and mild and low.
‘There is one thing that all we women know,
Although we never heard it at school—
That we must labour to be beautiful.’
I said, ‘It’s certain there is no fine thing
Since Adam’s fall but needs much labouring.
There have been lovers who thought love should be
So much compounded of high courtesy
That they would sigh and quote with learned looks
Precedents out of beautiful old books;
Yet now it seems an idle trade enough.’
We sat grown quiet at the name of love;
We saw the last embers of daylight die,
And in the trembling blue-green of the sky
A moon, worn as if it had been a shell
Washed by time’s waters as they rose and fell
About the stars and broke in days and years.
I had a thought for no one’s but your ears:
That you were beautiful, and that I strove
To love you in an old high way of love;
That it had all seemed happy, and yet we’d grown
As weary-hearted as that hollow moon.
(1902) from In the Seven Woods
王道余译版:
亚当的诅咒
那一年夏末我们一起闲坐,
有你闺中密友,还有你和我,
她温柔而美丽,我们在谈诗。
我说:“一行诗有时要几个小时;
但若显得不像是即席之作,
我们的推敲就算是白忙活。
还不如弓着脊背趴在地面,
去擦厨房地板,或像穷光蛋
无论刮风下雨都忙着采石;
要把美的声音组织在一起,
真比上面的活儿都辛苦,但
一帮人却吵吵说你是懒汉,
银行家、教师还有神职人员,
殉道者所谓的世人。”
话刚完,
那温柔美丽的女人接着说,
许多人若发现她声音这么
甜美而柔和,心儿就会狂跳,
她回答我:“生为女人都知道――
尽管在学校里没人这么说――
要想美丽我们就得勤劳作。”
我说:“我断言自从亚当堕落,
再没有好东西不需勤劳作。
恋人们曾经认为爱情应当
充满着高贵殷勤礼仪有方,
他们就长吁短叹引经据典,
如饱学之士举出先例万千;
如今这事似乎可算够偷懒。”
说到了爱情我们沉寂一片;
白日余烬在我们眼前燃完,
在那摇曳着蓝绿色的天边,
有一弯残月,消磨得如贝壳
被时间之水冲刷,当它起落
群星之间、升降在日日年年。
我有一个心思只想对你言,
我想说你很美丽,我也竭力
以古老而高贵的方式爱你;
这看起来皆大欢喜,但我们
内心疲惫却似那中空一轮。
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