蟬賦 – 曹植 （節譯二）（修改版）

蟬賦 – 曹植 （節譯二）

Ode to Cicada by Cao Zhi

有翩翩之狡童兮，步容与于园圃。

体离朱之聪视兮，姿才捷于狝猿。

Here appears a comely but impish lad,

Rambling into the sacred garden.

His discerning eyes, as the storied Li Zhu had,

It seems his climbs so agile as apes from Arden.

条罔叶而不挽兮，树无干而不缘。

翳轻躯而奋进兮，跪侧足以自闲。

He left no twigs or branches unshaken,

No tree left unclimbed - not a single one.

As light as a feather, no step was mistaken,

Now hiding, now kneeling, all perfectly done.

恐余身之惊骇兮，精曾睨而目连。

持柔竿之冉冉兮，运微粘而我缠。

He fears any rustle may startle his prey,

He crouches there, yet his eye hath never lost it,

A slender pole rises carefully on its way,

Its glutenous tip grabs the game - O, that’s kismet!

欲翻飞而逾滞兮，知性命之长捐。

委厥体于膳夫。归炎炭而就燔。

It tries to fly away, yet no way can it do so,

It hath realised its life hath come to its descent.

Hence, it succumbs its body to the fire aglow,

Roasted alive, a petty life – just like that, spent.

秋霜纷以宵下，晨风烈其过庭。

气憯怛而薄躯，足攀木而失茎。

吟嘶哑以沮败，状枯槁以丧形。

At night, autumn sheds its frost cold,

At dawn, across the garden winds whip chill,

The withered body lies in its sorry plight.

It once grabbed the twig, but at last lost its hold,

Its calls turned raspy as death arrived to kill,

The foray wasted it, what a wretched sight.

乱曰：

诗叹鸣蜩，声嘒嘒兮，

盛阳则来，太阴逝兮。

皎皎贞素，侔夷节兮。

帝臣是戴，尚其洁兮。

This verse laments:

The cicada sings with a voice vibrant and clear,

When the scorching sun rises, it ventures out here,

When cruel chill arrives, it’s doomed to disappear,

Like Bo Yi in parables, its virtue in purity sincere,

Which should be awed by many a prince and courtier.

Tr. Ziyuzile

(To be revised)

22/07/2024