中华文化里有关“天下”的几个词的翻译(II)

近日,翻吧君有幸获赠了外研社出版的《中华思想文化语》丛书。随迫不急待地翻看了第一辑。

在第一辑里的目录里,翻吧君看到了几个有关古代指代疆域概念“天下”的词的解释及其翻译,觉得很有趣,在此摘录,与各位分享。

上一期的内容,可以参看以下文章:

中华文化里有关“天下”的几个词的翻译

~~京(京师):Capital of a Country~~

国都,天子处理政事及所居的城邑。“京”本指高大的山冈、土丘,引申为“大”。“师”即“众”,指人口众多。称天子处理政事及所居的地方为“京”或“京师”,是表明天子都城的规模宏大,也是对天子的尊崇。

This term refers to the place where the Son of Heaven resided and conducted state affairs. Jing (京) originally meant a big hill or mound, representing the idea of being big or grand, and shi (师) meant a lot of people. To name the place where the the Son of Heaven resided and conducted state affairs jing or jingshi (京师) suggests that the capital is huge in size and expresses reverence towards the Son of Heaven.

引例 CITATION

京师者何?天子之居也。京者何?大也。师者何?众也。天子之居,必以众大之辞言之。 (《公羊传•桓公九年》) (“京师”是什么?是天子居住的地方。“京”指什么?是指[规模] 宏大。“师”指什么?是指[人口] 众多。天子居住的城邑,必须用“众”“大”这样的词语来形容。)

What does jingshi mean? It is the place where the Son of Heaven resides. What does jing mean? It means grandeur and magnificence. What does shi mean? It means a lot of people. No words other than populous and grandeur can best describe the place where the Son of Heaven lives. (Gongyang’s Commentary on The Spring and Autumn Annals)

~~干城:Shield and Fortress / Dukes and Princes~~

本指盾与城,后用来比喻诸侯,以及国家政权、理论主张等的捍卫者。“干”即盾,是古代的一种防御性武器;“城”即城墙或城郭,是具有防御功能的建筑设施。用“干城”比喻诸侯,与“崇城”(比喻天子)相对。称天子为“崇城”,表明天子地位之崇高、优越;称诸侯为“干城”,表示诸侯的职责是拱卫天子,必须服从天子号令。后泛指忠实得力的保卫 者——不仅指地位低的人保卫地位高的人,有时也指地位高的人保卫地位低的人。

The term originally referred to shield and fortress, but was later used to mean dukes and princes, and then defenders of a regime, theory or proposition. Gan (干) means shield, a defensive weapon in old days, while cheng (城) means inner and outer city walls or a fortress, a structure for defensive purposes. Dukes and princes were likened to gancheng (干城), in contrast with chongcheng (崇城), which means supreme city, referring to the Son of Heaven and indicating his supreme position. It is meant that dukes and princes, likened to shield and fortress, had the responsibilities to defend the Son of Heaven. Hence, dukes and princes must obey orders from the Son of Heaven. As it has evolved over time, the term generally referred to loyal and efficient defenders. Interestingly, it came to mean that not only people of lower ranks defend their superiors, but also people of high positions defend their subordinates.

引例 CITATIONS

天子曰“崇城”,言崇高也;诸侯曰“干城”,言不敢自专,御于天子也。 (《初学记》卷二十四引《白虎通》) (天子称“崇城”,意思是说天子居于崇高、尊贵的地位;诸侯称“干城”,意思是说诸侯不敢擅自行动,必须听命于天子。)

The Son of Heaven is referred to as chongcheng, indicating his supreme and noble status, while dukes and princes are referred to as gancheng, meaning that they must not act on their own but pledge their obedience to the Son of Heaven. (Debates of the White Tiger Hall)

赳赳武夫,公侯干城。 (《诗经·周南·兔罝》) (雄赳赳的武士,是诸侯的保卫者。)

The valiant warriors are defenders of dukes and princes. (The Book of Songs)

天下有道,则公侯能为民干城。 (《左传·成公十二年》) (如果国家政治清明,那么诸侯们就能成为百姓的保卫者。)

With good governance, dukes and princes become defenders and protectors of their people. (Zuo’s Commentary on The Spring and Autumn Annals)

~~都:Metropolis~~

国都,国君处理政事及所居的城邑。“都”与“邑”的区别是:有宗庙(陈列祖先和前代君主牌位)的城叫做“都”;没有宗庙的叫做“邑”。宗庙是大夫以上贵族统治者祭祀祖先的庙宇,是祖先崇拜的产物、宗法制度的体现,也是“都”的根本标志。周朝时,各诸侯国的政治中心都叫做“都”;秦汉以后,统指国都、帝王的治所。后规模大、人口多的城邑都可称为“都”。

The term refers to the city in which a state ruler resided and conducted government affairs. The difference between a du (都) and a yi (邑) was that the former had an ancestral temple to enshrine the memorial tablets of ancestors and previous rulers while the latter did not. An ancestral temple used to be a place where rulers, the nobility, and senior officials made offerings to their ancestors. Therefore, an ancestral temple was a product of ancestral worshipping and a symbol of the patriarchal clan system. It is the defining structure of a du. During the Zhou Dynasty, the political center of all ducal states was called du. From the Qin and Han dynasties onward, du referred to the place where the emperor lived. Later, all cities large in scale and population were called du.

引例 CITATIONS

凡邑,有宗庙先君之主曰都,无曰邑。 (《左传·庄公二十八年》) (所有城邑中,有宗庙和前代君主牌位的叫做“都”,没有的叫做“邑”。)

All cities with ancestral temples to house the memorial tablets of ancestors and previous rulers are called du while those without are called yi. (Zuo’s Commentary on The Spring and Autumn Annals)

国,城曰都者,国君所居,人所都会也。 (刘熙《释名·释州国》) (一国的城邑称为“都”,是因为它是国君居住、人口聚集的地方。)

When a city is called du, it is where the ruler of the land resides and where there is a large population. (Liu Xi: Explanation of Terms) (Liu Xi: Explanation of Terms)

~~城:Fortress / City~~

四周由城墙环绕的城邑。“城”本指城墙、城郭,是筑土而成的、具有军事防御及防洪功能的设施,城外一般挖有护城河。古代王朝国都、诸侯封地、卿及大夫的封邑,都以筑有城墙的聚落为中心,所以称为“城”。“城”音“盛(chénɡ)”,意思是“容纳民众”。其根本功能为保护民众,是“民惟邦本”这一政治理念的具体体现。

Cheng (城) is a city with walls surrounding it. The Chinese character for cheng originally referred to inner and outer city walls built of earth, with military defense and flood control functions. Usually, it was surrounded by a moat. In ancient times, the state capital of a monarch, the fief of a prince, and a manor estate granted by a monarch to a minister or a senior official all had a walled settlement as the center, hence the name cheng. The Chinese character for cheng is pronounced the same way as another character meaning accommodating. Here, cheng means having the capacity to accommodate people. The primary function of a cheng is to protect its residents. This is a concrete manifestation of the political notion that people are the foundation of the state.

引例 CITATIONS

城者,可以自守也。 (《墨子·七患》) (城是可以用来守卫自己的[设施]。)

A fortress/city is a facility used to defend the people inside. (Mozi)

城,以盛民也。 (许慎《说文解字·土部》) (城是用来容纳百姓的。)

A fortress / city is for accommodating people. (Xu Shen: Explanation of Script and Elucidation of Characters)

城为保民为之也。 (《榖梁传·隐公七年》) (城是为了保护人民而修建的。)

A fortress / city is built to protect people. (Guliang’s Commentary on The Spring and Autumn Annals)

~~四海:Four Seas~~

全国各地或世界各地。古人认为中国的疆域四面环海,各依方位称“东海”“南海”“西海”和“北海”,合称“四海”。它蕴含着远古中国人关于中国和世界的地理图景:“九州”居“天下”之中,“天下”由“九州”及其周边“四海”组成,中国是“海内”,外国则是“海外”。在古人那里,“四海”大多统指天下,并不确指某个海域,有时用来指陆地四周的海,有时又指“四海”所环绕的陆地。

Four Seas refer to the territory of China or the entire world. The ancient Chinese believed that China was a land surrounded by Four Seas – the East, West, North, and South seas. The term suggests what the ancient Chinese conceived to be the map of China and the world: Nine zhou (regions) were located at the center of tianxia (all under heaven). Tianxia consisted of nine zhou and its surrounding Four Seas. China was within the Four Seas, while foreign lands were outside the Four Seas. In ancient China, Four Seas referred to all under heaven in most cases, and did not denote a specific body of water. Therefore, the term was used sometimes to mean the seas surrounding the land, and sometimes to specify the land surrounded by the Four Seas.

引例 CITATION

君子敬而无失,与人恭而有礼,四海之内皆兄弟也。 (《论语·颜渊》) (君子做事态度认真而不出差错,待人谦恭而合乎礼仪,那么天下所有的人都是他的兄弟。)

A man of virtue always does things conscientiously without making any mistakes and treats people respectfully and appropriately. Then all within the Four Seas will be his brothers. (The Analects)

~~海内:Within the Four Seas~~

“四海之内”,即古代中国疆域以内。古人认为中国的疆域四周环海,各依方位称“东海”“南海”“西海”和“北海”,合称“四海”。“海内”即指“四海”所环绕的疆土。它隐含着古人以海为界的国土意识,是农耕文明的反映。

Within the Four Seas means within the territory of China. The ancient Chinese thought China’s territory was surrounded by the Four Seas (the East, West, North, and South seas). Within the Four Seas refers to the landmass surrounded by the Four Seas. It reflected the ancient Chinese belief that the seas were the natural boundary of a country, demonstrating the influence of an agriculture civilization.

引例 CITATIONS

今欲并天下,凌万乘,诎敌国,制海内,子元元,臣诸侯,非兵不可。 (《战国策·秦策一》) (如果想吞并天下,凌驾大国之上,使敌国屈服,控制海内,统治百姓,臣服诸侯,就非用武力不可。)

If our country wants to conquer all under heaven, rise above the big powers, subdue enemy states, control the territory within the Four Seas, govern the subjects and rule over the feudal lords, military force is indispensable. (Strategies of the Warring States)

海内存知己,天涯若比邻。 (王勃《杜少府之任蜀州》) (四海之内都会有知己,纵使远隔天涯海角也如近邻一样。)

If you have a bosom friend within the Four Seas, even at world’s end he remains close to you. (Wang Bo: Seeing Off a Friend Who Has Been Appointed to a County Post in Shuzhou)

~~海外:Outside the Four Seas / Overseas~~

“四海之外”,指古代中国疆域之外、国外,也指边远地区。古人认为中国疆域四周环海,各依方位称“东海”“南海”“西海”和“北海”,合称“四海”,所以称中国以外的地方为海外。其中隐含着古人以海为界的国土意识。它体现出古人以自我中心而又具开放性的空间感,及其对于境外遥远地方的向往。

Outside the Four Seas refers to the territory outside China, foreign lands, or remote areas. The ancient Chinese thought that China’s territory was surrounded by the Four Seas (the East, West, North, and South seas). Therefore, places outside China were outside the Four Seas. It reflected the ancient Chinese belief that the seas were the natural boundary of a country. It also suggested that the ancient Chinese were on the one hand self-focused and on the other open-minded, longing to explore the unknown world outside the Four Seas.

引例 CITATION

相土烈烈,海外有截。 (《诗经·商颂·长发》) (相土威武勇猛,边远地区的人都对他一齐顺服。)

Xiangtu was so brave that he was recognized and extolled even by those outside the Four Seas. (The Book of Songs)

注:本文摘自《中华思想文化术语》(丛书),由外语教学与研究出版社出版。

中华文化里有关“天下”的几个词的翻译(II)

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