[转载]英译余秋雨的游记《中国有茶吗？》

五四 中国有茶吗

《千年一叹》余秋雨（第236页） 

Diary 54  Is There Any Tea in China?

At Page 236 in A Millennium Sigh

---Written by Yu Qiuyu

---Translated by 许景城（Peter Cooper Xu）

   伊斯兰教什叶派有两个圣地在伊拉克，一是纳杰夫（Najaf），二是卡尔巴拉（Karbala）。很想去拜访，选了稍近一点的卡尔巴拉，在巴格达西南约一百公里处。

   In Iraq, there are two sanctuaries for Shiah, one branch of Islam. One is Najaf, and the other is Karbala. They were so attractive to our visits, so we chose Karbala, which is comparatively closer, and lies a hundred miles away from southwestern Baghdad.

伊斯兰教分为很多派别，最大的一派叫逊尼派，约占全世界穆斯林的百分之八十，其次是什叶派，主要分布在伊朗、伊拉克等地。这两派在选择先知穆罕默德接班人的问题上产生分裂，对峙至今已有漫长的历史，其间产生过很多仇仇相报的悲剧。卡尔巴拉就是其中一个悲剧的发生地。什叶派由此产生了对“殉葬者”的永久性纪念。我们过去对什叶派知之甚少，因为中国的穆斯林绝大多数是逊尼派。但是自从伊朗什叶派领袖霍梅尼领导了“伊斯兰革命”，继而又爆发两伊战争，不能不对什叶派关注起来。实际上，这是一个组织特别严密，热情特别高涨，斗志特别强健的派别，不可忽视。

  There are many sects of Islam. The largest one is Sunnite, accounting for 80% of Muslims in the world. The second largest is Shiah, mainly living in such places as Iran and Iraq. It has witnessed disputes and confrontations between these two sects at the choices of the successor to their Prophet Mohammed for centuries, amid which many episodes of tragically mutual revenges took place. Karbala was one of these tragical places. Since then, Shiah has grown perpetual memorial services for those immolated. We knew little about Shiah in the past because in China most of the Muslims belong to Sunnite. However, increasing attentions have been paid to it, since Ayatollah Khomeini, Leader of Shiah in Iran led the Islamic Revolution and later the Iran-Iraq war broke. In fact, Shiah is particularly well-organized, highly enthusiastic, and vigorously fighting-willed, which cannot be neglected.

   卡尔巴拉市以两座清真寺为中心，其他建筑层层环绕，向边缘辐射。两寺都有闪光的金顶和圆柱形的塔楼，构成对称，中间是一个相间五百米左右的广场。与巴格达不一样，这里所有的妇女都包裹黑袍，几乎无一例外。这使我们车上的几位女士突然紧张起来，赶紧下车找店铺购买黑袍，以免遭到意想不到的处罚。

Karbala is centered by two mosques, and sprawled out by architectures, layer upon layer. Two mosques are in symmetry both characterized by a glittering golden doom, and a cylindrical tower, and are spaced in between by a square, about 500 meters wide. Different from Baghdad, Karbala requires all the women wear long black robes, which aroused some panic of the ladies in our car. They thus got off the car and ran into a shop to buy sets of black robes in case that they should be punished beyond thought.

  辛丽丽小姐本来个子就小，被黑袍一裹就不知怎么回事了。鲁豫在背后声声呼叫：“丽丽，是你吗？是你吗？”想把她从拥挤的黑袍群中认出来，而丽丽双耳裹在里边，根本听不见，偶尔回头，还是看不到她的脸，只见一副滑到鼻尖的眼镜，从一圈黑布中脱颖而出。忽听眼镜下发出声音：“黑袍让我安静极了，真好”。

   Miss Xin Lili was so small and short that she was vanished by her black gown. Lu Yu screamed behind, “Lili, are you there? Is that really you?” We tried in vain to pick her out among the black crowds, for her ears were so wrapped that she couldn’t hear it. Even when she turned around from time to time, still it was impossible to see her face except for a pair of glasses on her nose, standing out from the black cloth. Suddenly, a voice came from under the glasses, “This black robe makes me feel so calm and so great!” 

   我们先要去市政府，申请在卡尔巴拉活动。市政府大门上方有沙垒和机枪，两个士兵一直处于瞄准状态。我们在机枪下大约等了一个多小时，申请被批准，便赶到一座清真寺，请求以非穆斯林的身份进入。答复是，考虑来自遥远的中国，可破例进入围墙大门，却不能进入寺内的礼拜堂。

  We should go to the municipal government for approval before we could carry out our plans. The gate of the government was topped by a rampart with two soldiers aiming their machine guns all the time. We waited within their ranges for about an hour before we got approval. After we got it, we hurried to a mosque, in hope of entering it as non-Muslims. They made an exception to let us enter the enclosure with respect to the fact that we came from the remote land---China, but didn’t allow us an access to the praying hall in the mosque.

   这座清真寺建于公元七世纪，后经几次重修。进入大门，只见围墙内侧是一圈回廊，无数黑衣女子领着孩子坐在地毯上，神态安静。黑衣女子背后，是碧蓝相间的彩釉高墙，高墙上方是金顶白云。这样的组合，从自谦的人到辉煌的天，一层比一层明亮，一层比一层高敞，对比强烈，真是好看。

   The mosque was built in the 7^th century, and afterwards was restored several times. We entered the gate, seeing at the inside enclosure a round of colonnade, where numbers of women in black with their children besides were sitting on the carpet, silent in meditation. Behind the women in black was the tall, green and blue glazed wall, above which were the golden doom and white clouds. This kind of layout was featured by the sharp contrast from the humble believers to the golden sky, brighter and brighter, more and more spacious. How nice it was!

  记得有一位英国建筑学家说过，伊斯兰清真寺建筑体现了一种沙摸中的“绿洲文明”，我觉得很有道理。阿拉伯人早期，一直过着现在还能看到的贝都因人[1]那样的游牧生活。荒凉大漠的漂泊者在寻找栖息点的时候，需要从很远就看到高大而闪光的金顶，需要有保障安全和安静的围墙，围墙之内，需要有阴凉的柱廊和充足的水源。中间的礼拜堂，不管多么富丽堂皇，都是帐篷结构的延伸。其实直到霍梅尼在隐居巴黎郊区期间，还曾以一个真实的帐篷作为清真寺的礼拜堂。这种基本功能，使清真寺的建筑简洁、明快、实用，即便在图案上日趋繁丽也未能改变主干形态，为建筑美学提供了一个佳例。

   Suddenly, some words of a British architect are slipping into my mind. He said the structure of Islamic mosques was embodied by the “Oasis Civilization” in desert. I agree with him. In early times, Arabians would live a nomadic life which still can be seen today in Bedouins’ living style. When vagabonds in bare and barren deserts seek for their rests, they need a big tall golden doom visible from afar, the enclosure for security and calmness, and a shady cool colonnade as well as an abundant source of water within the enclosure. No matter how sumptuous the praying hall in the center is, it is always the extension of the tent structure. Actually Khomeini used to have a real tent as a praying hall during his secluded life in Paris. This basic function facilitates the mosque architectures with simplicity, lucidness, liveliness, and practicality. Even the increasing magnificence in patterns would never change the main structure. How excellent it is an example of the architectural aesthetics! 

   我这一路过来，拜渴过埃及的萨拉丁城堡清真寺、耶路撒冷的岩石圆顶清真寺，还到约旦的皇家清真寺参加了一次完整的大礼拜，其他顺便参观一下的清真寺就更多了，大体上都保持着这种形态。但是相比之下，要数卡尔巴拉的这两座清真寺最符合始源性的“绿洲文明”旨意。其他清真寺已经过于城市化了，游客也太多，而在这里，基本上都是虔诚的礼拜者。

   Along the journey, I have visited the mosque in the Citadel of Saladin in Egypt, the rock-doomed mosque in Jerusalem, and even the royal mosque in Jordan where I attended a full prostration. Taking into account the mosques I dropped by, the visiting list would be prolonged. All of the mosques keep the same structure. But, by contrast, I find these two mosques in Karbala is visited basically by devout pilgrims, which is much more originally in tune with the “Green Civilization”, for other mosques are too modern and urbanized with too many tourists.

  我们问了坐在回廊前地毯上的一家四口，是不是经常来这里，回答是每两个月来一次，就这样坐一天，念念《可兰经》，心境就会变得平静。我看回廊内外席地而坐的一个个家庭情神都差不多。寄身于战云压顶的土地，他们都有各自不同的苦难，但在金顶下的院落里坐上天一，就觉得一切都可忍受了。然后，在夜色中，相扶相持回家。

   We asked a family of four sitting on the carpet in front of the portico, whether or not they came here frequently. They answered, “We come here every two months, sitting all the day like this, and reading off Koran. In this way, our souls will be calm and peaceful.” I looked around the families sitting inside and outside the portico only to find them almost in the same mentality. Living in the land hovered by clouds of wars, they all had their own stories of misfortune, but sitting in the yard under the golden roof all day, they learned to stand and overcome everything. After that, they went back home in the night by helping each other.

   他们很多来自外地，黑袍飘飘地要走过很长的沙地。

   Most of them came here as outsiders, after passing through the long desert in their flying black robes.

我们虽然未被批准进人礼拜堂，但两座清真寺的主管却一定要接见我们。什叶派在伊拉克没有当政，因此无法判断“主管”的宗教身份。他们的客厅都是银顶的，很宽敞，有高功率的空调，挂着好几幅总统像。

   Although we were not permitted to enter the hall, the supervisors of the two mosques insisted on hosting us. As Shiah was not in power in Iraq, we could not judge the religious identity of them. Their spacious drawing room were featured by silver dooms, and high powered air-condition as well as several portraits of presidents hanging on the walls.

   两位主管都很胖，精神健旺，抽着纸烟，会讲英语，讲话时不看我们，抬着头，语势滔滔。但他们没有谈宗教，一开口就讲国际政治，讲自己对总统的崇拜，官气飞扬。他们讲话的中心意思是，世界上最有文化的国家，一是伊拉克，二是中国，所以西方国家眼红，但被伊拉克顶住了。

   The two supervisors who looked quite fat but healthy and vigorous were smoking. They could speak English. Without looking at us, they raised their heads and gave us their spiels aided by frequent gestures. Once opening their mouths, they touched upon international political affairs not religion. They, in an air of bureaucracy, told us how they respected their president. The main idea of their talks was that there were two most cultural countries in the world, with one being Iraq, the other China, and that was why western countries grew green eyes, which Iraq rode out finally.

   这时有位老者端着盘子来上茶，用的是比拇指稍大一点的玻璃盅，也不见什么茶叶，只有几根茶梗沉在上面。主管隆重地以手示意，要我们喝，顺便问了一句：“中国有茶吗？”

   Just then, an old man holding trays came up to make teas for us. What they used for tea was a glass cup slightly bigger than a thumb. No tea leaves could be seen floating on the water but some tea stalks. The supervisor ceremoniously gave us a hand signal of drinking tea, and asked, “Is there any tea in China?”

我们假装没有听见，把脸转向窗外的云天。

We all pretended not hearing it, but turning our faces to the sky through the window.

一九九九年十一月十四日，

伊拉克卡尔巴拉（Karbala)，

夜宿巴格达Rasheed 旅馆。

   We hailed ourselves up for the night

 in Baghdad Raeed Inn of Karbala

In Iraq on November 14th, 1999.

[1] 贝都因(Bedouins)在阿拉伯语中的意思是住帐篷的游牧人。