莊子·養生主_英文翻譯_English Translation of Zhuangzi's The Master of Regimen

(18/1/2017更新：把本篇譯文錄入作品集前，作了許多修改，感謝各位之寶貴意見）

養生主　The Master of Regimen                               

吾生也有涯，而知也無涯。以有涯隨無涯，殆已；已而為知者，殆而已矣。為善無近名，為惡無近刑，緣督以為經，可以保身，可以全生，可以養親，可以盡年。

Life is finite, but knowledge is not. It is unwise to pursue the infinite by the finite. And it is very unwise to exhaust oneself vainly, even when aware of it. Mastering a regimen does not help one to obtain fame instantly, nor ignoring it would bring about immediate consequences. Obeying the order of nature can help protect one’s body, sustain innate abilities, maintain one’s health, and allow men to enjoy their given lifespan.

庖丁為文惠君解牛，手之所觸，肩之所倚，足之所履，膝之所踦，砉然嚮然，奏刀騞然，莫不中音，合於桑林之舞，乃中經首之會。文惠君曰：「譆！善哉！技蓋至此乎？」

The Butcher was slaughtering a cow for Wen HuiJun¹. Each item his hand touched, his shoulders lied on, his foot stepped upon, and his knees kneeled on had a harmonic sound. The sounds of his knife striking the cow were so rhythmic that they were as if accurate tunes of musical scales. The sounds had matched the melody of JinShou²and the dancing steps of SangLin^3. “Oh,” said Wen HuiJun, “what a skill! How did you master such techniques?”

庖丁釋刀對曰：「臣之所好者道也，進乎技矣。始臣之解牛之時，所見無非全牛者。三年之後，未嘗見全牛也。方今之時，臣以神遇而不以目視，官知止而神欲行。依乎天理，批大郤，導大窾，因其固然，枝經肯綮之未嘗微礙，而況大軱乎！良庖歲更刀，割也；族庖月更刀，折也。今臣之刀十九年矣，所解數千牛矣，而刀刃若新發於硎。彼節者有閒，而刀刃者無厚，以無厚入有閒，恢恢乎其於遊刃必有餘地矣。是以十九年而刀刃若新發於硎。雖然，每至於族，吾見其難為，怵然為戒，視為止，行為遲。動刀甚微，謋然已解，牛不知其死也，如土委地。提刀而立，為之四顧，為之躊躇滿志，善刀而藏之。」文惠君曰：「善哉！吾聞庖丁之言，得養生焉。」

“Tao,” answered the Butcher, placing down his knife, “is what I favour the most, which is something beyond slaughtering skills. When I was just a beginner, what I saw were merely cows. Three years later, I no longer regard the cow as a complete body. Today, I don’t even look at it, but to feel it by my will. I rely on my spirit more than my eyes. Considering the nature of the cow, I start a cut at the spaces among large muscles and cut it through between the gaps of the joints by following its inborn structure. The knife remains untouched even when I cut at the overlapping points of its nerves, not to mention when cutting between large bones! A skilled butcher replaces his knife yearly, for he slashes the muscles of the cow; an ordinary butcher replaces his knife monthly, for he chops the bones of the cow. This knife I’m using, however, has been used for nineteen years, which has slaughtered thousands of cows, but it still seemed intact as if was ground not long ago. The joints are roomed while the blade is thin – by placing the thin into the room, I have ample space for my blade to move around. That’s why my knife is still in perfect condition after nineteen years. Nevertheless, sometimes it will be difficult to handle when the muscles intertwine complexly. Whenever I encounter such challenges, I slow down, concentrate with attentiveness, and observe it carefully. Next, I will make the cut in a slight and gentle manner, and the cow, not realising its death, will be dissected and collapses like a pile of soil. Then, holding my knife, I look around and show my satisfaction complacently. And finally, I clean up my knife and keep it well." Wen HuiJun replied, “Bravo! Your words have inspired me the secrets to mastering regimen.”

公文軒見右師而驚曰：「是何人也？惡乎介也？天與？其人與？」曰：「天也，非人也。天之生是使獨也，人之貌有與也。以是知其天也，非人也。」

When Gong WenXuan encountered YouShi⁴, he was frightened and asked, “Who are you? Why are you crippled⁵? Was that inborn or due to a human cause?” YouShi replied, “That’s a natural cause, not by human. Like how people’s innate appearances were shaped, it was the many natural causes that eventually crippled me. Therefore, I know it was nature instead of humankind.”

澤雉十步一啄，百步一飲，不蘄畜乎樊中。神雖王，不善也。

Wild chickens in marshes find only a beak of food every ten footsteps and a mouth of water every hundred steps. However, they never long to be fed in a cage. Chickens in cages look healthy but are all unhappy.

老聃死，秦失弔之，三號而出。

弟子曰：「非夫子之友邪？」

曰：「然。」

「然則弔焉若此，可乎？」

曰：「然。始也吾以為至人也，而今非也。向吾入而弔焉，有老者哭之，如哭其子；少者哭之，如哭其母。彼其所以會之，必有不蘄言而言，不蘄哭而哭者。是遁天倍情，忘其所受，古者謂之遁天之刑。適來，夫子時也；適去，夫子順也。安時而處順，哀樂不能入也，古者謂是帝之懸解。」指窮於為薪，火傳也，不知其盡也。

LaoYi⁶ passed away, and QinShi went to his funeral. He sobbed a little and left.

One of LaoYi’s students asked QinShi, “Are you a friend of my teacher?”

“Yes,” replied QinShi.

“But is crying just like this appropriate enough?”

 “Sure. At first, I thought he had mastered the Taoism philosophy, but now I know he had not. When I attended the funeral, I saw old people crying over his death as if he was their son and young people crying as if he was their father. Their reactions indicated that they didn’t want to mourn and cry, but still, they had done so. These are acts of evading the rules of nature and one’s fate, and this reflected that they had forgotten what kind of life they were supposed to live. In ancient times, such emotions were referred to as ‘the punishment of violating the rules of nature.’ At the right time, our teacher came; at the right time, our teacher left. If we have the correct attitude towards every event that happens naturally and let it be, depression and delirium shall not invade us. Ancient people call this ‘the emancipation to nature.’” A piece of firewood burns out instantly, but if we pass on the fire to another, it will never be extinguished.

Translator's notes:

1: An imaginary character who was an emperor.

2: A dance step performed in festivals during the Shang Dynasty (1558-1046B.C.)

3: An ancient piece of Chinese music

4: An ancient government official title

5: The word ‘crippled’ in the source text(介) implies that he had suffered from a punishment of cutting off his feet

6: Better known as Laozi, the pioneer of Taoism philosophy