How the Monkey King escaped the underworld - Shunan Teng

翻訳: Masako Kigami 校正: Tomoyuki Suzuki

In the depths of their underwater kingdom,

海底の龍宮で

the mighty Dragon Lords quaked with fear.

四海竜王たちが 恐怖に慄いておりました

Before them pranced Sun Wukong, the Monkey King.

目の前では 美猴王の異名を持つ孫悟空が暴れていました

The legendary troublemaker been hatched from a stone, schooled in divine magic,

この伝説の厄介者は岩から生まれ 仙人の術を修め

and was currently brandishing the Dragon Lord’s most treasured weapon.

東海竜王の秘宝である如意棒を 目下振り回していました

This magical staff,

この如意棒は

originally large enough to measure the depth of a great flood,

もともと大洪水の水深を 測れるくらい大きいのですが

now obeyed the Monkey King’s will and shrank at his touch.

今は孫悟空の命令に従い 触れた途端 縮みました

Terrified of this bewildering power,

この圧倒的な力に怯えて

the Dragons graciously allowed Sun Wukong to keep the staff.

四海竜王たちは如意棒を 孫悟空が持つのを許しました

The Monkey King stowed the weapon away,

孫悟空は如意棒をしまい

and gleefully sped back to his kingdom to show this treasure

仲間である戦士の猿たちに 戦利品を見せびらかそうと

to his tribe of warrior monkeys.

上機嫌で自分の国へと 駆け戻っていきました

After a lavish celebration, Sun Wukong fell into a deep sleep.

贅沢な宴席の後 孫悟空は深い眠りに落ちました

But just as he began to dream,

夢を見始めたのですが

the Monkey King quickly realized two things.

すぐに２つのことを悟りました

The first was that this was no ordinary slumber.

まず これがただの夢ではないということ

The second was that he wasn’t alone.

２つめに そこに誰かがいるということです

Suddenly, he found himself caught in the clutches of two grisly figures.

いきなり 不気味な２つの影に 捕まったのですが

At first the Monkey King didn’t know who his captors were.

初めのうちは 誰なのか分かりませんでした

But as they dragged him toward their city’s gates,

しかし 鬼門関の方に 引きずられて行ったので

Sun Wukong realized his deathly predicament.

孫悟空は死を迎えているのだと 気付きました

These were soul collectors tasked with transporting mortals

彼らの役目は 死期の近づいた魂を

to the Realm of the Dead.

幽冥界に連れてくることでした

This was the domain of the Death Lords,

ここは冥界の十王たちが治める国でした

who mercilessly sorted souls and designed gruesome punishments.

十王たちは 情け容赦なく魂を裁き 恐ろしい罰を与えていました

From here, the kingdom of death was laid out before him.

孫悟空の眼下には 幽冥界が広がり

He could see the Death Lord’s palaces,

幽冥界の宮殿や

and the fabled bridge across the river Nai He.

忘川河にかかる 伝説の奈何橋が見えました

Manning the bridge was an old woman who offered worthy souls a bowl of soup.

この橋の番人の孟婆は 立派な行いをした魂には孟婆湯を与え

After drinking, the spirits forgot their previous life,

飲んだ魂は生前の記憶を忘れて

and were sent back to the world of the living in a new form.

新たな姿を得て 元の世界へと戻りました

Further below were the souls not worthy of reincarnation.

橋の最下層には 生まれ変わるに値しない魂がいました

In this twisting maze of chambers,

入り組んだ地獄では

unfortunate spirits endured endless rooms of punishment—

不幸な魂が 針の山から血の池や

from mountains spiked with sharp blades, to pools of blood and vats of boiling oil.

煮えたぎった油の釜茹まで 無限に続く罰に耐えていました

But Sun Wukong was not about to accept torture or reincarnation.

しかし 孫悟空は拷問も転生も 受け入れようとはしませんでした

As the soul collectors attempted to drag him through the gates,

官吏が孫悟空を鬼門関の中へと 引きずりこもうとしたので

the Monkey King whipped out his staff and swung himself out of their clutches.

孫悟空は如意棒をサッと取り出して 手中から逃れました

His battle cries and the clang of weapons echoed throughout the underworld.

孫悟空の喊声や武器がぶつかる音は 幽冥界中にこだましました

Sensing a disturbance, the ten Death Lords swooped upon him.

騒ぎを感じた冥界十王たちが 突然襲ってきましたが

But they had never met such resistance from a mortal soul.

死期の近づいた魂に これ程 抵抗されたことはありませんでした

What was this unusual creature?

この並外れた生き物は何なのか？

And was he a mortal, a god— or something else?

人間か？ 神か？ 別の何かなのか？

The Lords consulted the Book of Death and Life—

冥界十王たちは閻魔帳―

a tome which showed the time of every living soul’s death.

生きとし生けるもの寿命を記した 巻物を調べました

Not knowing what category this strange being was under,

冥界十王たちは この奇妙な生き物の分類が分からず

the Death Lords struggled to find Sun Wukong at first;

孫悟空の名前を探すのに 手間取りましたが

but the Monkey King knew just where to look.

孫悟空の方は 調べる箇所が分かっていました

Unfortunately, the records confirmed the Death Lord’s claim—

残念ながら 十王たちの言葉どおりでした

Sun Wukong was scheduled to die this very night.

孫悟空の命は まさに今夜尽きようとしていたのです

But the Monkey King was not afraid.

しかし 孫悟空は恐れませんでした

This was far from the first time he’d defied destiny

英知と力の探求の道のりにおいて 自分の運命に抗うのは

in his quest for wisdom and power.

全くの初めてではありませんでした

His past rebellions had earned him the power to transfigure his body,

数々の抗いによって 孫悟空は 変化(へんげ)の術や

ride clouds at dizzying speeds, and govern his tribe with magic and martial arts.

神速で飛ぶ觔斗雲の法を体得し 神通力と武術で仲間を支配してきました

In this crisis, he saw yet another opportunity.

このたびの難局でも孫悟空は 術を使う好機を見出していました

With a flash of his nimble fingers,

指をサッと動かして

the Monkey King struck his own name from the Book.

孫悟空は閻魔帳から 自分の名前を消しました

Before the Death Lords could respond,

冥界十王たちが反応する前に

he found the names of his monkey tribe and swept them away as well.

孫悟空は仲間の猿の名前も 見つけて消しました

Liberated from the bonds of death,

死の運命を免れた孫悟空は

Sun Wukong began to battle his way out of the underworld.

現世に戻るため 戦いを始めました

He deftly defeated endless swarms of angry spirits—

孫悟空は幽冥界の外へと出て行く前に

before tripping on his way out of the kingdom.

怒り狂った冥界の大軍を 巧みに打ち負かしました

Just before he hit the ground, Sun Wukong suddenly awoke in his bed.

地面に落ちる寸前に 孫悟空は寝台で目を覚ましました

At first he thought the journey might have been a dream,

初めはあれは夢だと思ったのですが

but the Monkey King felt his new immortality surging

孫悟空は頭のてっぺんから 尻尾の先まで

from the top of his head to the tip of his tail.

新しい不老不死の力を感じました

With a cry of triumph, he woke his warriors to share his latest adventure—

勝利の雄叫びをあげて 仲間の猿たちを起こし 冒険談を聞かせ

and commence another round of celebration.

また宴会を始めました