The Japanese myth of the trickster raccoon - Iseult Gillespie

翻译人员: Zizhuo Liang 校对人员: Helen Chang

On the dusty roads of a small village,

在一条尘土飞扬的乡间小道上，

a travelling salesman was having difficulty selling his wares.

一个沿路叫卖的小贩卖不出杂货。

He’d recently traversed the region just a few weeks ago,

几周前他才走过这一带，

and most of the villagers had already seen his supply.

大多数村民已经看过他的货品。

So he wandered the outskirts of the town

于是他在城郊游荡，

in the hopes of finding some new customers.

希望能找到一些新顾客。

Unfortunately, the road was largely deserted,

不幸的是，这条路几乎空无一人，

and the salesman was about to turn back,

当小贩正要回头时，

when he heard a high-pitched yelp coming from the edge of the forest.

听到森林边缘传来尖锐的叫声。

Following the screams to their source, he discovered a trapped tanuki.

循声而去， 他发现了一只掉进陷阱的狸猫。

While these racoon-like creatures were known for their wily ways,

虽然这些像浣熊一样的生物 以诡计多端著称，

this one appeared terrified and powerless.

这一只却看起来害怕又孤立无助。

The salesman freed the struggling creature,

小贩释放了这只挣扎的生物，

but before he could tend to its wounds, it bolted into the undergrowth.

但小贩还没来得及处理它的伤口， 它就钻进了灌木丛。

The next day, he set off on his usual route.

第二天他继续按着老路走。

As he trudged along, he spotted a discarded tea kettle.

缓缓前行时， 他发现一个被丢弃的茶壶。

It was rusty and old— but perhaps he could sell it to the local monks.

这只老旧的茶壶锈迹斑斑， 但也许他可以把它卖给当地的和尚。

The salesman polished it until it sparkled and shone.

小贩把它擦得闪闪发光。

He carried the kettle to Morin-ji Temple and presented it to the solemn monks.

他把水壶带到茂林寺， 交给庄严的僧侣们。

His timing was perfect—

他的时机恰到好处，

they were in need of a large kettle for an important service,

僧人们正好需要一个大水壶 来做一项重要的宗教仪式，

and purchased his pot for a handsome price.

于是他们以可观的价格 买下了小贩的水壶。

To open the ceremony, they began to pour cups of tea for each monk—

仪式开始时，僧人们开始 为每个和尚倒茶——

but the kettle cooled too quickly.

但是水壶里的水凉的太快了。

It had to be reheated often throughout the long service,

在冗长仪式过程中需要经常加热，

and when it was hot, it seemed to squirm in the pourer’s hand.

茶水很烫的时候， 茶壶似乎在倒茶者手中蠕动。

By the end of the ceremony, the monks felt cheated by their purchase,

仪式结束时，僧侣们觉得被骗了，

and called for the salesman to return and explain himself.

于是他们召回小贩，讨个说法。

The following morning, the salesman examined the pot,

次日早上，小贩检查茶壶，

but he couldn’t find anything unusual about it.

但是并未发现任何不寻常的地方。

Hoping a cup of tea would help them think,

希望喝杯茶能带来灵感，

they set the kettle on the fire.

他们将茶壶放在火上烧。

Within moments, the metal began to sweat.

不一会儿，茶壶开始冒汗。

Suddenly, it sprouted a scrubby tail, furry paws and pointed nose.

忽然长出一条粗糙的尾巴、 毛茸茸的爪子和尖尖的鼻子。

With a yelp, the salesman recognized the tanuki he’d freed.

小贩大叫一声， 认出了这是他释放的狸猫。

The salesman was shocked.

小贩十分震惊。

He’d heard tales of shape-shifting tanuki

他听说过狸猫变形的故事，

who transformed by pulling on their testicles.

它们拉动自己的睾丸变身。

But they were usually troublesome tricksters,

但它们通常是麻烦的骗子，

who played embarrassing pranks on travellers,

对旅行者恶作剧，

or made it rain money that later dissolved into leaves.

或是让天上下钱， 之后钱会变成树叶。

Some people even placed tanuki statues outside their homes and businesses

有些人还在住家和行号外头 放置狸猫雕像，

to trick potential pranksters into taking their antics elsewhere.

哄那些打算行骗的人 把鬼把戏带到别处。

However, this tanuki only smiled sweetly.

但是这只狸猫只是甜甜地笑了。

Why had he chosen this unsuspecting form?

狸猫为什么会选择变成 茶壶这种不起眼的物件？

The tanuki explained that he wanted to repay the salesman’s kindness.

狸猫解释说它想回报小贩的善举。

However, he’d grown too hot as a tea kettle,

但是做茶壶实在是太热了，

and didn’t like being burned, scrubbed, or polished.

也不喜欢被火烧、被擦洗、被打磨。

The monk and salesman laughed, both impressed by this honourable trickster.

和尚和小贩都笑了， 被这个可敬的骗子打动了。

From that day on, the tanuki became an esteemed guest of the temple.

从那天起， 狸猫成为了寺院尊贵的客人。

He could frequently be found telling tales and performing tricks

人们经常看到它讲故事，耍花招，

that amused even the most serious monks.

即使是最严肃的僧侣都觉得好笑。

Villagers came from far away to see the temple tanuki,

村民们自远处来参观狸猫神庙，

and the salesman visited often to share tea made from an entirely normal kettle.

小贩也经常来这里， 共饮用普通茶壶泡的茶。