The myth of Oisín and the land of eternal youth - Iseult Gillespie

Translator: Sylvia He Reviewer: H.L. Au

In a typical hero's journey,

喺典型嘅英雄探險故事入面

the protagonist sets out on an adventure,

主人公上路

undergoes great change,

經歷巨變

and returns in triumph to their point of origin.

最尾榮歸故里

But in the Irish genre of myth known as Eachtraí,

但喺愛爾蘭神話 Echtraí

the journey to the other world ends in a point of no return.

嗰英雄有去冇回

While there are many different versions of the otherworld in Irish mythology,

雖然愛爾蘭神話有 好多唔同版本嘅異世界

the most well-known example occurs in the story of Oisín.

最出名嘅例子就喺奥辛嘅故事出現

Oisín was the son of Fionn mac Cumhaill, the leader of a group of pagan warriors

奧辛係芬恩．麥克庫爾個仔

芬恩．麥克庫爾係費奧納戰隊首領

known as the Fianna.

As Oisín rode with his companions one day,

有一日，奥辛同同伴出遊

he was visited by the immortal princess Niamh.

遇到仙女公主妮奥芙

The two fell instantly in love

兩人一見鍾情

and Niamh put Oisín onto her white horse

妮奧芙將奧辛拉上白馬

and rode with him to the edge of the Irish sea.

嚟到愛爾蘭海邊

As they made for the horizon, the riders sunk into a golden haze.

佢哋穿過地平線沉入咗金色嘅霧

They came to the shores of the gleaming kingdom called Tír na nÓg.

嚟到光芒四射嘅提爾納諾國嘅海邊

This was the home of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the people who ruled Ancient Ireland

呢到係統治古愛爾蘭慨達努族人故鄉

long before Oisín's time.

比起奥辛嘅時代更久遠

From the point of his arrival, Oisín's every need was met.

由奥辛到埗開始， 就要乜有乜

He married Niamh in a grand ceremony and was welcomed into her family.

佢同妮奥芙大婚 受到成個家族嘅歡迎

When he wished to hear music, his ears filled with bewitching tones.

奧辛想聽音樂時 就會有迷人慨旋律響起

When he hungered, golden plates appeared laden with fragrant food.

佢肚餓 用金碟盛載嘅芳香美食就會出現

He admired scenes of great beauty, and colors that he had no name for.

呢度景靚 連啲顏色都係從所未見慨

All around him, the land and the people existed in a state of unmoving perfection.

周圍嘅一切、土地同人都好完美

But what Oisín didn't know was that Tír na nÓg was the land of youth,

但係奧辛唔知提爾納諾係個常春地

in which time stood still and the people never aged.

喺呢度，時間靜止，人唔會老

In his new home, Oisín continued to hunt and explore as he had in Ireland.

喺新家園，奧辛就好似喺愛爾蘭咁 繼續如常打獵同探險

But in the land of youth, he possessed a strange, new invincibility.

但喺呢個常春地，佢得到新嘅能力

每個探險日完咗之後

At the end of each day of adventuring,

Oisín's wounds magically healed themselves as he slept in Niamh's arms.

喺妮奧芙懷中入睡時 奧辛嘅傷口會自然癒合

Although glory and pleasure came easily to Oisín in the land of youth,

儘管喺呢度榮耀同歡娛隨手可得

he missed the Fianna and the adventures they had in Ireland.

奧辛好掛住費奧納戰隊 同昔日喺愛爾蘭嘅歷險

After three years in Tír na nÓg, he was struck by a deep yearning for home.

提爾納諾住咗三年之後 佢深受思鄉嘅情緒困擾

Before he embarked on his journey back, Niamh warned him

佢準備啟程返去時 妮奧芙叮囑佢

that he must not alight from his horse to touch the earth with his own feet.

一定唔可以落馬用自己對腳落地

When Oisín reached the shores of Ireland,

奧辛嚟到愛爾蘭海邊時

it felt as if a shadow had fallen over the world.

成個世界好似比陰影籠罩住

On the hill where his father's palace lay, he saw only a ruin strewn with weeds.

佢父親嘅宮殿宜家變成廢墟

His calls for his friends and family echoed from derelict walls.

佢呼叫親友 但只有廢棄牆壁傳嚟嘅回音

Horrified, Oisín rode until he came upon a group of peasants working in the fields.

奧辛好驚 一路行直到遇到一班农民

They were struggling to remove a boulder from their land,

佢哋好辛苦咁喺度搬一嚿大石

and forgetting Niamh's warning,

奥辛唔記得咗妮奥芙嘅警告

Oisín leapt from his horse and rolled it away with his superhuman strength.

落馬用超能力一手就將石頭揈開

The crowd's cheers soon turned into shrieks.

但係啲農民未歡呼完就尖叫

In place of the youth was an old man whose beard swept the ground

呢個後生仔已經變成咗個老人

鬍鬚掂地，兩腳變形

and whose legs buckled under him.

He cried out for Finn and the Fianna,

佢大叫芬恩同費奧納

but the people only recognized these names from the distant past of 300 years before.

但已經係三百幾年前嘅名字

Time had betrayed Oisín

時間背叛咗奧辛

and his return to mortal lands had aged him irreversibly.

重返人間令佢冇無可扭轉咁衰老

Throughout Irish folklore,

喺愛爾蘭民間故事裡邊

sightings of the land of youth have been reported in the depths of wells,

好多人聲稱見過常春地

喺井深處

on the brink of the horizon,

喺地平線盡頭

or in the gloom of caves.

喺黑暗嘅山洞

But those who know the tale of Oisín tell of another vision,

但知道奥辛嘅故事嘅人 講嘅係另一個版本

that of a shining princess carried upon the distant waves by a white horse,

喺遙遠嘅海浪上 有位閃閃發光嘅公主骑住白馬

still hoping for the return of her doomed love.

仍然盼望住佢註定失敗嘅愛返嚟