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

譯者: Ting-Yen Tsai 審譯者: Helen Chang

「仙女啊！快帶我離開這無聊的世界， 因為我可以和你一起乘風飛去……」

—威廉·巴特勒·葉慈 《心靈的欲望之田》

在一個典型英雄的旅途上

In a typical hero's journey,

the protagonist sets out on an adventure,

主角會踏上征途

undergoes great change,

經歷一番挑戰和改變後

and returns in triumph to their point of origin.

最後帶著榮耀回歸故鄉

But in the Irish genre of myth known as Eachtraí,

但在愛爾蘭的冒險神話中

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

去到另一個世界的旅途 不會有衣錦還鄉的結局

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

愛爾蘭神話中有許多 不同版本的異世界

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

其中最有名的例子 就在《歐辛》的故事裡

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

歐辛是異教徒戰士領袖 費昂．麥肯海爾的兒子

known as the Fianna.

這群異教徒戰士 被稱為費奧娜勇士團

As Oisín rode with his companions one day,

有一天歐辛和他的同伴出遊時

he was visited by the immortal princess Niamh.

遇到一位長生不死的公主妮雅姆

The two fell instantly in love

兩人一見鍾情、墜入愛河

and Niamh put Oisín onto her white horse

妮雅姆將歐辛放在他的白馬上

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

並且和他一起騎到愛爾蘭海的邊界

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

當他們抵達了彼端 他們四周都被金色的薄霧所包圍

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

原來他們來到了提爾那努 這個光輝王國的海岸邊

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

這裡是圖哈·德·納努的故鄉

一個遠在歐辛的時代之前 統治古代愛爾蘭的民族

long before Oisín's time.

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

從歐辛抵達的那一刻起 他所想要的東西都被滿足了

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

他用一個盛大的儀式迎娶妮雅姆 而且被她的家族所接受

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

當他想要聽見音樂時 他的耳裡就充滿著迷人的旋律

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

當他感到飢餓時 裝滿食物的金盤子就出現了

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

他景仰著他不知道名字的 美麗景象和色彩

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

他周遭的土地和人物都是 以一種不變的完美存在著

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

但歐辛不知道提爾那努 是一個青春之國

in which time stood still and the people never aged.

在這裡時間不會流逝 而且所有人都永遠保持年輕

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

在他的新家裡歐辛繼續打獵與探索 就像他以前在愛爾蘭所做的一樣

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

但是在這個青春之國裡 他擁有奇怪無敵的新能力

At the end of each day of adventuring,

在每天的冒險結束後

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

當他睡在妮雅姆的懷裡時 歐辛的傷口就會神奇地自行癒合

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

雖然歐辛在青春之國 享受著輕鬆的榮耀與快樂

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

但是他很想念費奧娜勇士團 還有和他們一起在愛爾蘭的探險

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

三年後，他深深地感受到返鄉的渴望

Before he embarked on his journey back, Niamh warned him

在他騎乘回鄉之前，妮雅姆警告他：

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

他絕對不能下馬 讓他的腳接觸到地面

When Oisín reached the shores of Ireland,

當歐辛回到愛爾蘭

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

他覺得好像有一股黑暗籠罩了世界

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

他父親宮殿以前佇立的山丘上 現在只剩下一個佈滿雜草的廢墟

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

他對朋友和家人的呼喚 只在被廢棄的牆壁間迴盪

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

歐辛感到十分恐懼而繼續騎馬前行 直到他遇到一群農夫正在農地裡耕作

They were struggling to remove a boulder from their land,

他們正在努力想要將 一顆大岩石移開

and forgetting Niamh's warning,

歐辛忘記了妮雅姆的警告

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

他跳下他的馬並且 用他超人的力量滾開大石頭

The crowd's cheers soon turned into shrieks.

然而人群最初發出的歡呼 到最後卻成了尖叫

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

原本年輕人所站的地方 現在只有一個鬍子垂地的老人

and whose legs buckled under him.

他的腳還撐不住身體軟倒了

He cried out for Finn and the Fianna,

他哭喊著費昂和費奧娜勇士團的名字

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

但人們只知道這些名字 存在於遙遠的三百年前

Time had betrayed Oisín

時間背叛了歐辛

and his return to mortal lands had aged him irreversibly.

他回到凡人土地的後果 就是不可逆的老去

Throughout Irish folklore,

在愛爾蘭傳說中

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

青春之國的位置在深井裡

on the brink of the horizon,

或天與地的交界處

or in the gloom of caves.

或在幽暗的洞穴裡

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

但那些知道歐辛故事的人 提供了另一個版本：

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

一位閃耀動人的公主

在遠處海波之中乘著白馬

still hoping for the return of her doomed love.

依舊盼望著她注定死亡的摯愛返回

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