The tale of the Monkey King and the Buddha - Ji Hao

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Yanyan Hong

After wreaking havoc across the heavens, pilfering a potion of immortality,

在天庭大鬧了一番、盜取了仙丹，

and defeating the strongest warriors in the Jade Emperor’s court,

並打敗了玉皇大帝旗下 最強的天將之後，

the Monkey King had finally been captured in a white-hot prison cell.

美猴王終於被擒， 關進炙熱如火的煉丹爐。

But rather than cooking him to a crisp,

但這熾熱的囚牢 不但沒將他燒成焦炭，

the sweltering cage had inflamed its captive’s strength.

反而讓他煉出了一身神力。

Now he was free once more and itching for a fight.

現在他重獲自由了， 且感到手癢很想打架。

Desperate, the Jade Emperor called on the only being stronger than he,

絕望之際，玉皇大帝求助於 唯一比他更強大的存在，

the supreme power in all the heavens: the Buddha himself.

天庭至高無上的力量——如來佛。

Even in the face of this almighty opponent,

即使面對這位全能的對手，

Sun Wukong was not one to grovel.

孫悟空也不打算低頭。

He began boasting of his many talents and demanded the Emperor's crown.

他開始炫耀自己的眾多本領， 並要求玉皇大帝交出皇冠。

Smiling, the Buddha declared he would grant that wish—

如來佛微笑著說 他可以實現這個願望，

if Sun Wukong could somersault out of his palm.

前提是孫悟空能翻出他的手掌心。

The Monkey King gladly pranced onto the Buddha’s hand and shot into the air,

美猴王欣然跳上如來佛的掌上，

接著躍向天空，

landing in a far-off region

落在一個遙遠的地區，

where five pink pillars seemed to mark the edge of the Heavens.

那裡有五根粉紅色柱子， 似乎代表天庭的邊緣。

Cackling with glee, Sun Wukong proudly marked his territory.

孫悟空得意大笑， 得意洋洋地灑尿宣示地盤。

Returning to the Buddha, he demanded his new title—

他回去找如來佛陀， 索求他的新頭銜——

but he was distracted by a familiar odor.

但一股熟悉的氣味 分散了他的注意力。

Looking back, he was shocked to find he'd never left the Buddha's hand.

回頭一看，他驚訝地發現 他根本沒離開過如來佛的手掌。

Suddenly, those five fingers transformed into a mountain range,

突然間，那五隻手指化為一座山脈，

which flipped and pinned Sun Wukong to the ground.

山脈翻轉過來，將孫悟空壓在地上。

Using a sacred seal, the Buddha secured the prison,

如來佛用神聖的符咒封印了這囚牢，

trapping the Monkey King for good— unless he could learn to change.

將美猴王永遠困在那裡——

除非他學會改變。

Seeing the mystical tag, Sun Wukong knew he couldn’t escape unaided.

看到那神秘的符咒，

孫悟空知道必須要有人相助 他才有可能逃脫。

But it took centuries before he truly admitted defeat.

但到數世紀之後 他才真心承認他輸了。

After 500 years of imprisonment, he'd grown increasingly desperate,

被監禁了五百年後，

他變得非常絕望，

finally vowing to mend his ways.

終於誓言改過自新。

So when the Bodhisattva Guanyin happened by his prison on a sacred journey,

因此，當觀音菩薩

在神聖的旅程中經過他的囚牢時，

he promised to pursue enlightenment if she would end his torment.

他承諾若她能救他脫離苦海， 他一定會努力修煉成佛。

The goddess of compassion was skeptical of Sun Wukong's change of heart,

觀音菩薩還是很懷疑 孫悟空是否真的改過自新了，

but decided to give him an opportunity to prove himself.

但決定給他一個機會來證明自己。

At that time, the goddess was overseeing another sacred quest,

那時，觀音菩薩正在護佑

由聖潔的僧人唐三藏 負責的另一項神聖任務。

pursued by a righteous monk named Tripitaka.

He had set out to retrieve scriptures from the West,

他要去西天取經，

but the path was too long and dangerous to travel alone.

但這條路太長且太危險， 他無法獨自走完。

So Guanyin promised to arrange Sun Wukong’s freedom

因此，觀音承諾會安排釋放孫悟空，

if he would serve as a monk’s faithful disciple.

交換條件是孫悟空要成為 這位僧人的忠誠弟子。

The Monkey King agreed without hesitation,

美猴王毫不猶豫地答應了，

and Guanyin directed Tripitaka to his mountain prison.

觀音則引導唐三藏前往 困著他的山脈囚牢。

After centuries of waiting, Sun Wukong was finally free—

等了數個世紀，

孫悟空終於重獲自由——

but he knew he had to behave himself.

但他知道自己必須改過自新。

While the pair walked peacefully at first,

兩人一開始的旅程很平和，

they were soon accosted by fearsome bandits

但他們很快就遇到了可怕的強盜，

and Sun Wukong’s old habits bubbled up.

讓孫悟空的舊習浮現。

Tripitaka scolded the Monkey King, but this only enraged him further.

唐三藏罵了美猴王一頓，

卻只是讓他更加憤怒。

Being good was far more boring than he had imagined—

乖乖聽話實在比他想像的無聊太多，

so he swiftly abandoned his companion.

所以他馬上就拋棄了他夥伴。

Unable to continue alone, Tripitaka sat dejected,

唐三藏無法獨自繼續旅程， 沮喪地坐下來，

until a strange woman approached him.

直到一名陌生女子走向他。

She gave him a sumptuous silk shirt and a cap hiding a band of gold

她給了他一件華麗的絲綢衣、

一頂藏著金箍的帽子，

alongside a mysterious spell.

另外還附上一道神秘的咒語。

It was only when she vanished that Tripitaka recognized her

她消失時，唐三藏才認出 她就是他的神聖守護者。

as his holy patron.

Meanwhile, Sun Wukong was having second thoughts.

此時，孫悟空則動搖了。

He'd sought refuge in the Dragon King's lair,

他在龍王的巢穴中尋求庇護，

where he discussed his troubles over tea.

一邊喝茶一邊討論他的煩惱。

But the Dragon King only scoffed at his guest’s wounded pride.

但龍王對這位賓客 受傷的自尊不屑一顧。

He told Sun Wukong that if he truly wanted to attain enlightenment,

他告訴孫悟空， 如果他真的想要成佛，

he would have to abandon his ego— however painful that might be.

他必須放下他的自我， 無論那會有多痛苦。

His determination renewed,

孫悟空重新振作起來，

Sun Wukong Kong returned to Tripitaka to apologize,

回頭去向唐三藏道歉，

but quickly spotted the luxurious shirt and cap.

但馬上發現了那華麗的衣服和帽子。

They fit the Monkey King perfectly—

美猴王穿戴起來完全合身——

prompting Tripitaka to recite the spell out of curiosity.

好奇心驅使讓唐三藏唸出咒語。

Suddenly, the golden band tightened around Sun Wukong’s head,

突然，金箍緊緊扣住孫悟空的頭，

causing explosive pain.

引發劇痛。

He became too weak to use his cudgel or somersault away.

他變得太虛弱，無法用金箍棒 或翻斛斗的方式脫身。

Only now did Tripitaka recognize the spell’s power.

此時唐三藏才見識到 這咒語有多強大。

Until Sun Wukong could control himself,

在孫悟空能控制自己之前，

Guanyin had given him control of the Monkey King.

觀音給了他能控制美猴王的方式。

Both parties were uneasy about this new arrangement.

雙方對此新安排都感到不安。

But they agreed it was for the good of their mission.

但他們都認同這對他們的任務有利。

Finally, the Monkey King was ready for his greatest challenge yet:

終於，美猴王準備好 迎接他最大的挑戰：

an epic journey to the West.

前往西天取經的史詩之旅。

And perhaps, to redemption.

也許，這也是會一趟救贖之旅。