Who is the fastest god in all mythology? - Iseult Gillespie

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

Welcome to another event in the Myth Olympics—

歡迎來到另一場神話奧運的盛事——

the eternal arena in which creatures and deities

在這個永恆的競技場上， 來自全球神話的生物和神祇

from global mythologies compete for glory.

為了榮耀而競爭。

I’m Shamash, the Mesopotamian god of judgment,

我是沙馬什，

美索不達米亞的審判之神，

and today we’re gathered to witness this year’s clash of stunning speed.

今天我們齊聚一堂，來見證 今年的驚人速度對決。

Keeping track of our racers with me is last year’s champion, Hermes—

和我一起追蹤參賽者的是去年的冠軍

赫爾墨斯——希臘諸神中 腳程飛快的信差。

the swift-footed messenger of the Greek gods.

Oh, I'm delighted to hang up my winged sandals today, Shamash.

我很高興今天能高掛我那雙 有翅膀的涼鞋，沙馬什。

But I am keeping my helmet on because we are in for a wild ride!

但我還是戴著頭盔，

因為我們將要體驗一場狂飆。

It’s true! Almost every mythical tradition claims one creature

真的！

幾乎每個神話傳統 都有聲稱某一種生物

as the fastest of them all.

是速度最快的。

From goddesses who run like the wind to creatures who outstrip every captor,

從像風一樣奔跑的女神，

到所有追捕者都追不上的生物，

mortals of all cultures are fascinated by superhuman swiftness.

各文化的凡人都對 超人般的速度十分著迷。

So, Hermes, who are this year’s contestants?

所以，赫爾墨斯，今年有誰參賽？

Well, the Norse gods have sent Sleipnir—

北歐眾神派出了斯雷普尼爾——

son of Loki and the greatest of Asgard’s steeds.

祂是洛基的兒子，也是 阿斯嘉最偉大的戰馬。

He’s usually spotted gallivanting between the realms with Odin.

祂常被看到與奧丁在九界間閒逛。

But today, Sleipnir is riding solo.

但今天，斯雷普尼爾是單騎。

Also competing is Raiju, the Japanese beast of thunder and lightning.

此外，雷獸也參與競爭，

祂是日本的雷電之獸。

When the weather’s nice, they like to nap in mortals’ belly buttons.

天氣好的時候，祂們喜歡 在凡人的肚臍中打瞌睡。

But when clouds darken, Raiju leaps into action alongside Raijin,

但當雲開始變黑，

雷獸會飛身去和雷神並肩而戰，

the Shinto god of storms.

雷神是神道中的暴風雨之神。

With this fearsome competitor, lightning can strike at any time.

有這位可怕的競爭者， 隨時都會有閃電。

But storms don’t scare Idaten.

但暴風雨嚇不了韋駄天。

This Buddhist deity has a record of outrunning the weather—

這位佛教神祇創下 超越天氣的記錄——

his name is even part of the Japanese expression for “run like the wind.”

韋駄天這個名字甚至成為日文

「奔馳如風」的一部分。

Idaten’s definitely got some tricks up those steel sleeves.

韋駄天肯定在那些 鋼鐵袖中藏有幾招密技。

Perhaps, but our last competitor has tricks of his own.

也許吧，但最後一位參賽者 也有自己的絕招。

Savitar is the Hindu deity that sets everything in motion,

薩維塔是讓萬物動起來的印度神祇，

from moving the Sun to chasing away sorrow and sickness.

從移動太陽，到驅散悲傷與疾病。

Yes, today’s roster contains many mythic interpretations of speed.

是的，今天的參賽名單中有許多 不同神話對速度的詮釋。

From personifications of the unpredictable elements

從將無法預測的元素給擬人化，

to creatures capable of outrunning reality itself.

到能夠跑贏現實本身的生物。

But perhaps the myth of speed is really about the elusive nature

但，也許速度的神話重點在於

所有超自然存在都有著難捉摸本質。

of all supernatural beings.

Those are some, uh, neat ideas, Shamash— but this race is the real deal!

那些想法挺好的，沙馬什——

但這場比賽是來真的！

Our noble competitors will run the equivalent of 100 marathons

我們高貴的參賽者要跑的距離 等同於一百場馬拉松，

through a hazardous natural obstacle course.

且要跑在一條危險的 自然障礙賽道上，

And our racers are taking their first steps right now!

我們的參賽者現在 正要踏出第一步了！

Idaten takes the lead, but don’t let that calm exterior fool you—

韋駄天領先，但別被祂 平靜的外表給騙了——

his determination is legendary.

祂的決心是傳奇等級的。

When a literal speed demon stole one of Buddha's teeth,

當一隻捷疾鬼把佛的牙齒偷走時，

he raced over mountains and rivers to capture the culprit.

祂翻山越嶺渡河去追捕這個罪犯。

Don’t forget Sleipnir— he’s cleared hurdles in his time, too.

別忘了也曾經跨越 許多障礙的斯雷普尼爾。

I’ll say! On his mission to retrieve Baldur the Bright

的確！在祂去赫爾堡救出 光明之神巴德爾的任務中，

from the fortress of Hel, he rode for nine days straight—

祂連續奔馳了九天——

clearing the gates of the underworld without breaking a sweat.

毫不費力就通過冥界的門戶。

They don’t call him the sliding one for nothing—

祂被稱為滑行者不是沒有原因的——

he appears to slide on the wind itself!

祂看起來就像在風中滑行。

Of course, wind is often personified as a sacred being that—

當然，風常常被擬人化 成為一種神聖的存在——

No time for a history lesson! That wind is picking up!

沒時間講古了！風在增強了！

Like the force of nature they are, Raiju brews a storm to scorch the competition.

就如同大自然的力量，

雷獸製造出一場暴風雨， 讓比賽大亂。

It’s certainly possible.

這絕對是有可能的。

Raiju is known for their destructive storms.

雷獸本來就以破壞性的暴風雨聞名。

But they’re also our most chaotic racer,

但祂們也是我們最沒章法的參賽者，

frequently crashing to earth and getting tangled in flimsy mortal nets.

經常墜落到地面上， 被凡人很脆弱的網子纏住。

They’re unpredictable!

祂們是無法預測的！

Chaos is often associated with mythology’s fastest creatures,

混亂常常和神話中 速度最快的生物有關，

from the shapeshifting Flemish Kludde who preys on travelers

從法蘭德斯神話中會變形 且以旅人為食的克魯德，

to the smelly Japanese spirit Nuppeppō who moves too fast to be caught.

到很臭的日本幽靈肉塊妖，

速度快到不會被抓到。

True, but there are also steady agents of speed.

是的，但速度也有穩定的化身。

Here comes one now!

現在就來了一個。

Lending his boundless energy to the Sun, Savitar breaks through Raiju’s storm!

把祂無窮的能量借給太陽，

薩維塔突破了雷獸的暴風雨！

This golden-handed protector of the universe can manipulate the elements—

這位宇宙的巧手保護者 能夠操控元素——

and all moving things for that matter!

以及所有能移動的萬物。

A valiant effort to redirect the wind by Idaten... but not valiant enough.

韋駄天英勇地試圖改變風向……

但還不夠英勇。

The path seems clear for Savitar.

薩維塔似乎通行無阻了。

But is that the gallop of hooves I hear?

但我聽到的是蹄聲嗎？

What beautiful blindside!

這攻其不備做得太漂亮了！

It’s Sleipnir hurtling out of another dimension!

是斯雷普尼爾從另一個 維度飛馳而來！

it seems the shamanic steed shares Odin’s ability to travel between the realms.

這隻薩滿戰馬似乎

也有奧丁在不同世界間穿梭的能力。

This racer might not have to play by Savitar’s rules.

薩維塔的規則可能 不適用於這位參賽者。

But... wait a second, am I watching this in slow motion?

但……等等，

我看到的是慢動作嗎？

No! It appears the god of motion is slowing the speed of his opponent,

喔不！顯然是運動之神 把祂對手的速度減慢了，

suspending him centimeters from the course’s conclusion.

讓祂停在離終點線 只有幾公分的地方。

Sleipnir’s stampede slows to a snail’s pace

斯雷普尼爾的狂奔速度 減緩到蝸牛的步調，

as Savitar leisurely glides over the finish line!

而薩維塔輕輕鬆鬆滑過終點線！

What a finale!

好一個結局！

Savitar’s mastery of motion immobilized his fastest foe!

薩維塔對運動的掌控，

讓祂最快的對手也動彈不得！

It seems Sleipnir’s not too happy with this controversial result,

斯雷普尼爾對這爭議性的 結果似乎不太滿意，

but hey, there’s always next year.

但，嘿，永遠都可以明年再來。

And one might say that we’re all winners for witnessing the mind-bending speed

也可以說，我們都是贏家，

因為我們見證了這麼多神話 和傳說中的震憾神速。

of so many myths and legends.