书城教材教辅新课标英语学习资源库-天国花园
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第6章 The Garden of Paradise(6)

The princess smiled,and told him that time had engraved each event on a windowpane in the form of a picture;but,unlike other pictures,all that it represented lived and moved,—the leaves rustled,and the persons went and came,as in a lookingglass.He looked through another pane,and saw the ladder in Jacobs dream,on which the angels were ascending and descending with outspread wings.All that had ever happened in the world here lived and moved on the panes of glass,in pictures such as time alone could produce.The fairy now led the prince into a large,lofty room with transparent (transparent adj.透明的,显然的,明晰的)walls,through which the light shone.Here were portraits,each one appearing more beautiful than the other—millions of happy beings,whose laughter and song mingled in one sweet melody:some of these were in such an elevated (elevated adj.提高的,严肃的,欢欣的)position that they appeared smaller than the smallest rosebud,or like pencil dots on paper.In the centre of the hall stood a tree,with drooping branches,from which hung golden apples,both great and small,looking like oranges amid the green leaves.It was the tree of knowledge of good and evil,from which Adam and Eve had plucked and eaten the forbidden fruit,and from each leaf trickled a bright red dewdrop,as if the tree were weeping tears of blood for their sin.“Let us now take the boat,”said the fairy:“a sail on the cool waters will refresh us.But we shall not move from the spot,although the boat may rock on the swelling water;the countries of the world will glide before us,but we shall remain still.”

仙女微微笑了一下,她解释着说,时间在每块玻璃上烙下了一幅图画,但这并不是人们惯常所见的那种图画。它有生命:树上的叶子在颤动,人就像镜中的影子似的在来来往往。他又在另一块玻璃后面看。他看见雅各梦见通到天上的梯子,长着大翅膀的安琪儿在上下地飞翔。是的,世界上所发生的事情全都在玻璃里活动着。只有时间才能绘出这样奇异的图画。仙女微笑了一下,又把他带到高大的厅堂里去。墙壁像是透明的画像,面孔一个比一个好看。这儿有无数幸福的人们,他们微笑着,歌唱着;这些歌声与笑声交汇成为一种和谐的音乐。最上面的小得比绘在纸上作为最小的玫瑰花苞的一个小点还要小。大厅中间有一株绿叶茂密。枝丫低垂的大树;大大小小的金黄苹果,在叶子之间像橘子似的挂着。这就是知识之树。亚当和夏娃曾吃过这树上的果子。每一片叶子滴下一滴亮晶晶的红色露珠;这好像树哭出来的血眼泪。“我们现在到船上去吧!”仙女说,“在波涛上呼吸一些空气。船会摇摆,可是它并不离开以前的地点。但是世界上所有的国家将会在我们眼前经过。”

It was indeed wonderful to behold.First came the lofty Alps,snowclad,and covered with clouds and dark pines.The horn resounded (resound v.回响,赞扬),and the shepherds sang merrily in the valleys.The bananatrees bent their drooping branches over the boat,black swans floated on the water,and singular animals and flowers appeared on the distant shore.New Holland,the fifth division of the world,now glided by,with mountains in the background,looking blue in the distance.They heard the song of the priests,and saw the wild dance of the savage to the sound of the drums (drum n.鼓,鼓声,鼓形圆桶vi.击鼓,作鼓声vt.打鼓奏)and trumpets of bone;the pyramids of Egypt rising to the clouds;columns and sphinxes,overthrown and buried in the sand,followed in their turn;while the northern lights flashed out over the extinguished volcanoes of the north,in fireworks none could imitate.

这整个的河岸在移动,真是一种奇观。积雪的阿尔卑斯山,带着云朵和松林,现在出现了;号角吹出忧郁的调子;牧羊人在山谷里大声歌唱。香蕉树在船上垂下长枝;漆黑的天鹅在水上游泳,奇异的动物和花卉在岸上争相炫耀。这是新荷兰——世界五大洲之一,它被一系列的青山衬托着,在眼前浮过去了。人们听见牧师的歌声,看到原始人在踏着鼓声跳舞和骨头做的喇叭声。深入云中的埃及金字塔,倒下的圆柱和一半被埋在沙里的斯芬克斯,也都在眼前浮过去了。北极光照在北方的冰河上——这是谁也仿造不出来的焰火。

The prince was delighted,and yet he saw hundreds of other wonderful things more than can be described.“Can I stay here forever?”asked he.

王子感到非常幸福。他所看见的东西,比我们现在所讲的要多100倍以上。他问:“我可不可以永远住在这儿?”

“That depends upon yourself.”replied the fairy.“If you do not,like Adam,long for what is forbidden,you can remain here always.”

“这要由你自己决定!”仙女回答说。“如果你能不像亚当那样去作犯禁的事,你就能永远住在这儿!”

“I should not touch the fruit on the tree of knowledge.”said the prince;there is abundance of fruit equally beautiful.

“我决不会!”王子说。这儿有无数的果子和那个果子同样美丽。

“Examine your own heart,”said the princess,“and if you do not feel sure of its strength,return with the East Wind who brought you.He is about to fly back,and will not return here for a hundred years.The time will not seem to you more than a hundred hours,yet even that is a long time for temptation(temptation n.诱惑,诱惑物)and resistance.Every evening,when I leave you,I shall be obliged to say,‘Come with me’and to beckon to you with my hand.But you must not listen,nor move from your place to follow me;for with every step you will find your power to resist weaker.If once you attempted to follow me,you would soon find yourself in the hall,where grows the tree of knowledge,for I sleep beneath its perfumed branches.If you stooped over me,I should be forced to smile.If you then kissed my lips,the garden of paradise(paradise n.天堂)would sink into the earth,and to you it would be lost.A keen wind from the desert would howl around you;cold rain fall on your head,and sorrow and woe be your future lot.”

“请你问问你自己吧。如果你不能,你可以跟送你来的东风一道回去。他就快要飞回去了。他只有过了100年以后才再到这儿来;在这儿,这段时间只不过像100个小时;但就罪恶和诱惑说来,这段时间却很漫长。每天晚上,当我离开你的时候,我会对你喊:‘跟我一起来吧!’我也会向你招手,不过你不能动。你不要跟我一道来,因为你往前走一步,欲望就会增大。那么你就会来到长着那棵知识之树的大厅。我就睡在它芬芳的垂枝下面;你会在我的身上弯下腰来,而我必然会对你微笑。不过天国就会坠到地底下去,如果你吻了我的嘴唇,那么你也就失去它了。沙漠的厉风将会在你的四周吹,冰凉的雨点将会从你的头发上滴下来。忧愁和苦恼将会伴随你。”

“I will remain.”said the prince.So the East Wind kissed him on the forehead,and said,“Be firm;then shall we meet again when a hundred years have passed.Farewell,farewell.”Then the East Wind spread his broad pinions,which shone like the lightning in harvest,or as the northern lights in a cold winter.

“我将在这儿住下来!”王子说。于是东风就在他的前额上吻了一下,“请你坚强些吧。100年以后我们再在这儿见面。再会吧!再会吧!”东风张开他的大翅膀,像秋天的麦田或寒冷冬天的北极光的闪光。

“Farewell,farewell.”echoed the trees and the flowers.Storks and pelicans flew after him in feathery bands,to accompany him to the boundariesboundary n.边界,分界线of the garden.

“再会吧!再会吧!”这是花丛和树林中发出的声音。鹳鸟和鹈鹕成行地飞行,像飘荡着的缎带,一直飞到花园的边境陪伴东风。