双语·《刀锋》 第六章 七

CHAPTER SIX 7
第六章 七

I must interrupt myself to make it plain that I am not attempting here to give anything in the nature of a description of the philosophical system known as Vedanta. I have not the knowledge to do so, but even if I had this would not be the proper place for it.Our conversation was a long one and Larry told me a great deal more than I have felt it possible to set down in what after all purports to be a novel.My concern is with Larry.I should not have touched on such an intricate subject at all except that it seemed to me that without at least some slight account of his speculations and the singular experiences that were perhaps occasioned by them I could not give plausibility to the line of conduct which he was led to adopt and with which I shall presently acquaint the reader.It irks me that I cannot hope with any words of mine to give an idea of the pleasantness of his voice that invested even his most casual utterances with persuasiveness, or of the constant change in his expression, from grave to gently gay, from reflective to playful, that accompanied his thoughts like the ripple of a piano when the violins with a great sweep sing the several themes of a concerto.Although he spoke of serious things he spoke of them quite naturally, in a conversational tone, with a certain diffidence, perhaps, but without any more constraint than if he had been speaking of the weather and the crops.If I have given the impression that there was anything didactic in his manner the fault is mine.His modesty was as evident as his sincerity.
首先我得声明，本人此处无意把笔墨花费在阐述所谓“吠檀多”的哲学思想体系上。对吠檀多我知之甚少，无力为之。即便我能为之，此处也不是我为此挥洒笔墨的地方。我和拉里的谈话是一次长谈，他讲的内容极为丰富，但由于本书的框架为小说，不便一一陈述。我所关心的是拉里本人，马上就会向读者交代他将会采取的一些行动，而他的行动与他的思想以及那些特殊的遭遇有着千丝万缕的联系，所以我觉得应该略加叙述，否则读者会以为他的所言所行缺乏道理。如若不是出于这种考虑，我是不会涉及错综复杂的印度宗教的。他的声音犹如天籁，随便说句话，便可打动人心；他的脸部表情经常随着他的思想在变化，从严肃认真变为轻松欢快，从沉思变为戏谑，就像小提琴在演奏协奏曲的几个曲调时拉出一串动听的音符，钢琴也随之奏鸣。我只恨自己才疏学浅，无法用语言加以展现。尽管说的都是严肃的事情，他却语气自然，似拉家常，也许带几分矜持，但完全不是克制，仿佛在谈天气和收成一样。如果他给读者的印象是迂腐的说教，那都是由于我笔拙所致。他既谦虚又诚恳，这一点显而易见。

There was no more than a sprinkling of people in the café.The roisterers had long since departed.The sad creatures who make a business of love had gone to their sordid dwellings.Now and then a tired-looking man came in to have a glass of beer and a sandwich, or one, who seemed only half awake, for a cup of coffee.White-collar workers.One had been on a night shift and was going home to bed；the other, roused by the call of an alarm clock, was on his unwilling way to the long day’s labour.Larry appeared as unconscious of the time as of the surroundings.I have found myself in the course of my life in many strange situations.More than once I have been within a hair’s breadth of death.More than once I have touched hands with romance and known it.I have ridden a pony through Central Asia along the road that Marco Polo took to reach the fabulous lands of Cathay；I have drunk a glass of Russian tea in a prim parlour in Petrograd while a soft-spoken little man in a black coat and striped trousers told me how he had assassinated a grand duke；I have sat in a drawing-room in Westminster and listened to the serene geniality of a piano trio of Haydn’s while the bombs were crashing without；but I do not think I have ever found myself in a stranger situation than when I sat on the red-plush seats of that garish restaurant for hour after hour while Larry talked of God and eternity, of the Absolute and the weary wheel of endless becoming.
此时，饭馆里只剩下零零星星几个客人。那些喝醉了酒闹事的人早已离去，那几个做皮肉生意的可怜虫回她们藏污纳垢的住所去了。时不时会有一个倦容满面的人走进来喝杯咖啡、吃块三明治，或者走进来一个好像还没有完全睡醒的人，喝上一杯咖啡醒神。他们都是些脑力工作者。第一类人是下了夜班回家睡觉去的，第二类则是被闹钟叫醒，不情愿地去上白班的。拉里似乎对时间以及周围的情况全然不加留意。我这一辈子遇到过许多离奇古怪的事情，非止一次和死神擦肩而过，非止一次邂逅爱情，并心里有所感应。我曾经骑着一匹小马穿越中亚，所走的就是马可·波罗当年去神秘的中国走过的那条路；曾经在彼得堡一间整洁的会客室里一面喝俄国茶，一面听一个上穿黑衣下穿条纹裤的矮子细声细气地讲述他刺杀一个大公的经历；曾经坐在英国议会大厦一间客厅里倾听着海顿的恬静、柔和的钢琴三重奏，而窗外却是一片炸弹爆炸的声音。但我觉得以前的那点事情都不如眼前的情况离奇——在一家装饰花哨的餐馆里，我坐在一把红棉绒椅子上听拉里一个小时又一个小时地高谈阔论，大谈上帝和永恒，谈“无限”以及无休无止的生命轮回。