the divine comedy(神曲)-第50部分
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But it was said: 〃To the right hand come with us
Along the bank; and ye shall find a pass
Possible for living person to ascend。
And were I not impeded by the stone;
Which this proud neck of mine doth subjugate;
Whence I am forced to hold my visage down;
Him; who still lives and does not name himself;
Would I regard; to see if I may know him
And make him piteous unto this burden。
A Latian was I; and born of a great Tuscan;
Guglielmo Aldobrandeschi was my father;
I know not if his name were ever with you。
The ancient blood and deeds of gallantry
Of my progenitors so arrogant made me
That; thinking not upon the common mother;
All men I held in scorn to such extent
I died therefor; as know the Sienese;
And every child in Campagnatico。
I am Omberto; and not to me alone
Has pride done harm; but all my kith and kin
Has with it dragged into adversity。
And here must I this burden bear for it
Till God be satisfied; since I did not
Among the living; here among the dead。〃
Listening I downward bent my countenance;
And one of them; not this one who was speaking;
Twisted himself beneath the weight that cramps him;
And looked at me; and knew me; and called out;
Keeping his eyes laboriously fixed
On me; who all bowed down was going with them。
〃O;〃 asked I him; 〃art thou not Oderisi;
Agobbio's honour; and honour of that art
Which is in Paris called illuminating?〃
〃Brother;〃 said he; 〃more laughing are the leaves
Touched by the brush of Franco Bolognese;
All his the honour now; and mine in part。
In sooth I had not been so courteous
While I was living; for the great desire
Of excellence; on which my heart was bent。
Here of such pride is paid the forfeiture;
And yet I should not be here; were it not
That; having power to sin; I turned to God。
O thou vain glory of the human powers;
How little green upon thy summit lingers;
If't be not followed by an age of grossness!
In painting Cimabue thought that he
Should hold the field; now Giotto has the cry;
So that the other's fame is growing dim。
So has one Guido from the other taken
The glory of our tongue; and he perchance
Is born; who from the nest shall chase them both。
Naught is this mundane rumour but a breath
Of wind; that comes now this way and now that;
And changes name; because it changes side。
What fame shalt thou have more; if old peel off
From thee thy flesh; than if thou hadst been dead
Before thou left the 'pappo' and the 'dindi;'
Ere pass a thousand years? which is a shorter
Space to the eterne; than twinkling of an eye
Unto the circle that in heaven wheels slowest。
With him; who takes so little of the road
In front of me; all Tuscany resounded;
And now he scarce is lisped of in Siena;
Where he was lord; what time was overthrown
The Florentine delirium; that superb
Was at that day as now 'tis prostitute。
Your reputation is the colour of grass
Which comes and goes; and that discolours it
By which it issues green from out the earth。〃
And I: 〃Thy true speech fills my heart with good
Humility; and great tumour thou assuagest;
But who is he; of whom just now thou spakest?〃
〃That;〃 he replied; 〃is Provenzan Salvani;
And he is here because he had presumed
To bring Siena all into his hands。
He has gone thus; and goeth without rest
E'er since he died; such money renders back
In payment he who is on earth too daring。〃
And I: 〃If every spirit who awaits
The verge of life before that he repent;
Remains below there and ascends not hither;
(Unless good orison shall him bestead;)
Until as much time as he lived be passed;
How was the coming granted him in largess?〃
〃When he in greatest splendour lived;〃 said he;
〃Freely upon the Campo of Siena;
All shame being laid aside; he placed himself;
And there to draw his friend from the duress
Which in the prison…house of Charles he suffered;
He brought himself to tremble in each vein。
I say no more; and know that I speak darkly;
Yet little time shall pass before thy neighbours
Will so demean themselves that thou canst gloss it。
This action has released him from those confines。〃
Purgatorio: Canto XII
Abreast; like oxen going in a yoke;
I with that heavy…laden soul went on;
As long as the sweet pedagogue permitted;
But when he said; 〃Leave him; and onward pass;
For here 'tis good that with the sail and oars;
As much as may be; each push on his barque;〃
Upright; as walking wills it; I redressed
My person; notwithstanding that my thoughts
Remained within me downcast and abashed。
I had moved on; and followed willingly
The footsteps of my Master; and we both
Already showed how light of foot we were;
When unto me he said: 〃Cast down thine eyes;
'Twere well for thee; to alleviate the way;
To look upon the bed beneath thy feet。〃
As; that some memory may exist of them;
Above the buried dead their tombs in earth
Bear sculptured on them what they were before;
Whence often there we weep for them afresh;
From pricking of remembrance; which alone
To the compassionate doth set its spur;
So saw I there; but of a better semblance
In point of artifice; with figures covered
Whate'er as pathway from the mount projects。
I saw that one who was created noble
More than all other creatures; down from heaven
Flaming with lightnings fall upon one side。
I saw Briareus smitten by the dart
Celestial; lying on the other side;
Heavy upon the earth by mortal frost。
I saw Thymbraeus; Pallas saw; and Mars;
Still clad in armour round about their father;
Gaze at the scattered members of the giants。
I saw; at foot of his great labour; Nimrod;
As if bewildered; looking at the people
Who had been proud with him in Sennaar。
O Niobe! with what afflicted eyes
Thee I beheld upon the pathway traced;
Between thy seven and seven children slain!
O Saul! how fallen upon thy proper sword
Didst thou appear there lifeless in Gilboa;
That felt thereafter neither rain nor dew!
O mad Arachne! so I thee beheld
E'en then half spider; sad upon the shreds
Of fabric wrought in evil hour for thee!
O Rehoboam! no more seems to threaten
Thine image there; but full of consternation
A chariot bears it off; when none pursues!
Displayed moreo'er the adamantine pavement
How unto his own mother made Alcmaeon
Costly appear the luckless ornament;
Displayed how his own sons did throw themselves
Upon Sennacherib within the temple;
And how; he being dead; they left him there;
Displayed the ruin and the cruel carnage
That Tomyris wrought; when she to Cyrus said;
〃Blood didst thou thirst for; and with blood I glut thee!〃
Displayed how routed fled the Assyrians
After that Holofernes had been slain;
And likewise the remainder of that slaughter。
I saw there Troy in ashes and in caverns;
O Ilion! thee; how abject and debased;
Displayed the image that is there discerned!
Whoe'er of pencil master was or stile;
That could portray the shades and traits which there
Would cause each subtile genius to admire?
Dead seemed the dead; the living seemed alive;
Better than I saw not who saw the truth;
All that I trod upon while bowed I went。
Now wax ye proud; and on with looks uplifted;
Ye sons of Eve; and bow not down your faces
So that ye may behold your evil ways!
More of the mount by us was now encompassed;
And far more spent the circuit of the sun;
Than had the mind preoccupied imagined;
When he; who ever watchful in advance
Was going on; began: 〃Lift up thy head;
'Tis no more time to go thus meditating。
Lo there an Angel who is making haste
To come towards us; lo; returning is
From service of the day the sixth handmaiden。
With reverence thine acts and looks adorn;
So that he may delight to speed us upward;
Think that this day will never dawn again。〃
I was familiar with his admonition
Ever to lose no time; so on this theme
He could not unto me speak covertly。
Towards us came the being beautiful
Vested in white; and in his countenance
Such as appears the tremulous morning star。
His arms he opened; and opened then his wings;
〃Come;〃 said he; 〃near at hand here are the steps;
And easy from henceforth is the ascent。〃
At this announcement few are they who come!
O human creatures; born to soar aloft;
Why fall ye thus before a little wind?
He led us on to where the rock was cleft;
There smote upon my forehead with his wings;
Then a safe passage promised unto me。
As on the right hand; to ascend the mount
Where seated is the church that lordeth it
O'er the well…guided; above Rubaconte;
The bold abruptness of the ascent is broken
By stairways that were made there in the age
When still were safe the ledger and the stave;
E'en thus attempered is the bank which falls
Sheer downward from the second circle there;
But on this; side and that the high rock graze。
As we were turning thitherward our persons;
〃Beati pauperes spiritu;〃 voices
Sang in such wise that speech could tell it not。
Ah me! how different are these entrances
From the Infernal! for with anthems here
One enters; and below with wild laments。
We now were hunting up the sacred stairs;
And it appeared to me by far more easy
Than on the plain it had appeared before。
Whence I: 〃My Master; say; what heavy thing
Has been uplifted from me; so that hardly
Aught of fatigue is felt by me in walking?〃
He answered: 〃When the P's which have remained
Still on thy face almost obliterate
Shall wholly; as the first is; be erased;
Thy feet will be so vanquished by good will;
That not alone they shall not feel fatigue;
But urging up will be to them delight。〃
Then did I even as they do who are going
With something on the head to them unknown;
Unless the signs of others make them doubt;
Wherefore the hand to ascertain is helpful;
And seeks and finds; and doth fulfill the office
Which cannot be accomplished by the sight;
And with the fingers of the right hand spre