The Kitemaker扎风筝的人

拉斯金·邦德/文　青闰/译

There was but one tree in the street—an ancient banyan which had grown through the cracks of an abandoned mosque—and little Alis kite had caught in its branches.

街上只有一棵树——一棵从废弃清真寺的裂缝中生长出来的老榕树——小阿里的风筝就卡在了老榕树的枝上。

The boy， barefoot and clad only in a torn shirt， ran along the cobbled stones of the narrow street to where his grandfather sat nodding dreamily in the sunshine of their back courtyard.

男孩光着脚丫子，只穿一件破衬衫，沿着铺有鹅卵石的狭窄街道跑去找爷爷，只见爷爷坐在他们家的后院晒着太阳，迷迷糊糊地打着盹。

“Grandfather？” shouted the boy. “The kite has gone！”

“爷爷？”男孩喊道，“风筝飞跑了！”

The old man woke from his daydream with a start.

老人猛地从白日梦中惊醒。

“Did the twine break？” he asked. “I know that kite-twine is not what it used to be.”

“绳断了吗？”他问，“我知道风筝线不再是以前那樣了。”

“No， grandfather， the kite is stuck in the banyan tree.”

“没断，爷爷，是风筝卡在榕树上了。”

The old man chuckled. “You have yet to learn how to fly a kite properly， my child. And I am too old to teach you， thats the pity of it. But you shall have another.” He had just finished making a new kite from bamboo， paper and thin silk， and it lay in the sun， firming up. It was a pale pink kite， with a small green tail. The old man handed it to Ali， and the boy raised himself on his toes and kissed his grandfathers hollowed-out cheek.

老人轻声笑道：“孩子，你还没学会怎么正确放风筝。我年纪太大，教不了你了，真可惜，但你还会有一个风筝的。”他刚刚用竹子、纸和薄绸扎了一个新风筝。这个新风筝正躺在阳光下，渐渐晒得硬实起来。这是个淡粉色的风筝，带有一条绿色的小尾巴。老人把它递给阿里，男孩踮起脚尖，吻了吻爷爷凹陷的脸颊。

“I will not lose this one，” he said. “This kite will fly like a bird.” And he turned on his heels1 and skipped out of the courtyard.

“我不会把这个放丢的。”他说，“这个风筝会像鸟儿一样飞翔。”说完，他一转身，蹦蹦跳跳地跑出了院子。

The old man remained dreaming in the sun. His kite-shop had gone. The premises long since sold to a junk-dealer， but he still made kites for his own amusement and for the benefit of his grandson， Ali. Not many people bought kites in these days of rockets and sputniks. Adults disdained them， and children preferred to spend their money at the movies. Moreover， there were few open spaces left for the flying of kites. The city had swallowed up the green maidan which had stretched from the old fort walls to the riverbank.

老人还在太阳下做着梦。他的风筝店没了。店面很久以前就卖给了一个废品旧货商，但他还在为自娱自乐、为孙子阿里扎风筝。在发射火箭和人造卫星的时代，买风筝的人不多了。大人们对风筝不屑一顾，孩子们则更喜欢花钱看电影。此外，几乎没有开阔的空地能用来放风筝了。城市早已吞没从旧堡墙延伸到河岸的绿草地。

But the old man remembered a time when grown men flew kites from the maidan， the kites swerving and swooping in the sky， until the string of one was cut. Then the defeated but liberated kite would float away into the blue unknown.

不过，老人还记得，当年有一群成年男子在草地上放风筝，只见他们的风筝在空中翻腾、俯冲，直到其中一个风筝被割断了线。接着，那个落败却又重获自由的风筝飘向了蓝色的未知世界。

Kite-flying was then the sport of kings， and the old man remembered how the Nawab2 himself would come down to the riverbank with his retinue， and join in this noble pastime. There was time in those days to spend an idle hour with a gay， dancing strip of paper. Now everyone hurried， hurried in a heat of hope， and delicate things like kites and daydreams were trampled underfoot.

当时，放风筝是权贵们的娱乐活动，老人还记得纳瓦布本人及其随从来到河边参加这项贵族娱乐活动的场景。那时候有的是时间，人们会花上一小时，跟一张欢快舞动的纸条度过一段闲暇时光。现在，每个人都匆匆忙忙的，满怀热望地匆忙，像风筝和白日梦这样精致的东西都被踩在了脚下。

He， Mahmood the kitemaker， had in the prime of his life been well-known throughout the city. Some of his more elaborate kites sold for as much as three or four rupees. Upon the request of the Nawab he had once made a very special kind of kite， unlike any that had been seen in the district. It consisted of a series of small， very light paper discs， trailing on a thin bamboo frame.

他是扎风筝的马哈茂德，风华正茂时在全城赫赫有名。他扎的风筝里，稍微精致一点的售价高达三四卢比。他曾经应纳瓦布的要求，扎了一个非常特殊的风筝，与当地能见到的所有风筝都不一样。那个风筝由一串又小又轻的纸盘扎成，拖在一个细竹架上。

To the extremity of each disc he fixed a sprig of grass， forming a balance on both sides. The surface of the foremost disc was slightly convex， and a fantastic face was painted on it， having two eyes made of small mirrors. The disc， decreasing in size from head to tail， assumed an undulatory form. It required great skill to raise this cumbersome device from the ground， and only Mahmood could manage it.

他在每个纸盘的末端固定一小枝草，让两边达成平衡。最前端的纸盘表面微微凸起，上面画着一张奇异的脸，脸上的两只眼睛由小镜子制成。纸盘从头到尾逐渐变小，呈波浪形。要把这个笨重的风筝从地面放飞，需要高超的技巧，只有马哈茂德能做到。

Everyone had of course heard of the “Dragon Kite” that Mahmood had built， and word went round that it possessed supernatural powers. A large crowd assembled on the maidan to watch its first public launching in the presence of the Nawab. At the first attempt it refused to leave the ground.

當然，每个人都听说过马哈茂德扎的这个“龙风筝”，传说它具有超自然的力量。一大群人聚集在草地上，观看它在纳瓦布面前首次公开放飞。第一次尝试放飞，“龙风筝”拒绝离开地面。

And then the wind came from the right direction， and the Dragon Kite soared into the sky， wriggling the way higher and higher， with the sun still glinting in its devil-eyes. And when it went very high， it pulled fiercely on the twine， and Mahmoods young sons had to help him with the reel; but still the kite pulled， determined to be free， to break loose， to live a life of its own. And eventually it did so.

随后，风从正确的方向吹来，“龙风筝”扶摇直上，扭动着越飞越高，而太阳在它恶魔般的眼睛里闪闪发光。“龙风筝”飞到很高很高的天空中，使劲拽着风筝线，马哈茂德年幼的儿子们不得不帮他拉住线轴，但“龙风筝”还是拽着线，决心要自由，决心要挣脱，决心要过自己的生活。最后，它终于做到了。

The twine snapped， the kite leapt away toward the sun， sailed on heavenward until it was lost to view. It was never found again. He did not make another like it， but instead he presented the Nawab with a musical kite， one that made a sound like the veena3 when it rose in the air.

风筝线突然绷断了，“龙风筝”猛地朝太阳飞去，朝天空飞去，直到从人们的视野中消失。后来，人们再也没找到这个风筝。马哈茂德也没再扎一个类似的风筝，而是呈给纳瓦布一个音乐风筝——这个风筝飞在空中能发出类似维那琴的声音。

Yes， those were more leisurely， more spacious days. But no one knew Mahmood now， or asked his name and occupations.

是的，那时的日子更悠闲、地方更宽敞，而现在没人知道马哈茂德，也没人问起他的名字和职业。

When he was younger and had fallen sick， everyone in the neighborhood had come to ask after his health; but now， when his days were drawing to a close， no one visited him. True， most of his old friends were dead; his sons had grown up.

他年轻的时候如果生了病，住在附近的每个人都会来嘘寒问暖；而现在他的人生渐渐接近尾声，却没人探望过他。确切地说，他的老朋友大都过世了，而他的儿子们都已长大。

The children who had bought kites from him ten years ago， they were grown men， struggling for a living; they did not have time for the old man and his memories. They had grown up in a swift-changing， competitive world， and looked at the old kitemaker with the same indifference as they looked at the banyan tree.

十年前从他那里买风筝的孩子们已长大成人，他们为生计奔波操劳，无暇顾及老人和他的回忆。他们在瞬息万变、竞争激烈的世界中长大，看着扎风筝的老人就像看着那棵老榕树一样漠不关心。

Mahmood was like the banyan， his hands gnarled and twisted like the roots of the ancient tree. All was like the young mimosa planted at the end of the courtyard. In two years both he and the tree would acquire the strength and confidence of their early youth.

马哈茂德就像那棵老榕树，他的双手像那棵老树的树根一样粗糙弯曲。一切都像院子尽头种下的含羞树苗。两年后，他和那棵老树都将获得他们年轻时的力量和信心。

The voices in the street grew fainter， and Mahmood wondered if he was going to fall asleep and dream， as he so often did， of a kite so beautiful and powerful that it would resemble the great white bird of the Hindus， Garuda4. He would like to make a wonderful new kite for little Ali. He had nothing else to leave the boy.

大街上的聲音越来越微弱，马哈茂德不知道自己会不会倒头睡去，会不会梦见他经常梦见的那个风筝——它是那么美丽、那么有力，就像印度教中的大白鸟揭路荼。他想给小阿里扎一个漂亮的新风筝。他没有别的东西可以留给孩子了。

He heard Alis voice in the distance， but did not realize that the boy was calling to him. The voice seemed to come from very far away.

他听到远处传来阿里的声音，但没有意识到孩子在呼唤他。那声音好像来自十分遥远的地方。

Ali was at the courtyard door， asking if his mother had as yet returned from the bazaar. When Mahmood did not answer， the boy came forward， repeating his question. The sunlight was slanting across the old mans head， and a small white butterfly was perched on his flowing beard. Mahmood was silent， and when Ali put his small brown hand on the old mans shoulder， he met with no response. The boy heard a faint sound， like the rubbing of marbles in his pocket.

阿里站在院子门口，问他的母亲是不是已经从集市回来了。马哈茂德没有回答，男孩走上前来，又问了一遍。阳光斜照在老人的头上，一只白色小蝴蝶落在他飘逸的胡须上。马哈茂德沉默不语，阿里把棕色小手搭在老人的肩上，也没有得到任何回应。男孩听到一个微弱的声音，像是他口袋里的弹珠相互摩擦的声音。

Suddenly afraid， Ali turned and moved to the door， and then ran down the street shouting for his mother.

阿里突然感到害怕，转身走到门口，然后沿街奔跑，呼喊母亲。

The butterfly left the old mans beard and flew to the mimosa tree. And in the banyan tree， a sudden gust of wind caught the torn kite and lifted it into the air， carrying it far above the city， into the azure-blue sky.

蝴蝶飞离了老人的胡须，落到那棵含羞树上。一阵风突然抓住榕树上那个撕破的风筝，把它抛向空中，远远地送向城市上空，送向蔚蓝的天空。

*本名宋金柱，焦作大学学术委员会委员，河南省作家协会会员。

1 turn on ones heel突然转身；急向后转。  2 nawab纳瓦布，印度莫卧儿帝国时代省级地方行政长官的称号，后演变为一种尊称。

3 维那琴是印度传统弦乐器，有七根琴弦。维那琴以丰富又舒缓的音色而闻名，是印度古典音乐不可分割的一部分。

4 揭路荼在印度教神话中占有重要地位，代表力量和勇气。揭路荼的形象半人半鸟，鸟的部分类似雄鹰或风筝。他有金色的躯干、红色的翅膀、白色的脸，而且体型巨大，飞在空中可遮住太阳。