【背景故事】
余少能視鬼，嘗於雪夜野寺逢一提傀儡翁，鶴髮襤褸，唯持一木偶制作極精，宛如嬌女，繪珠淚盈睫，惹人見憐。
時雲彤雪狂，二人比肩向火，翁自述曰：少時好觀牽絲戲，耽於盤鈴傀儡之技，既年長，其志愈堅，遂以此為業，以物像人自得其樂。奈何漂泊終生，居無所行無侶，所伴唯一傀儡木偶。
翁且言且泣，余溫言釋之，懇其奏盤鈴樂，作牽絲傀儡戲，演劇於三尺紅綿之上，度曲咿嚶，木偶顧盼神飛，雖妝繪悲容而婉媚絕倫。
曲終，翁抱持木偶，稍作歡容，俄頃恨怒，曰：平生落魄，皆傀儡誤之，天寒，冬衣難置，一貧至此，不如焚，遂忿然投偶入火。吾止而未及，跌足嘆惋。忽見火中木偶婉轉而起，肅拜揖別，姿若生人，繪面淚痕宛然，一笑迸散，沒於篝焰。
火至天明方熄。
翁頓悟，掩面嚎啕，曰：暖矣，孤矣。
【Background】
I have been able to see ghosts since I was young. There was
once I met an old puppeteer in a secluded temple on a snowing night. He had
hair white as crane, dressed in tattered clothes, and was holding a delicate
wooden puppet that looked like a charming girl with beads of teardrops painted
as if brimming from its eyes, garnering the people’s sympathy.
That time the thick clouds were in abundance and the
blizzard wild, we sat side by side facing the fire. The puppeteer told me his
story: “Since a tender age I have enjoyed watching puppet shows, and obsessed
over puppetry. I grew more determined as I aged, and therefore made
puppeteering my career, entertaining myself with human-like puppets. However, I
ended up wandering around all my life, with neither a place to settle nor a
partner to travel with. My only company is this lone puppet.”
He cried as he talked, so I pacified him with warm words,
asking him to play his musical instrument (pan ling) and perform a puppet show
for me. He made a show out of red cotton strings, one meter tall, attached to
the puppet. The song played had hints of sadness within, and the puppet
appeared bright and life-like. Even though it is painted a melancholic face, it
still displayed unsurpassed grace and charm.
The performance ended, and the puppeteer held the puppet in
his embrace, and he seemed to have lightened up slightly. Out of the blue, he
turned hateful and angry, exclaiming: “All my life I have been this pathetic
and rundown because of this puppet. On such a cold day I am so poor I can
hardly afford winter clothes. I might as well have it burnt!” Furious, he tossed the puppet into the fire. Unable to stop him in time, I fell to the ground and
sighed with regret. Unexpectedly, I saw the puppet rose gracefully in the fire,
gesturing[1] a farewell, as though a living
person, with the traces of tears on her painted face clearly visible. With a
smile her form dispersed and disappeared in the caged flame[2].
The fire burnt till dawn broke, and then died off.
The old man suddenly came to his senses, covering his face
and bawled,
uttering: “It’s so warm, it’s so lonely.”
【歌詞】Lyrics:
[銀臨]
嘲笑誰恃美揚威
cháo xiào shéi shì měi yáng wēi
沒了心如何相配
méi le xīn rú hé xiāng pèi
盤鈴聲清脆 帷幕間燈火幽微
pán líng shēng qīng cuì / wéi mù jiān dēng huǒ yōu wēi
我和你 最天生一對
wǒ hé nǐ zuì tiān shēng yí duì
Who are you teasing, for brazen displays fueled by beauty
How can I pair with you, for I lack a heart
The sound of the pan ling[3] clear and melodious; the
lights between the curtains shone dimly
We were meant for each other
沒了你才算原罪
méi le nǐ cái suàn yuán zuì
沒了心才好相配
méi le xīn cái hǎo xiāng pèi
你襤褸我彩繪 並肩行過山與水
nǐ làn lǚ wó cǎi huì / bìng jiān xíng guò shān yú shuǐ
你憔悴 我替你明媚
nǐ qiáo cuì wǒ tì nǐ míng mèi
It would be a
sin if I lose you
It’s exactly
because I lack a heart that I am a good match for you
You in
tatters, while I in painted brilliance; side by side we walked through
mountains and waters
Though you appear
haggard, I will shine for you
是你吻開筆墨 染我眼角珠淚
shì nǐ wěn kāi bǐ mò / rán wǒ yán jiǎo zhū lèi
演離合相遇悲喜為誰
yǎn lí hé xiāng yù bēi xǐ wèi shéi
他們迂回誤會 我卻只由你支配
tā mén yū huí wù huì / wǒ què zhí yóu nǐ zhī pèi
問世間哪有更完美
wèn shì jiān ná yǒu gèng wán měi
You were the
one who kissed your brush and pen, and dyed the teardrop at the tail of my eye
For whom do we
put on dramas of partings and unions, sadness and happiness?
They will misunderstand,
but I will only be in your hands
Is there
anything more perfect in this world?
[Aki]
蘭花指捻紅塵似水
lán huā zhǐ niǎn hóng chén sì shuǐ
三尺紅台 萬事入歌吹
sān chǐ hóng tái / wàn shì rù gē chuī
唱別久悲不成悲
chàng bié jiǔ bēi bù chéng bēi
十分紅處竟成灰
shí fēn hóng chù jìng chéng huī
願誰記得誰 最好的年歲
yuàn shéi jì dé shéi / zuì hǎo de nián suì
With the opera
hand pose[4], the water-like mortal world is pinched and twisted
between fingers
On the red
platform one meter tall[5], having all stories told in songs
Singing farewell,
it’s no longer called sadness when sadness prolongs[6]; magnificent
red reduced to ash grey
I wish we would
all remember, the best years we had together.
[銀臨]
你一牽我舞如飛
nǐ yì qiān wó wǔ rú fēi
你一引我懂進退
nǐ yì yǐn wó dǒng jìn tuì
苦樂都跟隨 舉手投足不違背
kǔ lè dōu gēn suí / jú shǒu tóu zú bù wéi bèi
將謙卑 溫柔成絕對
jiāng qiān bēi / wēn róu chéng jué duì
As you tug the strings you send me dancing in the air
As you lead I know how to go forth and back
In thick and thin I shall follow; be it my arms or legs you move, I will
not disobey
Perfecting humility and gentleness
你錯我不肯對 你懵懂我蒙昧
nǐ cuò wǒ bù kěn duì / nǐ méng dǒng wǒ méng mèi
心火怎甘心揚湯止沸
xīn huó zěn gān xīn yáng tāng zhǐ fèi
你枯我不曾萎 你倦我也不敢累
nǐ kū wǒ bù céng wěi / nǐ juàn wó yě bù gǎn lèi
用什麼暖你一千歲
yòng shén mè nuán nǐ yì qiān suì
If you are wrong I refuse to be right; if you are muddled, I am ignorant
How can the fire in my heart be happy to cease to boil
If you wilt I’ll never wither; if you are tired I dare not be fatigued
What can I use to warm you for a thousand years
[Aki]
風雪依稀秋白髮尾
fēng xuě yī xī qiū bái fà wěi
燈火葳蕤 揉皺你眼眉
dēng huǒ wēi ruí / róu zhòu ní yǎn méi
假如你舍一滴淚
jiǎ rú ní shě yì dī lèi
假如老去我能陪
jiǎ rú lǎo qù wǒ néng péi
煙波裡成灰 也去得完美
yān bō lǐ chéng huī / yě qù dé wán měi
The blizzard vaguely resembles the whitened ends of your hair
The lights shone with lush brilliance, rubbing creases between your brows
If you are willing to give up one single teardrop
If I can be your company when you are old
Even if I am reduced to ash in a stream of smoke[7], I’d be
perfectly happy to go.
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Footnotes:
1.
肃拜 is a gesture
of respect performed by women, and is based on traditional rites. Image:
wapbaike.baidu.com/view/958846.htm?uid=4638384E449FF8FBF5F34DFD4D906853&bd_page_type=1&st=1&step=1&net=3&ldr=-1
2. 篝 is a bamboo basket/cage, in the story it is
used to contain the fuel for fire to burn.
3. 盤鈴（盘玲）Pan ling is an instrument used for the music
accompanying puppet show performances. Pictures: http://baike.baidu.com/view/221141.htmv
4. 蘭（兰）花指 or “orchid flower fingers” is a hand pose
that is used to be a masculine gesture. The pose evolved overtime to become
feminine, or displayed in opera show performances.
5.
三尺 or 3 feet
(Chinese unit) is modernly defined as 1/3 meter, so 3 feet = 1 meter.
6. “萬事入歌吹”,“ 唱別久悲不成悲” I’m not
sure if I grasped the meaning of these 2 phrases here correctly, just to note.
The translations for these may be incorrect.
7.
I’m not too sure what 葳蕤 means in
this context. In ancient writings this adjective is used to illustrate how
plants hanging their branches down in clusters.
8. 煙（烟）波, according
to Baidu, is used to describe the mist above the surface of the lake, but I’m
guessing in this case it means the smoke from the fire.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything other than the pinyin annotations and translations.
EDIT (4/11/2018):- Changes made to translation based on audience input
