《彝族火把节的中英翻译文稿》

火热的土地火热的生活

Hot land Fiery life

欢乐的彝族火把节

Joyous Torch Festival of the Yi Nationality

在中国，如果说起火与一个民族的历史、文化和生存之间不可分割、不可或缺的联系，人们

首先想到的，一定会是生活在西南高原山川大地上的彝族。

In China if we are talking about the inseparable and indispensable relationship among fires and the history culture and survival of a nationality the first one we can think of must be the Yi nationality living in the southwest plateau.

展开在我们眼前的，就是一本关于彝人与火的故事。或者说，这是关于火与彝人之间某种契

约关系和表现形态的影像记录。

Opened out before us is a story about the Yi nationality and fire. Or rather it is an image record

about a kind of contractual relationship and expressive form between fire and the Yi nationality.

流传世界的古希腊神话中，讲述了普罗米修斯从奥林匹斯山为人类盗取火种的非凡壮举，以

及他为此所经受的惊天磨难。也就是说，对于火的迷恋与崇拜，并非彝族或者远方另一个民

族所独有。这是一种人类共同拥有的生存记忆和文明传承。这个星球上，火与水、气、土等

物质一起，构成了人与万物赖以生息繁衍的基本元素。可以说，在远古的丛林和荒野，火照

亮并且温暖了人类的生存空间，引导人类脱离蒙昧，踏上通往文明的道路。

In the ancient Greece mythology widespread throughout the world the remarkable feat about Prometheus stealing fire from Olympus for humanity and the tribulations he endured are narrated. In other words the fascination and adoration for fire is not unique to the Yi nationality or another nationality in a distant place. It is the heritage of survival memories and civilization shared by human beings. On this planet fire constitutes the basic elements for all living things to live and reproduce together with water air earth and etc. It can be said that in the ancient jungles and wilderness its is fire that illuminates and warms the human’s living space guides the mankind to break away from the darkness and step on the road to civilization.

然而正是彝族，把熊熊燃烧的火炬高高举起，一直走到今天。犹如怀抱不熄的太阳。However it is just the Yi nationality that lifts up the burning torch and walks to the present day as if embracing the sun aflame.

我曾经写下这样的诗句：“给我们血液，给我们田地｜你比人类古老的历史还要漫长｜给我们启示，给我们慰藉｜让子孙在冥冥中，看见祖先的模样”。“当我们离开这个人世｜……你都

会为我们的灵魂｜穿上永恒的衣裳”。这是来自天上的火，燃烧在历史和记忆中的火。对彝族人来说，火源自亘古，是自然之灵，带着造化的奥秘；火也传承于祖先的灵魂，是世代血脉

中传递的精神符号，蕴藏着未曾破解的预言。在彝族的史诗、神话和民间传说中，处处都体

现着对火的景仰与崇拜。或许我们能够这样说：火凝成了彝族文化中的一颗闪光发热的恒星，许多事物和现象都围绕这个中心运转。彝族火崇拜，为人类学、宗教学、民俗学等多种人文

学科提供了源源不断的光和热。

I once wrote such verse: “Give us the blood give us the land/ you live long than the ancient history

of mankind/ give us enlightenment give us solace/ let the children somewhere see the appearance of ancestor”. “When we leave this world/ ...... You will wear eternal clothing for our souls”. This is the fire from heaven burning in history and memory. For the Yi nationality fire originates from time immemorial which is the spirit of nature carrying with nature's mysteries; fire also inherits from the souls of ancestors and it is the spiritual symbol passing in the blood from generation to generation