(2017Translation) 諧謔

Original Script

昔劉伯龍歷位九卿。貧窶尤甚。將營什一之方。有鬼在傍大笑。又貧人辨得隻瓮。夜宿瓮中。心計曰此瓮賣之。可辦二瓮。自二瓮化而爲四。其利無窮。遂喜而舞。不覺瓮破云。以此觀之。凡人貧富得失。皆有定分。不可以妄求者也。

-昔有一將官畏妻者。以爲天下之貞男。莫我若也。欲試諸人。乃植靑白兩旗於庭。令曰。貞男者赴靑旗。非貞男者赴白旗。於是軍中或左或右。有一卒獨中立不動。怪而問之。對曰。卒妻甞戒卒曰。男子眾會。則必談及女色。愼無往云。故不敢違耳。將官乃下庭。挽而上座曰。今日之事。爾爲將矣。

-有士人畜一妻一妾而摘白鬚者。妾拔白唯謹。而妻惡其欲媚於妾也。去其黑者。一朝白黑俱盡。儼一老婆。經歲不敢出焉。 《芝峯類說.卷十六》

Translation

Student 1 : Sanghoon Na

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Formerly, Liu Bolong had served with the rank of nine excellencies [But] He was extremely poor. He planned to run a business which might bring him 10 percent of profit. There was a goblin beside [him] laughed out loud.

There was another poor man who managed to get a single jar and slept in it. Calculating in his mind, he said, "If I sell this jar [at high price], I would be able to get two jars. Then two jars will be four.... The profits will be limitless." Finally, he jumped for joy and unexpectedly the jar was broken. Judging by this, generally, as for people's poverty and wealth or gains and losses, each has his own lot. Do not be a person who pursues something in vain.

Student 2 : Younès M'Ghari

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Once upon a time, Liu Bolong (Chinese: _) had served posts in nine ministers¹. He was extremely poor and deprived. _______________. There was a ghost at his side laughing heartily. “A poor man also got a jar from nowhere. At night he slept in that jar. In his heart² _________ said: “If you sell this jar you can get two jars. From two jars it will change to four.” That profit was endless. After that, the man was happy and danced. He did not know his jar was broken.” Viewing it with this, for ordinary people, you are poor or rich, you gain or you lose; it is [actually] not something you can rashly pursue.

¹: In other words: "all the highest positions in the government".

²: "In his mind".

Student 3 : Petra Sváková

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Once upon a time, there was [a man called] Liu Bolong who had served in nine¹ different posts. He was extremely poor and deprived. He was about to run a business [which he would get] one tenth of profit [of]. There was a ghost beside him [who was] loudly laughing [while saying:] "There was also a poor man who suddenly obtained a large jar. At night he [used to] sleep inside it. The man was calculating in his mind and said: 'I can sell this jar and get two [instead of one]. [And] From two jars it will naturally become four jars. The profit [means] no poverty.' Finally, he was happy and danced. Without knowing [that] the jar was broken. Viewing it with this, ordinary people, [they can be] poor or rich, [they can] gain or lost. Everything is decided to be divided. This is not something you can recklessly demand.

¹ the word 'nine' in this text means 'various'

Student 4 : (Write your name)

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Once upon a time, Liu Bolong¹ served nine ministerial posts [but was] extremely poor. He was going to engage in a business [with a] one-tenths margin. A ghost by [his] side gave a big laugh.

[There was] another poor man [who] managed to get a jar. [At] night [he] lodged inside the jar. Reckoning [his] inner thoughts², [he] said: "This jar, [I'll] sell it. [Then I] can manage to get two jars. From two jars [that] transforms and becomes four. This profit [means] no poverty."

Following that [he] was gladdened and therefore danced. [He] did not realize [that he had] smashed the jar.

Seeing it in this [way], ordinarily people gain and lose poverty and wealth. All is apportioned. [It's] not something one can foolishly desire [for].

¹ 劉白龍 – A personage found in Tang dynasty poet Sun Yuanyan (孫元晏)'s poem 《宋•劉白龍》 (The State of Song: Liu Bolong), which relates the story of his poverty and the ghost's response to it (in Volume 767 of the Qing dynasty collection 全唐詩 [The Complete Tang Poems]).

² 心 [K: sim; C: xin], encompassing the physical heart, emotions, and thoughts (see The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, "1.1. The Heart-Mind and the Things-Events" for an introduction and Language Log, "Heart-mind" for a discussion of some approaches to translating 心).

Once there was a constable who feared his wife [and] took [himself] to be [the most] virtuous man of the world. "There is none like me." [He] wished to test everyone. [He] then planted a blue¹ and a white flag in [his] courtyard, and giving an order, said: "Those who have no virtue, go toward the white flag. Those who have virtue, go toward the blue flag."

To this, among the soldiers some [went] right and some [went] left. There was a lone soldier in the middle who stood [in place] and did not move. [The constable,] perplexed, asked him why.

[He] replied, saying, "My wife once warned me, saying, '[When] men gather and meet, then [they] have to talk about women and sex. Take care [that there is] no going.' [This is] why [I] dare not disobey and that is all."

The constable then came down [into] the courtyard. Leading him and sitting [him in the] high seat, he said: "[For] today's event, you be the constable."

There was a scholar who kept a wife and a concubine and [had them] pluck white [hairs from his] beard. The concubine pulled out only white hairs and the wife hated his wishing to look well-groomed for the concubine. [She] removed his black hairs. In a single morning [both] white and black hairs were completely gone. [He] looked like an old woman. For over a year [he] did not dare go out from it [i.e. his home].

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