予之祖你郴，为汲令，以夏至日诣见主簿杜宣，赐酒。 时北壁上有悬赤弩，照于杯，形如蛇。宣畏恶之，然不敢不饮。其日，便得胸腹痛切，妨损饮食，大用羸，攻，万端不为愈。复郴因事过至宣家窥视，问其变故。云：“畏此蛇。蛇入腹中。”郴还听事，思惟良久。顾见悬弩，“必是也！”则使门下史将铃下待徐扶辇载宣，于故处设酒，杯中故复有蛇。因谓宣：“此壁上弩影可，非有他怪。”宣遂解。甚夷怿。由是瘳平。
——《风俗通》
The
Reflection of the Bow
My grandfather, who
was magistrate of the district of Chen, once invited his secretary, Du Xuan, to
drink with him during the midsummer festival. A red bow which was hanging on
the north wall cast a reflection in the cup just like a snake; but although Du
Xuan was frightened he dared not refuse to drink. Then he had a severe pain in
his stomach, and could not eat, so that he grew very thin. Though he tried all
manner of drugs, he could find no cure. Later my grandfather
called on him on some business, and asked him how he had contracted this
illness. “Through fear of the
snake which I swallowed,” Du Xuan told him. After going home my
grandfather thought this over, then turned and saw the bow, and understood what
had happened. He sent a subordinate with a carriage to escort Du Xuan to his
house, and set wine in the same place, so that once more a snake appeared in
the cup. “This is simply a
reflection of that bow on the wall,” he told his secretary. At once Du Xuan
felt better and, greatly relieved, recovered.
Traditional
Topics (Feng Su tong)
（杨宪益、戴乃迭 译） |
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