Walt Whitman - Scented Herbage of My Breast 汉译

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Leaves from you I glean, I write, to be perused best afterwards,

Tomb-leaves, body-leaves growing up above me above death,

Perennial roots, tall leaves, O the winter shall not freeze you delicate leaves,

Every year shall you bloom again, out from where you retired you shall emerge again;

O I do not know whether many passing by will discover you or inhale your faint odor, but I believe a few will;

O slender leaves! O blossoms of my blood! I permit you to tell in your own way of the heart that is under you,

O I do not know what you mean there underneath yourselves, you are not happiness,

You are often more bitter than I can bear, you burn and sting me,

Yet you are beautiful to me you faint tinged roots, you make me think of death,

Death is beautiful from you, (what indeed is finally beautiful except death and love?)

O I think it is not for life I am chanting here my chant of lovers,

I think it must be for death,

For how calm, how solemn it grows to ascend to the atmosphere of lovers,

Death or life I am then indifferent, my soul declines to prefer,

(I am not sure but the high soul of lovers welcomes death most,)

Indeed O death, I think now these leaves mean precisely the same as you mean,

Grow up taller sweet leaves that I may see! grow up out of my breast!

Spring away from the conceal’d heart there!

Do not fold yourself so in your pink-tinged roots timid leaves!

 

1860

 

我胸中的香草哟

 

我胸中的香草哟，

我的若干诗叶从你身上摘来，我写诗旨在让后人尽兴地吟咏，

陵墓之草叶哟，在之上、在死亡之上萌发的尸体之草叶哟，

多年生的草根，高高的草叶哟——啊，精美的草叶哟，你冬天也不冻冰，

你将年复一年地一再开花——你将从幽隐之外重新苏生；

啊，我不知道过路的人们能否看见你的姿色，问道你那清幽的香气——我相信少数人必能做到；

啊，细长的草叶哟！啊，我的鲜血之花哟！我愿你用自己的方式道出蕴藏于你心底的心声，

啊，我无法知道蕴藏与你心底的是什么，你并非幸福的象征，

你一再是我无法忍受的苦痛——你将我点燃，把我刺痛，

色调素谈的草根哟，你在我眼里是很美好的，你使我想到死，

我由于你搞到死是美好的（除了死和爱之外，究竟有什么堪以美好相称？）

啊，我知道我在此地咏唱那爱人的赞歌并非为了求生，我知道确确实实是为了求死，

它是在多么安静、多么庄严地成长哟，旨在登上爱人的灵空，

我已经将生死置之度外，我的灵魂拒绝偏爱；

（我已不能不相信，在我的爱人们那高尚的灵魂中，死最受欢迎；）

啊，死哟，我确实相信，现在这些草叶的意义与你的意义完全相同，

甘美的草叶哟，为了让我看见，你就往高处长吧！

从我的胸中长起来吧！

从隐密的心灵之处茁壮成长地长出来吧！

羞怯的草叶哟！不要蜷缩在谈红色的草根之中！

我的胸中之草哟，不要那么羞答答地伏在底层！