《礼运大同篇》
(出自《礼记》礼运篇,孔子述大同)
冯欣明译,2008 年四月
"Confucius: The Great Together" From the Chapter "The Operation of Etiquette" in Li Ji
- Translated by Feng Xin-ming, April 2008, revised September 2008 http://www.tsoidug.org/Papers/Etiquette_Come_Together.pdf
翻译者言 这段话非常著名,几乎凡受过传统教育的华人都知晓,是在经典《礼 记》里的礼运篇中,孔子描写实行大道的完美社会.说完这段话后孔 子又说,当今大道不能实行,所以不能大同,但可以实行礼,以达到 虽不完美但仍然不错的社会. 近来在网上看到的白话译文,总觉得都有些脱离了原文意义,所以在 这里谨发表本人的译文,希望对孔子的研究提供另一方见解.错漏之 处,祈获读者指教. 这里把"大同"用英语译为 "The Great Together".虽然 "together" 是个副 词而我这样就把它当为名词,但是英语没有其他字眼更为合适.
"Union", "communion", "association", "oneness", "solidarity", "coming together", "come together" 等字,都不能完全表达意思.既然在汉语里,"大同"的
"同"字没有在其他词语中有同样的用法,那麼我觉得在英语里 "The Great Together" 的 "together" 也同样可以有它自己的独一无二的用法.所 以这里我就把 "The Great Together" 变为英语的一个专有名词了.欢迎读 者赐赠更好的翻译办法,请寄电邮 contact@tsoidug.org.
Translator's Note This is a very famous piece that almost every traditionally educated Chinese knows, and is a quote from the chapter "The Operation of Li (etiquette or propriety)" in the classic "Li Ji" ("Book of Etiquette" or "Book of Propriety"). Here Confucius describes an ideal
society where the "Great Way" operates. After he finishes his description he also says that the "Great Way" cannot be practiced at this time but Li (etiquette or propriety) can be practiced to give us a society that, though not ideal, is still not too bad. Lately, the Chinese vernacular interpretations of this piece that I've seen on the web somehow all seem to depart somewhat from the original text's meaning. Therefore I have respectfully published my interpretation here, trying to provide a different viewpoint for the study of Confucius. I hope that the reader will point out any mistakes or omissions. As for my translation of the Chinese term 大同 as "The Great Together", while it is true that "together" is an adverb and I am using it as a noun here, that is because nothing else in English quite fits. "Union", "communion", "association", "oneness", "solidarity", "coming together", "come together", and so forth don't really express the idea just right. Since the Chinese word 同 in 大同 is used in a sense not seen in any other context in Chinese, I feel justified in using "together" in a sense not seen in any other context in English as well. Thus, I am making the term "The Great Together" into a sort of a proper noun. If the reader has a better idea to translate 大同, I would definitely welcome the suggestion. Please email me at contact@tsoidug.org.

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