錢(qián)塘江 | 錢(qián)王射潮的故事

漢譯英學(xué)習（72）錢(qián)塘江 | 錢(qián)王射潮的故事

CATTI考試資料與資訊

來(lái)源 | 譯之有道

https://yizhiyoudao.kuaizhan.com/46/1/p3581947357c377

錢(qián)塘江古稱(chēng)“浙江”，浙江省名來(lái)源于此，它是浙江省內最大的河流，總長(cháng)約93公里，下游流經(jīng)杭州灣注入東海。

The Qiantang River was originally known as Zhe River (Zhejiang), which served as the inspiration for the name of Zhejiang Province. The largest river in the province, its lower course flows 93 kilometers before reaching Hangzhou Bay and emptying into the East China Sea.

錢(qián)塘江潮是世界自然奇觀(guān)，國際地理學(xué)界將錢(qián)塘江與南美亞馬遜河、南亞恒河并稱(chēng)為“世界三大強涌潮河流”。錢(qián)塘江的觀(guān)潮習俗在杭州已有2000余年歷史。

The Qiantang River tidal bore is a natural wonder of the world. Together with the Amazon and the Ganges, the Qiantang River has been internationally recognized as carrying one of the three strongest tidal bores in the world. The tradition of viewing the Qiantang River tidal bore in Hangzhou dates back more than 2,000 years.

南宋（1127－1279年）以來(lái)的近900年中，杭州基本以西湖為中心擴展。自21世紀，杭州城市面積擴大，開(kāi)始以錢(qián)塘江為軸線(xiàn)，沿兩岸發(fā)展。   

In the nine centuries since the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), Hangzhou has expanded outward from West Lake. Beginning in the 21st century, the expansion of Hangzhou’s urban areas has proceeded along the banks of the Qiantang River.

1000多年前，杭州是吳越國的首都。吳越王名叫錢(qián)镠，勇猛無(wú)比，被稱(chēng)為“錢(qián)王”。

Back in the 10th century, Hangzhou was the capital of the kingdom of Wuyue. Qian Liu was the king of Wuyue, and his fierce bravery had no peer.

錢(qián)王統治杭州時(shí)，錢(qián)塘江的圍海大堤總是修不起來(lái)。晝夜兩次漲潮，堤壩尚未完工，就會(huì )被潮水沖垮，潮水給江邊的百姓帶來(lái)了極大的危害。民間傳言，江中有興風(fēng)作浪的潮神，才使潮水泛濫。         

Under King Qian’s rule, workers consistently failed to complete a seawall that would protect the land along the Qiantang River. Because the tide rose twice a day, workers would no sooner build up the seawall, when the tide would wash away all they had done. People who lived along the river were in great danger from the tidal bore. According to folklore, the river was inhabited by a tide god, who summoned the wind to create the tidal bore that inundated the land.

國王錢(qián)镠在農歷八月十八（潮水最大那日），令萬(wàn)名弓弩手候在江邊，當潮水洶涌而來(lái)時(shí)，萬(wàn)箭齊發(fā)，周邊百姓也來(lái)助威。潮水在錢(qián)王和百姓的威懾下，向回退去，直至消失在遠方。     

On the 18th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, when the tidal bore was at its strongest, King Qian ordered 10,000 archers to take their crossbows and wait for his command on the banks of the Qiantang River. When the tide roiled forward, it was met with a 10,000 arrows. Locals, who had been watching from afar, clustered toward the archers to cheer them on. Faced with the might of King Qian and the people, the tide suddenly retreated and vanished without a trace.

至今，錢(qián)江潮水一到六和塔邊就會(huì )逐漸減小，在塔前水面，緩下來(lái)的水彎彎曲曲地向前流去，呈“之”字狀，錢(qián)塘江因此又名“之江”。       

Even today, the Qiantang River tidal bore begins to shrink upon reaching the Pagoda of Six Harmonies (Liuhe Pagoda). The tide flows in front of the pagoda in a zigzag pattern similar to the Chinese character “之,” which is pronounced “zhi.” This zigzag gave the Qiantang its other name, the Zhi River (Zhijiang).

百姓們?yōu)榱思o念錢(qián)王射潮的功績(jì)，把江邊的海堤叫做“錢(qián)塘”。

As a way to honor King Qian for shooting the tide, the people named the seawall by the river after him.