Xu Zhimo's "She's Asleep" 除志摩的『她是睡着了』

There is hardly any activity more relaxing that a man can engage in than sleeping. Everyone needs to sleep, though some more than others. Sleep is the temporary cessation of activity. Bed time is a time during which we wind down, a time during which we allow our hardworking body and even harder working brain a temporary respite. Sleep is enjoyable in and of itself.

In addition, bedtime also an excellent time for bonding between parents and child and even between lovers. Many domestic disputes are more readily resolved when both parties to the marital bond are in a more relaxed mood.

Thus not only is sleeping enjoyable, it is also good for our health, both physical and mental. There  can hardly be any greater punishment for a man than his inability to sleep well. It is a medical condition called insomnia. Insomnia will render us irritable and tired the following day and also affects our digestion.. 

Some people need more sleep than others but there are some who can sleep practically anytime, anywhere and for hours on end. I am fortunate to belong to the latter group though I do not need a lot of sleep. I have fallen asleep on ferries, on buses, on the MTRs, in trains, in the sofa of my office, whilst watching television at home and once or twice, even in a concert after a particularly hard day's work at the office! Two or three times, I have missed the MTR stations where I should have gone off and had to take the train again in the reverse direction simply because I was dozing off during the journey. Once I even fell asleep in the middle of a dinner at home!  

Whenever I want to fall asleep quickly, I have a method which works perfectly. Thus I have never felt the need for any sleeping pills. All I need to do is to pop myself up on one of those sofa like cushions with arm rests in bed and get myself a thick book on philosophy. Within 3 minutes, my body will slip lower and lower upon the mattress and my eyelids will follow suit and before I know it, I shall be sound asleep. Those with sleeping problem may well like to give it a try. For me, this is a tried and trusted method, guaranteed to work.

However though sleep is such a common activity or more precisely, such a common cessation of all activities except dreaming, there are not that very many poems on the theme of sleep. This morning, I found one in Xu Zhimo's Complete Work. I dedicate it and my translation to all who love to sleep. It is beautiful poem about a beautiful girl in sweet slumber. Very sensuous. 

       她是睡着了                                 She's Asleep

       她是睡着了---                                    She's asleep---

星光下一朵斜欹的白蓮；                A white lotus reclining under starlight;

       她入夢境了---                                   She's dreaming--

香爐裏裊起一縷碧螺烟。                A curl of pale smoke rising from the josstick bowl.

 

      她是眠熟了---                                  She's sound asleep--

澗泉幽抑了喧響的琴絃； Streams and springs quietly muffling the boisterous noise of strings

     她在夢鄉了---                                  She's in dreamland---

粉蝶兒，翠蝶兒，翻飛的歡戀。Pink butterflies, blue butterflies, fluttering love's joys.

 

     停勻的呼吸：                                   Even pauses of breaths:

清芬滲透了她的周遭的清氛；       Fresh fragrance immersing surrounding fresh air

      有福的清氛，                                   Fresh air of bliss,

懷抱着，撫摩着，她纖纖的身形！Embracing, caressing her delicate form!

 

      奢侈的光陰！                                   Time of luxury!                                 

靜，沙沙的盡是閃亮的黃金，       Silence, shimmering gold sands everywhere,

      平鋪着無垠，---                               Paving infinity,--

波鱗間輕漾著光豔的小艇。 Beautiful and bright little boats lightly swaying between  glistening waves.

 

      醉心的光景；                                     Mesmerising scene;

給我披一件彩衣，啜一罎芳醴，     Let me don a rainbow, sip a jug of Ambrosia'

      折一支藤花，                                     Break a twig of ivy,

舞，在葡萄藤中，巔倒，迷昏。     Dancing, amidst the vine, topsy turvy, dazed.

 

      呀，美麗！                                    Look, beautiful!

三春的顏色移上她的香肌，The triple colours of springs moving up her fragrant flesh       

    是玫瑰，是月季，                       They're roses, they're tea roses.

是朝陽裏水仙，鮮姘，芳菲！They're daffodils in the morning sun, fresh, with lingering  fragrance

 

     夢底的幽祕，                                      Secrets hidden in her dreams.

挑逗着她的心，---潔純的靈魂---     Luring her heart,---a soul most chaste--

    像一隻蜂兒，                                      Like a bee,

在花心，恣意的唐突---温存。  in the corolla, ravishing in brusque abandon--in tenderness.

 

     童真的夢境！                                      Childlike dreams!

靜默；休教驚斷了夢神的慇懃；Silence; don't you dare interrupt the gallantry of Morpheus

     抽一絲金梭，                                      Draw a strand of gold shuttle

抽一絲銀絡，抽一絲晚霞紫燻；Draw a strand of silver waft, draw a strand of purple dusk;

 

     玉腕與金棱；                                     Wrist of jade and shuttle of gold;

織縑似的精審，更番的穿度---  The precision of woven waterproof silk, more foreign weaving craft

     化生了彩霞，                                   Transformed into colorful clouds of red,

神闕，安琪兒的歌，安琪兒的舞。The song and dance of gods, of angels.,

 

      可愛的梨渦，                                    Lovely dimples,

解釋了處女的夢境的歡喜，          Explaining the joy of the dreams of virgins,

     像一顆露珠，                                  Like a pearl of dew,

顫動的，在荷盤中閃耀晨曦。Trembling, upon a tray of lotus of the sparkling dawn.