纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 054度母雕像(5)

Tara probably stood inside a temple, and there must have been a matching sculpture of her male consort¹, Avalokiteshvara, nearby, but his image has not survived.

这尊度母像当年很可能立于某座庙宇内，起初身边一定还有与她相配的男身观世音雕像，但后者没有被保存下来。

Strictly² speaking Tara was not made to be worshipped, but to be a focus for meditation³ on the qualities she embodies-compassion⁴ and the power to save. She would have been seen essentially⁵ by priests or monks⁶ from a privileged elite-so in fact relatively⁷ few would actually have been able to meditate⁸ on her image.

严格说来，度母像并非用于信徒膜拜，而是为了让人对它所代表的慈悲为怀与法力无边进行冥想。她的金身基本只有上层社会的僧侣才能看到，因此只有极少数人能对着她的形象冥思。

Standing⁹ in front of her now, in the gallery, we can. And knowing something of what she meant to believers, we can better understand why her makers¹⁰ chose to represent her as they did. Her beauty and her serenity¹¹ speak of her endless compassion. Her right hand, held down by her side, is not at rest, but in the position known as 'varada mudra', the gesture of granting a wish-a clear demonstration¹² of her prime role as the generous helper of the faithful. Her gilded¹³ skin, and the jewels that once adorned¹⁴ her, make it clear that this statue of Tara can only have been commissioned by people in command of enormous wealth.

在了解了她所代表的意义之后，站在她面前，我们就更能体会制作者何以选择这样的方式来表现她的形象。她的美丽与宁静象征着无尽的慈悲。她垂在体侧的右手臂并不是放松的，而是作予愿印，表明她作为信徒的慷慨救助者的首要身份。镀金与装饰用的珠宝证明这尊度母一定是富人委托制造的。

It's very rare for a statue of this scale to survive; indeed, we know of no other example of this size from medieval Sri Lanka. At this date most large bronze statues would be cast by pouring the metal around a hollow clay core. Tara by contrast is bronze through and through, so whoever made her must have had a great deal of bronze, rare skill and a lot of experience of this very challenging kind of work. Tara is not just beautiful; she is a remarkable¹⁵ technical achievement, and she must have been very, very expensive.

如此大型的雕像鲜少能逃脱被重铸的命运,至少在中世纪斯里兰卡的文物中，我们没有找到任何一个类似的雕像。现存同一时期的大型雕像多数是将金属浇铸在泥坯上制成，是空心的，而这一尊与其形成鲜明对比，是实心的。不管制作者是谁，必然掌握了大量的青铜、稀世的工艺及丰富的铸造高难度雕像的经验。它不只是一件美丽的艺术品，也是高超工艺的集大成者，当年必定价值连城。

1 consort   

v.相伴；结交

参考例句：

• They went in consort two or three together.他们三三两两结伴前往。
• The nurses are instructed not to consort with their patients.护士得到指示不得与病人交往。

2 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

3 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

4 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

5 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

6 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

8 meditate   

v.想，考虑，（尤指宗教上的）沉思，冥想

参考例句：

• It is important to meditate on the meaning of life.思考人生的意义很重要。
• I was meditating,and reached a higher state of consciousness.我在冥想，并进入了一个更高的意识境界。

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 serenity   

n.宁静，沉着，晴朗

参考例句：

• Her face,though sad,still evoked a feeling of serenity.她的脸色虽然悲伤，但仍使人感觉安详。
• She escaped to the comparative serenity of the kitchen.她逃到相对安静的厨房里。

12 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

13 gilded   

a.镀金的，富有的

参考例句：

• The golden light gilded the sea. 金色的阳光使大海如金子般闪闪发光。
• "Friends, they are only gilded disks of lead!" "朋友们，这只不过是些镀金的铅饼！ 来自英汉文学 - 败坏赫德莱堡

14 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

15 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。