世界小史 第117期:布克法罗斯

 　　His father once bought a beautiful stallion that no one could tame.

　　有一次他父亲买了一匹特别漂亮的公马，谁也驯服不了这匹马，His name was Bucephalus. Whenever anyone tried to mount him they were thrown off.

　　这匹马叫布克法罗斯。无论什么时候任何人想骑到它的背上都被它掀翻下来。

　　But Alexander worked out why he did it: the horse was afraid of his own shadow.

　　但是亚历山大发现了个中的缘由：这匹马怕它自己的影子。

　　So Alexander turned the horse's head towards the sun so that he couldn't see his shadow on the ground.

　　于是亚历山大把它转向太阳，让它看不见它在地上的影子。

　　Stroking him gently, he swung himself onto his back and rode round to the applause of the whole court.

　　亚历山大轻轻抚摩它，在全体宫廷臣仆们的掌声中跃上马背，骑着这匹马来回奔跑。

　　From that time on, Bucephalus would always be his favorite horse.

　　从那以后，布克法罗斯一直是他的最心爱的马。

　　Now when Alexander appeared before the Greek leaders in Corinth they greeted him warmly and paid him lavish¹ compliments – all of them, that is, but one.

　　当亚历山大在科林斯出现在希腊各首领们的面前时，大家热情地问候他，大家众口一词地赞扬他，但只有一个人不这样做。

　　A funny fellow, a philosopher named Diogenes.

　　这是一个稀奇古怪的人，一个名叫第欧根尼的哲学家。

　　He had views not unlike those of the Buddha².

　　此人的观点与释迦牟尼的观点不无相似之处。

　　According to him, possessions and all the things we think we need only serve to distract us and get in the way of our simple enjoyment³ of life.

　　他认为，我们所拥有的以及我们所需要的东西只会干扰我们，破坏我们简单的生活乐趣。

 

1 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

2 Buddha   

n.佛；佛像；佛陀

参考例句：

• Several women knelt down before the statue of Buddha and prayed.几个妇女跪在佛像前祈祷。
• He has kept the figure of Buddha for luck.为了图吉利他一直保存着这尊佛像。

3 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。