泼水节的传说

　　Here is one. Long long ago, there lived a tyrant¹ in the Dai village. He stopped at no evil. He burned, killed and looted wherever he went. No one could get rid of him, because he was very powerful. He was afraid of neither water nor fire.

　　One day, he came across a beautiful Dai girl. He already had six wives and he wanted that girl as his seventh. So he married her. His wives, all kind-hearted women, utterly² detested³ the barbarous acts of the tyrant and decided⁴ to kill him in order to protect the innocent people.

　　However, they were too weak to challenge him. They had to wait. One day, the tyrant came back with lots of trophies⁵. That night, he got drunk.

　　The seventh wife, his favorite, thought it was the right time to act. "Your Majesty," she said to the tyrant, "You're the strongest person in the world. So, you can live as long as you want."

　　The tyrant was overjoyed. Being drunk, he was not as cautious as usual.

　　"My dear," he said, "I have a fatal weakness. If my hair twists around my neck, I'll die."

　　His wife memorized those words. When the tyrant fell asleep, the women began to act. They twisted his hair around his neck, and the tyrant died.

　　But as soon as his head feel onto the ground, a big fire began.

　　The women had no choice but to hold his head with their hands, doing it in turns, one for a year.

　　Each time one wife finished her turn and passed on the head, the others would splash water on her to wash away bloodstains.

　　And splashing water on one another became a way to vanquish⁶ the devil and symbolically⁷ express the wish for better times ahead. Water splashing became a symbol of good luck, a way to wish good fortune to strangers, friends and family.

　　很早以前，有一个凶恶的魔王，他身有魔法，落在水里漂不走，掉在火里烧不烂，刀砍不烂，枪刺不入，弓箭射不着。他自持法力过人，傲慢自大，整天横行霸道，为非作歹。对人民欺压掳掠，无恶不作。那时，天有十六层，他就成了其中一层的霸主。他已经抢了7个美丽的妻子。

　　有一年六月，正是人间过年的那一天，魔王在宫中饮酒作乐。酒过三巡，已经醉醺醺的了。小妻子婻粽布乘机对魔王称颂道：“我尊贵的大王，您法力无边，德行高尚，凭着您的威望，您完全可以征服天堂、地狱、人间，您应该做三界的主人。”魔王听了洋洋得意，沉思了一会儿，转过脸对爱妻说：“我的确能征服三界，我的弱点是谁也不知道的。”婻粽布接着又问道：“大王有如此魔力，怎么会有弱点？”魔王小声回答：“我就怕别人拔我的头发勒我的脖子，这会使我身首分家，你可得经常看着点儿。”婻粽布假装惊讶的追问：“能够征服三界的大王，怎么会怕头发丝？”魔王又小声的说：“头发丝虽然小，但我的头发丝却会勒断我的脖子，我就活不成了。”

　　婻粽布听了以后，暗暗打定主意。于是，她继续为魔王斟酒，直到酒席散尽，她又扶魔王上床睡熟。这时，她小心地拔下魔王的一根头发，未等魔王惊醒就勒到了魔王的脖子上。魔王的头立刻就掉到地上，头上滴下的血，每一滴都变成了一团火，熊熊燃烧，而且迅速往人间蔓延。这时，婻粽布赶忙把魔王的头抱起来，大地上的火焰也就熄灭了，可头一放下，火又烧起来了。于是，六个王妻也都赶来了，她们轮流抱着魔王的头，这样火才不再烧起来。

　　后来，婻粽布回到人间，但她仍就浑身血迹，人们为了洗掉她身上的血迹，纷纷向她泼水。血迹终于洗净了，婻粽布幸福地生活在了人间。婻粽布死后，人们为了纪念她，在每年过年的时候，就相互泼水，用洁净的水洗去身上的污垢，迎来吉祥的新年。

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