Answers — Bei Dao

 

回答——北岛

 

Cruelty is the ID pass of the cruel,

卑鄙是卑鄙者的通行证，

honesty the grave stone of the honest.

高尚是高尚者的墓志铭，

Look, in the sky plated gold,

看吧，在那镀金的天空中，

crooked reflections of all the dead float around.

飘满了死者弯曲的倒影。

The glacial epoch is over,

冰川纪过去了，

so why is there ice everywhere?

为什么到处都是冰凌？

Good Hope was rounded a long time ago,

好望角发现了，

so where are these thousands of boats racing on the Dead Sea?

为什么死海里千帆相竞？

I came into this world

我来到这个世界上，

with only blank pages, rope and my fingers;

只带着纸、绳索和身影，

therefore, before final judgements are given,

为了在审判之前，

I need to speak in all the voices of the defendants.

宣读那些被判决的声音。

Just let me say, world,

告诉你吧，世界

I—don't—believe!

我——不——相——信！

If a thousand challengers are under your feet

纵使你脚下有一千名挑战者，

count me as challenger one-thousand-and-one.

那就把我算作第一千零一名。

I don't believe the sky is always blue;

我不相信天是蓝的，

I don't believe it was thunder echoing;

我不相信雷的回声，

I don't believe all dreaming is false;

我不相信梦是假的，

I don't believe the dead cannot bring judgement.

我不相信死无报应。

If the sea is doomed someday to break its levees

如果海洋注定要决堤，

my heart must flood with all the bitter waters.

就让所有的苦水都注入我心中，

If the land is destined to form the hills again,

如果陆地注定要上升，

let real human beings learn to choose the higher ground.

就让人类重新选择生存的峰顶。

The latest, favorable turnings, the twinkling stars

新的转机和闪闪星斗，

studding the naked sky,

正在缀满没有遮拦的天空。

are pictographs five-thousand years old.

那是五千年的象形文字，

They are the eyes of the future staring at us now.

那是未来人们凝视的眼睛。