谭词｜中华思想文化术语（6）

smiller2016 2017-06-23

展开全文

近日，“中华思想文化术语传播工程”已经对外发布两个批次的术语规范译法，对“居安思危”“上善若水”等反映中华传统文化特征与思维方式的核心术语，作出了简明的中文释义和英文翻译。下面就跟着《英语世界》的小编一起来学习吧。

大同 dà tóng / Universal Harmony

儒家理想中的天下一家、人人平等、友爱互助的太平盛世（与“小康”相对）。

This term refers to the time of peace and prosperity envisioned by Confucian scholars when all the people under heaven are one family, equal, friendly, and helpful to each other (as opposed to xiaokang [小康] – minor or moderate prosperity).

儒家认为它是人类社会发展的最高阶段，类似于西方的乌托邦。其主要特征是：权力和财富归社会公有；社会平等，安居乐业；人人能得到社会的关爱；货尽其用，人尽其力。清末民初，“大同”又被用来指称西方传来的社会主义、共产主义、世界主义等概念。

Confucianism takes universal harmony as the supreme stage of the development of the human society, somewhat similar to the idea of utopia in the West. Its main features are: All power and wealth belong to the whole of society; all people are equal and live and work in peace and contentment; everyone is cared for by society; everything is used to its fullest and everyone works to his maximum potential. In the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, the term referred to the concepts of socialism, communism, or cosmopolitanism that had been introduced to China from the West.

例句

◎大道之行也，天下为公，选贤与能，讲信修睦。故人不独亲其亲，不独子其子，使老有所终，壮有所用，幼有所长，矜寡孤独废疾者，皆有所养……是谓大同。（《礼记·礼运》）

（大道实行的时代，天下为百姓所共有，品德高尚、才能突出的人被选拔出来管理社会，人与人之间讲究诚实与和睦。所以人们不仅仅爱自己的双亲，不仅仅抚养自己的子女，而是使老年人都能终其天年，壮年人都有用武之地，幼童都能得到抚育，无妻或丧妻的年老男子、无夫或丧夫的年老女子、丧父的儿童、无子女的老人以及残障者都能得到照顾和供养……这就叫做大同社会。）

When great Dao prevails, the whole world is owned by all the people. Those who are virtuous and competent are selected as administrators. People treat each other with sincerity and live in harmony. People not only love their parents, bring up their children, but also take care of the aged. The middle-aged are able to put their talents and abilities to best use, children are well nurtured, and old widows and widowers, unmarried old people, orphans, childless old people, and the disabled are all provided for… This is universal harmony. (The Book of Rites)

Examples

般若 bō rě / Bore or Boruo, Wisdom

梵文的音译（或译为“波若”）。意为“智慧”，指能洞见一切事物本性、认识万物真相的最高的智慧。佛教认为，“般若”是超越一切世俗认识的特殊智慧，是觉悟得道、修成佛或菩萨的所有修行方法的指南或根本。然而，这种智慧本身无形无相，不可言说，仅能依赖各种方便法门而有所领悟。

Bore or boruo is the transliteration of a Sanskrit word, meaning wisdom. It refers to the supreme wisdom with insight into the nature and reality of all things. Buddhism believes that such wisdom surpasses all secular understandings, and therefore is the guide for or essence of the effort aimed at achieving enlightenment and attaining Buddhahood or bodhisattvahood. Bore has no form, no appearance, and cannot be expressed in words. It can only be achieved by undertaking a variety of accessible Buddhist practices.

例句

◎般若无所知，无所见。（僧肇《肇论》引《道行般若经》）

（般若这种智慧不是普通的知识，也超越一切具体的见闻。）

Bore is the wisdom that surpasses all common or ordinary knowledge and specific understandings. (Sengzhao: Treatises of Sengzhao)

Examples

本末 běn mò / Ben–Mo

(the Fundamental and the Incidental)

本义指草木的根和梢，引申而为中国哲学的重要概念。其含义可以概括为三个方面：

The two characters literally mean the different parts of a plant, namely, its root and its foliage. The extended meaning is an important concept in Chinese philosophical discourse.The term can be understood in three different ways.

其一，指具有不同价值和重要性的事物，根本的、主要的事物为“本”，非根本的、次要的事物为“末”；其二，世界的本体或本原为“本”，具体的事物或现象为“末”；其三，在道家的政治哲学中，无为之治下的自然状态为“本”，各种具体的道德、纲常为“末”。在“本末”对待的关系中，“本”具有根本性、主导性的作用和意义，“末”由“本”而生，依赖“本”而存在，但“本”的作用的发挥仍需以“末”为载体。二者既相互区别，又相互依赖。

1) ben (本) refers to what is fundamental or essential, while mo (末) means what is minor or incidental, two qualities that differ in value and importance.

2) ben refers to the existence of the world in an ontological sense, while more presents any specific thing or phenomenon.

3) in Daoist political philosophy ben is a state in which rule is exercised by not disrupting the natural order of the world, while mo refers to moral standards and fundamental principles governing social behavior. In any ben-mo relationship, ben is most important and plays a dominant role, while mo exists thanks to ben. On the other hand, it is through the vehicle of mo that ben exerts its influence. Thus the two, though different, are mutually dependent.

例句

◎子夏之门人小子，当洒扫应对进退，则可矣，抑末也。本之则无，如之何？（《论语·子张》）

（子夏的学生，叫他们做打扫、接待、应对的工作，那是可以的，不过这只是末节罢了。而那些最根本性的学问却没有学习，这怎么行呢？）

Zixia’s students can clean, receive guests, and engage in social interaction, but these are trivial things. They have not learned the fundamentals. How can this be sufficient? (The Analects)

◎崇本以举其末。（王弼《老子注》）

（崇尚自然无为之本以统括道德礼法之末。）

One should respect, not interfere with, the natural order of the world, and apply this principle when establishing moral standards, social norms, and laws and regulations. (Wang Bi: Commentaries on Laozi)

Examples