精灵惯于从远处恶作剧地发射细微的铁箭，神不知鬼不觉地穿透人的皮肤，而这就是身体上那种突如其来刺痛的根本原因。
——博尔赫斯｜姜白 译
— Reading and Rereading —
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《新埃达》指出了光明精灵与黑暗精灵之间的区别：“光明精灵比太阳的光芒还要亮白，黑暗精灵却比沥青还要漆黑。” 梦魇的德文单词是“Alp”，其词源就来自“elf”。在中世纪，人们普遍相信，精灵会沉重地压在入睡者的胸口，从而施予种种恶梦。 精灵惯于从远处恶作剧地发射细微的铁箭，神不知鬼不觉地穿透人的皮肤，而这就是身体上那种突如其来刺痛的根本原因。
——博尔赫斯｜姜白 译 — Reading and Rereading — 🎯 The Elves Translated by The Elves are of Nordic origin. Little is known about what they look like, except that they are tiny and sinister. They steal cattle and children and also take pleasure in minor acts of deviltry. In England, the word 'elflock' was given to a tangle of hair because it was supposed to be a trick of the Elves. An Anglo-Saxon charm, which for all we know may go back to heathen times, credits them with the mischievous habit of shooting, from afar, miniature arrows of iron that break the surface of the skin without a trace and are at the root of sudden painful stitches. In the Younger Edda, a distinction is noted between Light Elves and Dark: 'The Light Elves are fairer than a glance of the sun, the Dark Elves blacker than pitch.' The German for nightmare is Alp; etymology traces the word back to 'elf,' since it was commonly believed in the Middle Ages that Elves weighed heavily upon the breast of sleepers, giving them bad dreams. 博尔赫斯公众号 题图：木精灵
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