頌詩譯選

靈魂與肉體

凌風 譯

可憐的靈魂，我罪惡世界的中央，
你受騙去跟那些反叛的勢力結幫，
為甚麼你裏面憔悴受苦無量，
外面的牆卻油漆得貴價輝煌？
為甚麼花偌大的代價，租約那麼短，
為你那將傾殘的巨廈付上許多錢？
內藏的蠹蟲，豈不是要蝕盡你
投下的巨款？你肉體豈不也有終點？
靈魂啊，讓你的僕役耗費給你生活供養，
要它瘦減，使你的富藏增長，
賣掉無用的時間換取神聖的永約，
外面的富麗壯觀全消失，裏面卻強壯。
　　死亡囓噬人，你囓噬死亡也是這樣，
　　到死亡死去了，然後不再有死亡。

　　　莎士比亞（William Shakespeare, 1564-1616）英國劇作家，詩人。

Body and Soul　sonnet 146

Poor soul, the centre of my sinful earth,
My sinful earth, these rebel powers that thee array,
Why dost thou pine within and suffer dearth,
Painting thy outward walls so costly gay?
Why so large cost, having so short a lease,
Dost thou upon thy fading mansion spend?
Shall worms, inheritors of this excess,
Eat up thy charge? Is this thy body's end?
Then, soul, live thou upon thy servant's loss
And let that pine to aggravate thy store.
Buy terms divine in selling hours of dross,
Within be fed, without be rich no more.
　　So shalt thou feed on Death, that feeds on men,
　　And Death once dead, there's no more dying then.

William Shakespeare, 1564-1616
　　　English playwright and poet