4 The Ambitious Violet---Khalil Gibran

The Ambitious Violet---Khalil Gibran

There was a beautiful and fragrant violet who lived placidly amongst her friends,

and swayed happily amidst the other flowers in a solitary garden. One morning, as her

crown was embellished with beads of dew, she lifted her head and looked about; she

saw a tall and handsome Rose standing proudly and reaching high into space, like a

burning torch upon an emerald lamp.

The violet opened her blue lips and said, "What an unfortunate am I among these

flowers, and how humble is the position I occupy in their presence! Nature has

fashioned me to be short and poor. I live very close to the earth and I cannot raise my

head toward the blue Sky, or turn my face to the sun, as the roses do."

And the rose heard her neighbor's words; she laughed and commented, "How strange

is your talk! You are fortunate, and yet you cannot understand your fortune. Nature

has bestowed upon you fragrance and Beauty which she did not grant to any other.

Cast aside your thoughts and be contented, and remember that He who humbles

himself will be exalted, and he who Exalt himself will be crushed."

The violet answered, "You are consoling me because you have that which I crave.

You seek to embitter me with the meaning that you are great. How painful is the

preaching of the fortunate to the heart of the miserable! And how severe is the strong

when he stands as Advisor among the weak!"

And Nature heard the conversation of the violet and the Rose; she approached and

said, "What has happened to you, my daughter violet? You have been humble and

Sweet in all your deeds and words. Has greed entered your heart and numbed your

senses?"

In a pleading voice, the violet answered her, saying, "Oh great and merciful Mother,

full of love and sympathy, I beg you, with all my Heart and soul, to grant my request

and allow me to be a Rose for one day."

And Nature responded, "You know not what you are seeking; you are unaware of the

concealed disaster behind your blind ambition. The Violet insisted, "Change me into a

tall rose, for I wish to lift my head high with pride; and regardless of my Fate, it will

be my own doing." Nature yielded, saying, "Oh ignorant and rebellious violet, I will

grant your request. But if calamity befalls you, your complaint must be to yourself."

And Nature stretched forth her mysterious and magic Fingers and touched the roots of

the violet, who Immediately turned into a tall rose, rising above, all other flowers in

the garden.

At eventide the sky became thick with black clouds, and the raging elements

disturbed the silence of Existence with thunder and commenced to attack the Garden,

sending forth a great rain and strong winds. The tempest tore the branches and

uprooted the plants and broke the stems of the tall flowers, sparing only the little ones

who grew close to the friendly earth.

All the flowers were laid waste and none of them had escape the wrath of nature

except the chain of Small violets, hiding by the wall of the garden.

Having lifted her head and viewed the tragedy of the flowers and trees, one of the

violet maidens smiled happily and called to her companions, saying, "See what the

tempest has done to the haughty flowers!" Another violet said, "We are small, and

live to the earth, but we are safe from the wrath of the skies." And a third one added,

"Because we are poor in height the tempest is unable to subdue us."

At the moment the queen of violets saw by her side the converted violet, hurled to

earth by the storm and distorted upon the wet grass like a limp soldier in a battle field.

The queen of the violets lifted her head and called to her family, saying, "Look, my

daughters, and meditate upon that which greed has done to the violet who became a

proud rose for one hour. Let the memory of this scene be a reminder of your good

fortune."

And the dying rose moved and gathered the remnants of her strength, and quietly said,

"You are contented and meek dullards; I have never feared the tempest. Yesterday I,

too, was satisfied and contented with Life, but contentment has acted as a barrier

between my existence and the tempest of Life, confining me to a sickly and sluggish

peace and tranquility of mind. I could have lived the same life you are living now by

clinging with fear to the earth. I could have waited for winter to shroud me with Snow

and deliver to Death, who will surely claim all violets. I am happy now because I have

probed outside my little world into the mystery of the Universe… something which

you have not yet done.

I could have overlooked Greed, whose nature is higher than mine, but as I hearkened

to the silence of the night, I heard the heavenly world talking to this earthly world,

saying, 'Ambition beyond existence is the essential purpose of our being.' At that

moment my spirit revolted and my heart longed for a position higher than my limited

existence. I realized that the abyss cannot hear the song of the stars, and at that

moment I commenced fighting against my smallness and craving for that which did

not belong to me, until my rebelliousness turned into a great power, and my longing

into a Nature, who is the great object of our deeper dreams, granted

my request and changed me into a rose with her magic fingers."

The rose became silent for a moment, and in a weakening voice, mingled with pride

and achievement, she said, "I have lived one hour as a proud rose; I have existed for a

time like a queen; I have looked at the Universe from behind the eyes of the rose; I

have heard the whisper of the firmament through the ears of the rose and touched the

folds of Light's garment with rose petals. Is there any here who can claim such

honor?" Having this spoken, she lowered her head, and with a choking voice she

gasped, "I shall die now, for my soul has attained its goal. I have finally extended my

knowledge to a world beyond the narrow cavern of my birth. This is the design of

This is the secret of Existence." Then the rose quivered, slowly folded her

petals, and breathed her last with a heavenly smile upon a smile of

fulfillment of hope and purpose a smile a GOD'S SMILE.

偶然在网上看到纪伯伦的一篇寓言The Ambitious Violet，不长，文字也很浅显，却如同纪伯伦一切作品一样感人至深。便试着翻译出来。中文题目是我另拟的，总觉得直接翻成”雄心勃勃的紫罗兰“有点不大对劲。

查了一下，这篇文章是收在纪伯伦Secret of the Heart这个集子里的，不知国内有没有出过。我去“中国第一纪伯伦网”搜了一下，没到这个集子。以后再查吧。

"Ambition beyond existence is the essential purpose of our being."最喜欢的就是文中这句话了。 ---------------------------------

The Ambitious Violet

一瞬的荣耀

Kahlil Gibran

翻译：寸草之心

There was a beautiful and fragrant violet that lived placidly amongst her friends,

and swayed happily amidst the other flowers in a solitary garden. One morning,

as her crown was embellished with beads of dew, she lifted her head and

looked about; she saw a tall and handsome rose standing proudly and

reaching high into space, like a burning torch upon an emerald lamp.

在一个僻静的花园中，有一株美丽芬芳的紫罗兰，她在花从中摇曳着，和朋友们过着宁静的生活。一天早晨，露珠点缀着她的花冠，她抬头四处张望，看见一株高大美丽的玫瑰自豪地向天空伸展着身躯，那翠绿枝叶映衬着的红花，就像燃烧的火炬。

The violet opened her blue lips and said: “What an unfortunate am I among

these flowers, and how humble is the position I occupy in their presence!

Nature has fashioned me to be short and poor… I live very close to the earth

and I cannot raise my head toward the blue sky, or turn my face to the sun, as

the roses do.”

紫罗兰张开蓝的嘴唇说：“我真不幸呀，在那些花儿中间，我太卑微了！天生这么矮小，这么微不足道……紧贴着地面，怎能像玫瑰那样举头仰望蓝的天空，让阳光照耀我的脸啊。”

And the rose heard her neighbor’s words; she laughed and commented, “How

strange is your talk! You are fortunate, and yet you cannot understand your

fortune. Nature has bestowed upon you fragrance and beauty which she did

not grant to any other… Cast aside your thoughts and be contended, and

remember that he who humbles himself will be exalted, and he who exalts

himself will be crushed.”

玫瑰听到紫罗兰的话，笑道：“你这话真奇怪！你很幸运呀，是你自己不明白罢了。大自然赐予你的芬芳和美丽，是其他花儿都没有的。别胡思乱想了，学会满足吧。记住，老实本分的人会赢得尊敬，总是想往上爬的人是不会有好结果的。”

The violet answered, “You are consoling me because you have that I craved…

You seek to embitter me with the meaning that you are great… How painful is

the preaching of the fortunate to the heart of the miserable! And how severe is

the strong when he stands as advisor among the weak!”

紫罗兰答道：“我想要的一切你都有，就来安慰我了……你就是想表现你很了不起，让我更加难受……幸运的人对不幸的人喋喋不休，强者对弱者指指点点，多么伤人的心，多么过分啊！”

And Nature heard the conversation of the violet and the rose; she approached

and said, “What has happened to you, my daughter violet? You have been

humble and sweet in all your deeds and words. Has greed entered your heart

and numbed your senses?” In a pleading voice, the violet answered her,

saying, “Oh great and merciful mother, full of love and sympathy, I beg you,

with all my heart and soul, to grant my request and allow me to be a rose for

one day.”

大自然听到玫瑰和紫罗兰的对话，便走过来说道：“紫罗兰，我的女儿，你怎么了？你一直是做事谦和本分，说话讨人喜欢的呀。难道是贪欲迷惑了你的心智吗？”紫罗兰企求道：“哦，伟大慈悲的母亲，充满爱心和同情心的母亲呀，我求您，诚心诚意地求您，满足我的愿望，让我做一天玫瑰吧。”

And Nature responded, “You know not what you are seeking; you are unaware

of the concealed disaster behind ambition. If you were a rose you would be

sorry, and repentance would avail you but naught.”

大自然回答到，“你不知道你所追求的是什么；你不了解你的野心背后隐藏的灾难。如果你成了玫瑰，你会痛苦的，会后悔莫及。”

The violet insisted, “Change me into a tall rose, for I wish to lift my head high

with pride; and regardless of my fate, it will be my own doing.” Nature yielded,

saying, “Oh, ignorant and rebellious violet, I will grant your request. But if

calamity befalls you, your complaint must be to yourself.”

紫罗兰坚持着，“把我变成一株高高的玫瑰吧，我要自豪地昂起头来；不管命运如何，这都是我自己的选择。”大自然让步了，“唉，紫罗兰呀，你真是又无知，又倔强。我就满足你的请求吧。但如果灾难降临到你头上，你可不要怪别人。”

And Nature stretched forth her mysterious and magic finger and touched the

roots of the violet, who immediately turned into a tall rose; rising above all

other flowers in the garden.

大自然用她富有魔力的神奇手指碰了碰紫罗兰的根，她立刻变成了一株高大的玫瑰；高高地在园中所有的花儿之上。

At eventide the sky became thick with black clouds, and the raging elements

disturbed the silence of existence with thunder, and commenced to attack the

garden, sending forth a great rain and strong winds. The tempest tore the

branches and uprooted the plants and broke the stems of the tall flowers,

sparing only the little ones who grew close to the friendly earth. That solitary

garden suffered greatly from the belligerent skies, and when the storm calmed

and the sky cleared, all the flowers were laid waste and none of them had

escaped the wrath of Nature except the clan of small violets, hiding by the wall

of the garden.

当夜晚来临时，天空乌云滚滚，雷声打破了宁静，一场大风雨开始袭击这个花园。风暴折断了树木的枝条，将他们连根拔起，高大花草的茎都被摧毁，只有那些紧贴着地面生长的小花得以幸免。这僻静的花园在风雨中损失惨重，当天空放晴，风暴过去时，除了被院墙遮挡而幸免于难的紫罗兰家族外，所有的花草都没有逃过自然的暴怒。

Having lifted her head and viewed the tragedy of the flowers and trees, one of

the violet maidens smiled happily and called to her companions, saying, “See

what the tempest has done to the haughty flowers!” Another violet said, “ We

are small, and live close to the earth, but we are safe from the wrath of the

skies.” And a third one added, “Because we are poor in height the tempest is

unable to subdue us.”

紫罗兰家族的一个女孩抬头看到这番惨状，便幸灾乐祸地对同伴说，“看看那些不可一世的花在风暴中的下场！”另一株紫罗兰说，“我们是很渺小，紧紧的贴着地面，但风暴却不能伤害我们。”第三株紫罗兰又添上一句：“正因为我们矮，风暴才对我们无能为力。”

At that moment the queen of violets saw by her side the converted violet,

hurled to earth by the storm and distorted upon the wet grass like a limp soldier

in a battlefield. The queen of the violets lifted her head and called to her family,

saying, “Look, my daughters, and meditate upon that which Greed has done to

the violet who became a proud rose for one hour. Let the memory of this scene

be a reminder of your good fortune.”

这时，紫罗兰皇后看了看身边那株变成玫瑰的紫罗兰。她已被风暴抛至地面，她的身子扭曲了，躺在湿漉漉的草地上，像战场上丧失了斗志的士兵。皇后抬头对她的家族说道，“瞧瞧吧，女儿们，想想贪欲给那个只做了一小时玫瑰的紫罗兰带来了什么。希望这景象能让你们引以为戒。”

And the dying rose moved and gathered the remnants of her strength, and

quietly said, “You are contended and meek dullards; I have never feared the

tempest. Yesterday I, too, was satisfied and contented with Life, but

contentment has acted as a barrier between my existence and the tempest of

life, confining me to a sickly and sluggish peace and tranquility of mind. I could

have lived the same life you are living now by clinging with fear to the earth… I

could have waited for winter to shroud me with snow and deliver me to Death,

who will surely claim all violets… I am happy now because I have probed

outside my little world into the mystery of the Universe…something that you

have not yet done. I could have overlooked Greed, but as I hearkened to the

silence of the night, I heard the heavenly world talking to this earthly world,

saying, ‘Ambition beyond existence is the essential purpose of our being.’ At

that moment my spirit revolted and my heart longed for a position higher than

my limited existence. I realized that the abyss can’t hear the song of the stars,

and at that moment I commenced fighting against my smallness and craving

for that which did not belong to me, until my rebelliousness turned into a

creating will… Nature, who is the great object of our deeper dreams, granted

my request and changed me into a rose with her magic fingers.”

那奄奄一息的玫瑰挣扎着，聚集起剩下的所有力气，平静地说，“你们这些胆小软弱的傻瓜，我从来不害怕风暴。昨天，我和你们一样，对生活心满意足，但就是这种满足，成了我与生活的考验之间的一道障碍，把我限制在一个毫无生气、令人生厌的平静世界中，把我的思想

变得平庸无比。我本该过着你们现在这种生活，心惊胆战地紧紧抓住地面……我本该像所有的紫罗兰一样，一直活到冬天，在白雪中走向死亡……可我现在很快乐，因为我已经走出了我的小小天地，感受到了宇宙的神奇……这是你们谁也未曾做到的。也许我是显得贪心不足，但是，当我聆听着夜晚的寂静之声时，我听见天地间一个声音在说：‘超越自身的雄心壮志是一切生命存在的目的。’就是在那个时候，我有了叛逆的精神，我的心渴求一个高于我有限生存空间的境界。我明白了，身处深渊之中就无法听到繁星的歌声。就是在那个时候，我开始抗拒我的渺小，追求那些本不属于我的东西，直到我的叛逆思想变成了一个大胆的愿望……大自然满足了我的请求，用她神奇的手指将我变成了玫瑰。”

The rose became silent for a moment, and in a weakening voice, mingled with

pride and achievement, she said, “I have existed for a time like a queen; I have

looked at the universe from behind the eyes of the rose; I have heard the

whisper of the firmament through the ears of the rose and touched the folds of

light’s garment with rose petals. Is there any here who can claim such honor?”

Having this spoken, she lowered her head, and with a choking voice she

gasped, “I shall die now, for my souls has attained its goal. I have finally

extended my knowledge to a world beyond the narrow cavern of my birth. This

is the design of life… This is the secret of existence.” Then the rose quivered,

slowly folded her petals, and breathed her last with a heavenly smile upon her

lips… a smile of fulfillment of hope and purpose in Life… a smile of victory… a

God’s smile.

她沉默了一会儿，接着，带着自豪与成就感，用更微弱的声音说道：“我曾像皇后一样生活过片刻；我曾用玫瑰的双眼仰望过宇宙；我曾用玫瑰的双耳聆听过苍天的柔声细语；我曾以玫瑰的花瓣与阳光亲密接触。你们当中有人体会过这种荣耀吗？”说完，她低下了头，又哽咽着、喘息着继续说道：“现在我就要死了，因为我的灵魂已经达到了它的目标。我的见识，已最终超越了我出生的狭小天地，扩展到一个广阔的世界中了。这，就是我的生命的意义，我的存在的奥秘。”玫瑰颤抖着，慢慢合上了花瓣，咽下了最后一口气。她的唇上带着一个神圣的微笑……这是愿望和目标得以实现的微笑……胜利的微笑……上帝的微笑。