跨越鬼门关 —— 人类探索自然和精神世界的里程碑
跨越鬼门关 —— 人类探索自然和精神世界的里程碑Crossing the Gate of Hell — A Milestone for the Human to Explore the Nature and the Spirit World
乘“贡嘎山号”游船沿长江逆流而上，过了奉节后，行驶了五个多小时，就到了酆都，这里又号称“鬼城”。
I am upstream along the Yangtze River by the Gongga Mountain ship.It takes me five hours to go from Fengjie to Fengdu. Fengdu is known as the “Ghost Town”.
三峡大坝建成蓄水后，原酆都县城已被迁走, 这里只剩下175米以上为数不多的居民，他们靠旅游业为生。“鬼城”便是他们赖以生存的“饭碗”。
Before the Three Gorges Dam began to impound the land, all the people of the original Fengdu were moved.Only residents living above 175 metres could stay. The source of life for them now is tourism; the Ghost Town the “rice bowl” for the few local residents to live on.
“鬼城”坐落在一座树木葱茏的山峰上，茂密的树木遮天蔽日，再加上常年湿漉漉的气候，使“鬼城”显得阴森森的，给人一种神秘莫测和压抑感。
The Ghost Town is located in a mountain forest, where the trees' canopy crowns are dense enough to conceal the sunlight.Besides the perennial wet climate, the Ghost Town is spooky of itself.It impresses me with its mysterious and oppressive atmosphere.
交了门票后，拾阶而上，从半山腰到山顶，依次排列着众多“阴曹地府”，你要一个个穿过，而这里每一尊雕塑都面目狰狞，令人不寒而栗。
After buying a ticket, I trek up the steps to the top of the hillside.You have to cross many gates, which were built in ancient times, and numerous \"ghost statues''.Each of them looks fierce and makes the visitors shiver all over even if they are not cold.
“黄泉路上无老少”，因此，这里已经没有了长幼尊卑之分，每个人都是平等的，唯一不同的是，好人可超度转世，做恶多端的坏人要下地狱，受到各种酷刑和惩罚，其酷刑之残忍，令人毛骨悚然。
“There is no difference between the old and the young on the road of death.” Here there is no pecking order, everyone is equal. The only tiny difference is that someone can return through reincarnation. If having done multiple evils, that bad man must go to hell and must be tortured and punished by a variety of methods. The torture must be very, very cruel and frightening.
先过“奈河桥”，传说奈河恶水中有不少妖孽，掉下去则被“铜蛇铁狗任争餐，永堕奈河无出路”。
The first gate is the Nai River Bridge.According to legend, in the waters of the Nai River there are many monsters.If someone has done many evils he will fall into the river, becoming the meal for the ^serpent of bronze and the iron dogs. With no way out, he will be caught permanently in the river.”
再过“鬼门关”，这座“幽冥地府鬼门关”十分威严, 阴风飒飒，跨越过去，“便与阳间永隔”。
After the bridge there is the “Gate of Heir”, and it looks very majestic. You will feel the cold wind sighing.When you cross the gate it means that you will “be separated from the world forever” and enter the “Hall of Hell”.
接着便是“阎罗殿“十代阎王”主宰着杀伐审判，审判后，便打入“十八层地狱”，各种残酷的刑罚让那些在阳间做恶多端的人，受尽皮肉和灵魂折磨之苦。
The “Ten Hades from different generations” are in charge of all trials for everyone who goes into there. For example, murderers, after their trial will be beaten into “the lowest layer of hell”.There are a variety of cruel punishments for those who do evil in the world, letting them suffer the bitterness of flesh and soul, and having them suffer the agony of torture.
贪官被磨刑，酷吏被斧劈，叛国之徒被锯碎，贪酒之徒被割舌，谋财害命者被赶上刀山，淫乱者被抛入火海，吝啬鬼被掏去心肠，虐待父母老人者被挖去双眼，贩卖人口者波虎兽吃掉……其刑罚之多，不可胜数。万一有冤假错案，由阴司崔珏判官重审，牛头马面和无常鬼专管枷人押解。也许用绳索，也许用木枷，也许用铁镣……
Corrupt officials would suffer from punishment by grinding and be axed into pieces.Traitors would be sawed.Drunkards and alcoholics would have their tongues cut oft'.Those who had murdered for money would be forced to climb a hill of knives.Lotharios would be thrown into a fire.Misers would have their hearts and intestines cut out.Those who had abused their parents or elderly persons would have their eyes gouged.Human enslavers would be fed to tigers and ferocious beasts.The countless evils committed by men and women suffer a different penalty.In cases of miscarriages of justice, there is a judge or magistrate named Cui Jue from the nether world who is in charge of the retrials.His assistants, with heads of cattle and faces of horses, are in charge of escorting the criminals.The tools they use are ropes, or perhaps wooden flails, or perhaps chains.
我要说的是，跨越鬼门关，是人类探索自然和精神世界的里程碑。
What I really believe is that crossing the gate of hell is a milepost for a human, allowing an exploration of nature and the spirit world.
世界上每一个国家和民族都有关于鬼的传说和有关地狱的神话，这是人类不断探索未知世界的领域之一。
Every nation and country has ghost stories and hell myths, as ghosts and hell are unknown areas of the world and humans need to explore constantly.
当然，在科学不发达的时代，对于鬼和地狱的传说，总和神秘的宗教紧密相联，甚至宗教竭尽所能夸大渲染了鬼和地狱的神秘恐怖色彩。
Of course, in the past, because of the limitation of science, people were not able to explain ghosts and the legend of heIl.This is why the unexplained and some religions are closely linked.Some religious have managed to exaggerate ghosts and hell, rendering them in mysterious colours.
酆都的鬼城，是道教和佛教的结合产物，是“因果报应论”的一种体现，也是“生命轮回说”的一种延伸。
Fengdu Ghost Town, a combination of Taoism and Buddhism, is an embodiment of karma. It is also an extension of the “circle of life”.
中国古代有一本书《七十二司》，详细描绘了阴曹地府的设置，各种鬼怪的名称，以及各种刑罚的恐怖。
In ancient China there was a book called Seventy-two Divisions, which in detail describes Hades, various ghosts, as well as various punishments for criminals and terrorists.
“因果报应论”和“生命轮回说”起源于天竺国，汉元帝时派人向西天取经，从而把其学说引入中国。“因果报应论”主张“善有善报，恶有恶报。不是不报，时候未到，时候一到，必然要报”。
Karma and the “circle of life” originated from Tianzhu (today’s India).Emperor Hanyuan sent his officers on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures, and they brought back Buddhism and its theories to China.Karmic theory claims that there is justice in this world: ''Goodness rewards with goodness, and evil rewards with evil.Not always in this time, but when the time comes, you must be rewarded with either good or evil.”
因而受到平民也就是穷苦的大众的欢迎，他们找到了惩恶扬善公平正义的寄托，那就是时间和阴曹地府的正义审判。
Thus the poor and the civilian welcomed the theory, for they were eager to find justice and fairness. The theory became sustenance for the poor because they finally found Hades, who could do justice and could punish evils.
而“生命轮回说”丰富了好人就有好报的具体化形态一转世托生。
While the “circle of life” is enriched in specific form—goodness rewards goodness, though reincarnation we are reborn.
残暴邪恶的统治者和恶贯满盈的人，别看当时欺压百姓，作威作福，但是，死后将受到惩罚。
Tyrannical rulers and evil men abuse, bully and oppress the poor, but after death justice will punish them.
因此，在这个意义上，酆都鬼城让饱受欺压的平民有了发泄不平的渠道，有了寄托来生美好日子的所在。
In this sense, Fengdu Ghost Town lets the poor and oppressed vent and set up hope for a better life, whether in their own life time or in the afterlife.
这也是为什么鬼城文化之所以能够保存下来的根基和社会土壤。
This is the reason why ghost culture can be preserved and is the social soil foundation for the theory.
今天，劳苦大众己经当家做主，但是，酆都鬼城的传统文化对惩恶扬善仍有积极的作用，所以，依然成为旅游胜地。
Today, the toiling masses already take leadership, but the traditional culture of Fengdu Ghost Town still has a positive effect and has become a tourist resort.
意大利著名诗人但丁在《神曲》中，把地狱设想为九层，净界为九级，天堂为九重。
The famous Italian poet Dante, in his book Divine Comedy said, that there are nine layers of hell, and nine layers of limbo, as well as nine layers of heaven.
九层地狱的苦况是愈下愈深，其中住有形形色色的罪人，在受着各种十分严厉的刑罚。
The deeper down into the nine layers of hell you go, the more torture and plight evil men suffer from.Those who commit many huge sins must suffer a variety of very severe punishments.
许多贪官污吏、教皇僧侣和卖国者都被安排在第八、第九层地狱。
Many corrupt officials, pontiffs, missionaries, monks and traitors were arranged in the eighth and ninth layers of hell.
可见中西方善良的人们对贪官污吏的憎恨是相同的，对其恨之入骨。
It is obvious that all the good people, wherever in western or eastern countries hate corrupt officials the same way.
唯有让其在地狱的最底层受到最严厉的惩罚，才解人们的心头之恨。但丁描绘的净界是罪恶较轻的人的修炼所在，那里住有犯贪色、贪食、贪财、惰、怒、妒、 骄七种罪行的人。
Only putting them at the bottom of hell and letting them suffer the most severe punishment can comfort the minds of the people.
这些罪人要受到-定的惩罚，如嫉妒者双眼被铁丝缝起，贪食者受着饥渴的煎熬等。
Dante's depiction of limbo, a clean world for less evil persons to practice and do labor.There live prisoners, and men of gluttony, greed, lust, anger, laziness，jealousy，pride—the seven kinds of crimes.These sinners must be punished.For instance, a thread of wire would stitch together the eyes of the jealous person, the gluttonous person would suffer from thirst and hunger.
他们经过净火的焚烧，断除孽根，便可超度升天。
If they pass the burning net of fire, if they can cut off the roots of sin, they can pass into heaven.
净界的顶部是天堂，天堂是幸福的。
On top of limbo, is the pure world, heaven, ln the paradise of heaven everyone is happy.
九重天以外是上帝的天府，十分庄严和美，充满光辉、欢乐和爱。
Beyond the paradise there is god, who is very solemn and full of glory, happiness and love.
但丁是把天堂作为人类的最高精神境界来描绘的。
Dante divided heaven upto the highest human spiritual realm.
但丁的《神曲》广泛流传，因此，对西方人和东方人认识地狱和天堂起到了经典作用。阴曹地府就是地狱，鬼门关内不分种族，这也是酆都鬼城同样也很吸引西方游客的原因之-一。
Dante's Divine Comedy is widespread, therefore Westem and eastern people know of its depiction of heaven and hell. The book is a classic.The Chinese legend of hell and the gate of hell is also very attractive to Westem people.I find that many western tourists visit Fengdu Ghost Town.
和我同船来旅游的来自美国、澳大利亚、加拿大、 挪威、西班牙等国家的金发碧眼的游客们，津津有味地欣赏酆都鬼城的鬼文化， 并和表情不一的鬼怪雕塑合影留念。
With blonde hair and blue eyes they are from the United States, Australia, Canada, Norway, Spain and other countries.With a good appetite, they appreciate Fengdu Ghost Culture, and snap pictures showing the different expression of the ghost sculptures.
对于贪官污吏的刑罚，他们也拍手叫好， 对于色鬼、酒鬼、贪鬼的鞭笞，他们也颇为认同。
They also clap over the punishment to corrupt officials, the goat, the alcoholic, and the greedy ghosts. They also quite agree with karma.
扬善惩恶，是世界性的主题， 人们的情感是相同的。
To punish evil is a worldwide topic, so all people's attitude to it is the same.
人类对于自然和精神世界的探索是没有止境的。
There are no limits in the exploration of nature and the human spiritual world.
在西方的鬼文化中，有世界末日一说，而中国的鬼文化中没有这一说法，所以外国游客总是提问导游为什么酆都鬼城没有展现世界末日景象。
In Western ghost culture, there is the theory of \"the end of the world\", while in Chinese ghost culture there is no such a claim.So these foreign tourists often ask me why there is no apocalyptic vision at Fengdu Ghost Town.
其实，在西方倍受尊崇的世界大预言家诺查丹玛斯的预言体系里，早就批驳了世界末日说，他认为真正灭亡的不是人类本身，也不是什么世界末日的到来。
In fact, in the west, the prediction system of the highly renowned prophet Nostradamus, criticized the ending of the world, saying that what will really vanish is humans themselves, that there is no end of the world.
“无边落木萧萧下，不尽长江滚滚来。”跨越过了鬼门关，人类将在探索自然和精神世界的路上继续前行。
The boundless forest sheds its leaves shower by shower, as the endless river rolls before my eyes.Crossing through the gates of hell, humanity will go forward, constantly exploring the natural and spiritual world.
只有不断地开拓进取，征服自然和精神世界的胜利将把人类推向新的高度，当然，那也是人类新的起点。
Only by continuously forging ahead to conquer all that is natural and spiritual, will we make great progress.New heights are always new starting points for human beings. 还以为是来我们广西北流的鬼门关旅游呢……
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