班卓的诗歌(11) ——来自澳洲荒原的劳动号子
江湖侠客志: “班卓的诗歌——来自澳洲荒原的劳动号子”的诗均为中国译协会员、广东译协理事吴仲湛汉语首译。以班卓的Waltzing Matilda（跳华尔兹的玛蒂尔达）为主题曲。关于班卓，请点击本博客首页“我的文章专辑”中的“班卓的诗歌”，参阅。
灰海湾畔
吴仲湛 译
在遥远的北方有一片土地，
一片和风吹过的美妙土地，
谁都无法测量更无从理解，
对永远流浪者充满着魅力。
灰色浑沌尚未竣工的土地，
无际的空旷没有生命纷扰，
人类灵魂也不禁惊愕战栗，
仰望狮身人面怪物的造物。
这老贵妇虽然热切又轻蔑，
奉献杀戮股份和死亡施予。
的确许多是无名者的墓地，
那里倒毙的人陪湾水永息。
缓慢地流淌一条灰色河溪,
它疲乏的行动伴随着漂移,
河水贪婪地舔着两岸芦笛,
一路前行流向那北海洋去。
灰色的平原上空鸸鹋掠过，
悄然而缓慢以不变的姿态。
在死人的坟墓上草色碧碧，
青草更翠绿每当轻轻摇曳。
尘世间凡人们劳碌团团转，
老贵妇微笑了当人手触及。
她微笑因为她对死者胜利，
在灰海湾畔这片孤独土地。
人的力量只不过虫蚁之力，
当你面对强大平原和河溪。
生命长度也只是时间瞬息，
若与奔流不息的河川相比。
于是他们来了就不再分离，
流浪者活在无忧烦世界里，
策马天涯携豁达潇洒心灵，
大平原在身旁蓝天在头顶。
天际庭里棕色百灵鸟歌唱，
奇妙粗犷大地教会她唱吟。
充满感恩甜美歌声多嘹亮，
我愿再回灰海湾畔同欢唱。
澳洲塑料纸币上的帕特森．班卓像
By the Grey Gulf Water
Banjo Paterson
(Australia)
Far to the northward there lies a land,
A wonderful land that the winds blow over,
And none may fathom or understand
The charm it holds for the restless rover;
A great grey chaos __ a land half made,
Where endless space is and no life stirreth;
And the soul of a man will recoil afraid
From the sphinx-like visage that Nature weareth.
But old Dame Nature, though scornful, craves
Her dole of death and her share of slaughter;
Many indeed are the nameless graves
Where her vitims sleep by the Grey Gulf-water.
Slowly and slowly those grey streams glide,
Drifting along with a languid motion,
Lapping the reed beds on either side,
Wending their way to the Northern Ocean.
Grey are the plains where the emus pass
Silen and slow, with their staid demeanour;
Over the dead men’s graves the grass
Maybe is waving a trifle greener.
Down in the world where men toil and spin
Dame Nature smiles as man’s hand has taught her;
Only the dead men her smiles can win
In the great lone land by the Grey Gulf-water.
For the strength of man is an insect’s strength,
In the face of that mighty plain and river,
And the life of a man is a moment’s length
To the life of the stream that will run for ever,
And so it cometh they take no part
In a small-world worries; each hardly rover
Rideth abroad and is light of heart,
With the plains around and the blue sky over.
And up in the heavens the brown lark sings
The songs that the strange wilds land has taught her;
Full of thanksgiving her sweet song rings __
And I wish I were back by the Grey Gulf-water.
Grey Gulf waters
澳洲国鸟鸸鹋(emu)