Cheung Puk-chang, the Seer

[Cheung Puk-chang.--The Yol-ryok Keui-sul, one of Korea's noted histories, says of Cheung Puk-chang that he was pure in purpose and without selfish ambition. He was superior to all others in his marvellous gifts. For him to read a book once was to know it by heart. There was nothing that he could not understand--astronomy, geology, music, medicine, mathematics, fortune-telling and Chinese characters, which he knew by intuition and not from study.

〔鄭北窓(チョン・プクチャン)——朝鮮の名高い史書のひとつ『燃藜室記述』は、鄭北窓について、志が清く私欲がなかったと言っている。その驚くべき才は、ほかの誰よりも抜きんでていた。本を一度読めば、それでそらで覚えてしまった。天文、地理、音楽、医術、算術、占い、漢字と、わからないものは何ひとつなく、それを学んでではなく直観で知っていた。

He followed his father in the train of the envoy to Peking, and there talked to all the strange peoples whom he met without any preparation. They all wondered at him and called him "The Mystery." He knew, too, the meaning of the calls of birds and beasts; and while he lived in the mountains he could see and tell what people were doing in the distant valley, indicating what was going on in each house, which, upon investigation, was found in each case to be true. He was a Taoist, and received strange revelations.

北窓は父について北京への使節の一行に加わり、そこで出会ったあらゆる異国の民と、何の備えもなく話をした。人々はみな北窓に驚いて、「神秘」と呼んだ。北窓はまた鳥や獣の鳴き声の意味もわかった。山に住んでいたときには、遠い谷で人々が何をしているかを見て語ることができ、一軒一軒の家で何が起こっているかを示したが、調べてみると、どれもみな本当だった。北窓は道士で、不思議な啓示を受けていた。

While in Peking there met him envoys from the Court of Loochoo, who also were prophets. While in their own country they had studied the horoscope, and on going into China knew that they were to meet a Holy Man. As they went on their way they asked concerning this mysterious being, and at last reached Peking. Inquiring, they went from one envoy's station to another till they met Cheung Puk-chang, when a great fear came upon them, and they fell prostrate to the earth.

北京にいるとき、琉球の宮廷の使節たちが北窓に会いに来た。この使節たちも予言者だった。自分の国にいるとき星占いを学んでいて、中国へ行けば一人の聖人に会うことになると知っていたのである。道すがら、使節たちはこの神秘な人物のことを尋ねながら、とうとう北京に着いた。尋ね尋ねて使節の宿所をひとつずつ訪ねていくうちに、鄭北窓に出会い、すると大きな畏れに打たれて、地にひれ伏した。

They took from their baggage a little book inscribed, "In such a year, on such a day, at such an hour, in such a place, you shall meet a Holy Man." "If this does not mean your Excellency," said they, "whom can it mean?" They asked that he would teach them the sacred Book of Changes, and he responded by teaching it in their own language. At that time the various envoys, hearing of this, contended with each other as to who should first see the marvellous stranger, and he spoke to each in his own tongue. They all, greatly amazed, said, "He is indeed a man of God."

使節たちは荷物から一冊の小さな本を取り出した。そこにはこう書かれていた。「しかじかの年、しかじかの日、しかじかの時、しかじかの所で、汝は一人の聖人に会うであろう。」「これが閣下のことでないなら」と使節たちは言った。「誰のことでありましょう。」使節たちは聖なる『易経』を教えてほしいと願い、北窓はそれに応えて、使節たち自身の言葉で教えた。そのとき、さまざまな国の使節たちがこれを聞いて、誰が先にこの驚くべき異国の人に会うかを争い、北窓はめいめいにその国の言葉で話した。みなたいそう驚いて言った。「まことに神の人だ。」

Some one asked him, saying, "There are those who understand the sounds of birds and beasts, but foreign languages have to be learned to be known; how can you speak them without study?"

ある人が北窓に尋ねて言った。「鳥や獣の声がわかる人はいます。けれども外国の言葉は、学ばなければわかりません。どうして学ばずに話せるのですか。」

Puk-chang replied, "I do not know them from having learned them, but know them unconsciously."

北窓は答えた。「学んで知っているのではなく、知らず知らずのうちに知っているのです。」

Puk-chang was acquainted with the three religions, but he considered Confucianism as the first. "Its writings as handed down," said he, "teach us filial piety and reverence. The learning of the Sages deals with relationships among men and not with spiritual mysteries; but Taoism and Buddhism deal with the examination of the soul and the heart, and so with things above and not with things on the earth. This is the difference."

北窓は三つの教えに通じていたが、儒教を第一と考えていた。「その伝えられてきた書物は」と北窓は言った。「孝と敬を教えてくれる。聖人の学問は人と人との関係を扱い、霊の神秘を扱わない。けれども道教と仏教は魂と心を究めることを扱い、だから天上のことを扱って、地上のことを扱わない。これが違いである。」

At thirty-two years of age he matriculated, but had no interest in further literary study. He became, instead, an official teacher of medicine, astrology and mathematics.

三十二歳で北窓は入学したが、それ以上文学の研究をする気はなかった。その代わりに、医術と天文と算術の官の教師になった。

He was a fine whistler, we are told, and once when he had climbed to the highest peak of the Diamond Mountains and there whistled, the echoes resounded through the hills, and the priests were startled and wondered whose flute was playing.]

北窓は口笛の名手だったという。あるとき金剛山のいちばん高い峰に登ってそこで口笛を吹くと、そのこだまが山々に響きわたり、僧たちは驚いて、誰の笛が鳴っているのだろうと不思議がった。〕

[There is a term in Korea which reads he-an pang-kwang, "spiritual-eye distant-vision," the seeing of things in the distance. This pertains to both Taoists and Buddhists.

〔朝鮮には「慧眼放光」(霊の目の遠い見通し)と読む言葉があって、遠くのものごとを見ることをいう。これは道士にも仏教徒にもかかわることである。

It is said that when the student reaches a certain stage in his progress, the soft part of the head returns to the primal thinness that is seen in the child to rise and fall when it breathes. From this part of the head go forth five rays of light that shoot out and up more and more as the student advances in the spiritual way. As far as they extend so is the spiritual vision perfected, until at last a Korean sufficiently advanced could sit and say, "In London, to-day, such and such a great affair is taking place."

修行する者がその歩みのある段階に達すると、頭のやわらかい部分が、赤子が息をするときに上がったり下がったりするのが見える、あの生まれたときの薄さに戻るという。頭のこの部分から五筋の光が出て、修行する者が霊の道を進むにつれて、ますます遠く高く伸びていく。その光の届くかぎり霊の見通しは完成し、とうとう十分に修行を積んだ朝鮮人なら、座ったまま「今日ロンドンで、しかじかの大きな出来事が起こっている」と言えるようになる。

For example, So Wha-tam, who was a Taoist Sage, once was seen to laugh to himself as he sat with closed eyes, and when asked why he laughed, said, "Just now in the monastery of Ha-in [300 miles distant] there is a great feast going on. The priest stirring the huge kettle of bean gruel has tumbled in, but the others do not know this, and are eating the soup." News came from the monastery later on that proved that what the sage had seen was actually true.

たとえば、道家の聖人だった徐花潭(ソ・ファダム)は、あるとき目を閉じて座ったまま一人で笑っているのを見られ、なぜ笑うのかと尋ねられて言った。「ちょうど今、海印寺〔三百マイル離れている〕で盛大な宴が開かれている。大釜の豆粥をかきまぜていた僧が釜に落ちたが、ほかの者たちはそれを知らずに、その粥を食べているのだ。」のちに寺から知らせが届いて、聖人の見たことがほんとうに事実だったとわかった。

The History of Confucius, too, deals with this when it tells of his going with his disciple An-ja and looking off from the Tai Mountains of Shan-tung toward the kingdom of On. Confucius asked An-ja if he could see anything, and An-ja replied, "I see white horses tied at the gates of On."

孔子の伝もこのことを扱っていて、孔子が弟子の顔子(がんし)と一緒に山東の泰山から呉の国のほうを眺めたときのことを語っている。孔子が顔子に何か見えるかと尋ねると、顔子は答えた。「呉の門に白い馬がつながれているのが見えます。」

Confucius said, "No, no, your vision is imperfect, desist from looking. They are not white horses, but are rolls of white silk hung out for bleaching."]

孔子は言った。「いや、いや、お前の見通しは不完全だ。見るのはやめなさい。あれは白い馬ではなく、さらすために干してある白絹の巻物だ。」〕

The Story

話

The Master, Puk-chang, was a noted Korean. From the time of his birth he was a wonderful mystery. In reading a book, if he but glanced through it, he could recall it word for word. Without any special study he became a master of astronomy, geology, medicine, fortune-telling, music, mathematics and geomancy, and so truly a specialist was he that he knew them all.

北窓先生は名高い朝鮮の人だった。生まれたときから驚くべき神秘の人だった。本を読むとき、ざっと目を通すだけで、一語一語思い出すことができた。特に学ぶこともなく、天文、地理、医術、占い、音楽、算術、風水の達人になり、まことに専門家として、そのすべてに通じていた。

He was thoroughly versed also in the three great religions, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. He talked constantly of what other people could not possibly comprehend. He understood the sounds of the birds, the voices of Nature, and much else. He accompanied his father in his boyhood days when he went as envoy to Peking. At that time, strange barbarian peoples used also to come and pay their tribute. Puk-chang picked up acquaintance with them on the way. Hearing their language but once, he was readily able to communicate with them. His own countrymen who accompanied him were not the only ones astonished, nor the Chinamen themselves, but the barbarians as well. There are numerous interesting stories hinted at in the history of Puk-chang, but few suitable records were made of them, and so many are lost.

北窓はまた三つの大きな教え、儒教と仏教と道教にも深く通じていた。ほかの人にはとうてい理解できないことを絶えず語った。鳥の声や自然の声のほか、多くのことがわかった。少年のころ、使節として北京へ行く父のお供をした。そのころ、異国の蛮族たちも来て貢ぎ物を納めていた。北窓は道中でその者たちと知り合いになった。その言葉を一度聞いただけで、たやすく話を通じることができた。驚いたのは、北窓に同行した同国人ばかりでも、中国人たちばかりでもなく、蛮族たちもだった。北窓の伝には面白い話がたくさんほのめかされているが、ふさわしい記録はほとんど残されず、多くが失われてしまった。

There is one, however, that I recall that comes to me through trustworthy witnesses: Puk-chang, on a certain day, went to visit his paternal aunt. She asked him to be seated, and as they talked together, said to him, "I had some harvesting to do in Yong-nam County, and sent a servant to see to it. His return is overdue and yet he does not come. I am afraid he has fallen in with thieves, or chanced on a fire or some other misfortune."

けれども、信頼できる証人を通して伝わっていて、わたしの覚えている話がひとつある。ある日、北窓は父方のおばを訪ねた。おばは北窓を座らせ、話をしているうちに、こう言った。「嶺南(ヨンナム)郡に取り入れの用があって、召し使いをやって見させたのだけれど、帰る日を過ぎてもまだ戻ってこないの。盗賊にでも出くわしたか、火事かほかの災難にでもあったのではないかと心配なのよ。」

Puk-chang replied, "Shall I tell you how it goes with him, and how far he has come on the way?"

北窓は答えた。「その者がどうしているか、どこまで帰ってきているか、お話ししましょうか。」

She laughed, saying, "Do you mean to joke about it?"

おばは笑って言った。「冗談を言うつもりなの。」

Puk-chang, from where he was sitting, looked off apparently to the far south, and at last said to his aunt, "He is just now crossing the hill called Bird Pass in Mun-kyong County, Kyong-sang Province. Hallo! he is getting a beating just now from a passing yangban (gentleman), but I see it is his own fault, so you need not trouble about him."

北窓は座ったまま、はるか南のほうを眺めているようだったが、とうとうおばに言った。「その者はちょうど今、慶尚道聞慶(ムンギョン)郡の鳥嶺(セジェ)という峠を越えているところです。おや! ちょうど今、通りがかりの両班(紳士)に打たれています。でも、見たところ自分が悪いのですから、気にかけることはありません。」

The aunt laughed, and asked, "Why should he be beaten; what's the reason, pray?"

おばは笑って尋ねた。「どうして打たれなければならないの。いったいどういうわけなの。」

Puk-chang replied, "It seems this official was eating his dinner at the top of the hill when your servant rode by him without dismounting. The gentleman was naturally very angry and had his servants arrest your man, pull him from his horse, and beat him over the face with their rough straw shoes."

北窓は答えた。「どうやらその役人が峠の上で食事をしていたところへ、おばさまの召し使いが馬から降りずにそのそばを通り過ぎたようです。紳士はもちろんたいそう腹を立てて、家来たちにおばさまの召し使いを捕らえさせ、馬から引きずり下ろして、粗いわらじで顔を打たせたのです。」

The aunt could not believe it true, but treated the matter as a joke; and yet Puk-chang did not seem to be joking.

おばはそれが本当だとは信じられず、冗談として扱った。けれども北窓は冗談を言っているようには見えなかった。

Interested and curious, she made a note of the day on the wall after Puk-chang had taken his departure, and when the servant returned, she asked him what day he had come over Bird Pass, and it proved to be the day recorded. She added also, "Did you get into trouble with a yangban there when you came by?"

おばは興味と好奇心をそそられて、北窓が帰ったあと壁にその日を書きとめておいた。召し使いが戻ってくると、おばは何日に鳥嶺を越えたのかと尋ね、それは書きとめた日だとわかった。おばはさらに言った。「そこを通るとき、両班ともめごとを起こさなかったかい。」

The servant gave a startled look, and asked, "How do you know?" He then told all that had happened to him, and it was just as Puk-chang had given it even to the smallest detail.

召し使いはぎくりとした顔をして尋ねた。「どうしてご存じなのですか。」それから召し使いは身に起こったことをみな話したが、それは北窓の言ったとおりで、どんな細かいところまで違わなかった。

Im Bang.

任埅(イム・バン)