The Guqin: The Instrument of the Sages古琴：圣人之器

The guqin， or qin， is a seven-stringed classical musical instrument that is a relative of the zither family and has a history in China of about 5，000 years.

“古琴”，又稱“琴”，是中國一種七弦古典彈撥樂器，距今約有5000年歷史。

Scholars and sages considered the qin as the singular instrument that captures the essence of traditional Chinese culture.

學者圣賢將其視為唯一能承載中國傳統文化精髓的樂器。

The qin， along with calligraphy， chess， and painting， were considered the four must-have skills for literati， intellectuals， and cultured people in ancient China to cultivate their inner selves.

琴、棋、書、畫在中國古代并稱文人雅士修身養性的必備四藝。

The guqin is usually about four feet in length， with a head， neck， shoulders， and waist， and a tail that resembles that of a phoenix. The curved surface board represents Heaven， while the flat underside represents the Earth.

古琴通常長約四尺，有頭、頸、肩、腰，尾部形似鳳凰尾羽。琴面呈弧形，象征天，琴底為扁平，寓意地。

Traditionally， this instrument had five strings made of silk， which represented the five elements of metal， wood， water， fire， and earth. The extra two strings are a more modern addition and were added about 1，000 B.C. Also， the strings are now usually made of steel.

古琴最初只有五根絲制琴弦，分別代表金、木、水、火、土五行。公元前1000年左右，增補了兩根琴弦，且現今琴弦多為鋼絲。

The guqin is one of the most complicated instruments

古琴堪稱最為復雜的樂器之一

With more than 1，000 different finger techniques， the guqin is one of the most complicated instruments in the world to learn and requires great dedication to master.

古琴彈奏指法多達1000多種，堪稱世界最難掌握的樂器之一，需要潛心練習才能精通。

The hands are used in plucking， picking， sliding， pushing， and vibrating the strings to produce a variety of sounds， from flowing water to loud and bright tones.

通過撥弦、挑弦、滑弦、推弦、揉弦，指間便可發出流水淙淙、洪亮明快等萬千音色。

Confucius （551—479 B.C.） was known to have played the qin， and legend suggests that Huangdi， the Yellow Emperor， was partly responsible for its invention.

孔子（公元前551—前479）據知曾彈奏古琴，黃帝相傳對古琴發明有所貢獻。

The Chinese word 知音， or zhiyin， originated from a story about the qin. It literally means knowing the music， yet， through this story， has come to mean soul mate.

漢語“知音”二字就源自古琴典故。其字面意思為“通曉音律”，不過由于這一典故，現已引申為“靈魂伴侶”之意。

In traditional Chinese culture， when people concentrated on playing elegant music， it was very similar to a state of meditation， and it could take them to different spiritual realms. It was a way of cultivation.

在中國傳統文化中，彈奏古琴時的專注狀態類似于冥想，能讓人進入不同的精神境界。而這在當時就是一種修身養性的方式。

According to the Tang Wen1， during the Spring and Autumn period， Boya was a virtuoso in playing the qin. His good friend Zhong Ziqi could understand his music very well.

據《列子·湯問》記載，春秋時期的伯牙琴藝超絕，摯友鐘子期深諳其琴韻。

By listening to it， Ziqi could tell what was on Boya’s mind or what Boya was expressing when he played.

子期聆聽琴音，便能知曉伯牙心之所向，意之所達。

For example， when Boya was thinking of a high mountain while he played， Ziqi exclaimed： “Wonderful！ It’s as magnificent and dignified as Mount Tai！”

伯牙撫琴時心中想著高山，子期便贊嘆道：“太妙了！這琴聲巍峨莊嚴，就如同泰山一般！”

When Boya played with flowing water on his mind， Ziqi said： “Tremendous！ The melody is as vast and mighty as a great river rushing past.”

伯牙心中想著流水彈奏時，子期便稱贊道：“好呀！這琴聲浩浩蕩蕩，就仿若奔騰的大江大河！”

High Mountain and Flowing Water became the name of a classic guqin piece. As a four-character chengyu or idiom， it means elegant high art that not everyone can understand.

《高山流水》就此成為了一首經典古琴曲名。如今作為四字成語，其意味著非人人能懂的高雅藝術。

Through qin music， Ziqi could understand Boya and share the spiritual journey with him to different realms. Thus， they became kindred souls and zhiyin has since been widely used to refer to soulmates.

通過古琴音樂，子期得以理解伯牙，與其一同踏上通往不同境界的精神之旅。兩人因此成為知己，而“知音”一詞也自此被廣泛用于指代靈魂伴侶。

In 1977， the piece Flowing Water， performed by the famous qin player Guan Pinghu， was included on a gold-plated LP recording that NASA sent into outer space on the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft.

1977年，美國航空航天局通過旅行者1號和旅行者2號宇宙飛船將一張鍍金黑膠唱片送往外太空，那張唱片中就收錄了著名古琴演奏家管平湖所演繹的《流水》一曲。

In 2003， guqin music was recognized by UNESCO as one of the “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity”. But its exact origin， though often debated by scholars， still remains a mystery.

2003年，聯合國教科文組織將古琴音樂藝術列入“人類口述和非物質遺產代表作”名錄。然而其確切起源雖經學者多次探討，但仍是未解之謎。

That mystery is echoed in the poem Hut Among the Bamboo by Wang Wei：

這一謎團在王維的《竹里館》一詩中也有所體現：

Sitting alone， in the hush of the bamboo;

獨坐幽篁里，

I thrum my zither [qin]， and whistle lingering notes.

彈琴復長嘯。

In the secrecy of the wood， no one can hear;

深林人不知，

only the clear moon comes to shine on me.

明月來相照。

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎者；單位：四川師范大學）

1 本文第11—14段講述了“伯牙絕弦”的故事，《列子·湯問》中相關原文如下：伯牙善鼓琴，鐘子期善聽。伯牙鼓琴，志在登高山。鐘子期曰：“善哉，峨峨兮若泰山！”志在流水，鐘子期曰：“善哉，洋洋兮若江河！”伯牙所念，鐘子期必得之。

《論語》英譯選登

一日克己復禮，天下歸仁焉。

Once everybody has become self-restrained and observed the rules of propriety again， benevolence will prevail in the whole kingdom.

非禮勿視，非禮勿聽，非禮勿言，非禮勿動。

Do not look at what goes against the rules of propriety; do not listen to what goes against the rules of propriety; do not say what goes against the rules of propriety; do not do what goes against the rules of propriety.

己所不欲，勿施于人。

Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself.

（《〈論語〉最新英文全譯全注本》，吳國珍，福建教育出版社，2012）