雙語朗讀美文：日本的筷子文化

導語本文通過筷子這種取食工具分析日本文化的內涵.日本和中國同屬漢字文化圈和筷子文化圈.從中國引入日本後筷子後在飲食生活中得到普及和發展,併產生了獨特的筷子文化.筷子的長度和形狀也進行了改造,與中國多用竹筷子不同,日本筷子多木製、稍短、尖頭粗尾,更好的適應日本飲食多生冷、分餐制的特點.日本筷子還因使用者而有所區別,有兒童專用筷、成人專用筷、客人專用筷,還分男女筷.公用筷和方便筷的產生都緣於日本人認爲筷子用後靈魂會停留在上面,不能讓別人玷污了自己的靈魂而使自己遭受災禍.在筷子的使用上有多達幾十種禁忌,其中除了不雅舉止外,有的還和葬禮有關係.

What do you usually eat with?

If your answer is not, "My hands, " then you belong to one of two minorities on this planet. Thirty percent of us usually eat with cutlery. Another thirty percent use chopsticks.

你一般是用什麼吃東西的呢?

如果你的回答說的不是手，那麼你便是屬於這個星球上主要兩大類人羣之一了。在我們這個星球上，有百分之三十的人吃飯時是使用刀具的，而另外百分之三十的人則是使用筷子。

How the Japanese began to use chopsticks is a subject of debate. Some say chopsticks wended their way, along with other facets of culture, from China, throughKorea, toJapanaround the sixth century AD. Others, that they were brought directly back toJapanby an imperial envoy at a somewhat later date. In any case, like many things that came fromChinatoJapan, chopsticks were initially revered.

The Japanese word for "chopsticks" is hashi which is a homophone with the Japanese word meaning "bridge". The concept of chopsticks providing a bridge is a recurring motif in Japanese culture, reflected in distinctive shapes and materials that vary with the occasions of their use. In their early history, Japanese chopsticks provided a bridge between the human and the er than for taking ordinary meals, they were used, at first, for sharing food with the gods.

日本人是如何開始用筷子的呢?這個問題一直都在被人討論。有的人說筷子是和其它文化事物一樣，大概在公元6世紀的時候，從中國經由韓國，再傳到日本。當然也有人說，筷子之所以流傳到日本，是當時帝國之間的使者往來所造成的。無論怎麼說，像其它早期從中國流傳到日本的那樣東西一樣，筷子從一開始在日本就受到了尊從。

在日文中，筷子的發音是hashi，這和橋在日本中的發音是一樣的。而這樣的一層含義也就表達出了在日本文化中，筷子是被賦予了搭建各種文化橋樑的深刻含義，這從筷子在不同場合中有不同的形狀，材料這一點上可以反映出來。日本的早期歷史中，筷子還充當了把人和神聯繫起來的橋樑，筷子不僅僅是人們平時吃飯時所使用的工具，更重要的是，使用筷子則象徵着神是與你一在一起的。

It was believed that when a pair of chopsticks was offered to a deity, the chopsticks became inhabited by that deity. When those chopsticks were used to eat the food that was offered along with them, mortal and immortal dined together.

自從人們把一雙筷子敬奉給神明後，人們則認爲神明也是用筷子吃飯的，所以當用筷子來吃飯時，無論是凡人還是神明，都是一樣在使用筷子。

Unlike their Chinese precursors, of uniform thickness, Japanese chopsticks are tapered along their length. The chopsticks used for ceremonial purposes are tapered on both ends. Akira Izu explained when I visited his chopstick museum in Kyoto, "The gods said, 'One end is for you, the other is for us.'"

和早就在使用筷子的中國不同，中國的筷子上下差不多都是一樣粗細，而日本的筷子則是隨着筷子的長度，尾端變的越來越細。另外，在商業會餐中使用的筷子則是兩邊都很細，對於這個問題，曾經我參訪京都筷子博物館時，Akira Izu是這樣解釋的：“神曰：一邊爲你，一邊是爲我。”

This kind of ceremonial chopstick is still in use inJapan, today. One venue is the formal tea ceremony. The form of the tea ceremony was crystallized by the seventeenth century tea master, Senno Rikyu, who prescribed a light meal before sharing tea. It is said that Rikyu would carve new chopsticks, himself, from a fresh block of cedar before his guests would arrive. These had tapered, rounded ends and a squared off middle section so as to be held easily. This style of chopsticks still bears Rikyu's name and is used for the tea ceremony and in many restaurants.

像這種在不同場合下使用不同的筷子如今在日本依然是一種習慣。正式的茶會就是一個很好的例子，這種形式的茶會的中心思想是源自於日本17世紀一位禪宗大師—利修，他每次在給客人上茶前都會讓客人稍微吃一點東西。據說村田每次在客人到來之前，都會親自用雪松木自己製作筷子，他做的筷子尖頂圓底，筷子中間的部分較平坦，這樣拿起來也比較方便。而這種筷子則是用利修的名字命名並一直在日本的茶會和其它餐廳裏沿用至今。

You will also find ceremonial chopsticks used in Japanese homes during New Year celebrations. They are made from light colored wood, with a round cross-section throughout. It is common, at a big family gathering, for each member to receive his or her own set of these chopsticks to use throughout the holiday period. Following the holidays these chopsticks are often taken to a temple and burned in a fire maintained for that purpose.

The custom of individuals using their own pair of chopsticks is not only for the holidays.

在新年裏，禮儀場合下使用的筷子也會出現在日本家庭中。通常它們都是由明亮顏色的木頭製作而成的，兩頭都是圓柱形。不但如此，逢年過節在大家庭聚會中，大家都使用自己的筷子是再平常不過的了。在一些節日裏，這類筷子通常也會被帶到寺廟中去被點燃，並賦予上節日的意義。

Chopsticks gradually took their place, in Japan, as a bridge between serving vessels and the mouth in ordinary meals. Unlike Chinese families, who keep a collection of a dozen or so identical chopsticks in a box or a large cup on the dining table, Japanese families tend to keep personal pairs of chopsticks for each family member.

不僅僅是在逢年過節的時候大家都使用自己的筷子，筷子在日本正逐漸變的重要，作爲重要場合中的代表以及平常餐飲中的工具，筷子依舊充當連接兩者的橋樑。在中國的家，無論是普通筷子還是個人筷子，都是收在一起放到一個盒子裏或者一個杯子裏並擺放在桌上，而日本家庭則是把每個家庭成員的筷子都單獨分好放好。

Japanese chopsticks for every day use are tapered at only the end used to grasp the food, and can be found in vast variety. At the beginning of the seventeenth century the people of Wakasa (an area along theJapanSeacoast) began to apply lacquer to chopsticks. This made them more slippery, but longer lasting.

在日本，通常每天要用的筷子底部都是尖的，這樣的筷子哪裏都是。在若州(日本一個沿海的小鎮)，17世紀初人們開始往筷子上塗漆，這樣就使得筷子變得更滑了但同時也使筷子的壽命變的更長久了。

Lacquered chopsticks from Wakasa are among the most traditional styles. They may be dusted with powdered seashells, or coated with several layers of different colored lacquer which are then sanded through to produce multicolored patterns. Other prefectures produce chopsticks featuring the materials or techniques they are known for such as inlays of shells or intricate carving techniques.

若州的漆筷是日本最傳統的筷子之一，有的時候是被灑上了貝殼磨成的粉，也有的時候是被蓋上了不同顏色漆條然後磨光最後被做成了各種各樣的款式。另外，日本有一些地方的筷子的裝飾，則無疑顯露出其地方高超的鑲嵌技巧與精細的雕刻功底，而通常這類地方也因其而聞名。

Modern designs may include your astrological sign (Eastern or Western), the flora or fauna of the seasons, or popular animation characters.

現代的筷子上有可能會有你的星座(無論是西方還是東方)，各種季節的花草或者動物，還或者是流行的卡通角色。

Some stores inJapanare devoted exclusively to the sale of chopsticks.

在日本，有一些商店對筷子的銷售作出了極大的貢獻。

They offer various designs for eating foods ranging from needle sharp points for fish, to spiraled tips for spaghetti, to almost paddle-like ends for ochazuke (rice covered with green tea). ou can find chopsticks made of ivory, bone, or plastic, but wood is the most common material. Willowis often chosen for a wedding gift because it is long lasting.

在這樣商店中，你可以看到各式各樣的用來吃飯的筷子，無論是細尖的用來吃魚的筷子還是那種用來吃意大利麪的螺旋形的筷子，亦或者是那種底部像勺子一樣用來吃茶泡飯的筷子。你可能也看到過象牙做的筷子，骨頭做的筷子或者是塑料做的筷子，但是最普通的也是最常用的製作筷子的材料是木頭。人們一般都會選擇用柳木做的筷子作爲結婚禮物送給他人，因爲柳木象徵長長久久。

The Yoshino area, in Naraprefecture, is known for its cedar forests and as the origin of waribashi, "disposable chopsticks". During the seventeenth century, Yoshino was a production center for sake barrels and began turning the leftover scraps into the kind of chopsticks that are now commonly found in restaurants all over the nation.

在日本吉野一塊，奈良因其茂盛的雪松以及一次性筷子而聞名，在17世紀，吉野是日本產清酒桶的中心地帶，經常會有很多制桶剩餘下來的木屑，於是這樣剩餘的木屑就被做成了現在哪裏都能看到的一次性木筷。

Waribashi are made from a single piece of wood, partially split in the middle. The end user completes the splitting by pulling apart the two halves.

一次性木筷是由一小塊木頭做成的，可以從中間斷開，許多人用完後就把它從中間一掰爲二。

There is some controversy over disposable chopsticks. Some argue that, since they are made, even today, from scrap wood, they pose no threat to the environment. While this is true of waribashimade inJapan, it is estimated that ninety percent of the disposable chopsticks used inJapanare made in China, where trees are harvested for that single purpose.

對待一次性筷子，始終是有一些爭議的。有些人說自從一次性筷子被創造出來，時至今日，對木頭，對環境是極大的威脅。而事實上在日本，一次性筷子確實是起到了危險自然的作用，在日本百分之九十的一次性木筷都是由中國生產的，換句話說茂盛的樹木只是爲了生產一次性木筷這個僅有的目的。

A recent invention has eased the minds of both those who are concerned with the preservation of natural resources and those who feel squeamish about chopsticks that have been previously used by agibashi (literally "connecting chopsticks") are chopsticks with a socket halfway through their length so they cam be taken apart and fit into a convenient carrying case, to go anywhere with their ecting chopsticks are a thoughtful souvenir for the eco-friendly traveler.

最近一項發明平衡了那些環境保護主義者和拒絕使用公用筷子者之間的爭端，Tsunagibashi(也就是所謂的“伸縮筷”)是一種中間有槽可以把筷子下半部縮進去的並且便於攜帶的筷子，人們走到哪裏都能帶着它，而伸縮筷也就成爲了崇尚生態友好旅遊人士最有意義的禮物。

Japanese chopsticks have also been made from silver and gold, especially for use in royal households where food tasters were e was a time when it was believed precious metals would turn black when in contact with certain poisons. Japan's royalty may have lost some of its food tasters to this myth.

日本的筷子同樣也有銀做的和金做的，特別是皇室裏那些僕人試菜時就經常要使用到。有一段時間，人們相信當接觸到有毒物質時，那些珍貴的金屬是會變黑的，所以日本的皇室的試菜僕人很有可能因爲這樣子虛烏有的理論而喪生。

And speaking of death brings us back to the ceremonial use of chopsticks.

談到死亡，這裏就不得不提到日本筷子特殊場合的另一種用法。

Cremation is nearly universal in modern-day, Japanese funerals. The body, however, is not reduced entirely to ash. It is customary for the extended family to transfer the bones of the deceased into an urn with chopsticks. Funerary chopsticks are tapered at only one end, but are quite different for those used at table. One is made from bamboo and one from wood, representing the elements of water and fire, thus creating a bridge between this world and the next.

在如今葬禮可以說是很普遍的事情，然而日本的葬禮，人死後的身軀並不是歸於灰燼，在那些有勢的大家族，他們通常會選擇把逝者的骨頭做成骨灰甕，再搭配筷子。配合骨灰甕的筷子一般都是隻有一邊尖頭，但和通常在飯桌上使用的筷子是不一樣的。前者是用竹子做的，後者則是用木頭做的，骨灰翁配竹筷象徵火與水，好比爲現世和來世搭建了一個橋樑一番。

In the Japanese way of thinking, there is a lingering sense of the divine in any pair of chopsticks.A pair of your own, inhabited by memories made inJapan, can bridge the gap between the present and the past.

從日本人的思考方式看來，每一雙筷子裏都有神明的意識在迴盪。自己的那一雙來自日本的筷子，到處都充滿着回憶，且相連着前世今生。