Research on English Translation of TCM
1. Chuan-Yue NIU
2. La-Ping WANG
3月份以来，应邀参加了一些有关中医对外翻译及中医术语英语翻译规范化的国内、国际学术会议，听取了各方关于中医术语英语翻译问题的意见和建议，受益可谓颇丰，然而困惑却也甚隆。因为每个人对翻译的体会和对相关概念的理解总是不尽相同的，所以研中自然有讨，论中难免有争，这其实是很自然的。然而如何研，如何讨，如何论，如何争，却是很有些讲究的。振臂一呼，一时可能飞砂走石，却终属意气用事之举;义愤填膺，当下也许翻江倒海，但终为强弩末势之态。
静观近来关于中医术语英译问题的研讨和论争，总不免想起庄子《齐物论》的忠告：夫大道不称，大辩不言，大仁不仁，大廉不谦，大勇不忮。道昭不道，言辩不及，仁常不周，廉清而不信，勇忮而不成。《山海经南山经》说：有木焉，其状如谷而黑理，其华四照，其名曰迷谷，佩之不迷。真希望能采得迷谷一枝，常佩胸前，以防论争之际迷失自己。会议期间，曾信笔涂鸦了一些杂感，今选录几则，串掇为文，借以表达自己对相关问题的理解。
1 内涵是纲，其余皆目
近有媒体报道，云南学者戈叔亚经过近8年的艰苦努力，终于找到了抗战时期一外国记者拍摄的滇缅公路上的著名险境24拐。所谓24拐，指的是位于云南省境内、有24个拐弯的滇缅公路的一段。多年来，外国记者当年拍摄的那幅著名的照片已经成为滇缅公路的标志，海内外人士提到滇缅公路时，自然而然地想到或提到24拐，但却从来没有人实际考察过24拐的具体方位。为了深入地研究滇缅公路的历史及其在中国抗战中所发挥的巨大作用，戈叔亚从 1995年开始寻找24拐原址。然而当他踏遍了云南境内与滇缅公路相关的山山水水时，却没有能够按图索到骥。
著名的24拐究竟在哪里呢?戈叔亚感到迷惑不解。照片上的景色如此逼真明确，现实中为何找不到呢?想到这里，戈叔亚产生了一个大胆的想法：24拐会不会根本就不在云南境内呢?于是他循着自己的这个大胆的设想，开始了新一轮的考察，终于在贵州省找到了与原照片一摸一样的奇境 24拐。海内外人士津津乐道了半个多世纪的滇缅公路24拐，其实根本就不在滇境!这一发现令戈叔亚无比惊讶，也震惊了海内外史学界。
一个在全球误传了半个世纪的有关滇缅公路的史话，就此得以名正而言顺。虽然史学界对此感到无比的遗憾，然而历史总归是历史，事实总归是事实，容不得半点虚假。这样天翻地覆的变故在史学研究中可谓屡见不鲜。在译学界，这样的实例其实也是不胜枚举，有些逐步被正名了，而有些却仍然在以讹传讹，似乎永无直面读者之日。
会前得到一部由西方一汉学家编写的汉英英汉中医辞典。粗略翻阅了一下，感到编者在编写这部辞典时，的确花费了很大精力，几乎可以用字斟句酌、精益求精的评语来评价其翻译。这当然是就其翻译态度而言的，并非对其翻译准确性的评判。事实上，该君的翻译在很多方面都存在着这样或那样值得商榷之处，有的地方的翻译与原文几乎有离题万里之差距。正文暂且不表，单看其附录中的一些庞杂内容，便不难洞悉其译笔的虚无之处。在附录中有关针灸穴位的翻译中，他不但将穴位名称按常规予以音译，而且别出心裁地逐一加以意译或直译。这种翻译有无必要，得失如何，暂且不论。单从其对穴位中文名称的解析来看，就存在着许多臆测杜撰的成分。
比如他将列缺穴意译为Broken Sequence，将丰隆穴意译为Bountiful Bulge.列缺真的是断裂的序列之意吗?恐怕不能直接照字面释义。在中国古代，列缺实际上指的是闪电之神。《淮南子》上即有这样的记载： 雷以电为鞭，电光照处，谓之列缺。这样看来，所谓的列缺，古人实际上指的是打雷时电光闪射之处。后来，列缺就逐步演变成了电神的称谓。所以明人程登吉所编著的《幼学琼林》就有列缺乃电之神，望舒是月之御之谓。正是因为这个原因，列缺在古代还被文人墨客用以指代打雷闪电。如李白《梦游天姥吟留别》一诗中就有列缺霹雳，丘峦崩摧之句。所以列缺应该是god of lightning，而不是什么broken sequence.当然丰隆也不是什么bountiful bulge，而是god of cloud.因为在古代，丰隆指云神，正如《幼学琼林》所言云师系是丰隆，雪神乃是滕六。
从这个简单的例子可以看出，不熟悉中国古典文化，不了解诸子百家之学，是很难翻译好中医的。
2 垂范有度，行之有序
十五年前我在撰写硕士论文《论中医名词术语英译的标准化》时，亓兴华老师建议我最好将标准化改为统一化。当时我对亓老师的建议颇不以为然，认为统一化不如标准化科学。今天看来，我当年所谓的标准化的提法是何等的childish, 倒是亓老师的建议愈来愈彰显其实际意义。所以自从1993年出版了《中医翻译导论》之后，特别是1997年出版了《中医英语翻译技巧》以来，我就不再轻言标准化了。
在今年上半年举行的几次有关中医名词术语英语翻译国际标准化的国内国际会议上，与会学者对中医有关概念翻译的标准化问题进行了深入的探讨。比如对心主血脉究竟翻译成the heart governing the blood vessels还是the heart governs the blood vessels，论争颇为激烈。甚至于对究竟使用govern还是 control来翻译主，也各有异见。对于这样的论争，从语义学研究的角度来看，有其积极的一面。但从术语翻译的标准化或统一化的要求来看，却未免有些舍本逐末了。
我在给有关方面的建议中提出，中医名词术语英语翻译的标准化，应局限于中医理法方药的核心概念和术语，不应涵盖所有的中医用语。对于中医上的一些比较单一的概念，如阴阳、五行、气血、经络等，翻译时的确应该追求用词的完全同一。但对于一些词组、短语和习惯用语的翻译，却不一定要求字词的完全一致，其实这也是很难做到的。对这类用语的规范化应该着眼于关键字词的统一，避免在无关紧要的功能词上论争不休。以辨证论治为例，目前的基本趋势是将 辨、证和治这三个字分别译为differentiation，syndrome和treatment.只要这三个关键词的翻译一致，其他的功能词语，如based on, according to等等，可以不必强求同一。
下面是我向有关方面提供的一份所谓中医名词术语英语翻译标准化方案的部分内容。妥否，请读者诸君公鉴。
阴阳学说：阴阳;阴中之阳：对立;互根;消长;转化
五行学说：五行;木;火;土;金;水;相生;相克;相乘;相恶。
精、气、神等：精;气;神;魂;魄;命门;正气;元气;真气;宗气;卫气;营气;卫分;气分;心气;中气;气化;津;液;津液;汗;涎;涕。
脏腑：脏;腑;脏腑;三焦;奇恒之腑;骨度;心阴;运化;生化;肃降;水道;天癸;先天;纳气。
经络：经;络;正经;经气;孙络;浮络;穴位。
病因：病因;邪;六淫;风;寒;暑;湿;燥;火;内风;毒;五志;七情;痰;痰;饮
病机：病机;偏盛;偏衰;虚;实;失调;痰迷心窍;胃热
诊断：诊法;证;证型;证候;四诊合参;望诊;面色;望舌;舌苔;闻诊;谵语;问诊;脉诊;切脉;脉象;浮脉;沉脉;迟脉;数脉;洪脉;细脉;虚脉;实脉;长脉;短脉;滑脉;涩脉;弦脉;紧脉;濡脉;缓脉;微脉弱脉;散脉;芤脉;革脉;牢脉;伏脉;动脉;代脉;结脉;促脉;大脉;软脉;疾脉;怪脉;寸口;恶寒;痞;满;纳呆;口苦;完谷不化;里急后重;五更泄;按诊。
辨证：八纲;表里;寒热辨证;八纲辨证;表虚证;风火证
治则与治法：治则;正治;反治;治法;八法;汗法;吐法;下法;和法;温法;清法;消法;补法;开窍。中药方剂：中药;方剂;四气五味;君;臣;佐;使。
3 老话新说，意犹未尽
几年前，有感于中医用语英语翻译百花齐放的状况，我曾在致友人的信中提出了如下一些看法：
子曰：名不正则言不顺，言不顺则事不成。名为实之谓，实为名之体。言物之名，必据之以实;论物之实，必举之以名。古今亦然。
名实之谓，约定而成俗。荀子曰：名无固宜，约之以名。约定俗成谓之宜，异于约则谓之不宜。名无固实，约之以命。约定俗成谓之实名。
由此观之，名实之谓，实出或然之约，而非必然之性。远观名实，似有必然;近究其宜，实为或然。其或然于约定之先而必然于俗成之后。一物之名，约而成俗，其名实之谓，天然一体，众心不疑。
今观中医术语之英译，当先明乎原语名实之谓，辨其形意之合，别其古今之谕，以理明意，以意正名，方无虎蒙驴皮之忧。
然中医理奥而言简，意深而语约，译作今文亦不免佶屈聱牙，况译为西文!谪仙谓蜀道之难难于上晴天，英译中医虽无登天之难，亦有蜀道之险。幸有中西译士，力劈荆棘，百年不懈，始有今日中西交通之便。
中西译士，或因释义悬差，或因谴词偏嗜，或因中西文隔，所译之语，多有百花之彩。有识之士，深以为虑。统一译名，刻不容缓。如何而然?五则之说，似可借鉴。
一曰简洁：中医用语简洁明快，语约意深，英译之中医术语理当如此。冗长之译文名曰翻译，实乃释义。不独大费笔墨，且衍化横生。
二曰自然：中西医理迥然不同，治法泾渭两色，然其论病用药亦时有相类。人同此心、心同此理者，互为对应当为可取，且述之自然。若中医之瘰疬，实为西语之scrofula.
三曰不翻：不翻者，音译也。玄奘译佛经，力主五不翻，即梵语固有而华夏实无此物此观念者，音译之。中医乃华夏古医，其理法方药西语阙如者，亦当音译之。此法实合名从主人之万国通例。阴阳、气、太极者，即属其类。
四曰回译：回译者，谓直译之形意俱存者。英译之中医用语若可回译，则阅者可见词名义，交流之便自不待言。
五曰规定：言为心声，心为人灵。人各有心，众志难一。一事之论，不免各执一词，屡论屡争，难有终了。为免争计，久争不结、众论莫是者，当由公推之权威机构加以规定，颁布施行。针灸经穴名称之统一即属此举。
此所谓五则之说，实际上是我当年撰写《中医英语翻译技巧》时，与子木先生等故旧共同厘定之译则，今日重温旧时之论，似乎仍有可供借鉴之处。窃以为中医术语英译及其规范化若能以此而行，或有溪径可循。
写到这里，忽然想起了钱钟书先生与中西文化比较的一段趣闻。今节录于此，权作本文结语：曾经有一段时间，许多学人以谈论中西文化比较为时尚。对此种清谈学风，钱钟书先生极为厌恶。他说：有些人连中文、西文都不懂，谈得上什么比较?戈培尔说过，有人和我谈文化，我就拔出手枪来。现在要是有人和我谈中西文化比较，如果我有手枪的话，我也一定要拔出来!
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