LESSON 26 ABOU BEN ADHEM 阿博·本·艾德汉

James Henry Leigh Hunt (b.1784, d.1859) was the son of a West Indian, who married an American lady, and practiced law in Philadelphia until the Revolution; being a Tory, he then returned to England, where Leigh Hunt was born.The latter wrote many verses while yet a boy, and in 1801 his father published a collection of them, entitled “Juvenilia.” For many years he was connected with various newspapers, and, while editor of the “Examiner,” was imprisoned for two years for writing disrespectfully of the prince regent.While in prison he was visited frequently by the poets Byron, Moore, Lamb, Shelley, and Keats; and there wrote “The Feast of the Poets,” “The Descent of Liberty, a Mask,” and “The Story of Rimini,” which immediately gave him a reputation as a poet.His writings include various translations, dramas, novels, collections of essays, and poems.

1.ABOU BEN ADHEM (may his tribe increase!)

Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace,

And saw within the moonlight in his room,

Making it rich and like a lily in bloom,

An angel writing in a book of gold.

2.Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold;

And to the presence in the room he said,

“What writest thou?” The vision raised its head,

And, with a look made of all sweet accord,

Answered, “The names of those who love the Lord.”

3.“And is mine one?” said Abou.“Nay, not so,”

Replied the angel.Abou spoke more low,

But cheerly still; and said, “I pray thee, then,

Write me as one that loves his fellow-men.”

4.The angel wrote, and vanished.The next night

It came again, with a great wakening light,

And showed the names whom love of God had blessed;

And, lo! Ben Adhem’s name led all the rest.

NOTE.—The above selection is written in imitation of an oriental fable.

【中文阅读】

詹姆斯·亨利·李·亨特（1784—1859）是一个西部印第安人的儿子。他的父亲娶了一名美国女子，并在费城以律师身份执业，直到美国独立战争爆发。由于父亲是一名保皇派，因此他返回英国，不久，儿子李·亨特便呱呱坠地。孩童时期，李·亨特就已经写有大量散文。1801，他父亲出版了一本题为《少年读物》的父子合集。多年来，李·亨特与许多报纸的编辑交往密切。在担任《检查者》编辑期间，亨特曾因发表了对摄政王不敬的文章而入狱两年。关押期间，诗人拜伦、摩尔、兰姆、雪莱和济慈经常到监狱里拜访他。在监狱里，他完成了《诗人的盛宴》、《自由的堕落——面具》和《利米尼的故事》，这些作品迅速奠定了他的诗坛地位。李·亨特写作题材广泛，包括各种翻译、戏剧、小说、散文集以及诗歌。

1.阿博·本·艾德汉（祝愿他的部落壮大！）

深夜，从深沉香甜的梦中醒来。

屋里，月光如水，

皎洁如银，宛若百合盛开，

有位天使，在金灿灿的书上撰写。

2.祥云环绕，四周静寂无声，

他不免打消怯意，上前问道，

“你在写什么？”幻影抬头，

声音柔和，巧笑嫣然：

“我在抄写，信奉上帝者的名字。”

3.“这里面有我吗？”阿博问。“不，没有。”

天使回答道。阿博语调有些凄然，

但仍旧欣然说道：“那，请求你，

把我记成，热爱同胞的人吧。”

4.天使写毕隐去。翌日夜晚，

再次降临，带来恢弘光明，

照亮那些上帝赐予爱意的名字：

瞧，本·艾德汉的名字熠熠生辉！