跳转至

意外发现

也可以说是胡思乱想,仅代表个人意见。

1 断章取义

世界就是从这古老的黑暗中创造出来的。(《精灵宝钻》,努门诺尔沦亡史)

听起来很有道理,看上去也没什么问题。

2 俯拾即是

在中洲,似乎随手捡起来的或者顺手抄起来的都是好东西。

1 都林的王冠

他赐名山谷与山岗,

他渴饮新泉从未尝,

他俯身细观镜影湖面,

看见群星冠冕映现,

犹如银线络宝石,

高悬在倒影额前。(《魔戒》第一部 魔戒同盟,卷二,第六章 洛丝罗瑞恩)

2 纳熙尔

“当时我是吉尔–加拉德的传令官,随他的大军一同出征。我参加了魔多黑门前的达戈拉德之战,那次我军取得了胜利:吉尔–加拉德的长矛艾格洛斯和埃兰迪尔的长剑纳熙尔,皆是万夫莫当。我亲眼目睹了欧洛朱因山坡上那场最后的格斗,在那里,吉尔–加拉德战死,埃兰迪尔阵亡,纳熙尔剑在他身下断成数截。但是索隆自己也被掀翻,伊熙尔杜用他父亲的断剑斩下了索隆手上的魔戒,将之据为己有。”(《魔戒》第一部 魔戒同盟,卷二,第二章 埃尔隆德的会议)

以及

到了最后,因为围困极紧,索隆不得不亲自出马。他跟吉尔-加拉德以及埃兰迪尔缠斗,终至二人双双被杀,埃兰迪尔之剑也在主人倒下时折断。但索隆也被掼倒在地,伊熙尔杜握住纳熙尔断剑的剑柄,从索隆手上斩下了统御之戒,将它据为己有。(《精灵宝钻》,魔戒与第三纪元)

3 橡木盾

据说,梭林的盾牌被劈裂了,于是他将盾抛在一边,用战斧砍下一根橡木枝,拿在左手中抵挡敌人的攻击,间或当做棍棒挥舞击敌。他因此得名“橡木盾”。(《魔戒》,附录一 列王纪事)

4 至尊戒

他慢慢地坐起身来,四肢并用地四下摸索着,直到触摸到隧道的墙壁,但他在墙的上面和下面都找不到任何东西:什么也没有,既没有半兽人的迹象,也没有矮人的迹象。他的脑袋晕晕乎乎的,连自己摔倒之前在朝哪个方向走都根本无法确定。他勉强猜了一个方向,然后朝着那个方向爬了很长一段距离,直到他的手突然在地上摸到一个小小的、像是用冰冷金属做成的戒指。这是他生涯上的转折点,但他自己还不知道。(《霍比特人》,第五章 黑暗中的谜语)

5 格拉姆德凛和奥克锐斯特

石洞中到处散乱着掠夺来的财物,从黄铜扣子到堆在一个角落里的装满金币的坛子,形形色色,应有尽有。墙壁上还挂着很多衣服——对食人妖来说明显太小,多半是从那些被害人身上扒下来的——在这些衣物之间,还有各种款式、形状和尺寸的剑,其中两把特别吸引他们的目光,因为它们拥有美丽的剑鞘和镶嵌着宝石的剑柄。

甘道夫和梭林各自拿了一把,比尔博则拿了一把带鞘的刀子。这对食人妖来说大概只能算是装在口袋里的小刀,但对霍比特人来说却已经可以算得上是短剑了。

“像是好剑哪。”巫师将剑从鞘中拔出一半,好奇地打量着,“这不是食人妖自己做的,也不是这一带的人类工匠现在能够制作出的。等我们把上面的如尼文解读出来,应该可以知道更多它们的来历。”(《霍比特人》,第二章 烤羊腿)

以及

埃尔隆德认得各种各样的如尼文。那天,他看了那些从食人妖洞窟里拿来的刀剑后说:“这些不是食人妖打造的,它们是古代的武器,年代非常久远,属于我的同胞——西方的高等精灵,是在刚多林,为了对抗半兽人的战争而打造的。它一定来自于恶龙的巢穴或是半兽人的宝库,因为那个城市早在许多年前就已经被他们给摧毁了。梭林,这上面的如尼文是这把剑的名字,叫奥克锐斯特在刚多林的古代语言中是‘斩杀半兽人之剑’的意思,这可是一把名剑啊。甘道夫,你的这把名叫格拉姆德凛,‘击敌锤’的意思,曾经是刚多林的国王的佩剑。这两把剑可一定得好好保管哪!(《霍比特人》,第三章 短暂的休息)

3

全文

The Nature of Middle-earth,Part One: Time and Ageing, VIII. Eldarin traditions concerning the "Awakening"

This text is written in black nib-pen on five sides of four sheets of unlined paper. It dates from c. 1959.

As was seen at the end of the previous chapter, the legend of Imin, Tata, and Enel arose in the context of Tolkien’s desire to reduce the number of weddings (and thus begettings) of the Eldar on the March, while still having sufficient numbers of Elves to believably populate both Aman and Beleriand, and yet allow Finwë to still be of marriageable age when he arrives in Aman.

While the subsequent typescript version of this text, published in The War of the Jewels, follows this manuscript (as emended) quite closely (see The legend of the Awaking of the Quendi (Cuivienyarna); XI:420–4), there are enough differences of details and textual development to warrant giving the full manuscript version here, in the context in which the legend first arose.

Summary of the Eldarin traditions concerning the “Awakening” and of the Legend of the Cuivië (Cuivienyarna)

During the waking of their first hröar from the “flesh of Arda” the Quendi slept “in the womb of Arda”, beneath the green sward, and “awoke” when they were full-grown. But the “First Elves” (also called the Unbegotten, or the Eru-begotten) did not all wake together. Eru had so ordained that each should lie beside his or her “destined spouse”. But three Elves awoke first of all; and they were elf-men, for elf-men are more strong in hröa and more eager and adventurous in strange places. These three are named in the oldest traditions: Imin, Tata, and Enel. They awoke in that order, but with little time between each; and from them, say the Eldar, the words for 1, 2, and 3 were made: the oldest of all numerals.

Imin, Tata, and Enel awoke before their spouses, and the first thing that they saw was the stars, for they woke in the early twilight before dawn. And the next thing they saw was their destined spouse lying asleep on the green sward beside them. Then they were so enamoured of their beauty that their desire for speech was immediately quickened and they began “to think of words” to speak and sing in. And being impatient they could not wait but woke up their spouses. Thus (say the Eldar) elf-women ever after reached maturity sooner than elf-men; for it had been intended that they should wake later than their spouses.

But after a time, when they had dwelt together a little and had devised many words, Imin and Iminyë, Tata and Tatië, Enel and Enelyë walked together, and left the green dell of their waking, and they came soon to another dell and found there six pairs of Quendi, and the stars were again shining in the morrow-dim and the elf-men were just waking.

Then Imin claimed to be the eldest and to have the right of first choice; and he said, “I choose these twelve to be my companions”. And the elf-men woke their spouses, and when the eighteen Elves had dwelt together a little and had learned many words and devised more, they walked on together, and soon in another even deeper and wider hollow they found nine pairs of Quendi, and the elf-men had just waked in the starlight.

Then Tata claimed the right of second choice, and he said: “I choose these eighteen to be my companions”. Then again the elf-men woke their spouses, and they dwelt and spoke together, and devised many new sounds and new and longer words; and then the thirty-six walked abroad together, until they came to a grove of birches by a stream, and there they found twelve pairs of Quendi, and the elf-men likewise were just standing up, and looking at the stars through the birch boughs.

Then Enel claimed the right of third choice, and he said: “I choose these twenty-four to be my companions”. Again the elf-men woke their spouses; and for many days the sixty Elves dwelt by the stream, and soon they began to make verse and song to the music of the water.

At length they all set out together again. But Imin noticed that each time they had found more Quendi than before, and he thought to himself: “I have only twelve companions (although I am the eldest); I will take a later choice”. Soon they came to a sweet-smelling firwood on a hill-side, and there they found eighteen pairs of Quendi, and all were still sleeping. It was still night and clouds were in the sky. But before dawn a wind came, and roused the elf-men, and they woke and were amazed at the stars; for all the clouds were blown away and the stars were bright from east to west. And for a long time the eighteen new Quendi took no heed of the others, but looked at the light of Menel. But when at last they turned their eyes back to earth they beheld their spouses and woke them to look at the stars, crying to them elen, elen! And so the stars got their name.

Now Imin said: “I will not choose again yet”; and Tata, therefore, chose these thirty-six to be his own companions; and they were tall and dark-haired and strong like the fir-trees, and from them most of the Ñoldor later were sprung.

And the ninety-six Quendi now spoke together, and the newly-waked devised many new and beautiful words, and many cunning artifices of speech; and they laughed, and danced upon the hill-side, until at last they desired to find more companions. Then they all set out again together, until they came to a lake dark in the twilight, and there was a great cliff above it upon the east side, and a waterfall came down from the height, and the stars glittered on the foam. But the elf-men were already bathing in the waterfall, and they had waked their spouses. There were twenty-four pairs; but as yet they had no formed speech, though they sang sweetly and their voices echoed in the stone, mingling with the rush of the falls.

But again Imin withheld his choice, thinking “next time it will be a great company”. Therefore Enel said: “I have the choice, and I choose these forty-eight to be my companions”. And the hundred and forty-four Quendi dwelt long together by the lake, until they all became of one mind and speech, and were glad.

At length Imin said: “It is time now that we should go on and seek more companions”. But most of the others were content. So Imin and Iminyë and their twelve companions set out, and they walked long by day and by twilight in all the country about the Lake, near which all the Quendi had awakened – for which reason it is called Cuiviénen. But they never found any more companions: for the tale of the First Elves was complete.

And so it was that the Quendi ever after reckoned in twelves, and that 144 was for long their highest number, so that in none of their later tongues was there any common name for greater numbers. And so also it came about that the “Companions of Imin” or the Eldest Company (of whom came the Ingar) were nonetheless only 14 in all; and the smallest company; and the “Companions of Tata” (of whom came the Ñoldor) were 56 in all; but the “Companions of Enel” although the Youngest Company were the largest. From them came the Teleri (or Lindar), and they were in the beginning 74 in all.

Now the Quendi loved all of Arda that they had yet seen, and green things that grow, and the sun of summer, were their delight; but nonetheless they were ever moved most in heart by the Stars, and the hours of twilight, at “morrow-dim” and “even-dim” in clear weather were the times of their greatest joy. For in those hours in the spring of the year they had first awakened to life in Arda. But the Lindar, above all the other Quendi, from their beginning were most in love with water, and sang before they could speak.

评论

这是目前读到最恐怖的故事。

首生儿女在苏醒之后先是宣告主权,然后机关算尽,并且在实质上分裂为了三个氏族。这里我并不是很能理解他们一开始就分裂为三个族群的意义是什么,因为从描写来看伊明、塔塔、埃奈尔并无什么不同——除了伊明更加工于心计,而不像后来三个族群在外貌、喜好上都有了明显的差异。无论如何,我会将其视为“恶”的一部分。但与此同时,考虑到米尔寇这样的强大存在同样是伊露维塔的创造,那么这里似乎也是可以接受的。

联想到在《精灵宝钻》的精灵宝钻征战史第六章中:

“在曼威看来,米尔寇的邪恶已被治愈。这是因为,曼威不受邪恶侵扰,无法领会邪恶,而且他知道起初在伊露维塔的意念中,米尔寇与他是完全一样的,他没看穿米尔寇的深层居心,也未察觉所有的爱都已永远离开了他。”

所以曼威是不是也无法察觉凡雅族的“邪恶”才会如此以貌取人?虽然后面他们确实没闹过什么事。

当然,另一种可能的解释是米尔寇已经造成了“阿尔达的伤毁”。即使采用首生儿女苏醒于VY 1000的版本,那么此时米尔寇实际上也早已盘踞在中洲了。

评论