天方夜谭英文故事：The Fourth Voyage

The Fourth Voyage : 

 

Sindbad told of the fourth voyage. 

 

 

"Once again a restful, luxurious¹ life bored me. My wandering heart led me to take another voyage on a merchant ship. Bad luck was our constant companion even as we began the voyage. A while after our ship set sail, a storm drove it into rocks and our ship broke. Many of my companions drowned. The survivors² like me held on to a rock till the high waves subsided³ and so were saved. We managed to hold on to some woods from the shipwreck⁴. We floated with the woods and soon reached an island. There ill luck struck once again. Some Negroes who inhabited the island captured us. They offered us some herbs to eat. I felt suspicious and did not eat them but my hungry companions ate them. They started behaving like mad men. As they were not in their senses, they could not do anything. The Negroes then offered my companions some boiled rice. I ate some but my companions ate a lot. This went on for some days. My companions grew fat day by day. One fine morning, the Negroes seized some of my companions, cooked them in a large vessel⁵ and ate them up. They did not get me for I was too thin. 

 

 

One night I managed to escape and reached the shore. There I saw people gathering⁶ pepper. I told them my tale and they took me to a nearby island. They introduced me to their king. I lived in the king’s palace as the royal guest. One day, I went around the island. I observed that most people rode horses but none of them had saddles or stirrups. I thought of gifting the king with these, so I got some leather to make them such sets. When I gifted these to the king and told him of their advantage, he was very happy and thankful. He said, "Sindbad, my friend, you've made riding such a pleasure." 

 

 

When the courtiers saw the Saddle, they as well as the subjects ordered for more to be made. I got busy making more such items and earned some money. Then one day the king called me and '''Sindbad, in return for all you've done I give a lady of my haram in marriage to you.'" 

 

 

I was not at all keen to marry anyone but I relented so as not to the king's feelings. When the lady was introduced to me, I was speechless. She was indeed a very beautiful woman and had a very sweet smile, too. She was soft spoken and humble⁷. I married her according to the rituals of the island and spent a happy life with her. 

 

 

But as ill luck would have it, she fell sick a few months later. The severe illness caused her death and I was very grieved. But more, misfortunes lay in store for me. The island's custom was such that I was to be buried alive with my wife's dead body. All my pleas for an exception were in vain. So it was that amidst a grand traditional funeral ceremony my wife was buried. Alongside her grave was another in which I lay down alive. Some food and drink enough for seven days was buried in the grave with me. Once, the grave was shut with a heavy stone. There was darkness all around me and desperation in my heart.

 

 

My grave was actually in a cave mountain. In desperation, I felt around in the darkness to find some way to get out. I ate some of the food and drank left for me but, after seven days, even that was finished and I had nothing to do but wait to meet death. 

 

 

As I lay there in silence, I heard a sound. It was as if some animal was rustling⁸ around. I moved in the grave and tried to look around the cave. I seemed to see a shape in the dark that moved away when I approached. I thought there must be a way from where the animal had got in, which meant there was surely a way to get out. With this hope in my heart, I followed the shadow at a distance. After about a quarter of an hour of crawling in the dark cave, I saw a dim ray of light. It was coming in through a crack in the rocky walls from which the creature had squeezed into the cave. I went out through the crack with some difficulty and to my joy I found myself on a deserted⁹ beach of the island. 

 

 

I remembered that my wife had been buried with many precious ornaments¹⁰ and gems¹¹ adorning¹² her body. I went back into the cave and reached my wife's coffin¹³. I gathered as many gems as I could and came out of the cave again. Perhaps God heard my prayers so I saw a merchant ship heading for the beach. The captain saw me waving cloth and took me up his ship. Then I told him how I happened to be on that Island. 

 

 

When the ship docked at the next port, I traded my wife's gems for some goods which I sold at the next port to make good money. 

 

 

Soon the ship returned to Baghdad when a comfortable, wealthy life awaited me once again." Sindbad sighed and said, "I had an adventurous¹⁴ fifth voyage about which you will hear at the dinner table tomorrow." 

 

 

The guests went off with a promise to come again. Sindbad bid a farewell to Hindbad to whom he gifted a hundred gold coins once more.  

1 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

2 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

3 subsided   

v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上

参考例句：

• After the heavy rains part of the road subsided. 大雨过后，部分公路塌陷了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• By evening the storm had subsided and all was quiet again. 傍晚， 暴风雨已经过去，四周开始沉寂下来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 shipwreck   

n.船舶失事，海难

参考例句：

• He walked away from the shipwreck.他船难中平安地脱险了。
• The shipwreck was a harrowing experience.那次船难是一个惨痛的经历。

5 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

8 rustling   

n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的

参考例句：

• the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze 树木在微风中发出的沙沙声
• the soft rustling of leaves 树叶柔和的沙沙声

9 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

10 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 gems   

growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长

参考例句：

• a crown studded with gems 镶有宝石的皇冠
• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。

12 adorning   

修饰，装饰物

参考例句：

• Many have gems adorning their foreheads, and gold bands on their arms. 许多人在前额上挂着宝石，手臂上戴着金饰。
• The commandments, or rules, are like pure white pearls adorning the wearer. （喻）戒律洁白，可以庄严人身，好像晶莹可爱的宝珠。

13 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

14 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。