Fan Jinghua: Word-Eaters

　　　Word-Eaters
Words have their own god, and it walks
its land, a kingdom, whose boundary forms
a spread-out noose, of fiberglass.
The lot who live on them is doomed,
like a banyan tree, whose roots are
too densely interlocked to let in the dirt
from the previous life, and whose crown is
too umbrageous for the daylight.
But the winking stars and inconstant moon
can easily procure, being in the dark.
The savage god of words has deprived the word-eaters
of the right to stand on their feet, for he who walks about
cannot bear the sight of walking thinkers.
They would appear too like incarnated ghosts.
So they are condemned to squat down, chewing for the juice,
and their crotches and neck grow mosses,
verdant and lowly virile,
but they cannot afford to concentrate on love or hatred.
Such passions
will never become their death wishes; they are parasites
to keep them itchy
so that they have to scratch. This
makes them feel for the bodies they are living in
and know the place to put up themselves,
for the time being.
They do excrete, like a duck that is swallowing a big clam,
making ugly sounds; but if there are pearls,
they are left behind its the night soil.
Two-legged animals will not see during night.
　　　　　　　　　　　　March 14, 2008

　　　食词者
词有自己的神，行于
它的大地，这王国，边界
围成一个套索，玻璃纤维的。
以词语为主食的那帮
是命中注定，犹如一棵菩提树，
根，虬结得太紧密，
前生的泥无法漫上来，
冠，太浓密，今世的日照无法透过。
只有媚眼的星星与多变的月亮
总能轻易就勾引得手，
因为处于黑暗。
词语的神是凶残的，它剥夺了以词为生者
站立的权利，因为它要随意行走，
不能忍受行走着的思考者，
他们太像附上了身体的幽灵。
所以他们注定只能蹲下，咀嚼词的液汁，
腿弯、腿裆连同颈项，都长出
葱绿的苔藓，虽有卑微的阳气，
却不能专心于爱与恨。这样的激情
永不会成为他们的死亡之欲，它们只是寄生者，
令他们瘙痒，需要不时抓挠。
这令他们体恤自己赖以生存的身体，了解
这个暂时存放自己的所在。
他们也要排泄，正如吞下了一只大河蚌的
鸭子，发出更加难听的闷叫。
如果有珍珠，那也是在它遗留于身后的粪便中；
而在夜晚，两条腿的动物是看不见的。
　　　　　　　　　　　2008年3月14日