驚蟄

如果讓你來(lái)描繪春天到來(lái)的景象，你將怎樣著筆？對(duì)中國(guó)人來(lái)說(shuō)，只需要兩個(gè)字——驚蟄。意思是當(dāng)?shù)谝宦暣豪醉懫?，冬眠的?dòng)物被驚醒破土而出。驚蟄是春天到來(lái)最直觀的標(biāo)志，這一天也是中國(guó)二十四節(jié)氣之一。

If you are asked to describe the coming spring season what you are going to write down? For the Chinese the answer lies in only two words---Jingzhe. Jingzhe means that the first spring thunder awakens hibernating （hibernate vi. 過(guò)冬；（動(dòng)物）冬眠） insects. As one of the 24 solar terms in China Jingzhe heralds （herald vt.是（某事）的前兆；預(yù)示） the advent （advent n. （重要事件、人物、發(fā)明等的）出現(xiàn)，到來(lái)） of the spring.

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“驚”意為驚醒，而“蟄”則表示動(dòng)物蟄伏地下冬眠。 “驚蟄”兩字，著筆于動(dòng)物對(duì)氣候變化的反應(yīng)，形象的勾畫出一幅春回大地的景象，簡(jiǎn)單的筆墨頗得中國(guó)詩(shī)畫寫意的精髓。對(duì)于通曉中文的人來(lái)說(shuō)，看到“驚蟄”二字，仿佛春天就在眼前。

“Jing” means awakening and “zhe” means underground hibernating insects. With an eye on animals’ reactions to seasonal changes, Jingzhe vividly depicts （depict vt. 描繪；繪畫） an image of the returning spring season. It reminds us of the simplicity and beauty of Chinese poems and paintings. In the eyes of anyone who knows Chinese, the two words Jing and Zhe present them an image of the coming spring season.

當(dāng)然實(shí)際上，喚醒冬眠動(dòng)物的并非春雷聲，而是日漸回暖的氣溫，這一時(shí)節(jié)除卻塞北還是一片銀裝素裹的冬日景觀，中國(guó)大部分地區(qū)氣溫都回升至零度以上。

What awakens hibernating animals, however, is not the spring thunder but the rising temperature. Jingzhe witnesses the temperature rising above 0°C in most parts of China although the northern side of the Great Wall is still blanketed with winter snow.

隨著驚蟄的到來(lái)，春來(lái)的腳步也一日比一日緊湊，春天的景象次第在眼前鋪陳。人們將驚蟄時(shí)節(jié)分為三段時(shí)期，稱為“三候”（候，古代人把五天稱為“一候”，現(xiàn)在氣象學(xué)上仍然沿用：候溫，每五天的平均氣溫。）。在中國(guó)人看來(lái)，每一“候”都有不同的生機(jī)：“一候”時(shí)桃花初綻，大地開(kāi)始有了鮮艷的顏色；“二候”時(shí)鳥(niǎo)類的鳴叫聲漸多；“三候”時(shí)春意盎然，鳥(niǎo)類開(kāi)始進(jìn)入求偶的季節(jié)。

Jingzhe witnesses the time that the spring season comes at a faster pace. During this period amazing changes of the spring season unfold one after another. People tend to divide the solar term Jingzhe into three pentads. In the eyes of the Chinese, different lives blossom in each pentad （pentad n. 五，五個(gè)一組）of Jingzhe. The first pentad is a time when peach flowers bloom and vegetation gradually covers the land. During the second pentad people start to hear the tweets（tweet n. 小鳥(niǎo)叫聲） from an increasing number of birds. When the third pentad comes the spring season will be in its full swing, a time that the birds embrace their courtship season.

對(duì)農(nóng)耕文明而言，季節(jié)的流轉(zhuǎn)、物候的變化是指導(dǎo)一年耕作的重要標(biāo)志。驚蟄時(shí)節(jié)，隨著氣溫回升、大地解凍，農(nóng)事活動(dòng)漸漸繁忙起來(lái)。農(nóng)諺說(shuō)：“過(guò)了驚蟄節(jié)，春耕不能歇”。此時(shí)北方冬小麥返青生長(zhǎng)，南方的油菜花開(kāi)始見(jiàn)花，農(nóng)民開(kāi)始起早貪黑，忙于農(nóng)活了。民間在驚蟄日有吃梨的習(xí)俗，“梨”和“離”同音，驚蟄吃梨寄托了人們的美好愿望，期盼害蟲(chóng)遠(yuǎn)離莊稼，確保一年的好收成。

In any agricultural civilization, seasonal shifts and phenological （phenological adj. 物候?qū)W的 ）changes can provide invaluable guidance for agriculture production. During Jingzhe, rising temperature and thawing soil herald the busy season of agricultural activity. According to the traditional Chinese folklore “The spring cultivation will not abate （abate v. （使）減弱，減退，減少） even after Jingzhe”. During Jingzhe the winter wheat in north China starts to turn green and rape flower in the south is ready to bloom. Farmers are busy in their fields from dawn to dusk. The Chinese have the custom of eating pear on the Jingzhe day. Since “pear” and “l(fā)eave” have the same pronunciation in Chinese, this custom carries the people’s wish for a bumper （bumper adj. 異常大的；豐盛的）harvest in the hope that the pests will leave the crops alone.

驚蟄作為春天破土而出的標(biāo)志，也有掃除冬日陰郁陳晦的意義。冬眠而出的螻蟻蟲(chóng)豸四處覓食，人們會(huì)用艾草、清香熏染家中各處以驅(qū)趕蟲(chóng)豸并驅(qū)除霉味。久而久之，這一天也有了驅(qū)趕霉運(yùn)的意義。

Heralding the advent of the vibrant spring season, Jingzhe also implies that the tedious （tedious adj. 冗長(zhǎng)的；單調(diào)乏味的；令人厭煩的）and grim winter days finally come to an end. Insects awaken from hibernation look for foods everywhere. People light up wormwood （wormwood n. 艾草）and other herbs to dispel （dispel vt. 驅(qū)散，消除）insects in their houses. Later on, this practice got the meaning of getting rid of bad luck.

二十四節(jié)氣是中國(guó)人千百年來(lái)以獨(dú)特的視角觀察自然、體察物候變化總結(jié)的規(guī)律，浸透著華夏文明的智慧?！绑@蟄”節(jié)氣是人們從春天的無(wú)數(shù)個(gè)瞬間中，抽取的一幀最典型畫面，用“驚蟄”來(lái)標(biāo)記春天的到來(lái)，恐怕是最合適不過(guò)的了。

???The 24 solar terms summarize the observation of the Chinese on the law of nature and phenological changes. They are the highlights of the wisdom in Chinese civilization. Jingzhe presents us a typical image of spring based on countless observations people have made on the spring season. To mark the advent of the spring season, Jingzhe is perhaps the most appropriate term.?