At home, in my flannel gown, like a bear to its floe,

在家，披着我的法兰绒袍子，像一头熊对着它的浮冰，

I clambered to bed; up the globe's impossible sides

我爬上床；沿地球不可能的侧面攀升

I sailed all night—till at last, with my black beard,

我彻夜航行——直到最后，带着我的黑胡子，

My furs and my dogs, I stood at the northern pole.

我的裘皮和我的狗，我站在了北极。

There in the childish night my companions lay frozen,

在那里童稚的夜间我的伙伴们冻卧着，

The stiff furs knocked at my starveling throat,

僵硬的裘皮敲打我饥饿的咽喉，

And I gave my great sigh: the flakes came huddling,

我发出一声大大的惊叹：雪花蜂拥而至，

Were they really my end? In the darkness I turned to my rest.

它们真是我的终结么？黑暗里我翻身入眠。

—Here, the flag snaps in the glare and silence

——这里，旗子猎猎作响在未破碎冰层的

Of the unbroken ice. I stand here,

眩光与寂静之中。我站在这里，

The dogs bark, my beard is black, and I stare

狗吠，我的胡子是黑的，而我凝望

At the North Pole . . .

着北极……

                                        And now what? Why, go back.

    现在干嘛呢？唉，回去吧。

Turn as I please, my step is to the south.

随意转身，我的脚步朝向南方。

The world—my world spins on this final point

世界——我的世界回旋在这寒冷与悲惨的

Of cold and wretchedness: all lines, all winds

终极点之上：所有的线，所有的风

End in this whirlpool I at last discover.

在这个我终于发现的漩涡中结束。

And it is meaningless. In the child's bed

并且毫无意义。在孩童的床头

After the night's voyage, in that warm world

在这夜的航行之后，在那个温暖世界

Where people work and suffer for the end

人们在其中劳作与受苦只为了那场

That crowns the pain—in that Cloud-Cuckoo-Land

冠绝苦痛的终结——在那云鹃之国[2]

I reached my North and it had meaning.

我抵达我的北方，于是它有了意义。

Here at the actual pole of my existence,

这里身处我的存在那实有的极点，

Where all that I have done is meaningless,

我曾经做过的一切都毫无意义的所在，

Where I die or live by accident alone—

我独自一人因意外而死或生的所在——

Where, living or dying, I am still alone;

无论活着还是将死，我依然独自一人的所在；

Here where North, the night, the berg of death

在这里，北方、夜晚、死亡的冰山

Crowd me out of the ignorant darkness,

将我挤出无知黑暗的所在，

I see at last that all the knowledge

我终于看穿所有那些被我从黑暗里

I wrung from the darkness—that the darkness flung me—

绞拧出来的知识——黑暗扔给我的——

Is worthless as ignorance: nothing comes from nothing,

都像无知一样毫无价值：无物来自无物，

The darkness from the darkness. Pain comes from the darkness

黑暗来自黑暗。苦痛来自黑暗

And we call it wisdom. It is pain.

而我们却称之为智慧。那是苦痛。

译注

[1] 即北极。

[2] Cloud-Cuckoo-Land，源自古希腊喜剧家阿里斯托芬（约公元前446-约公元前386）的喜剧《鸟》中全世界的鸟造就的一座天空之城，常被用来意指虚无飘渺的幻想境地。