「 As a Man Thinketh 」を現代の米国英語で、中学3年生レベルの語彙と文法をコンセプトに英訳を作成しています。
このブログは第一章「THOUGHT AND CHARACTER」です。原文と日本語解説もつけています。
Thought and Character (Modernized Version)
① The saying, “A man is what he thinks in his heart,” explains everything about a person. It covers every part of his life, including his situation and experiences. A person exactly becomes what he thinks, because his character is made from all of his thoughts.
② Just like a plant grows from a seed and cannot exist without it, every action a person takes comes from their thoughts. Even actions that seem sudden or unplanned actually come from hidden thoughts.
③ Actions are like the flowers of thoughts, and happiness or suffering are the fruits they produce. A person gathers both the good and bad results of their own thinking and actions.
④ Our thoughts shape who we are.
If a person has negative thoughts,
they will experience pain,
just like a cartwheel follows the ox pulling it.
But if a person keeps their thoughts pure,
happiness will follow them,
just like a shadow.
⑤ A person builds or destroys their own life through their thoughts. In their mind, they create the tools to succeed or the weapons to fail. With good thoughts, they rise to greatness; with bad thoughts, they fall. Every kind of character exists between these two extremes, and each person is responsible for shaping their own character.
⑥ Among all the important truths about the human soul, one is the most inspiring: a person controls their own thoughts, shapes their own character, and creates their own future and surroundings.
⑦ As a being with power, intelligence, and love, a person holds the key to every situation. Inside themselves, they have the ability to change and grow into whatever they want to become.
⑧ A person is always in control of their life, even when they feel weak or lost. However, when they misuse their power, they make poor decisions. When they start thinking carefully about their life and look for the rules that shape their existence, they become wise. By understanding the laws of thought, they learn to use their energy wisely and direct their thoughts toward success.
⑨ Gold and diamonds are found only by deep digging, and the same is true for truth and self-understanding. A person can prove that they shape their own character and future by watching, controlling, and changing their thoughts. By observing how their thoughts affect themselves and others, they can understand the connection between cause and effect. Only through patience, effort, and constant learning can a person enter the world of true knowledge.
※“they” はもともと複数代名詞ですが、現代英語では「a person」「someone」など性別不明・非特定の単数名詞に対しても用いられます。これは “he or she” の代替表現として広く受け入れられており、Oxford English Dictionary や Merriam-Webster Dictionary、APAスタイル第7版、Chicago Manual of Style第17版 など、主要な辞書・文法ガイドでも公式に認められています。
Thought and Character (Original text)
(Based on As a Man Thinketh by James Allen)
①The aphorism, “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he” not only embraces the whole of a man’s being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of his life. A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts.
aphorism（格言）thinketh（=thinks) embrace（包含する、受け入れる） being（人の本質、存在） comprehensive（包括的な、広範囲の） circumstance（状況、環境） literally（文字通りに、本当に）
②As the plant springs from, and could not be without, the seed, so every act of a man springs from the hidden seeds of thought, and could not have appeared without them. This applies equally to those acts called ‘spontaneous’ and ‘unpremeditated’ as to those which are deliberately executed.
spring from（～から生じる） hidden（隠れた、見えない） unpremeditated（無計画な、即興の） deliberately（意図的に、慎重に）
③Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and sufferings are its fruits; thus does a man garner in the sweet and bitter fruitage of his own husbandry.
blossom（花、開花する） garner（蓄積する、収穫する） husbandry（農業、管理）
④Thought in the mind hath made us.
What we are
By thought was wrought and built. If a man’s mind
Hath evil thoughts, pain comes on him as comes
The wheel the ox behind … If one endures
In purity of thought, joy follows him
As his own shadow — sure.
hath（=has） wrought（作り上げた、もたらした） endure（耐える、持ちこたえる） purity（純粋さ、清らかさ）
⑤Man is made or unmade by himself, in the armory of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself; he also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, man ascends to the Divine Perfection; by the abuse and wrong application of thought, he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character, and man is their maker and master.
forge（鍛造する、築く） armory（武器庫） fashion（作り上げる、形作る） heavenly mansions（天国の邸宅） ascend（上昇する、向上する） descend（下降する、堕落する） grades of character（人格の段階）
⑥Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of divine promise and confidence than this — that man is the master of thought, the moulder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment, and destiny.
pertain to（～に関連する） restored（回復された、復活した） fruitful（実りの多い、有益な） divine（神聖な、素晴らしい） moulder（形成する、形作る） regenerative（再生する、回復する）
⑦As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love, and the Lord of his own thoughts, man holds the key to every situation, and contains within himself that transforming and regenerative agency by which he may make himself what he wills.
agency（手段、作用） make oneself what he wills（自分の望む姿になる）
⑧Man is always the master, even in his weakest and most abandoned state; but in his weakness and degradation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his household. When he begins to reflect upon his condition, and to search diligently for the Law upon which his being is established, he then becomes the wise master, directing his energies with intelligence, and fashioning his thoughts to fruitful issues. Such is the conscious master, and man can only thus become by discovering within himself the laws of thought; which discovery is totally a matter of application, self-analysis, and experience.
abandoned state（見捨てられた状態） degradation（堕落、劣化） misgovern（誤って統治する） diligently（熱心に、勤勉に） fashioning（形作ること） fruitful issues（実りある結果）
⑨Only by much searching and mining are gold and diamonds obtained, and man can find every truth connected with his being if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul; and that he is the maker of his character, the moulder of his life, and the builder of his destiny, he may unerringly prove, if he will watch, control, and alter his thoughts, tracing their effects upon himself, upon others, and upon his life and circumstances, linking cause and effect by patient practice and investigation, and utilising his every experience, even to the most trivial, everyday occurrence, as a means of obtaining that knowledge of himself which is Understanding, Wisdom, Power. In this direction, as in no other, is the law absolute that “He that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened”; for only by patience, practice, and ceaseless importunity can a man enter the Door of the Temple of Knowledge.
searching and mining（探求と採掘） unerringly（間違いなく、確実に） trace（追跡する、たどる） linking cause and effect（原因と結果を結びつける） importunity（粘り強い要求） Temple of Knowledge（知識の神殿） 〜eth（〜s）
和訳の要約
現代英語版は、中学レベルの英語ですが、分かりにくい部分があるかもしれません。
ここでアウトラインを掴んでおくとスッと頭に入るはずです！
これは名言と思える箇所は太字にしておきます。
思いは人生の種となる
人の心に抱く思いこそが、その人のすべてを形作るものです。
思いは行動となり、やがて人生を決定づけます。清らかな思いを持つ者には喜びが訪れ、悪しき思いを持つ者には苦しみが伴います。
それは、種が芽を出し、やがて実を結ぶように、避けることのできない法則なのです。
運命は思いによって築かれる
人は自らの思いによって運命を築きもすれば、崩しもします。
良き思いを育てれば、高潔な人格を得ることができ、誤った思いに流されれば、堕落してしまいます。
しかし、どのような境遇にあろうとも、人は思いを正すことで、よりよい人生へと歩みを進めることができるのです。
思いを磨けば、扉は開かれる
真理を求め、深く考える者は、自らの思いを制し、人生の主となります。
誠実に思いを磨き続けるならば、必ずや心の扉は開かれ、知恵と力が授けられるでしょう。
まとめ
本ブログのポイントは、原文を読みやすい現代英語でリライトした英訳版です。
現代英語版は英語勉強に最適です。覚えるぐらい繰り返し読んで欲しいです。
これをしっかり読み込めば自己啓発の根本である「思考は現実化する」「人は考えた通りの人になる」が理解できるようになります。
2-1に続きます。
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