「 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。
第二章「EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES-3」です。原文と日本語解説もつけています。
Effect of Thought on Circumstances-3 (Modernized Version)
① People want to improve their lives but aren’t willing to change themselves. So they stay stuck. Those who are ready to give up something and work hard can reach their goals. This is true for both daily life and spiritual matters. Even if your goal is only to become rich, you still need to make big personal sacrifices. And if you wish to live a strong, balanced life, you must give up even more.
② Here is a man who is very poor. He really wants a better home and nicer surroundings, but he avoids doing his job and thinks it is okay to deceive his employer because of the insufficiency of his wages. This kind of man doesn’t understand even the basic rules that lead to true success. He is not only unfit to escape his poor life, but he also makes it worse by thinking and acting in lazy, dishonest, and weak ways.
③ Here is a rich man who suffers from a painful and long-lasting illness caused by overeating. He is willing to pay a lot of money to get better, but he refuses to give up his habit of eating too much. He wants to enjoy rich and unnatural food and be healthy at the same time. But he is not ready for real health, because he hasn’t learned even the basic rules of a healthy life.
④ Here is an employer who uses dishonest methods to avoid paying the standard wage. To make more money, he cuts his workers’ pay. Such a person is not suitable for real success. When he ends up broke and loses both his money and reputation, he blames the situation around him, not knowing that he is the only one responsible for it.
⑤ I gave these three examples to show one clear truth: that people create their own situations—though they often don’t realize it. Even when aiming for something good, they often stop themselves from reaching it by thinking and wanting things that don’t match their goal. I could give many more examples, but that’s not needed. If the reader decides to do so, he can look at his own thoughts and life and see how the laws of thought work. Until he does that, just looking at outside facts won’t help him understand deeply.
Effect of Thought on Circumstances-3(Original text)
(Based on As a Man Thinketh by James Allen)
① Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves; they therefore remain bound. The man who does not shrink from self-crucifixion can never fail to accomplish the object upon which his heart is set. This is as true of earthly as of heavenly things. Even the man whose sole object is to acquire wealth must be prepared to make great personal sacrifices before he can accomplish his object; and how much more so he who would realize a strong and well-poised life?
anxious（切望している） circumstances（状況、環境） unwilling（〜する気がない） bound（縛られた） shrink（ひるむ、尻込みする） self-crucifixion（自己犠牲） accomplish（達成する） object（目的） earthly（現世の） heavenly（天の、理想的な） sole（唯一の） acquire（手に入れる） sacrifice（犠牲） realize（実現する） well-poised（安定した） wealth（富）
② Here is a man who is wretchedly poor. He is extremely anxious that his surroundings and home comforts should be improved, yet all the time he shirks his work, and considers he is justified in trying to deceive his employer on the ground of the insufficiency of his wages. Such a man does not understand the simplest rudiments of those principles which are the basis of true prosperity, and is not only totally unfitted to rise out of his wretchedness, but is actually attracting to himself a still deeper wretchedness by dwelling in, and acting out, indolent, deceptive, and unmanly thoughts.
wretchedly（ひどく、悲惨に） anxious（切望している） surroundings（環境、周囲の状況） comforts（快適さ、安楽） shirk（（義務・責任などを）避ける） deceive（だます） insufficiency（不足、不十分） rudiments（基本、初歩） principles（原理、原則） prosperity（繁栄、成功） unfitted→unfit（不適格な） wretchedness（悲惨さ） attract（引き寄せる） dwelling→dwell（住む、思いを巡らす） indolent（怠惰な） deceptive（人を欺くような） unmanly（男らしくない、情けない）
③ Here is a rich man who is the victim of a painful and persistent disease as the result of gluttony. He is willing to give large sums of money to get rid of it, but he will not sacrifice his gluttonous desires. He wants to gratify his taste for rich and unnatural viands and have his health as well. Such a man is totally unfit to have health, because he has not yet learned the first principles of a healthy life.
victim（犠牲者） persistent（持続的な、しつこい） gluttony（暴食） willing（〜する気がある） sum（（金）額） gluttonous（暴食の） gratify（満足させる） unnatural（不自然な） viands（ごちそう、料理）
④ Here is an employer of labour who adopts crooked measures to avoid paying the regulation wage, and, in the hope of making larger profits, reduces the wages of his workpeople. Such a man is altogether unfitted for prosperity, and when he finds himself bankrupt, both as regards reputation and riches, he blames circumstances, not knowing that he is the sole author of his condition.
labour→labor（労働） adopt（採用する） crooked（不正な、ゆがんだ） measures（手段） regulation（規定の） unfitted→unfit（適さない） prosperity（繁栄） bankrupt（破産した） reputation（評判） riches（富） circumstances（状況） sole（唯一の） author（原因となる人、作り出す人） condition（状態）
⑤ I have introduced these three cases merely as illustrative of the truth that man is the causer (though nearly always is unconsciously) of his circumstances, and that, whilst aiming at a good end, he is continually frustrating its accomplishment by encouraging thoughts and desires which cannot possibly harmonize with that end. Such cases could be multiplied and varied almost indefinitely, but this is not necessary, as the reader can, if he so resolves, trace the action of the laws of thought in his own mind and life, and until this is done, mere external facts cannot serve as a ground of reasoning.
merely（単に） illustrative（例示の、説明のための） causer（原因を作る人） unconsciously（無意識に） circumstances（状況） whilst（〜する一方で） aiming →aim（目指す） frustrate（妨げる） accomplishment（達成） encourage（助長する） harmonize（調和する） indefinitely（無限に） resolve（決意する） trace（たどる） reasoning（推論）
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。
己を変えることの難しさ
人は誰しも、自分の人生をより良くしたいと願います。
けれども、多くの人は、自分自身を変えるぬことには消極的です。
そのため、望む未来に縛られたまま、前へ進むことができなくなってしまいます。真の成長には、欲や怠け心を乗り越える覚悟が必要です。
それなくしては、豊かさも、健やかさも手に入れることはできません。
思いが現実をつくる
自らの環境に不満を抱きながら、誠実に働くことを避け、報酬の低さを理由に正直さを手放す人は、幸せから遠ざかっていきます。
同じように、暴飲によって病となり、金銭の力で回復を望んでも、欲を捨てることができなければ、癒やしは訪れません。
人を搾取する者が、やがて名誉も富も失い、周囲を責めるようになったときは、まだ気づいていないのです。すべては、自らの思いが招いた結果であることを。
真理への扉は内にある
思考には力があります。そして、すべての現実はそこから始まります。
自分の心を深く見つめるようになるまでは、どれほど外の出来事を見たとしても、真理にたどり着くことはできません。
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。
2-4に続きます。
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