晋の太元年間のことである。武陵の地に、漁師として暮らしを立てる一人の男がいた。彼は日々小舟を操り、川をさかのぼっては魚を捕り、貧しいながらも穏やかな日々を送っていた。
It was during the Taiyuan era of the Jin dynasty. In Wuling lived a man who made his living by fishing. Each day he steered his small boat upriver, catching fish — leading a humble but peaceful life.
ある春の日のこと、漁師はいつものように谷川をさかのぼっていた。岸辺の風景に見とれるうちに、自分がどれほどの距離を進んだか、まるで分からなくなっていた。気がつけば、見覚えのない場所まで来ていた。
One spring day, as he made his way upstream as he always did, the fisherman became so absorbed in the scenery along the banks that he forgot how far he had come. When he came back to himself, he found that he had reached a place he had never seen before.
ふと顔を上げると、両岸はことごとく桃の花で埋め尽くされていた。数百歩にもわたって、桃以外の木は一本も交じらず、よい香りの草が地を覆い、桃色の花びらが風に乗ってはらはらと散り落ちていた。川面にも花びらは幾重にも浮かび、舟はまるで花の流れの上を行くように進んでいった。それは、人の世のものとは思えないほど美しい光景だった。
He looked up — and on both banks of the river were peach trees, in such density that nothing else could be seen. For several hundred paces, no other tree was mixed among them; fragrant grasses covered the earth, and pink petals drifted down on the wind. The water itself was layered with petals, and his boat seemed to be moving over a stream of blossoms. It was a scene of such beauty that it could not have belonged to the human world.
漁師は、これほどの桃の林をかつて見たことがなかったので、不思議に思いながらもなお舟を進めた。「この花の林はどこまで続くのだろうか」と、彼はひとりつぶやいた。やがて、桃の林は山のふもとで終わった。
Never in his life had he seen such a peach grove, and wondering at it, he pressed his boat on. "How far can this forest of flowers extend?" he murmured to himself. At length the peach grove ended at the foot of a mountain.
そこには小さな山があり、ふもとに猫の額ほどの穴が口を開けていた。穴の奥からは、かすかに光が漏れているように見えた。漁師は思わず舟を岸につけ、その光に誘われるように、穴へと足を踏み入れた。
There stood a small mountain, and in its base a tiny opening, no larger than a cat's brow, gaped. From its depths a faint light seemed to be seeping out. Hardly knowing why, the fisherman tied his boat to the bank and, as if drawn by that light, stepped into the opening.
入口こそ、ようやく人一人が通り抜けるほどの狭さだったが、しばらく進むうちに、突如として目の前が開けた。彼は、思わず息を呑んで立ち止まった。
The entrance was just barely wide enough for a single person to pass through, but as he advanced a little way, all at once the view before him opened wide. He stopped short, breath caught in his throat.
そこには、ゆるやかに開けた平地が広がっていた。整然と区切られた田畑、こざっぱりとした家々が連なり、そのあいだを桑や竹が緑濃く茂っている。あぜ道は東西南北にめぐらされ、どこからか鶏の鳴き声や、犬の遠吠えが聞こえてくる。
Before him spread a gently opening plain. Tidily marked-out fields and well-kept houses ran in a line, with mulberries and bamboo growing thickly between them. Footpaths ran north and south, east and west, and from somewhere came the crowing of roosters and the distant barking of dogs.
行き交う人々の身なりは、いささか古風ではあったが、男も女も、老人も若者も、皆ゆったりとした足取りで、楽しげに語らいながら歩いている。誰一人として、憂いを帯びた顔をしていなかった。それはまさに、桃源郷ならではの光景だった。
The dress of the people coming and going was somewhat old-fashioned, but men and women, the old and the young, all walked at an easy pace, talking happily together. Not one of them wore a face touched by care. It was a scene that could belong only to Peach Blossom Spring.