古今中外都有一些愛書如命的人。我愿意加入這一行列。
Since time immemorial, in China and elsewhere, there have always been some people who love their books as if they were their very lives. I would love to join the ranks of these people.
書能給人以知識(shí)，給人以智慧，給人以快樂，給人以希望。但也能給人帶來(lái)麻煩，帶來(lái)災(zāi)難。在“大革文化命”的年代里，我就以收藏封資修大洋古書籍的罪名挨過(guò)批斗。1976年地震的時(shí)候，也有人警告我，我坐擁書城，夜里萬(wàn)一有什么情況，書城將會(huì)封鎖我的出路。
Books give people knowledge, wisdom, joy, and hope; but books can also bring troubles and calamities to people. During the ten years of the Cultural Revolution between 1966 and 1976, I was the target of criticism and struggle because I had a huge collection of books, Chinese and foreign, ancient and modern. In 1976, when earthquakes threatened Beijing, I was warned that the “mountain of books” I owned might prove a liability to me because they were likely to block my escape in the event of an earthquake.
批斗對(duì)我已成過(guò)眼云煙，那種萬(wàn)一的情況也沒有發(fā)生，我“死不改悔”，愛書如故，至今藏書已經(jīng)發(fā)展到填滿了幾間房子。除自己購(gòu)買以外，贈(zèng)送的書籍越來(lái)越多。我究竟有多少書，自己也說(shuō)不清楚。比較起來(lái)，大概是相當(dāng)多的。搞抗震加固的一位工人師傅就曾多次對(duì)我說(shuō)：這樣多的書，他過(guò)去沒有見過(guò)。學(xué)校領(lǐng)導(dǎo)對(duì)我額外加以照顧，我如今已經(jīng)有了幾間真正的書窩，那種臥室、書齋、會(huì)客室三位一體的情況，那種“初極狹，才通人”的桃花源的情況，已經(jīng)成為歷史陳跡了。
The times of criticism and struggle are gone like evaporated clouds and smoke, and the feared earthquake never materialized. I continue to love books like my very life, and my books have increased to fill several rooms. Aside from books I bought myself, I’m having an increasing number of books that were presented to me as gifts. I don’t really know how many books I have. All I can say is that I have many more books than most people. A worker who had been involved in reinforcing buildings for fear of earthquake told me that he had never seen anyone who had as many books as I. Thanks to the extra care of our school leaders, I now boast several rooms for books. Gone are the days when the bedroom, the study and the sitting room were all rolled into one—and when a situation existed as described in “Notes on the Land of Peach Blossoms”: “the initial part of the tunnel was just wide enough for a person to squeeze through.”
有的年輕人看到我的書，瞪大了吃驚的眼睛問(wèn)我：“這些書你都看過(guò)嗎？”我坦白承認(rèn)，我只看過(guò)極少極少的一點(diǎn)?！澳敲?，你要這么多書干嘛呢？”這確實(shí)是難以回答的問(wèn)題。我沒有研究過(guò)藏書心理學(xué)，三言兩語(yǔ)，我說(shuō)不清楚。我相信，古今中外愛書如命者也不一定都能說(shuō)清楚。即使說(shuō)出原因來(lái)，恐怕也是五花八門的吧。
They eyes of some young people would pop wide-open when they saw my books. “Have you read all those books?” they asked me. I told them frankly that I have only read a very, very small part of them. “Why then do you keep all those books?” they pursued. That was a question difficult to answer. Not having studied the psychology of book collecting, I’m not able to give a concise answer. And I believe that those who cherish books as they do their very lives—whether Chinese or foreign, ancient or modern—won’t be able to do that either. The reasons they offer will vary widely even if they could offer them.
真正進(jìn)行科學(xué)研究，我自己的書是遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不夠的。也許我搞的這一行有點(diǎn)怪。我還沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)全國(guó)任何圖書館能滿足，哪怕是最低限度地滿足我的需要。有的題目有時(shí)候由于缺書，進(jìn)行不下去，只好讓它擱淺。我抽屜里面就積壓著不少這樣的擱淺的稿子。我有時(shí)候?qū)ε笥褌冮_玩笑說(shuō)：“搞我們這一行，要想有一個(gè)滿意的圖書室簡(jiǎn)直比搞四化還要難。全國(guó)國(guó)民收入翻兩番的時(shí)候，我們也未必真能翻身。”這決非聳人聽聞之談，事實(shí)正是這樣。同我搞的這一行有類似困難的，全國(guó)還有不少。這都怪我們過(guò)去底子太薄，解放后雖然做了不少工作，但是一時(shí)積重難返。我現(xiàn)在只有寄希望于未來(lái)，發(fā)呼吁于同行。我們大家共同努力，日積月累，將來(lái)總有一天會(huì)徹底改變目前情況的。古說(shuō)：“前人種樹，后人乘涼?！弊屛覀兇蠹叶紒?lái)當(dāng)種樹人吧。
My own books are far from enough if I am engaged in some authentic scientific research. Probably my profession is somewhat strange. As I have discovered, not a single library in China can satisfy all my needs to the smallest degree. Some of my research projects were suspended because of the lack of books. And in my table drawers there are unfinished papers on that account: they were simply given up half way. That is why I would sometimes say to my friends jokingly, “In my profession, having a satisfying library is more difficult than realizing the ‘four modernizations.’ We might not be able to make a radical turn-round, even when China’s GDP has quadrupled.” That’s by no means an exaggerated statement, made just o create a sensation; it is a fact. There are quite a few other professions which are more or less in the same boat as my profession. All this results from the fact New China doesn’t have a solid economic foundation to start with. A lot has been done to remedy the situation since 1949, the year of liberation, but the age-old situation cannot be turned round overnight.All I can do now is to pin my hope on the future and to appeal to my colleagues. Let’s pool our efforts. As time passes, our accumulated, joint efforts will be rewarded by a thorough transformation of the situation.Our ancients said, “While earlier generations plant trees, posterity will enjoy the cool under the shade.”Let’s all be tree-planters.