"If the radiance of a thousand suns were to burst into the sky,that would be like the splendor of the Mighty One."
出自奥地利记者Robert Jungk1956年出版的书,原书是用德文写的,书名是Heller als tausend Sonnen。描绘观看第一颗原子弹试爆的情景。
1958年首次被翻译成英文Brighter Than A Thousand Suns出版。
中文的这一句诗出自钟毅、何纬翻译的纪实文学《比一千个太阳还亮》,书中记载,原子弹科学家罗伯特·奥本海姆在观看第一颗原子弹试爆的场景时不由得想起印度史诗《薄迦梵歌》中的这一句,而该书的书名正是由此而来。因此,这句话真正的原文应该是梵文才对。
这句诗原本的出处是《薄迦梵歌》第11章第12句,梵语原文是:
Divi sooryasahasrasya bhavedyugapadutthitaa;
Yadi bhaah sadrishee saa syaadbhaasastasya mahaatmanah.
英文翻译大同小异,有的译成
“Were the splendour of a thousand suns to shoot forth all at once in the sky,
that might perchance resemble the splendour of that Mighty One.”
有的译成
“If the splendour of a thousand suns were to blaze out at once in the sky,
that would be the splendour of that mighty Being.”
中文通常的翻译是:
“如果有千万个太阳同时升到空中,
其光芒也许才能与至尊主的光辉相比。”
或
“倘若有一千个太阳同时出现在天空,
光芒才能与这位灵魂伟大者相比。”