The empty niches that once held Bamiyan's colossal Buddhas now gape in the rock face — a silent cry at the terrible destruction wrought on this fabled valley and its 1,500-year-old treasures, once the largest standing Buddha statues in the world.

一度為巴米揚巨佛落座的空洞佛龕如今岩面崩裂坍塌，似在對這個為人傳誦的山谷及其有1,500年歷史的古蹟，那個一度是世界上最大的立佛雕像，遭到恐怖摧殘的無聲吶喊。

It was in March 2001, when the Taliban and their sponsors in Al Qaeda were at the zenith of their power in Afghanistan, that militiamen, acting on an edict to take down the "gods of the infidels," laid explosives at the base and the shoulders of the two Buddhas and blew them to pieces.

2001年3月，當時的神學士政權及其在凱達恐怖組織的靠山，在阿富汗的權勢如日中天，阿富汗民兵奉命打倒「所有異教徒的神袛」。他們在兩尊巴米揚巨佛的基座和肩膀上安放炸藥，並將其炸得粉碎。

To the outraged outside world, the act encapsulated the horrors of the Islamic fundamentalist government. Even Genghis Khan, who laid waste to this valley's towns and population in the 13th century, had left the Buddhas standing.

對憤怒的外在世界，此舉具體而微的概括披露伊斯蘭教激進政府的恐怖暴行。成吉思汗在十三世紀夷平這個山谷的城鎮和殲滅所有人民時，也不敢碰巨佛，任其屹立不倒。

Five years after the Taliban were ousted from power, Bamiyan's Buddhist relics are once again the focus of debate: Is it possible to restore the great Buddhas And, if so, can the extraordinary investment that would be required be justified in a country crippled by poverty and a continued Taliban insurgency in the south and that is, overwhelmingly Muslim

在神學士政權被推翻五年後，巴米揚巨佛的殘址再次成為辯論焦點：巨佛可能修復嗎？如果答案是肯定的，對一個已經被貧窮所困及神學士民兵持續在南部作亂的穆斯林國家，應該付出天價來修復巨佛嗎？

This valley about 140 miles northwest of Kabul, where in the sixth century tens of thousands of pilgrims flocked to worship at its temples and monasteries and meditate in its rock caves, is attracting new international attention.

這個位於喀布爾西北140哩的山谷，已經引起國際間重新關注。公元六世紀，巴米揚山谷曾湧入成千上萬信徒到其佛寺頂禮膜拜，並在岩洞中靜思。

In 2003, the United Nations designated the Bamiyan ruins a World Heritage site, but also listed them as endangered, because of their fragile condition, vulnerability to looters and pressures from a post-Taliban boom in construction and tourism. Intensive efforts have been under way to stabilize what remains of the cliff sculptures and murals.

2003年，聯合國指定巴米揚廢墟是世界文化遺址，但也將其列入瀕危名單中，因其情況岌岌可危，並可能因劫掠及後神學士時代大興土木和遊客回流等壓力而雪上加霜。聯合國方面也加強投入人力，以穩住岩壁上的雕像和壁畫。

Meanwhile, archaeologists have been taking advantage of the greatly increased access that became possible once the statues were gone to make new discoveries — and to pursue ancient tales of a third giant Buddha, possibly buried between the two that were destroyed.

同時巨佛既毀，考古學家利用更多近距離接觸的機會有了新發現，並追尋古老傳說中的第三尊大佛，它可能埋藏在兩尊被毀的巨佛之間。

"The history of Bamiyan is beginning to be revealed, in a concrete sense, for the first time through both works of conservation and excavations of archaeological remains," said Kasaku Maeda, a Japanese historian who has studied Bamiyan for more than 40 years.

研究巴米揚大佛40餘年的日本史學家前田耕作說：「透過保育和挖掘考古遺址，巴米揚歷史首次開始具體呈現在世界眼前。」

Unesco has been overseeing a program of emergency repairs to the niches over the last few years, drawing teams of archaeologists and conservationists from all over the world.

聯合國教科文組織過去幾年來，徵召全世界好幾支考古學家和保育人士密切監控緊急修復佛龕的計畫。

Gedeone Tonoli, a tunnel engineer from Italy, has been overseeing the most urgent task: securing the cracking cliff face. One morning two Italian mountain climbers swung on ropes at the top of the niche that held the eastern Buddha, which, at 125 feet tall, was the smaller of the two. Wire netting covered the back wall of the niche, which still occasionally rattles with falling rocks and stones. A great scar marks the inner left wall where the explosion tore away the side of the niche, threatening the whole cliff.

義大利風洞工程師湯諾利負責監控最急迫的工作：維修正不斷崩裂的峭壁佛面。有一天早上，兩位義大利登山客對準佛龕頂拋擲繩索以固定東大佛，這尊佛像高125呎，是兩尊巨佛中較小者。鐵絲網包覆佛龕後牆，但岩塊碎石仍不時隆隆崩落。爆炸撕裂佛龕一面牆壁，在內部左牆留下一大傷疤，勢必危及整個岩壁。

The right side of the niche, however, has been stable for two years, anchored with steel rods and tons of concrete pumped into the fissures. Sensors linked to a computer keep track of every tremble in the cliff face.

但佛龕右壁兩年來很穩定，用鋼柱固定，並灌入無數噸混凝土到裂縫中，和電腦連線的監控器追蹤記錄岩面每個震動。

At the base of what, at 180 feet, had been the larger Buddha, workers were still shoveling away at rubble left from the explosions. German restorers from the International Council on Monuments and Sites have spent two years carefully sorting through the debris from both Buddhas, lifting out the largest sections by crane — some weigh 70, even 90 tons — and placing them under cover, because the soft stone disintegrates in rain or snow. The smaller fragments and mounds of dust are carefully piled up at the side.

在原來那尊180呎高較大巨佛底座，工人仍忙著爆炸留下的斷垣殘壁。來自「國際紀念碑及遺址委員會」的德國修復人員花了兩年時間小心過濾兩尊巨佛的殘骸，並用怪手運走最大的岩塊，有些重達70、甚至90噸重，再把它們覆蓋好，因為軟岩在雨雪中容易崩解。較小的碎片和土堆則小心堆在一旁。

A paradox is that the destruction of the Buddhas has in a way aided archaeologists in their investigations. For example, carbon dating of fragments of the plaster surface of the Buddhas was able to pinpoint the construction of the smaller one to 507, and the larger one to 554. Previous estimates had varied over 200 years.

矛盾的是摧毀巨佛，從另一面看，有助於考古學家進行調查工作。例如，用碳-14年代測定法，可以測定表面所塗抹的灰泥碎片碳成分的年代，可以確定小佛建於公元507年，大佛建於554年，過去的估計有兩百多年的出入。

The Buddhas were only roughly carved in the rock, which was then covered in a mud plaster mixed with straw and horsehair molded to depict the folds of their robes and then painted in bright colors. Workers have recovered nearly 3,000 pieces of the surface plaster, some with traces of paint, as well as the wooden pegs and rope that were laid across the bodies to hold the plaster to the statue. The dryness of Afghanistan's climate and the depth of the niches helped protect the statues and preserve the wood and rope.

佛像只粗略雕刻在岩壁上，再包覆一層灰泥，摻雜稻草和馬毛，用來形塑佛像法袍縐摺，再塗上鮮明的顏料。工作人員已取回3,000件表面的灰泥，有些有塗料的痕跡，還有安置在佛像身上的木栓和繩索，以便泥料附在雕像上。阿富汗氣候乾燥，佛龕縱深夠，有助於保護佛像及保存木料和繩索。

The larger Buddha was painted carmine red and the smaller one was multicolored, Mr. Melzl said.

梅茲爾說，大佛塗上胭脂紅，小佛塗上多種顏色。

The most exciting find, he added, was a reliquary containing three clay beads, a leaf, clay seals and parts of a Buddhist text written on bark. The reliquary is thought to have been placed on the chest of the larger Buddha and plastered over at the time of construction.

他又說，最令人振奮的發現是聖骨盒有三粒陶珠，一片葉子，陶土印章及寫在樹皮上的佛經片段。聖骨盒據了解是放在大佛胸前，並在建佛像時塗上。

The one restoration approach considered acceptable by Unesco and other experts is anastylosis, often used for Greek and Roman temples, in which the original pieces are reassembled and held together with a minimum of new material.

聯合國教科文組織和其他專家認為可以接受的一種修復方式是原物歸位法，常為希臘羅馬神殿採用，先把原始碎片重新拼好，並用最少的新材料整個固定。

But reassembling pieces that can weigh up to 90 tons would be extremely difficult; Afghanistan does not even have a crane strong enough to hoist them, Mr. Melzl said. The reconstruction project, which the governor of Bamiyan Province has estimated would cost $50 million, would probably also become a political issue in this impoverished Muslim country, where more than 10 percent of the population remains in need of food aid.

但重新拼湊重達90噸重的碎片極其困難。梅茲爾說，阿富汗甚至沒有夠力的怪手搬運它。重建計畫，據巴米揚省省長估計要花五千萬美元，在這個一窮二白的穆斯林國家，也可能成為政治議題，阿富汗還有十分之一以上人口需要糧援。

Nevertheless, the provincial governor, Habiba Sarabi, favors rebuilding the Buddhas using anastylosis, and said she would propose that the central government make a formal request to Unesco. Professor Maeda said he supports the idea of reassembling one of the Buddhas and leaving the other destroyed as a testament to the crime.

但巴米揚省長哈碧芭．沙拉比支持用原物歸位法，並說她會建議中央政府向聯合國教科文組織正式提出申請。前田教授說，他支持重建其中一座巨佛，但讓另一座維持摧毀狀態，以見證這段戰爭罪行。

The government also approved the proposal of the Japanese artist Hiro Yamagata to mount a $64 million sound-and-laser show starting in 2009 that would project Buddha images at Bamiyan, powered by hundreds of windmills that would also supply electricity to surrounding residents.

阿富汗政府也同意日本藝術家山形博導的提議，2009年起安裝總領6400萬美元的雷射聲光秀，把巨佛的影像打在巴米揚上，由數百座風車發電，並供電給附近居民。

Meanwhile, simply preserving what remains is daunting. Once the niches, grottos and caves were covered with murals, but 80 percent were obliterated by the Taliban, Professor Maeda said. Art thieves also did damage, using ropes to climb into caves 100 feet up on the cliff face and hacking away priceless medallions depicting seated Buddhas. One of them made its way to Tokyo, where an art dealer, suspecting its illicit provenance, showed it to Professor Maeda, who has managed to retrieve more than 40 stolen artifacts.

同時，光是維護遺址的工作就很嚇人，過去佛龕、岩洞和洞穴都包覆著壁畫，但前田說，其中80%已被神學士摧毀，藝品盜賊也造成傷害，他們用繩索爬上峭壁100呎高的洞穴，並劫掠走無價的坐佛圓雕，其中一個已流落東京，當地一位藝術經紀懷疑不明，拿給前田教授看，他已設法取回40餘件失竊的藝品。

"One day I hope we will return them to Afghanistan," he said.

他說：「有一天，我希望我們會把它們歸還阿富汗。」




《詞解》
colossal Buddhas 巨佛
niches 佛龕
Taliban 神學士
militiamen 民兵
infidels 異教徒
explosives 爆裂物
Genghis Khan 成吉思汗
relics, ruins 遺址
World Heritage site 世界文化遺址
temples and monasteries 佛寺
meditate 靜思
Unesco 聯合國教科文組織
steel rods 鋼柱
archaeologists 考古學家
fissures 裂縫
Sensors 監控器
carbon dating 用碳-14年代測定法測定
carmine red 胭脂紅
daunting 艱鉅困難
sound-and-laser show 雷射聲光秀
anastylosis 原物歸位法
murals 壁畫