Introduction to Literary Chinese - Lesson 10, Text 1
Adapted from the 1927 book by J. Brandt
腦
The Brain
古者以人之知覺。皆本於心。實則心爲發血之器。而知覺之源蓋屬於腦。
The ancients thought that man's perceptions originate in the heart. But in reality the heart is (only) an apparatus for distributing the blood, and the source of perceptions is in the brain.
腦體充塞頭顱上部。有無數之神經。達於全體猶。電線之分布全國。以互通其消息。
The brain substance fills the upper part of the head, and contains innumerable nerves which penetrate throughout the whole body as telegraph wires pass throughout the whole country for the (mutual) transmission of news.
吾人有所動作。則自腦傳令於。神經以指揮百體。猶總局傳電於分局也。
(If) we have to make a move, then an order is given from the brain to the nerves for the direction of the mechanism of the body, the same as the head-office sends telegrams to the branch-offices.
痛楚疴癢觸於肌膚。聲色臭味接於耳目口鼻。則神經傳其感覺以達於騰。猶分局傳電於總局。
Or when our skin has a sensation of pain or itching or when our ears, eyes, mouth or nose receive a sound, color, taste or smell, our nerves transmit those sensations to the brain, the same as the branch-offices telegraph to the head-office.
日間作事。則腦力消耗。夜必睡眠以補之。
During the day's work we exhaust our brain's energy; therefore we must sleep at night in order to restore it.
童子腦體未充。眠時宜多年長之人夜眠以八小時爲度。
The child's brain is not completely formed, and (therefore) the period of sleep needs to be long. For the adults the night rest can be limited to eight hours.