異曲同聲盼和平福音

異曲同聲盼和平福音

Linda Baxter

The concept of peace is a very important one in cultures all over the world. Think about how we greet people. In some languages， the phrases for greetings contain the word for peace. In some cultures we greet people by shaking hands or with another gesture to show that we are not carrying weapons—that we come in peace. And there are certain symbols that people in very different cultures recognize as representing peace. Let’s look at the origins of a few of them.

和平的概念在全世界所有文化中都很重要。想一想我們向他人問候的樣子吧。在一些語言中，問候語包含了和平的字眼。在有些文化里，人們用握手或者做其他手勢來表示問候，以顯示我們沒有攜帶武器——我們是為和平而來。不同文化的人們有各自獨特的代表和平的象征，讓我們來看看其中幾個和平象征的起源。

The Dove鴿子

The dove has been a symbol of peace and innocence for thousands of years in many different cultures. In ancient Greek mythology it was a symbol of love and the renewal of life. In ancient Japan a dove carrying a sword symbolised the end of war.

There was a tradition in Europe that if a dove flew around a house where someone was dying then their soul would be at peace. And there are legends that say that the devil can turn himself into any bird except a dove. In Christian art， the dove was used to symbolise the Holy Ghost and was often painted above Christ’s head.

But it was Pablo Picasso who made the dove a modern symbol of peace when he used it on a poster for the 1)World Peace Congress in 1949.

在許多不同的文化中，將鴿子作為和平及清白的象征已有數千年的歷史。在古希臘神話中，它象征著愛及生命的重生。在古代日本，佩劍的鴿子則象征戰爭的結束。

在歐洲有一種傳說:如果鴿子在臨終者的屋子上空盤旋，則表示他們的靈魂將會得到安息。在一些民間傳說里，惡魔可以將自己變成任何一種鳥，但鴿子除外。在基督教藝術中，鴿子被用作圣靈的象征，常常被畫在耶穌頭像的上方。

但使鴿子成為現代和平象征的人是畢加索，他于1949年將鴿子畫在了世界和平大會的海報上。

2)Mistletoe 槲寄生枝

This plant was sacred in many cultures， generally representing peace and love. Most people know of the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe at Christmas time， which probably comes from Scandinavian mythology. The goddess 3)Freya’s son was killed by an arrow made of mistletoe， so， in honour of him， she declared that it would always be a symbol of peace. It was often hung in doorways as a sign of friendship.

這種植物在很多文化中都是神圣的，通常代表著和平及關愛。大多數人都知道圣誕節時在槲寄生枝下親吻的傳統，這個風俗可能來自斯堪的納維亞神話。女神弗蕾婭的兒子被一支用槲寄生枝制成的箭殺死。于是，為了紀念他，女神宣布槲寄生枝將永遠作為和平的象征。人們常將它掛在門道以表示友誼。

The Olive Branch 橄欖枝

The olive tree has always been a valuable source of food and oil. In Greek mythology， the goddess Athene gave the olive tree to the people of Athens， who showed their 4)gratitude by naming the city after her. But no one knows for sure when or why it began to symbolise peace. There is probably a connection with ancient Greece. Wars between states were 5)suspended during the Olympic Games， and the winners were given crowns of olive branches. The symbolism may come from the fact that the olive tree takes a long time to produce fruit， so olives could be cultivated successfully only in long periods of peace. Whatever the history， the olive branch is a part of many modern flags symbolising peace and unity. One well-known example is the United Nations symbol.

橄欖樹歷來都是食物和油的寶貴來源。在古希臘神話中，女神雅典娜將橄欖樹送給雅典人，那里的人為了表示感謝，便以女神的名字來命名他們的城市。……