【TED】A day in the Islamic Golden Age

As the morning sun shines on the Golden Gate Palace, brother and sister Hisham and Asma prepare for the journey of a lifetime. It is 791 CE, and the Abbasid Caliphate is at the height of its power, stretching from India to North Africa. With over half a million inhabitants, its capital city of Madinat al-Salaam, also known as Baghdad, is the largest in the Islamic Empire, possibly the world. And it's only 30 years old.

Asma and Hisham will leave at sunset for the hajj, the holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Most people make the journey when they’re older and wealthier, but Hisham and Asma have wanted to make this journey together since they were children.

当晨曦照耀在金门宫殿上时， 希沙姆和阿斯玛兄妹 正在为一生的旅程做准备。 此时是公元 791 年， 阿拔斯王朝正处鼎盛时期， 从印度一直延伸到北非。 Madīnat as-Salām （和平之城）的 首府拥有 50 多万居民， 也被称为巴格达， 是伊斯兰帝国最大城市， 可能也是世界上最大的。 只有 30 年的历史。 阿斯玛和希沙姆将在日落时分出发, 前往麦加朝圣。 多数人都在年纪稍大、更富裕的时候 才踏上这段旅程， 但希沙姆和阿斯玛 从小就想一起踏上这段旅程。

They intend to travel with the big hajj caravan that is protected by the caliph soldiers. The caliph Al-Rashid himself is also traveling with the caravan this year. The hajj caravan is like a massive mobile city, with soldiers, cooks, doctors and merchants, servants and enslaved people. The journey is long, with dangers like disease, robbery, and dehydration. Because of these perils, Hisham and Asma want to travel with the larger group— but a last-minute mishap threatens to undo months of careful planning.

他们打算加入 由哈里发士兵保护的大型朝圣车队， 哈里发拉希德（Al-Rashid）本人 今年也随大篷车同行。 朝圣车队就像一座巨大的移动城市， 有士兵、厨师、医生和商人， 还有仆人和奴隶。 旅途漫长，充满疾病、 抢劫和脱水等危险， 因此，希沙姆和阿斯玛 想和更大的团队一起旅行， 但最后一刻出现的意外 可能会破坏几个月的精心计划。

When the siblings visit the market to check on the supplies they’ve purchased, the merchant tells them one of their camels has fallen ill, and he doesn't have any replacements.

当这对兄妹去市场 检查他们购买的物资时， 商人告诉他们， 他们的一只骆驼生病了， 而且他没有备用骆驼。

Without the camel, the siblings won't be able to depart with the caravan. They search the marketplace, bustling with people from different ethnic backgrounds, such as Persians, Arabs, Turks, Africans, and Indians, and following different religions like Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. The market sells everything from locally made pottery, Egyptian glass, and paper from Samarkand, to Chinese silk, gold from Africa, and fox fur from the distant north. But with the caravan leaving tonight, no one has a camel available.

没有骆驼，这对兄弟姐妹 就无法和商队一起启程。 他们在集市上寻找， 那里挤满了不同种族背景的人， 有波斯人、阿拉伯人、 土耳其人、非洲人、印度人等， 信仰也五花八门， 有伊斯兰教、犹太教、 基督教和琐罗亚斯德教等。 市场上有各种商品，从当地的陶器、 埃及玻璃、撒马尔罕的纸张， 到中国丝绸、非洲黄金 和遥远北方的狐皮。 但商队今晚就要出发， 商人的骆驼都卖光了。

Though the hajj is primarily a religious journey, the siblings have other, personal hopes for it. Hisham and Asma come from a wealthy family and both had tutors as children.

虽然麦加朝圣主要是一次宗教之旅， 但兄妹俩还有其他私心。 希沙姆和阿斯玛出生于富裕家庭， 小时候都有家庭教师。

Hisham is studying to become a scholar, progressing from Arabic grammar to Islamic law and Persian love poetry, then to Indian-inspired mathematics and Greek philosophy and medicine. With scholars from all over the empire traveling to Mecca and important intellectual centers on the way, the hajj is a great learning opportunity.

希沙姆读书的目标是要成为学者， 从阿拉伯语法到伊斯兰法律 和波斯爱情诗， 然后学印度数学、希腊哲学及医学。 由于帝国各地的学者都会前往麦加， 再加上去麦加途经的重要知识中心， 朝圣是一个很好的学习机会。

Asma, meanwhile, has literary ambitions. As a woman, a life of formal scholarship is not available to her. Instead, she is honing her skills as a poet. She hopes to compose poetry about the journey that will catch the attention of important women in the city, and maybe even Queen Zubayda.

而阿斯玛也有文学抱负， 作为一名女性，她无法 体验正规的学术生活， 因此，她正在磨练自己的诗人技能， 希望创作以这次旅行为主题的诗歌， 以吸引城市中重要女性的注意， 甚至可能是女王祖巴伊达。

The siblings split up to search for a camel. Hisham heads toward the library complex to ask the scholars’ advice. An elderly scholar studying Galen and Hippocrates tells him how to treat a wound. An Aramaic translator from Damascus shares a list of useful herbs for upset stomach on the road. A Persian poet wants to share his latest poetry, but Hisham doesn’t see how that will get him the camel for tonight, so he kindly refuses. As he says goodbye, they give him the names of important theology scholars to visit in Medina, on the way to Mecca. But to get there, he’ll need a camel.

兄妹分头去找骆驼， 希沙姆走向图书馆大楼， 向学者们寻求建议。 一位研究盖伦和希波克拉底的老学者 告诉他如何治疗伤口； 来自大马士革的阿拉姆语翻译 分享了一份有用的草药清单， 用于治疗旅途中的胃部不适； 一位波斯诗人想分享他最新的诗歌， 但希沙姆觉得无助于今晚找骆驼， 所以他婉拒了。 告别时，他们提供了麦地那的 一些重要神学学者的名字， 以便他在麦加朝圣路上去拜访。 但要去那里，他需要一头骆驼。

Meanwhile, Asma visits an older, married cousin. An enslaved girl opens the door, and takes Asma to the women’s quarters, where men cannot enter. Her cousin wants to hear Asma’s latest poetry, but Asma tells her she’s in a hurry and explains their predicament. She’s in luck— her cousin’s husband has a camel to offer them.

与此同时，阿斯玛拜访了 一位年长的已婚表姐。 一位女奴打开门， 把阿斯玛带到女人们的居所， 那里男性禁入。 表姐想听阿斯玛的最新诗歌， 但阿斯玛告诉她自己赶时间， 并解释了他们的困境。 她很幸运，因为表姐的丈夫 可以送给他们一头骆驼。

With their arrangements secure at last, they make their final preparations. At the designated times for men and women, each performs a ritual ablution at one of Baghdad’s many public bathhouses.

终于安排妥当后， 他们开始做最后的准备。 在指定的时间，男人和女人 都要在巴格达众多 公共澡堂之一进行洗礼。

As the sun sets, the city’s criers announce the caravan’s departure, and the townspeople flock to watch the pilgrims leave.

太阳落山时，城市的广播员 宣布商队离开， 镇上的人成群结队地 目送朝圣者离开。