原文
雷之州,每见天边有晕若半虹,长数十丈,初圜而黑,渐乃广阔如破帆,其名风篷,亦曰飓母。又曰瘴母。瘴母起则飓风随之,飓生于瘴,瘴为气,飓为风,气者风之母,故曰飓风。飓母先成形而为半虹,胎风其中,经四五日而后飓发,积之久者发之暴,其候不爽。故苏过云:“断霓饮海而北指。”断霓一作断虹,即半虹也。广州四时虹见,半虹则以将飓而后见。半虹饮水,水气腥,又吐为犁头云,是曰飓云。先为虹而后为云,虹断而云作犁头状,夹日以翔于南,其色纯赤,此火之气也。火以生风,故为飓之母。又飓将作,先期一二日,有云片漫空疾飞,海人称为飏潮。风本云也,而以为风,见云而知其为风也,云得气之先者也,此阴云也。阳之云为雷之始,阴之云为风之始也。
白话
中文
在雷州,人们常常看见天边出现像半截彩虹一样的光晕,长达几十丈。起初是圆形且颜色发黑,渐渐地变宽阔,形状像一面破裂的船帆,它的名字叫做“风篷”,也叫“飓母”,又叫做“瘴母”。据说“瘴母”出现,飓风就会跟着来。飓风产生于瘴气,瘴是气,飓是风,气是风的根源(母亲),所以称之为飓风。“飓母”先形成半虹的形状,在内部孕育着风,经过四五天后飓风就会爆发。酝酿积聚的时间越长,爆发就越猛烈,这种征兆从不失误。所以苏过(苏轼之子)曾说:“断裂的彩虹在海面吸水并且指向北方。”这里说的“断霓”(或写作“断虹”)就是指半虹。广州一年四季都能见到彩虹,但半虹只在飓风即将到来时才会出现。半虹像是在吸海水,水气带着腥味,然后又吐出像犁头形状的云,这叫做“飓云”。先是形成虹,然后变成云,虹断裂后云呈现犁头状,在太阳两侧,飞舞于南方天空,颜色是纯赤色,这是火的气。按照五行理论,火能生风,所以(半虹)是飓风的母亲。另外,飓风将要发生前一两天,会有碎云片在空中快速飞过,海边的人称之为“飏潮”。风本来就是云(的一种表现),但人们把它看作风。看见这种云就知道风要来了,云是气的先兆。这是阴云。阳云是打雷的开始,阴云是起风的开始。
英文
In Leizhou, people often see a halo resembling a half-rainbow on the horizon, measuring tens of zhang in length. Initially, it is round and dark, gradually widening like a torn sail. Its name is "Feng Peng" (Wind Sail), also called "Ju Mu" (Hurricane Mother), or "Zhang Mu" (Miasma Mother). It is said that when the Miasma Mother appears, a hurricane follows. Hurricanes are born from miasma (zhang); miasma is qi (vapor/energy), and hurricane (ju) is wind (feng). Qi is the mother of wind, hence the term jufeng (hurricane). The Hurricane Mother first takes the shape of a half-rainbow, gestating the wind within. After four or five days, the hurricane erupts. The longer it accumulates, the more violent the outbreak; this sign never fails. Therefore, Su Guo (son of Su Shi) said: "A broken rainbow drinks from the sea and points north." The "broken rainbow" (duan ni or duan hong) mentioned here refers to the half-rainbow. Rainbows can be seen in Guangzhou throughout the year, but the half-rainbow only appears when a hurricane is imminent. The half-rainbow seems to drink seawater, the water vapor smells rank/fishy, and then it spits out clouds shaped like a plowshare, called "hurricane clouds" (ju yun). First, it forms a rainbow, then it becomes clouds. After the rainbow breaks, the clouds take on a plowshare shape, flanking the sun and soaring in the southern sky, with a pure red color. This is the qi of fire. According to the Five Elements theory, fire generates wind, thus it (the half-rainbow) is the mother of the hurricane. Additionally, one or two days before a hurricane is about to strike, fragments of clouds fly rapidly across the sky; coastal people call this "Yang Chao" (tide-lifting/wind-borne tide). Wind is fundamentally cloud (in manifestation), yet it is considered wind. Seeing these clouds indicates that wind is coming; clouds are the first sign of qi. These are yin clouds. Yang clouds are the beginning of thunder; yin clouds are the beginning of wind.
文化解读/分析
此条目详细记述了清初广东雷州地区民众根据一种称为“半虹”(又名“风篷”、“飓母”、“瘴母”)的特殊天象来预测飓风的民俗知识。这反映了沿海居民长期与自然灾害搏斗中积累的经验智慧和朴素的自然观。
- 气象观测与预测:古人将“半虹”的形态变化(初圜而黑、渐阔如破帆)、持续时间(四五日)、伴随现象(饮水、水气腥、吐犁头云、飏潮)与飓风的发生、强度联系起来,形成了一套基于经验的飓风预报体系。“积之久者发之暴,其候不爽”体现了其预测的自信与准确性认知。
- 命名与象征:“风篷”以形命名,“飓母”、“瘴母”则揭示了时人对飓风成因的理解。“母”字象征孕育、根源,将半虹视为飓风的先兆和起源。将飓风与“瘴”联系,反映了当时岭南地区瘴气流行的背景,以及人们试图将气象灾害与地方病联系解释的思维方式。
- 朴素的自然哲学:文中运用了“气”、“阴阳”、“五行”(火生风)等中国传统哲学概念来解释飓风的形成机制。“瘴为气,飓为风,气者风之母”阐释了气与风的关系。“阳云主雷,阴云主风”体现了阴阳二元论在解释自然现象中的应用。这种解释虽不符合现代科学,但体现了古人试图将具体观测纳入其宇宙观框架的努力。
- 地方知识与文献印证:条目不仅记录了雷州的地方经验,还引用了苏过的诗句“断霓饮海而北指”来印证“半虹”即“断虹”的说法,显示了作者屈大均融合地方口传知识与文人记述的治学特点。同时,“海人称为飏潮”也记录了特定人群(海边居民)的专门术语。
- 民俗价值:该记录保存了古代广东沿海地区重要的气象民俗,是研究地方气候史、灾害史、科技史(朴素气象学)以及民俗信仰的宝贵资料。它展示了人与自然互动中形成的独特文化认知。
关键词
半虹, 广东新语, 屈大均, 飓风, 台风, 天气预测, 气象民俗, 雷州, 风篷, 飓母, 瘴母, 飏潮, 犁头云, 断虹, 岭南文化, 清代