After Ne Zha 2 premiered in North America, it quickly became one of the top-performing Chinese films in the region in recent years. Moviegoers noticed that the animation featured Chinese dubbing with English subtitles. English translations of Taoist incantations and other lines in the movie stirred up discussions even before the film's release. One such example is the phrase "急急如律令" translated as "swift and uplift".

It is a phrase used in Taoist rituals. The translation "swift and uplift" has a rhythmic quality that suits the dynamic nature of the ritual scene, but it doesn't fully capture the cultural depth behind the original phrase.

Translating such phrases requires striking a balance between preserving the "cultural uniqueness" and ensuring the audience's "understanding". Finding the perfect equilibrium point still calls for collaboration among translators, viewers and scholars.
equilibrium /ˌiːkwɪˈlɪbriəm/ 平衡,均衡
推 荐 阅 读



