鰯の頭も信心から

[Kevin Steinbach]

Dear Yakkers,

 

I'm translating a sermon that includes the pastor's thoughts on インテリジェンス vs. インテレクト.  (He states that "intelligence" is knowledge about the outside world, while "intellect" is our knowledge of our own inner selves.)  In part of the sermon, he writes:

 

信仰にもインテリジェンスを要求する面がないわけではありません。"informed piety"という言葉がありますように、「鰯の頭も信心から」というように、訳も分からずただ何でも言われるとおり信じ込む、ということは聖書の信仰ではないですね。

 

What I'm wondering about is the expression 鰯の頭も信心から.  I think I understand the meaning, but I'm not sure how it applies in this context.  I found the following definition from http://gogen-allguide.com/i/iwashinoatama.html:

 

鰯の頭も信心からとは、イワシの頭のようなつまらないものでも、信仰すれば非常に尊いものに見えることから、信仰心の不思議さをたとえたことわざ。

 

I'm thinking about simply using "the heart of faith," but I wondered if anyone could think of a similarly proverbial expression in English.

 

a good Saturday afternoon to all,

 

 

Kevin Steinbach

[Mika Jarmusz]

It applies in your context this way: you can worship anything, even a sardine's head.
This sort of belief does not require much intelligence. 

Hope this makes sense?

--
Mika Jarmusz 清水美香
English to Japanese Translator
inJapanese.us

[Kirill Sereda]

“Making an idol of a sardine’s head”

 

The expression sounds very ironic.

 

k

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[Steve Venti]

Kevin asks:

> 鰯の頭も信心からとは、イワシの頭のようなつまらないものでも、信仰すれば

> 非常に尊いものに見えることから、信仰心の不思議さをたとえたことわざ。
>
> I'm thinking about simply using "the heart of faith," but I wondered if
> anyone could think of a similarly proverbial expression in English.

To those who believe, no explanation is necessary; to those who
believe not, no explanation is possible.

Franz Werfel, Song of Bernadette

--
Steve Venti

So many hearts I find, broke like yours and mine,
Torn by what we've done and can't undo.
--Leonard Cohen, Song of Bernadette
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[Dale Ponte]

Here's a raw something in the way of a coinage idea:

" . . . as 'faith can/may settle for/on a sardine's head', . . ."

~
Dale

[Kevin Steinbach]

All,

 

Thanks for your helpful explanations and English possibilities.

 

 

Kevin

[Mika Jarmusz]

I feel I need to point out that this saying is not about a sardine's head, nor about laughing at others.
It's about how totally silly each of us can be, and how believing in something has a magic power that can carry us through.   I'd like to see its translation reflecting that.  Not that I know how, but you might.

[Kevin Steinbach]

Thanks for your further clarification, Mika.  As it stands, I have been thinking about translating it as "blind faith," as in:

 

There certainly is a side of faith that requires this [intelligence].  As the phrase "informed piety" suggests, we can't simply rely on "blind faith," believing everything we're told; this is not Biblical faith.

 

That said, one person who contacted me off-list expressed concern that this is a misinterpretation; they felt it might be a dig at other religions in which people seem to believe in anything they're told to, even a sardine's head.

 

Other thoughts?

 

 

Kevin

[Marc Adler]

2008/6/2 Kevin Steinbach <loth...@gmail.com>:

> There certainly is a side of faith that requires this [intelligence]. As
> the phrase "informed piety" suggests, we can't simply rely on "blind faith,"
> believing everything we're told; this is not Biblical faith.

If I might pick a nit, "this is not biblical faith" sounds ambiguously
like the writer is drawing a distinction between his faith (="this")
and "biblical faith." It might be clearer if you fleshed it out as
something like "that's not what biblical faith is all about." To give
it even more punch (and to communicate the essence of the point), I'd
repeat the "blind faith" part:

"There certainly is a side of faith that requires this [intelligence]. As
the phrase "informed piety" suggests, we can't simply rely on blind faith,

believing everything we're told. Biblical faith is not blind faith, after all."

Also, the quotes around "blind faith" seem unnecessary, since there's
nothing remarkable about the term, and "biblical" doesn't need to be
capitalized.

> That said, one person who contacted me off-list expressed concern that this
> is a misinterpretation; they felt it might be a dig at other religions in
> which people seem to believe in anything they're told to, even a sardine's
> head.
>
> Other thoughts?

Without more context, I think it's impossible to say what the pastor
is getting at.

--
Marc Adler
Austin, TX

لا شيء إلا الضوء

[Mika Jarmusz]

Hi Kevin, 

Blind faith is a nice translation, I think.  A dig at other religions is an interesting observation.  I'm 99.9% sure that that's not the case, reading from the way he phrased the sentence.  I'd be curious how others read it though, as such wide ambiguity can throw off the direction of the speech and its translation.  You might double check with your pastor.

信仰にもインテリジェンスを要求する面がないわけではありません。"informed piety"という言葉がありますように、「鰯の頭も信心から」というように、訳も分からずただ何でも言われるとおり信じ込む、ということは聖書の信仰ではないですね。

I'm wondering about the "biblical faith" with or without capitalization.  I may be reaching out in the areas I don't know, but I may be with Marc on this.  聖書の信仰 that I get from this sentence is different from 聖書信仰.  It's the kind of faith that "the Bible teaches us and directs us to have". 

http://jiten.biglobe.ne.jp/j/83/b6/dd/59bf3ec8cb07f86252a413150fb1ac06.htm
聖書信仰（せいしょしんこう）とは、キリスト教神学において、聖書を誤りない神のことばと信じる信仰、および、これを信じるクリスチャン、キリスト教会、教派を表す用語である。

I could be wrong, but Biblical faith sounds to me like 聖書信仰 which seems to be the blind faith that he is cautioning against.