七）一廂情願的愛與哀愁
三月中旬從溫室花園裏買來一小盆月桂幼苗，我們將它放在溫暖的客廳裏，在植物燈下照了兩個星期，長出了十幾片嫩葉。可能是室內光線略微不足吧，頂部新發出的兩片葉子特別大，質感略薄。四月初，溫哥華的白日氣溫上升到十幾度，我們將月桂盆移到後院，用一個透明的塑料袋罩著，以防陽光中的紫外線灼傷新葉。
兩個星期後，我們估計著月桂已經充分適應了室外的光線，才取下了塑料袋，月桂開始茁壯成長。
新鮮的月桂葉味苦，清香，幹燥後，苦味減少，香氣增加，可以用作調料，即“香葉”。月桂葉雖也稱桂葉，但與肉桂樹的桂葉、桂花樹的桂葉均不同，身價遠高於肉桂樹葉與桂花樹葉。
不過我是不舍得將自家的月桂葉當成調味料的，就讓它們一年四季在枝頭綠著吧，向我訴說一個個動人的故事。
或許愛情中最大的悲哀，叫做一廂情願，即使你相貌英俊多才多藝，性情光明磊落，完美的無法挑剔，還如此深愛著她，可她的心門就是緊鎖，拒絕愛情和婚姻。你該怎麽辦呢？
這就是古希臘傳說中的光明之神、文藝之神、神射手、醫藥之神和預言之神阿波羅的困境。人人熟知的月桂樹的傳說與阿波羅有關，流傳最廣的是古羅馬作家奧維德（Ovid, 公元前43年 -公元 17年/18年未能確定）的《變形記》（Metamorphoses）裏的版本。
阿波羅射殺了蟒蛇皮同（Python）後，感到非常自豪，嘲笑起用大人弓箭的小孩丘比特。丘比特報複阿波羅，用金色箭頭射向他，使他瘋狂地愛上了河神的女兒達芙妮（Daphne），同時丘比特又用鉛箭射向達芙妮，讓她更加厭惡和排斥愛情。《變形記》第一卷的《達芙妮與菲伯斯》篇（Daphne and Phoebus）是這樣敘述的：
“但是，即使在他告白的時候，水泉仙女帶著羞怯的腳步從他的身邊逃跑了，讓他陷入了喃喃自語和痛苦中。溫柔的風使她的四肢袒露，顯得很可愛，西風吹拂著她的衣裳，微風輕揚起她飄逸的頭發。飛跑的她在他的眼裏最可愛，愛得發狂的他跟隨她的腳步，沉默中加快了他的步伐。就像靈緹犬看到在平原上奔跑的驚恐的野兔：— 伸出急切的鼻子，莽撞地撲向獵物，撲到她身後，踩到了她的腳，張牙舞爪朝她咬去；恐慌至極的她卻突然逃脫了。天神和少女就是這幅情形：一個懷著希望在追逐，另一個出於恐懼在逃跑；緊緊跟隨的他插上了愛的翅膀，不給她喘息的機會，離她越來越近，直到他溫暖的呼吸吹到了她的發梢。她筋疲力盡，蒼白而虛弱，用懇求的目光注視著父親的波浪，祈禱著：“父親，如果河水有靈，救救我！大地母親，掩護我，摧毀已經傷害了我的美貌，或改變已經要了我的命的身體。”祈禱結束之前，她的整個身體就僵硬了，柔軟的胸前裹了一層薄薄的樹皮，她的頭發變成了搖晃的葉子，手臂變成了揮舞的樹枝，她原本會動的腳變成了樹根，牢牢地釘在地麵上-她的臉被樹葉覆蓋。”
（But even as he made his plaint, the Nymph with timid footsteps fled from his approach, and left him to his murmurs and his pain. Lovely the virgin seemed as the soft wind exposed her limbs, and as the zephyrs fond fluttered amid her garments, and the breeze fanned lightly in her flowing hair. She seemed most lovely to his fancy in her flight; and mad with love he followed in her steps, and silent hastened his increasing speed. As when the greyhound sees the frightened hare flit over the plain:—With eager nose outstretched, impetuous, he rushes on his prey, and gains upon her till he treads her feet, and almost fastens in her side his fangs; but she, whilst dreading that her end is near, is suddenly delivered from her fright; so was it with the god and virgin: one with hope pursued, the other fled in fear; and he who followed, borne on wings of love, permitted her no rest and gained on her, until his warm breath mingled in her hair. Her strength spent, pale and faint, with pleading eyes she gazed upon her father's waves and prayed, “Help me my father, if thy flowing streams have virtue! Cover me, O mother Earth! Destroy the beauty that has injured me, or change the body that destroys my life.” Before her prayer was ended, torpor seized on all her body, and a thin bark closed around her gentle bosom, and her hair became as moving leaves; her arms were changed to waving branches, and her active feet as clinging roots were fastened to the ground—her face was hidden with encircling leaves.）
“菲伯斯崇敬並熱愛著那棵優美的樹（盡管變了，她依然保留著纖細的身材），他的右手撫摸著樹幹，感覺到樹皮內她跳動的胸膛。他緊緊抱住樹幹和樹枝，仿佛與之纏繞在一起。他甜蜜地吻著由她的人形變成的樹，每吻一次，那棵樹都要退縮一下。天神說， ‘雖然你不能成為我的新娘，你應該成為我選擇的樹。哦，月桂，你綠色的葉子將永遠戴在我的頭上，纏在我的箭囊和豎琴上；當遊行隊伍爬上朱庇特神廟，人群歡呼勝利之時，我要讓羅馬英雄們的頭上戴著你的環冠。我要讓你在奧古斯都城門前作為忠誠的衛兵，守護著擺在你的枝葉之間的橡葉榮冠。因為我是長生的，所以你的葉子長青，無損你的榮耀。’
天神菲伯斯阿波羅於此結束了他的哀歎，月桂樹朝他彎下了樹枝，無比優雅。在他看來，她優美的點頭回答了他的愛。”
（Phoebus admired and loved the graceful tree, (For still, though changed, her slender form remained) and with his right hand lingering on the trunk he felt her bosom throbbing in the bark. He clung to trunk and branch as though to twine. His form with hers, and fondly kissed the wood that shrank from every kiss. And thus the God; “Although thou canst not be my bride, thou shalt be called my chosen tree, and thy green leaves, O Laurel! shall forever crown my brows, be wreathed around my quiver and my lyre; the Roman heroes shall be crowned with thee, as long processions climb the Capitol and chanting throngs proclaim their victories; and as a faithful warden thou shalt guard the civic crown of oak leaves fixed between thy branches, and before Augustan gates. And as my youthful head is never shorn, so, also, shalt thou ever bear thy leaves unchanging to thy glory.” Here the God, Phoebus Apollo, ended his lament, and unto him the Laurel bent her boughs, so lately fashioned; and it seemed to him her graceful nod gave answer to his love.）
於是阿波羅將月桂樹帶到了德爾斐（Delphi）聖地（他射死蟒蛇皮同的地方），通過女祭司皮緹亞（Pythia）來傳達他的神諭（Oracle）。
古希臘的神諭儀式是這樣的：皮緹亞在卡斯塔利安泉（Castalian Spring）沐浴，隨後敬獻山羊。然後她走到德爾斐神廟下的一個叫阿迪頓（adyton）的特殊房間，室內的爐灶上熏蒸著大麥粉和月桂葉。室內還豎立著翁法洛斯（omphalos），在希臘語中意為“肚臍”，是一種人造的宗教性圓形石器，象征著“大地的肚臍”。據說宙斯曾經放出兩隻老鷹：一隻向東飛，一隻向西飛，這兩隻老鷹在環繞大地一圈後匯合於德爾斐，因此這裏即為大地的中心。皮緹亞坐在一個有蓋的三腳架大鍋上，三腳架支在井狀的溝壑中。皮緹亞被水汽環繞著，搖晃著月桂枝，陷入一種精神恍惚狀態，與阿波羅通靈。她用這種方式向信眾宣告神諭，信眾們則獻祭月桂枝、金錢和黑公羊。
神諭似乎是從火中誕生的，把月桂葉扔到火上，如果葉子卷曲並發出劈裏啪啦的聲音，則預示著好兆頭；如果葉子沒有卷曲，則是不祥之兆。得到福兆的人頭戴著桂冠回家。月桂枝還會引發有先兆性的夢。
德爾斐聖壇建於公元前8世紀，最先是一年舉辦一次神諭儀式，後來變為一年三次。皮緹亞擁有很高的社會地位，一般來自上流家庭，受過良好的教育，知識淵博。
大約在公元393年，羅馬皇帝狄奧多西（把基督教定為國教的皇帝）下令關閉所有異教徒的聖地。
為了解釋坐在三腳架上的皮緹亞為何會精神恍惚，某些現代學者特地做了實地考察，發現德爾斐遺跡坐落於兩個斷層的交叉處，地底下富含的瀝青質石灰岩在地殼運動中可能會產生乙烯類物質，而後者對人有神經麻痹作用。這些細節和普魯塔克（Plutarchus）（約46年─125年，生活於羅馬時代的希臘作家）的曆史記載不謀而合，提供了一個較為合理的解釋。
月桂還是勝利和榮譽的象征，古希臘人用月桂的小枝條編織成桂冠，授予皮西安競技會（Pythian Games）的獲勝者。奧維爾的《變形記》的第一卷敘述了皮西安競技會的由來：
“在這之後，當沼澤地裏所有剩下的濕氣在陽光下發酵，土壤中富有營養的種子長成預定的形狀，大地自發地產生了動物世界。因此，當擁有七條支流的尼羅河從淤泥地重新流回她的古河床時，空靈的陽光滲入爛泥，農民翻土時，很高興地發現了以前未知的奇怪動物：有些停留在剛出生的階段，有些沒有四肢，不完美；通常身體的一部分是活的，另一部分是無生命的粘液。熱量和水分結合在一起，創造了生命。雖然水和火不相容，但一切眾生皆始於潮濕的水汽，看似不和諧的事物融和在一起就是產生生命的方式。當隨著洪流而延伸的大地感受到熾熱的太陽散發出的空靈的熱量時，產生出無數的物種，並賦予它們許多古老的形態或者創造出新的怪物。
大地很不情願創造了巨大的皮同。— 迄今為止您聞所未聞的一種橫亙在廣闊的山脈間的蟒蛇，讓剛剛被創造出來的人類無比恐懼。天神拿著弓（在此之前隻是用來獵殺鹿和敏捷的山羊的武器）用無數的飛鏢擊毀了怪物，幾乎清空了他所有的箭袋，直到毒血從巨蟒青紫的傷口滲出來。唯恐他的功績被遺忘在那黑暗無知的年代，他創立了這項神聖的體育競技，根據皮同的名字，取名“皮西安競技會”。當快樂的年輕人在戰車、跑步和拳擊比賽中勝出時，會戴著橡樹葉編成的頭冠以示榮耀。那時，月桂樹還沒有被創造出來，因此，有著飄逸長發的光彩照人的神明菲伯斯的頭上戴的是各種樹葉編成的花環”。
（And after this the Earth spontaneous produced the world of animals, when all remaining moistures of the mirey fens fermented in the sun, and fruitful seeds in soils nutritious grew to shapes ordained. So when the seven streamed Nile from oozy fields returneth duly to her ancient bed, the sun's ethereal rays impregn the slime, that haply as the peasants turn the soil they find strange animals unknown before: some in the moment of their birth, and some deprived of limbs, imperfect; often part alive and part of slime inanimate are fashioned in one body. Heat combined with moisture so conceives and life results from these two things. For though the flames may be the foes of water, everything that lives begins in humid vapour, and it seems discordant concord is the means of life. When Earth, spread over with diluvian ooze, felt heat ethereal from the glowing sun, unnumbered species to the light she gave, and gave to being many an ancient form, or monster new created.
Unwilling she created thus enormous Python.—Thou unheard of serpent spread so far athwart the side of a vast mountain, didst fill with fear the race of new created man. The God that bears the bow (a weapon used till then only to hunt the deer and agile goat) destroyed the monster with a myriad darts, and almost emptied all his quiver, till envenomed gore oozed forth from livid wounds. Lest in a dark oblivion time should hide the fame of this achievement, sacred sports he instituted, from the Python called “The Pythian Games.” In these the happy youth who proved victorious in the chariot race, running and boxing, with an honoured crown of oak leaves was enwreathed. The laurel then was not created, wherefore Phoebus, bright and godlike, beauteous with his flowing hair, was wont to wreathe his brows with various leaves。）
《第一屆皮西安競技會》（The First Pythian Games）的故事發生阿波羅追求達芙妮之前，說明最早用來獎勵勝利者的花冠並不是由桂樹的小枝編織成的。但是後來給勝利者和優秀藝術家授予桂冠成為一種重要的傳統。阿波羅是藝術之神，有學者認為最早為紀念他而舉辦的皮西安競技會可能是文藝競賽，後來加入了體育比賽。
月桂樹的勝利象征從古希臘一直延續到羅馬，並且發揚光大。月桂也代表著不朽，用於宗教儀式淨化，與繁榮和健康有關，也是“桂冠詩人”這個稱謂的來源。
達芙妮原本是月桂樹的別稱，隨著時間的演化，Daphne成為瑞香科植物的總稱了。
這些基本常識可以幫助我們在經典文學作品中領略月桂的馨香。
