At last we reached the homeland of the eagles. Around us were bare granite cliffs surrounded by fir-trees and stunted pines； before us to the north lay the Kangchenjunga and the Qomolangma ranges. Here， on the edge of an abyss， we released our two birds. In that exhilarating air they flew like children running from school at the end of the day. Gay-Neck’s mother flew far upwards in order to show her son the sublime heights.
　　After the two birds had flown away， we three men talked of what they might be seeing as they sped above the altitudes. Before them， no doubt， rose the twin peaks of the Kangchenjunga group， slightly lower than Mount Qomolangma but just as impeccable and austere as that immaculate peak untrodden still by the feet of men.1 That fact roused profound emotions in us. We saw the mountain in the distance， just for a few minutes， like a mirror before the Face of God， and I said to myself：“O thou summit of sanctity， thou inviolate and eternal， no man may tarnish thee， nor may any mortal stain thy purity even by his slightest touch. May thou remain forever unvanquished2， O thou backbone of the universe， and measurement of immortality.”
　　But I have brought you so high not to tell you about mountains， but of an adventure that befell us there. Now that Gay-Neck and his mother had flown， we gave up watching them and went in quest of an eagle’s nest that was on a neighbouring cliff. The Himalayan eagle is brown with a soft golden glow and though very beautiful to look at—it is in perfect proportion of beauty with strength—yet it is a fierce beast of prey.
　　But at first on this particular afternoon we encountered nothing savage. On the contrary， we found two fluffy white eaglets in an eyrie. They looked as engaging as new-born babes. The southern wind was blowing right in their eyes， but they did not mind it. It is in the nature of the Himalayan eagle to build his nest facing the direction of the wind. Why？ No one knows. Apparently the bird likes to face that which he floats up on.
　　The younglings were nearly three weeks old， for they were already shedding their birthday cotton-like appearance， and had begun to grow real plumage3. Their talons were sharp enough for their age， and their beaks hard and keen.
　　An eagle’s eyrie is open and large. Its entranceledge—that is to say， landing-place—is about six or seven feet wide， and quite clean. But within，where it is dark and narrow， there is a perfect litter of twigs， branches， and a little of the hair and feathers of victims， every other part of their prey being devoured by the eaglets. The parents devour most of the bones， hair and feathers with the meat. 　　Though the surrounding country was clad in stunted pine trees， yet it was full of bird noises. Also， strange insects buzzed in the fir-trees. Jewelled flies fluttered on blue wings over mauve orchids， and enormous rhododendrons glowed in sizes sometimes as large as the moon.4 Now and then a wild cat called， apparently talking in his noonday sleep.
　　Suddenly Ghond told us to run a dozen yards5 and hide in a bush. Hardly had we done so when the noises about us began to subside. In another sixty seconds the insects stopped their buzzing， the birds ceased to call， and even the trees seemed to grow still with expectation. In the air slowly rose the thin whistle of something. In a few moments it fell into a lower key. Hard upon it came a weird noise almost sounding like a shriek， and a giant bird flew down to the eagle’s eyrie. The wind was still whistling in its wings. By its size Ghond thought it was the mother of the two babies. She remained still in the air till the eaglets withdrew into the inner recesses of their home. From her talons hung something well skinned， like a large rabbit. She landed， dropping her prey on the ledge. One could see that her wings from tip to tip measured half a dozen feet. She folded them as a man folds a paper； then， seeing that her children were coming towards her， she drew in her talons lest they pierce their unarmoured tender flesh. Now she hobbled like a cripple. The two little fellows ran and disappeared under her half-open wings， but they did not want to be brooded， for they were hungry. So she led them onwards to the dead rabbit， tore away some of its flesh， excluded any bone that clung to it， and gave it to them to swallow. Again， from below and all about， the insects and birds resumed their noises.We rose from our hiding and started homeward after Radja and I had extracted a promise from Ghond that he would bring us back later to see the full-fledged eaglets.
　　And so in a little over a month we returned. We brought with us Gay-Neck and his mother， for I wished the little fellow to fly the second time so that he would know with absolute certainty every village， lamasery， lake and river as well as the beasts， and the other birds—cranes， parrots， Himalayan herons， wild geese， divers， sparrow-hawks and swifts. On this trip we went about a hundred yards beyond the eagle’s nest. The finger of autumn had already touched the rhododendrons. Their flaming petals were falling out； their long stems， many feet high， rustled in the winds. Leaves of many trees had begun to turn， and the air was full of melancholy. At about eleven， we uncaged our pigeons， who flew away into the sapphire6 sky that hung like a sail from the white peaks. 　　They had flown for about half an hour when a hawk appeared above them. It drew nearer the two pigeons and then drove at them. But the prey proved too wary； they escaped scatheless7. Just as Gay-Neck and his mother were coming down swiftly to where the trees were， the hawk’s mate appeared and attacked. She flew at them as her husband had done， without gaining her objective. Seeing that their prey was escaping， the male hawk cried shrilly to his mate； at that， she stopped in the air， just marking time. The pigeons， feeling safe， quickened their wing motion and flew southwards， while the two hawks followed， converging upon them from the east and the west. Wing-beat upon wing-beat， they gained on the pigeons. Their wings， shaped like a butcher’s hatchet tipped off at the end， cut through the air like a storm... one， two， three—they fell like spears！ Gay-Neck’s mother stopped， and just floated in the air. That upset the calculation of the hawks. What to do now？ Which one to fall upon？ Such questioning takes time， and GayNeck seized the chance to change his course. Swiftly he rose higher and higher. In a few moments his example was followed by his mother， but she had lost time， and the hawks rose almost vaulting8 up to her. Then apparently a sudden panic seized her； she was afraid that the hawks were after her son， and in order to protect him she flew towards the two pursuers. In another minute both of those birds of prey had pounced upon her. The air was filled with a shower of feathers！ The sight frightened Gay-Neck， who fell upon the nearest cliff for protection and safety. It was his mother’s error that deprived her of her own life and probably imperiled that of her son.
　　We three human beings began a search for the cliff where Gay-Neck had fallen. It was no easy task， for the Himalayas are very treacherous9. Pythons， if not tigers， were to be feared. Yet my friend Radja insisted， and Ghond the hunter agreed with him， saying that it would augment our knowledge.
　　We descended from the cliff that we were on and entered a narrow gorge where the raw bones lying on the ground convinced us that some beast of prey had dined on its victim the previous night. But we were not frightened， for our leader was Ghond， the most well-equipped hunter of Bengal. Very soon we began a laborious climb through clefts and crevices full of purple orchids on green moss. The odour of fir and balsam filled our nostrils. Sometimes we saw a rhododendron still in bloom. The air was cold and the climb unending. After two in the afternoon， having lunched on a handful of chola （dried beans softened in water）， we reached the cliff where Gay-Neck was hiding. To our surprise we discovered that it was the eagle’s nest with two eaglets—the babies of our previous visit—now full-fledged. They were sitting on the front ledge of their eyrie， while to our utter amazement we saw Gay-Neck at the farthest corner of a neighbouring ledge， cowering and weak. At our approach the eaglets came forward to attack us with their beaks. Radja， whose hand was nearest， received an awful stroke that ripped open the skin of his thumb， whence blood flowed freely. The eagles were between us and Gay-Neck， and there was nothing to be done but to climb over a higher cliff to reach him. Hardly had we gone six yards away from the nest when Ghond signed to us to hide as we had done the first time we had come. We did so with celerity10， under a pine， and soon， with a soft roar in the air， one of the parent eagles drew near. In a few seconds there fell a high-pitched sound as the eagle sailed into its nest. A shiver of exquisite pleasure ran up and down my spine as her tail-feather grazed our tree and I heard that whistling mute itself. 　　Soon we reached Gay-Neck and tried to put him in his cage. He was glad to see us， but fought shy of the cage. Since it was getting late， I gave him some lentils to eat. Just about the middle of his meal， seeing him deeply absorbed in eating， I made an effort to grab him with my hand. That frightened the poor bird， and he flew away. The noise of his flight brought the mother eagle out of the inner recess of her nest. She looked out， her beak quivering and her wings almost opening for flight. At once all the jungle noises below were stilled， and she sailed away. We felt that all was over for GayNeck. Suddenly a shadow fell upon him. I thought it was the eagle pouncing； however， it rested on him only a moment and then receded， but he had had the fright of his life， and he flew away， driven by sheer terror， in a zigzag course， far beyond our sight.

　　最后，我們到达了鹰的故乡。我们四周是裸露的花岗岩悬崖，悬崖被冷杉丛和矮松团团围住，我们北面横亘着干城章嘉峰和珠穆朗玛峰。我们来到了一道深渊的边缘，在这里放出了两只鸽子。在那种令人爽快的空气中，他们像一天结束后跑出学校的孩子们一样飞翔。彩虹鸽的母亲向上远飞，以便向她的儿子展示崇高的云天。
　　两只鸽子飞走之后，我们三个人谈鸽子飞过那些高峰时会看到什么。毫无疑问，他们面前会矗立着干城章嘉的两座山峰，比珠穆朗玛峰稍低些，但就像那座没有留下人类足迹的完美山峰一样圣洁而朴素。这一事实在我们心里激起了深厚的情感。我们从远处看那座山，就几分钟，像上帝面前的一面镜子，我对自己说：“噢，你这圣洁的高峰，你这神圣与永恒，没有人会玷污你，甚至也没有任何人会以最轻微的触碰玷污你的纯净。愿你永远不被征服，噢，你这宇宙的脊梁和不朽的度量。”
　　但是，我给你讲述这些高峰，并不是想告诉你有关山脉的情况，而是要讲述我们在那里的一次历险。因为彩虹鸽母子俩已经飞走了，所以我们不再望向他们，而是开始寻找鹰巢，鹰巢就在附近的一个悬崖上。喜马拉雅山鹰呈棕色，闪着金黄色的柔光，羽毛看上去非常漂亮——是漂亮与力量的完美均衡——但他们也是一种凶猛的肉食动物。
　　然而，在这个不寻常的下午，我们起初没有遇到什么野兽。相反，我们在一个鹰巢里发现了两只毛茸茸的小白鹰。他们看上去像新生儿一样迷人。南风正吹进他们的眼里，但他们并不在意。把巢筑在迎风的方向，是喜马拉雅山鹰的本性。为什么？没有人知道。显然，这种鸟喜欢迎风站立，在风中他会飘浮起来。
　　两只小鹰快三个星期大了，因为他们已经脱掉了生下来时像棉花一样的外衣，开始长出真正的羽毛。对他们这么大的鹰来说，爪子已足够尖利，喙也坚硬锋利。
　　鹰巢开阔宽大。鹰巢的入口平台——也就是降落处——大约有六七英尺宽，而且相当干净。但是，里面阴暗狭窄，堆满了大大小小的树枝、猎物的毛发和羽毛，猎物的其他部分都被小鹰吞吃掉了。鹰爸爸、鹰妈妈连骨带肉，掺杂着毛发和羽毛，吞吃掉了猎物的大部分。
　　尽管悬崖周围长着矮松，但还是充满了鸟叫声。另外，还有奇怪的昆虫在冷杉丛中嗡嗡叫着。宝石般的苍蝇扇动蓝色的翅膀，飞过淡紫色的兰花；大片大片大大小小的杜鹃花绚丽夺目，有时像月亮一样大。偶尔传来一声野猫叫，显然是在午睡时的呓语。
　　突然，刚德让我们跑出十二码远，藏在一个灌木丛里。我们刚藏好，周围的嘈杂声就开始减弱了。又过了一分钟，昆虫不再嗡嗡叫了，鸟儿也停止了鸣叫，就连树木也好像因充满期待而一动不动。慢慢地，空中响起了一阵微弱的呼啸声。又过了一阵子，呼啸声变得更低了。紧接着，一种奇异的尖叫声传来，一只巨大的鸟儿飞落到鹰巢边。风还在巨鸟的翅膀里呼啸着。根据巨鸟的体型，刚德认为那是两只小鹰的母亲。她停在空中一动不动，直到小鹰退到鹰巢的最里面。母鹰的爪子上挂着一只被完全剥掉皮的东西，像一只大兔子。母鹰落下来，把猎物放在巢穴入口的平台上。你可以看到她张开的翅膀有六英尺宽。她像人叠纸一样收拢翅膀；然后，看到她的孩子们向她奔来，她收起爪子，以免刺伤小鹰没有盔甲的嫩肉。这时候，母鹰像瘸子一样跛行。两个小家伙跑过来，钻到了她半张半合的翅膀下面，消失不见了，但他们不想处在母亲的羽翼之下，因为他们饿了。于是，母鹰带着他们走到死兔旁边，撕掉一些兔肉，剔除上面的骨头，扔给他们吞吃。下面和周围又响起了虫鸟的叫声。我们从藏身的地方站起来向家里走去。拉迪亚和我缠着刚德让他答应我们，等小鹰羽毛丰满后，他再带我们来看。
　　于是，一个多月后，我们又回到了这里。我们带来了彩虹鸽母子俩，因为我希望彩虹鸽进行第二次飞翔，以便他确切地了解每一个村庄、每一座喇嘛庙、每一个湖泊与河流，以及野兽和其他鸟类——鹤、鹦鹉、喜马拉雅苍鹭、大雁、潜鸟、雀鹰和雨燕。在这次旅途上，我们在距离鹰巢一百码远的地方走动。秋天的手指已经触碰到了杜鹃花。火红的花瓣纷纷凋谢；数英尺高的长茎干在风中飒飒作响。许多树的叶子已经开始变黄，到处都充满了忧郁的气息。十一点钟左右，我们打开鸟笼，两只鸽子飞向宝石蓝的天空，犹如白色山峰上的船帆一样。 　　他们飞行了大约半个小时，这时候一只隼出现在了他们的上空。那只隼离两只鸽子越来越近，然后冲向他们。但是，猎物十分警觉，毫发无损地逃脱了。就在彩虹鸽母子俩飞快地降落到有树的地方时，隼的配偶出现，并发起了攻击。母隼像她的丈夫一样飞扑向他们，但没有命中目标。眼看猎物要逃脱，公隼对着母隼尖叫起来；听到尖叫声，母隼停在了空中，只是在等待时机。鸽子们感觉安全了，就加速扇动翅膀，向南飞行，这时候两只隼尾随其后，从东西两个方向朝他们聚拢过来，他们连续拍击着翅膀，逼近鸽子。两只隼的翅膀形状像屠夫削掉了尾端的斧头，如暴风一般划过天空……一、二、三——仿佛长矛似的落下。彩虹鸽的母亲停住，只是飘浮在空中。这打乱了两只隼的如意算盘。现在怎么办呢？该扑向哪一只呢？这样的疑问要花时间，于是彩虹鸽抓住机会改变了路线，急速地越飞越高。过了一会儿，他的母亲也如法炮制，但她失去了时机，两只隼几乎飞跃到了她身边。这时，彩虹鸽的母亲显然一下子就慌了；她担心那些隼追赶她的儿子，为了保护儿子，她朝两个捕猎者飞去。又过了一分钟，两个捕猎者已经扑向了她。羽毛纷纷从空中散落下来！这个情景吓坏了彩虹鸽，他飛落到最近的悬崖上，寻求保护和安全。正是母鸽的失误葬送了自己的生命，说不定还会危及儿子的生命。
　　我们三个人开始在悬崖上搜寻彩虹鸽落在了哪里。这并非易事，因为喜马拉雅山非常险恶。就算没有老虎，也要担心蟒蛇。然而，我的朋友拉迪亚坚持要去，猎人刚德也同意他的做法，说这会增长我们的见识。
　　我们从所在的悬崖上爬下来，走进了一个峡谷。峡谷地上的生骨使我们深信，某只猎兽前一天夜里在那里享用过猎物。但是，我们并不害怕，因为我们的向导是刚德，他是孟加拉装备最精良的猎人。很快，我们就费力爬过了裂口和缝隙，遍地青苔上开满了紫色的兰花。冷杉和香脂的气味扑鼻而来。有时候，我们会看到一朵还在开放的杜鹃花。空气寒冷，攀爬也没个头儿。我们吃了一把寇拉豆（放在水里泡软的干豆）当午餐，然后终于在下午两点多到达了彩虹鸽藏身的那个悬崖。让我们吃惊的是，我们发现这里是那个有两只小鹰的鹰巢——就是我们上次见过的那两只小鹰——现在他们的羽毛已经丰满了。他们正卧在鹰巢入口的那块平台上，同时让我们万分惊讶的是，我们看到彩虹鸽就躲在附近一个平台最远处的角落里，畏畏缩缩，弱不禁风。看到我们走近，两只小鹰走向前，要用嘴攻击我们。拉迪亚的手离他们最近，受到了可怕的一击。这一击撕裂了他大拇指上的皮肤，鲜血汩汩直流。小鹰处在我们和彩虹鸽之间，我要够到彩虹鸽，只有爬到更高的一个悬崖上。像我们第一次来时那样，我们刚走到距离鹰巢六码的地方，刚德就又示意我们躲藏。我们迅速地躲到了一棵松树下面，很快空中传来了一阵柔和的轰鸣声，其中一只鹰逼近了。几秒钟后，那只鹰飞进巢里时，响起了一阵高声的尖叫。她的尾羽擦过我们藏身的树木，我听到那种无言的呼啸声，这时候我的脊背上掠过了一阵剧烈的充满快感的战栗。
　　很快，我们爬到了彩虹鸽身边，设法把他放进笼子里。他看到我们很高兴，但却避开了笼子。天色越来越晚了，我给了他一些扁豆吃。就在他聚精会神地吃东西时，我伸出手，努力想抓住他。这吓坏了可怜的鸟儿，于是他就飞走了。他飞起时发出的响声把母鹰从巢的深处引了出来。她向外张望，嘴微微颤抖，翅膀几乎张开，准备起飞。下面的丛林立刻静了下来，母鹰翩然飞去。我们觉得彩虹鸽在劫难逃。突然，一个黑影落在彩虹鸽的身上，我想那是猛扑过去的鹰。然而，那个黑影只在上面停留了一会儿，然后就后退了，但彩虹鸽吓得要死，在极度恐惧的驱使下，呈曲折航线飞走了，远远消失在了我们的视野中。
　　1. impeccable： 完美的，无可挑剔的；austere：朴素的，无华饰的；immaculate： 完美无瑕的。
　　2. unvanquished： 未被征服的，未被战胜的。
　　3. plumage： 鸟类羽毛。
　　4. mauve： 淡紫色的；orchid： 兰花；rhododendron：杜鹃花。
　　5. yard： 码。一码等于三英尺。
　　6. sapphire： 蓝宝石。
　　7. scatheless： 无损伤的，平安的。
　　8. vault： 跳跃，腾跃。
　　9. treacherous： 危险的。
　　10. celerity： 快速，敏捷。