这些看似美好的大象表演场景背后，

那些原本自由生活在野外的大象，

其实生活在地狱里

They are living in the hell!

大象：救救我们！

For many travelers,

if they travel to Thailand,

one thing that must be done is to ride an elephant.

对很多旅行者来说

去泰国游玩

必须要做的一件事就是骑大象

or to see an elephant show

或者，看大象表演

To appreciate how they gently use their noses to draw a few flowers

欣赏它们如何温柔地用象鼻画几朵小花


However, nobody knows.

Behind these seemingly beautiful scenes, those who originally free to live in the wild elephant; What happened to them?

然而

没有人知道

在这些看似美好的场景背后

那些原本自由生活在野外的大象

到底经历了什么
 

A hundred years ago

Thailand had about 300,000 wild elephants

But now

There are only 1500 wild elephants and 3500 ones that were artificially domesticated.


一百年前

泰国有大约30万头野生大象

而如今

只剩下不到1500头野生大象和3500头被人工驯养的大象

Most of the artificially domesticated elephants are used in tourism.

The process of training is extremely cruel.

The elephant's genes determine that they are not suitable for being cycled

Although they look very strong

But the spine is the most vulnerable part of their body

An adult elephant back can bear the maximum weight of 150 kg 4 hours.


大多被人工驯养的大象都被用在旅游业

训练的过程极其残忍

大象的基因决定了它们并不适合被人骑行

虽然它们看起来很强壮

但脊柱是他们身体最脆弱的部分

一头成年大象背上最多可以承担150公斤的重量4个小时


However, In the elephant camp, many elephants' back are not only to be tied all day with heavy metal seats, but also with the weight of at least three people. Their working hours are far more than four hours. The burden on their spine is much more over than what they can afford.


然而

在大象营里

许多大象背上不仅要终日被绑上沉重的金属座椅

还要负荷至少三个人的重量

它们的工作时间

也远远不止4个小时

给它们脊柱造成的负担是它们无法承受的


In order to make elephant obey,

The process of taming is even more unimaginable,

Thai tame elephants used a kind of called "Pajaan" tame elephant way


为了让天生不适合负重的大象顺从

驯象过程更是难以想象的残忍

泰国驯象师们采用的是一种名为“Pajaan”的驯象手法


"Pajaan" means "break, separate"

This means that the elephants not only need to be separated from the family

But also through their own spirit, physical separation
 

“Pajaan”意思是“打破、分离”

这意味着大象不仅需要与家人、同类分离

还要经历自身的精神、肉体分离


The life of wild elephants is similar to that of humans

The pregnancy cycle is 22 months

They are also very loving family animals

Female elephants will be with their mothers all their lives

Male elephants will be with their mother before they are 13 years old


原本

和人类一样

野生大象的寿命和人类相似

怀孕周期22个月

它们也是非常恋家的动物

雌性大象一辈子都会和母亲在一起

雄性大象在13岁之前也会和母亲待在一起
 

But now

Little elephant  must be forced to separate from the mother in a very young age and be locked with chains


但如今

小象在很小的时候，就要被迫与母亲分离

被驯象师用铁链锁住


They are closed into a wooden extruded cage which elephants can only stand inside. They can not move nor lie down.

关进一种木质的挤压笼

大象关在里面只能站立

不能移动也不能卧倒


驯象师只会给大象少得可怜的食物

让它们断水挨饿

并不停通过噪音保持大象清醒


然后

每天清晨和傍晚都用象钩使劲抽打一个小时

如此持续半年


直到它们身体虚弱到无法站立

精神也濒临崩溃



这时，驯象师才会开始给大象喂食

骑到它们背上

开始“训练”它们


训练的工具也是象钩

这种像镰刀一样长而尖锐的东西


可以穿透大象粗糙的皮肤

通常刺在大象敏感的头颈和耳后

让他们流血结痂


This elephant's mother is just being abused.  And she is even tamed not far away Watching her child struggling to cry.


这只正在被虐的小象的母亲

甚至被驯象师关在在不远处

眼睁睁看着自己的孩子挣扎哀嚎


Away from the mother,  little elephants have no sense of security. And with pain on their bodies, they give up to resist. Listen to all instructions.

远离母亲的小象没有了安全感

加上身体的疼痛

使它们放弃了反抗

听从所有指令


besides being played with a hook, a more cruel way to train the elephants is to drive nails into their feets !

除了用象钩虐打

更残忍的驯象师还给大象的脚上钉钉子!


"The elephants know that if their heads are trampled, it will be like a hook, and they know that it is a vicious circle and thay're also afraid of pain! A tinker elephant told me that if the elephant doesn't move The usual way is to give them nails on the feet, the wound will be cured after nails are removed , but as long as the elephant does not obey, they will poke the wound , so elephants will do whatever you want.


“大象知道如果它的头乱动，象钩就会打过来，它知道这是一个恶性循环，它也怕痛！一个驯象师跟我说过，如果要让大象不乱动，最常见的方式就是给它们脚上钉钉子，钉子取出来之后留下的伤口会痊愈，但是只要大象不听话，就可以用力戳那个伤口，这样大象就可以任由你摆布。”

当它们看到那些尖锐的东西会本能地害怕时

就可以开始迎接旅客了


如此年复一年的超负荷跋涉

许多大象都会脊柱变形


有些竟然留下永远塌陷的痕迹

甚至膝盖不能弯曲

连睡觉都要站着


和骑象观光产业一样

用来作画的小象

也要经历同样的折磨


在残忍的“Pajaan”训练进程中

被迫与父母分离

经受饥饿、桎梏与击打


They can't  learn painting until their spirits complete collapse with nothing to resist.


直至精神完全崩溃

对主人毫无反抗之力时

才可以学习作画


The elephant painting tool is a special production of the brush.

These brushes will be directly plugged into their nose

And then there are crossed wooden sticks in the nose, to prevent the brush from dropping.


大象绘画的工具

也是一种特殊制作的刷子

这些刷子会被直接硬塞到它们的鼻子里

再用安有交叉的木棍别在象鼻口，防止刷子掉落
 

The elephant's nose is full of nerve endings, which is very sensitive. Therefore,they learn the first lesson of painting course called "pain".


大象的鼻子充满了神经末梢

非常敏感

因此

它们学习绘画的第一课

就叫“疼痛”


Even if  the hard brush is put inside, and they are extremely discomfort,they dare not resist.Because during the elephant painting performance,Trick elephants like the supervisors standing around them.Once the elephant draws the wrong direction.Trick elephants will be pulling their ears fiercely. The hook hidden in the hands will pierce the elephant's soft ear.


即使硬塞进的刷子让它们极度不适

它们也不敢反抗

因为在大象作画表演期间

驯象师会像监工一下站在它们身边

一旦大象画错方向

驯象师还会狠狠揪它们的耳朵

手中隐藏的象钩也会刺入大象柔软的象耳中


Thai elephant protection organization said, "In fact, the elephant need to endure a few months of physical abuse, they can learn to seize the brush, draw a straight line, draw flowers and flowers, painted small trees.


泰国大象保护组织说

 “事实上，大象需要忍受数月的肉身虐打才能够学会抓住刷子，画条直线，画朵小花，画颗小树。”


When the elephants follow the way to complete a painting, then every day, All they have to do is to repeat the pain, repeated to draw the same pattern with using a hard wood plug inside the nose, sometimes they have to draw many times one day.

当大象顺从地完成一副画作后

此后的每一天

它们要做的

就是重复疼痛

重复用硬塞进象鼻的木刷去画同样的图案

有时一天还得画好多次


As for the other elephant performances,  the pain and blood hidden behind all of it is totally invisible,  the hook in the hands of elephants tamer is everywhere.


至于其他的大象表演

背后也全都隐藏了看不见的疼痛和鲜血

驯象师手中的尖钩无处不在


An elephant researcher said "In the last 50 years, because of this cruel elephant training, now the elephants tamer do not love elephants, only as money-making tools, in order to earn the most money in the shortest possible time, I have seen a lot of living elephants was tortured to death."

一名大象研究员说“最近50年，就采用这种残忍的大象训练手段。现在驯象师不爱大象，只把它们当做赚钱工具，为了要在最短的时间挣最多的钱，我见过很多象是活生生被折磨死的。”

A lot of elephants die every year.

每一年

都会有很多的大象死去


Some died of abuse

Some died of fatigue

Some died of starvation


有的死于虐打

有的死于过劳

有的死于挨饿

And some died of desperation

还有的

死于心碎

Because the elephant's memory is far superior to mankind, there is a saying in English:  "An elephant never forgets".  "Elephants never forget things" has been used to praise a person's  good memory.


因为大象的记忆力远超人类

英文里有一句俗语是“An elephant never forgets”

用“大象从不忘事”表示一个人记性好

And they also have a delicate emotion,  the  hippocampus control of brain emotion accounted for 50% more than human brain capacity. After the companion died, they will even guard the body for a long time, in any case, they do not want to leave.


而且它们也有着细腻的情感

控制情感的海马体占脑容量比超过人类50%

在同伴去世后

它们甚至会久久守护在遗体旁边

无论如何都不愿离去

But like humans,the elephant can be happy and sad to cry as well. After the brutal training, all that's left is the painful memory. But it will only cause persistent trauma once again to their scarred mind.

但和人类一样

会高兴也会流泪的大象

在残酷的训练下

拥有的几乎全是痛苦的记忆

只会对它们本已伤痕累累的心灵

再次造成持续性的创伤

……

Perhaps at the moment you opened the article, An elephant is suffering because of the torture and heartbreak ... ...

或许在你点开文章的这一刻

就有大象正在因为痛苦的折磨而心碎……

No sale, no harm. If no one is riding an elephant again, If no one persecutes elephant again, But in a more natural and warm way to treat them, maybe everything will be different?


没有买卖

就没有伤害

如果没有人再骑大象

如果没有人再逼迫大象表演

而是用更自然更温暖的方式去接近它们

或许 一切都会不一样？
 

I hope that one day

elephant's tears can be shed because of happiness 

rather than unbearable sadness in life.

希望有一天

大象的眼泪

也可以是因为欣喜

而不是生命难以承受的悲伤