"The Difficult Road to Shu" is the representative work of Li Bai, the great poet of the Tang Dynasty in China. This poem follows the old title of Yuefu, uses romanticism to develop rich imagination, and artistically reproduces the majestic, breathtaking and unsurpassable majesty of the Shu road, such as the steepness, abruptness, strength, and ruggedness, so as to sing the praises of the mountains and rivers of Shu. The majesty of the poem shows the majesty of the mountains and rivers of the motherland, and fully demonstrates the poet's romantic temperament and love for nature.
The whole poem has 294 words, using a mixture of rhythm and prose, with uneven sentences, vertical and horizontal writing, bold and unrestrained, strong emotions, and three sighs in one song. Many scenes in the poem appear one after another. Whether it is the height of the mountains, the rush of the water, the changes in the rivers and mountains, the desolation of the trees, or the dangers of the peaks and cliffs, they are all compelling, majestic, and vast. It reflects the artistic characteristics and creative personality of Li Bai's poems. Shen Deqian, a poetry critic in the Qing Dynasty, commented on this poem: "The writing style is vertical and horizontal, like a flying weed, thundering between the fingers."
Original text
The Road to Shu is Difficult
[Tang Dynasty] Li Bai
Hey, how dangerous it is! The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky!
With silkworms and yufu, how confused was the founding of the country! You are forty-eight thousand years old, and you are not in the vicinity of Qin Sai. There is a bird path in Taibai, Xidang, which can cross the top of Emei. The earth collapsed and the mountains destroyed the strong men to death, and then the ladders and stone stacks were connected to each other.
On the top there is the high mark of six dragons returning to the sun, and on the bottom there is the rushing wave and turning back to Sichuan. The yellow crane cannot fly past, and the ape clings to it to overcome its sorrow. There is a lot of green mud, and there are nine twists and turns in the rocky mountains with a hundred steps. Mon went to the Lijing Well and raised his head and sighed, resting his head on his head with his hands, he sat down and sighed.
When will you return from your journey to the west? Afraid of the unreachable rocks. But I saw mourning birds calling old trees, and male and female flying around the forest. I also heard Zigui crying about the moon at night and worrying about the empty mountains. The difficulty of the road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the blue sky, which makes people wither their beauty!
The sky is not full even when the peaks are gone, and withered pines hang upside down against the cliffs. The turbulent waterfalls are noisy, and the cliffs turn to rocks and thousands of valleys are thundered. The danger is also like this. People who have traveled far away have come here for nothing!
The sword pavilion is majestic and Cui Wei. One man can guard the gate, but ten thousand men cannot open it. Those who were guarding or robbing relatives turned into wolves and jackals. Avoid tigers in the morning and snakes at night; grind your teeth and suck blood, killing people like numbness. Although Jincheng is happy, it is better to return home early. The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the blue sky. I turn to the west and look to the west to sigh!
Translation
Oh my, it’s so high. Climbing the Shu Road is really harder than climbing to the sky!
The Shu Kingdom has two monarchs, Cancong and Yufu. The time when they founded the country is very far away. It is about 48,000 years old since then. The Shu Kingdom has nothing to do with Qin. Coming and going. To the west there is Mount Taibai, which is so high that there is no road. Only birds can fly over the mountain to the top of Emei in the Kingdom of Shu. During the reign of King Hui of Qin, the king of Shu sent five men to open the mountain. Legend has it that these five warriors died heroically because of the collapse of the mountain due to the collapse of the mountain, which allowed the stone stacks of the ladder to the sky to be connected together.
In the middle of Shu, there are high mountains above that cannot be crossed by the chariot driven by the six dragons of the Sun God, and below there are twists and turns and turbulent rivers that flow backwards. The yellow swans that are good at flying want to fly over but dare not cross; the apes that are good at climbing want to climb but are worried that they have nowhere to climb. You can imagine the danger of the mountain. The dirt road in Qingni Ridge is winding and winding, winding around the mountains with nine twists and turns. Pedestrians climbed to the top of the mountain and could reach out and touch the ginseng and well stars in the sky. They were so nervous that they couldn't breathe, so they had to sit down and caress their chests and sigh.
When do you plan to come back from your journey to the west? The steep rocks and dangerous roads of the Shu Road are really inaccessible. In the mountains and fields, you can only see the mountain birds howling in the ancient trees, and the male flying and the female flying around in the forest. On a moonlit night, one can still hear Zigui's sad cry, echoing in the empty mountain. Climbing the Shu Road is really more difficult than climbing to the sky. This situation makes everyone who hears it feel very worried.
The precipitous peaks less than a foot above the sky, the cliffs with dead pines hanging upside down, and the flying waterfalls hitting the boulders and rolling in the valley, making thunderous roars. In such a dangerous place, why do you, a person from afar, have to come here?
Not to mention the majestic and Cuiwei sword pavilion, where one man is in charge and ten thousand men are open. If the people guarding the pass here are not loyal ministers of the imperial court, they will take advantage of the danger to cause chaos and turn into ruthless bandits. They grind their teeth and suck blood, killing people like hemp.
People have to avoid their infringements like tigers in the morning and snakes in the evening. Although Jincheng is a happy city, in my opinion, you'd better go home as soon as possible. The difficulty of climbing the Shu Road is really more difficult than climbing to the sky. I turned sideways and looked to the west, and could only let out a long sigh.
Notes
(1) "The Road to Shu is Difficult": an old title from the ancient Yuefu, belonging to "Xianghe Ge? Se Diaoqu".
(2)噫囱嚱: exclamation sound, Shu dialect, a sound expressing surprise. Song Xiang's "Notes of Duke Jingwen of the Song Dynasty" Volume: "The people of Shu were surprised when they saw things, and they often said '噫嚱'."
(3) Cancong and Yufu: two legendary kings of the ancient Shu Kingdom name.
(4) He Mangran: It is difficult to verify. He: How. Dazed: A vague and distant look. It refers to the ancient history and legends that are far away and unclear. According to the Records of the Kings of Shu by Yang Xiong of the Western Han Dynasty: "The first king of Shu was named Cancong, Baiguan, Yufu, Puze, and Kaiming. ... From Kaiming to Cancong, they are thirty-four thousand years old." "
(5) Erlai: Since then.
(6) Forty-eight thousand years: It is an exaggeration to describe the long time, but it is an approximate statement.
(7) Qin Sai: Qin’s pass refers to the land of Qin. The land of Qin is surrounded by dangerous mountains and rivers, so it is called "the land of four fortresses".
(8) Traffic: people coming and going.
(9) Xidang: Xidu.
(10) When: facing, towards.
(11) Taibai: Taibai Mountain, also known as Taiyi Mountain, is in the west of Chang'an (today's Mei County and Taibai County, Shaanxi Province).
(12) Bird Road: refers to the low place among the mountains. Only birds can fly over and cannot be reached by human beings.
(13) Hengjue: across.
(14) Emei Peak: Emei Peak.
(15) The earth collapsed and the mountains killed the strong men: "Huayang Kingdom Chronicles? Shu Chronicles": According to legend, King Qin Hui wanted to conquer the Kingdom of Shu. Knowing that the King of Shu was lustful, he promised to give him five beauties. The king of Shu sent five strong men to pick him up. When I returned to Zitong (today's south of Jiange, Sichuan), I saw a big snake entering the cave. A strong man grabbed its tail, and the other four people came to help and pulled it out. Not long after, the landslide and the ground cracked, and both the strong man and the beautiful woman were crushed to death. The mountain is divided into five ridges, and the road to Shu is open. This is the famous story of "Five Dings Founding a Mountain". Destroy: collapse. Sky Ladder: A very steep mountain road.
(16) Stone stack: Plank road.
(17) The six dragons return to the sun: "Huainanzi" notes: "The sun rides on a chariot, driven by six dragons. Return to Liu Chi. "Chi is a dragon.
(18) Gaobiao: refers to the highest peak in Shu Mountain that can be used as a symbol.
(19) Wave rushing: The waves raised by the impact of water flow, here refers to rapids.
(20) Reverse bending: water flow swirls.
(21) Huichuan: A river with whirlpools.
(22) Yellow Crane: Yellow swan (hú), a big bird that is good at flying.
(23) Shang: Still.
(24) Got: Can.
(25) Ape (náo): The best climbing monkey in Shu Mountain.
(26) Qingni: Qingni Ridge is located in the south of Hui County, Gansu Province and the north of Lueyang County, Shaanxi Province. "Yuanhe County Chronicles" Volume 22: "Qingni Ridge is located fifty-three miles northwest of the county and connects to the east side of the river, which is the current Tongtong. The cliffs are tens of thousands of meters high, the mountains are cloudy and rainy, and travelers often encounter mud puddles, so it is called Qingni Ridge. . ”
(27) Panpan: The appearance of twists and turns.
(28) Nine folds in one hundred steps: Nine turns in one hundred steps.
(29) lingering: coiling.
(30) Yanluan: mountain peak.
(31) Muncanlijing: Shen (shēn) and well are the names of two stars. The ancients assigned the stars in the sky to the states and countries on the earth, which were called "dividing fields", so that they could divine the good and bad luck of the states and countries on the earth by observing the celestial phenomena. Shenxing is the dividing line between Shu and Jingxing is the dividing line between Qin.扪(mén): To touch with hands.
(32) Calendar: passing.
(33) Breath-threatening: hold your breath and dare not breathe.
(34) Ying: chest.
(35) Sitting: disciple, empty.
(36) Jun: A friend who entered Shu.
(37) Fear of the road: a terrible road.
(38) Yanyan: a dangerous and steep mountain wall.
(39) But see: only hear.
Old Tree No. 40: Crying loudly among the ancient trees.
(41) From: follow.
(42) Zigui: It is the cuckoo bird, which is the most common in Shu. "Book of Shu" says: "In the past, there was a man named Yu named Du, who was king of Shu, and whose name was Wangdi. After Yu died, it is said that Du Yu turned into Zigui. Zigui is also the name of a bird. When people in Shu heard Zigui's call, they all called him Wangdi." These two sentences are also broken into "I heard Zigui's cry again, and I was worried about the empty mountain at night", but they are not as smooth as this one.
(43) Withering beauty: The beauty is sad, like a flower withering. Wither, the usage is to make...wither. This refers to the change of complexion from ruddy to livid.
(44) Go: distance.
(45) Ying: full.
(46) turbulence (tuān): rapids rushing down.
(47) Huī: noisy, here refers to the huge noise made by rapids and waterfalls.
(48) Ping (pīng) cliff: the sound of water hitting rocks. Ping, the sound made by water hitting the stone wall, is used as a verb here, meaning to impact. Turn, make it roll.
(49) Valley: Valley.
(50) Sigh: sigh.
(51) Er: You.
(52)Hu Wei: Why.
(53) Come: Point to Shu.
(54)Jiange: Also known as Jianmenguan, it is a plank road between Dajiang Mountain and Xiaojian Mountain in the north of Jiange County, Sichuan, about thirty miles long.
(55) Zhengrong and Cuiwei: both describe the appearance of tall and majestic mountains.
(56) Two sentences about "one husband": Zuo Si's "Ode to the Capital of Shu" in Volume 4 of "Selected Works": "One person guards the narrow gate, but ten thousand people cannot move towards it." Volume 56 of "Selected Works" contains the "Jiange Inscription": "One person carries a halberd, and ten thousand men stumble. In a beautiful place, bandit relatives should not live there."
(57) Yifu: one person.
(58) Guard: Guard the gate.
(59) Mokai: cannot be opened.
(60) Guard: refers to the person guarding the pass.
(61) Or stealing a relative: If he is not a trustworthy person. Bandit is the same as "fei".
(62) Chao: morning.
(63) suck: suck.
(64) Jincheng: Chengdu was famous for its cotton production in ancient times. The imperial court once set up officials here to specialize in cotton fabrics, so it was called Jincheng or Jincheng. "Yuanhe County Chronicles" Volume 31 Chengdu County, Jiannan Road, Chengdu Prefecture: "Jincheng is ten miles south of the county, so Jincheng is also called Jincheng." Today's Chengdu City, Sichuan.
(65) sigh: sigh.
Creative background
Since the Tang Dynasty, people have been speculating on the creative background of "The Difficult Road to Shu". There are four main theories: 1. This poem is written by Fang Guan , and Du Fu were worried, hoping that they would leave Sichuan as soon as possible to avoid the murderous hands of Yan Wu, the military governor of Jiannan; B. This poem was written for Li Longji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, who fled to Shu to escape the Anshi Rebellion, and advised him to return to Chang'an. In order to avoid being hijacked by the local warlords in Sichuan; C. This poem is intended to satirize Zhangchou Jianqiong, the governor of the Shu region at that time, who wanted to separatist power based on danger and did not listen to the court's control; D. This poem purely sings about the scenery of the mountains and rivers, without any meaning.
This poem was first recorded in the "Collection of Heroes in Heyue" compiled by Yin Fan of the Tang Dynasty. The book was compiled in the 12th year of Tianbao (753) by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. From this we can know that Li Bai's poem The writing date should be before the compilation of "The Collection of Heyue Heroes" at the latest. At that time, the Anshi Rebellion had not yet occurred, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty settled in Chang'an, and Fang (Guan) and Du Fu had not yet entered Sichuan. Therefore, theories A and B are obviously wrong. As for the satire of Zhangchou Jianqiong, judging from relevant records in some historical books, there is no basis. When Zhangchou Jianqiong was in Shu, he always dreamed of going to Chang'an to become an official. Relatively speaking, the last statement is more objective and close to the actual work.
Some scholars believe that this poem may have been written by Li Bai when he was in Chang'an from the first to the third year of Tianbao (742 to 744) to send his friend Wang Yan to Shu. The purpose was to persuade Wang Yan not to detain Shu. Land, return to Chang'an as soon as possible to avoid the unexpected hands of jealous villains; some scholars believe that this poem was written by Li Bai during the Kaiyuan period when he first entered Chang'an and returned without success, as a message to his friends.
Appreciation of Works
"The Difficult Road to Shu" is a work by Li Bai who adopted ancient Yuefu inscriptions and developed rich imagination, focusing on describing the beautiful and breathtaking mountains and rivers on the road between Qin and Shu, and revealed from it Some worries and concerns about society.
The poet generally followed the clues from ancient times to the present, from Qin to Shu, and captured the characteristics of the mountains and rivers to describe them to show the difficulty of the road to Shu.
It is a paragraph from "噫囱嚱" to "Then the ladders and stone stacks are connected to each other". At the beginning of the poem, he talks about the difficulty of the road to Shu, highlighting the theme with a strong emotional aria, which sets a majestic tone for the whole poem. Following the ups and downs of emotions and changes in natural scenes, the chant "The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky" appears repeatedly, stirring the readers' heartstrings like the main melody of a piece of music.
It is said that the road to Shu is more difficult than going to heaven. This is because the road between Qin and Shu has been blocked by high mountains since ancient times. When entering Shu from Qin, Taibai Peak is the first to bear the brunt. Only high-flying birds can Fly over the low spot. Taibai Peak is located southwest of Xianyang, the capital of Qin, and is the highest peak in Guanzhong. The folk proverb goes: "Wugong Taibai, he died three hundred years ago." The poet used exaggerated pen and ink to write about the insurmountable dangers in history, and integrated the myth of Wu Ding's creation of the mountain, adding a magical color, just like the prelude of a movement , with fascinating and magical effects. Next, we will focus on describing the high dangers and difficulty of traveling on the Shu Road.
From "There are high standards for the six dragons to return to the sun" to "Let people listen to this withered beauty" is another paragraph. This section describes the high danger of the mountain. The more fully the height of the mountain is described, the more difficult it becomes to see the road. Look at the mountains that stand abruptly, touching the sky, blocking the movement of the sun god; below the mountains are the twists and turns of the river with its surging waves. The poet not only combines exaggeration and mythology, directly describing the height of the mountain, but also sets it off with the danger of "returning to Sichuan". Not only is the water dangerous, but the mountains are also dangerous. The poet's intention was not enough, so he used yellow cranes and apes to contrast. The mountain is so high that even the yellow crane that soars thousands of miles cannot fly, and the light and agile ape has trouble climbing. It goes without saying that it is even more difficult for people to walk. The above is described layer by layer using virtual writing techniques, and the difficulty of traveling in Qingni Ridge will be described in detail below.
Qingniling, with its “precipices reaching ten thousand feet, and mountains covered with clouds and rain” ("Yuanhe County Chronicles"), was an important route to Shu in the Tang Dynasty. The poet focused on the lingering path of the peak and the steepness of the mountain to express the difficult conditions and fear of people walking on it. He captured detailed actions such as wandering on the mountain, touching the stars, breathing nervously, caressing the chest and sighing, etc. In just a few words, the pedestrians' difficult steps and frightened expressions are vividly described, and the dangerous situation is as if it is now.
At this point, the difficulty of traveling on the Shu Road seems to have reached its extreme. But the poet changed his writing style and used "Ask You" to induce travel sorrow, using a melancholy and low-pitched melody to bring readers into a realm where ancient trees are desolate and birds sing sadly. The sound of cuckoos echoing in the empty valley is full of sorrow, making people pale after hearing the sound, and even more aware of the difficulty of the road to Shu. The poet used scenes to express his emotions, using emotional natural landscapes such as "The Sorrowful Bird's Horn at the Ancient Tree" and "Zigui's Crying at the Night Moon" to exaggerate the sorrow of travel and the lonely and desolate environment on the Shu Road, which effectively highlighted the difficulty of the Shu Road.
However, the winding Shu Road has even more strange and dangerous scenery. From "Even if the peaks are removed, the sky will not be full" to the end of the whole story, the difficulty of the Shu Road is mainly revealed from the dangers of mountains and rivers, and the thrilling atmosphere is emphasized. If "the sky is not full even if the peaks are removed" is to exaggerate the height of the mountain, "withered pines hanging upside down and leaning on the cliff" is to highlight the danger of the cliff.
The poet first highlighted the high danger of the mountain, and then moved from stillness to writing the thrilling scene of the water and rocks surging and the valley roaring. It's like a series of movie shots: it starts with a long shot of undulating mountains and peaks reaching to the sky; then it slowly progresses to a close-up of withered pines hanging upside down on a cliff; and then, it's followed by a set of fast shots of rapids, waterfalls, and cliffs. , turning stones, coupled with the sound of thunder in the valley, flashed past the eyes quickly, thrilling and dizzying, thus creating an overwhelming and strong artistic effect, which made the description of the difficulties of the Shu Road reach its peak. .
If the high dangers of the mountains above are already daunting, then the dangers of the mountains and rivers here are even more thrilling.
The scenery is changing and dangerous. In a very thrilling atmosphere, I finally wrote about Jiange, the fortress in central Sichuan. There is a thirty-mile long plank road between Dajian Mountain and Xiaojian Mountain. The peaks are like swords, the mountains stand tall, and the walls are cut and interrupted like doors, forming a natural fortress. Because of its dangerous terrain, easy to defend and difficult to attack, there are many people who claimed to be kings here in history. The poet derived his description of the political situation from the dangers of Jiange. He used the sentence in the "Jiange Inscription" written by Zhang Zai of the Western Jin Dynasty, "Don't live in a place with a beautiful appearance, and bandit relatives should not live there" to advise people to take it as a warning and be wary of the occurrence of war. He also combined it with the social background at that time to reveal the "grinding teeth" of the jackals in Sichuan. Suck blood, kill people like hemp", thereby expressing worries and concerns about state affairs. In the early years of Tang Tianbao, a crisis lurked behind the peaceful scene. The Anshi Rebellion that occurred later proved that the poet's worries had practical significance.
Li Bai vividly depicts the difficulties of the Shu Road with unpredictable brushwork, artistically shows the winding, towering, high and rugged features of the ancient Shu Road, and depicts a colorful landscape painting roll. The moving scenes in the poem seem to be vividly remembered.
The reason why Li Bai's depiction is so moving lies in the romantic passion that runs through it. The poet expresses his love for the mountains and rivers, and expresses his unbridled nature. He does not watch the natural scenery indifferently, but admires it passionately to express his ideal feelings. The flying currents, strange peaks and dangerous ravines endow the poet with his emotional temperament, thus showing his flying soul and magnificent posture. The poet is good at integrating imagination, exaggeration and myths and legends to describe scenes and express emotions. When talking about the height of the mountain, it is said that "there is a high mark on which six dragons return to the sun"; about the danger of the road, it is said that "the earth collapses and the mountain destroys the strong men to death, and then the stone stacks of the ladder to the sky are connected with each other". The poet "jumps through the wind and clouds, whipping the mountains and seas" (Lu Shiyong's "Summary of Poetry Mirror" comments on Li Bai's seven ancient sayings), from the founding of Cancong to the founding of Wuding Mountains, from the return of the six dragons to the sun, to the cry of Zigui at night, he gallops his imagination like a wild horse. , creating a broad and vast artistic realm, full of romanticism. Through the beautiful and steep mountains and rivers, one can seem to see the tall image of the poet who "shakes the five mountains when he writes, and smiles proudly on Ling Cangzhou".
The works "The Road to Shu is Difficult" before the Tang Dynasty are short and thin. Li Bai innovated and developed Dongfu's ancient inscriptions and used a large number of prose poems. The number of words ranged from three, four, five, seven, and even eleven characters, which were scattered and uneven in length, forming an extremely unrestrained language. style. The rhyme used in the poem also breaks through the rhyme pattern of old works from the Liang and Chen eras. Later, the dangerous environment in Sichuan is described, and the rhymes are changed three times in a row, which is full of changes. Therefore, the collection of Heyue Yingling compiled by Yin Fan said that this poem is "strange and strange, and this style and tone are rarely seen since poets have returned".
About this article, predecessors have various allegorical theories, concluding that it was written specifically for someone or something. Hu Zhenheng and Gu Yanwu of the Ming Dynasty believed that Li Bai "sung his own praises for Shu" and had "no other meaning". People today say that this poem describes the dangers of the Shu road on the surface, but actually describes the bumps in the official career. It reflects the poet's life experience of encountering obstacles during his long wanderings and his resentment at not being recognized for his talents. There is no conclusion yet.