The writing background of Huanxisha: The author Yan Shu has held important official positions throughout his life, with a smooth official career but mediocre political achievements. The works often reveal the sadness of bureaucratic literati's fleeting years, old age and loneliness caused by spiritual emptiness in their songs about drinking, enjoying the moon, and leisurely moods. The poem "Huanxisha" is about the author's regret at the passage of time and the loss of spring.
Huanxisha
A new song and a glass of wine, the weather is the same as last year. When does the sun set?
There is no choice but the flowers fall away, and the familiar swallow returns. The fragrant path in the small garden wanders alone.
Translation: Fill in new lyrics and enjoy a glass of fine wine. The seasonal weather remains the same. When will the sunset in the west turn around? Helplessly, the flowers wither away again, and the familiar spring swallow returns again, wandering alone in the flower-scented path.
"Huanxisha·A New Song and a Glass of Wine" is the representative work of the Song Dynasty poet Yan Shu. Although this word has the meaning of regretting the spring and cherishing the time, it is actually an expression of emotion, mourning the dying spring, lamenting the passing of time, and also implicitly expressing nostalgia for others. The upper part of the poem combines the present and the past, overlays time and space, and focuses on thinking about the past; the lower part cleverly borrows the foreground, focusing on the present.
The language of the whole word is round and fluent, popular and clear, clear and natural, with profound meaning, enlightening and thought-provoking. The deep thoughts about the universe and life in the words give people philosophical enlightenment and beautiful artistic enjoyment. Among them, the two sentences "There is no choice but the flowers fall away, and the familiar swallows return" have always been praised by people.
Extended information:
"Huanxisha·A New Song with a Glass of Wine" Famous Comments:
Yang Shen: "There is nothing to do" The second language is beautiful, and the natural odd couple . ("Ci Pin")
Shen Jifei: "There is no choice but to let the flowers fall away", which is also a beautiful poem. However, it is naturally a piece of poetry, and it cannot be written as a poem. ("Yu Zheng Collection of Caotang Poems")
Zhang Zongqi: Playing the couplet "helpless" carefully, the meaning is lingering, the tone is harmonious, and it is based on the family language. If it is written in seven rhymes, it will be too weak. ("Chronicles of Ci Lin")
Yan Shu (991-1055), named Tongshu, was born in Linchuan, Fuzhou. A famous writer and politician in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Born in the second year of Chunhua, Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty (991), he entered the examination as a child prodigy at the age of fourteen. He was given the same background as a Jinshi, and was ordered to be Secretary Sheng Zhengzi. From the official position to the right, he admonished the officials, and was a bachelor of Jixian Palace. Tongping Zhangshi was concurrently the privy envoy, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Criminal Affairs, and the Great Scholar of Guanwendian knew Yongxingjun and the Minister of the Ministry of War. He died of illness in Beijing in 1055 and was granted the title of Duke of Linzi. His posthumous title was Yuanxian, and he was known as Yan Yuanxian in the world.
Yan Shu is famous in the literary world for his poetry, especially Xiaoling, with a subtle and graceful style. Together with his son Yan Jidao, they are called "Dayan" and "Xiaoyan", and together with Ouyang Xiu, they are called "Yan Ou"; He was also good at poetry and prose. The original collection has been lost. There are surviving fragments of "Zhu Yu Ci", "Yan Yuan Xian's Posthumous Documents" and "Lei Yao".
Yan Shu has a resolute and straightforward character and lives a frugal life. He served as a state official many times, and officials and people were afraid of his impatience. Yan Shu was good at understanding others, and both Fu Bi and Yang Cha became Yan Shu's sons-in-law. Yan Shu served as prime minister and privy envoy, and Fu Bi served as deputy privy envoy. Therefore, Yan Shu requested to resign from his concurrent post as privy envoy, but the emperor did not allow it. He had received the emperor's trust and favor to such an extent.
Yan Shu's articles are rich in content and gorgeous in vocabulary. He can write all kinds of articles, and is especially good at writing poems. He has elegant taste and passionate thoughts. In his later years, he still studied diligently and tirelessly.
Personal works:
"Butterflies in Love with Flowers, Chrysanthemums on the Threshold, Sorrowful Smoky Orchids and Weeping Dew", "Magnolia, The Return of the Oriole After the Passing of Yanhong", "Magnolia, Jade Tower, Zhuge Hengjin" "Lock", "Traveling on the Shasha·The Song of Leaving the Ancestral Xi", "Huanxisha·Time is always limited", "Huanxisha·A new song with a glass of wine", "Breaking Time·When Swallows Come to the New Society", "Revealing Heartfelt Love·Hibiscus, Golden Chrysanthemum and Fragrance" " Huanxisha·There are swallows passing through the double curtain of the small pavilion."
"Shocking Autumn, Farewell News A Thousand Miles Away", "Huanxi Sand·Jade Bowl Dropping Dew in the Cold", "Picking Mulberries·Time Only Helps One to Get Old", "Treading on the Shasha·Thin Grasses Worrying about Smoke", "Qingpingle·Small Characters on Red Paper", "Traveling on the Shasha·Blue Sea without Waves", "Qingpingle·Thin Gold Wind", "Traveling on the Shasha·The Path is Red and Thin", "Dielianhua·Bilingual Swallows in the Curtain of Breeze", etc.
Literary achievements:
Yan Shu has many achievements and contributions in literature. He is good at poetry and ci, has elegant articles, and is good at calligraphy, but his ci is the most outstanding, and he is known as the "prime minister's poet". Yan Shu absorbed the elegant and flowing style of poetry of the "Huajian School" of the Southern Tang Dynasty and Feng Yansi, and created the graceful style of poetry of the Northern Song Dynasty. He is known as the "first ancestor of the Yisheng family of the Northern Song Dynasty".
The language of Yan Shu's poems is clear and beautiful, and the tone is harmonious, such as his elegant mood and broad-minded embrace. He writes about wealth but not vulgarity, writes about erotica but not frivolity. He writes about scenes with emphasis on their spirit and gives life to natural objects. , able to integrate rational thoughts into lyrical narratives.
In the emotion of sorrow and resentment, it shows a kind of rational introspection and management, and in the tenderness and sharpness, it reveals a kind of rational observation that is harmonious and broad-minded. formed its own characteristics. "The flowers fell helplessly, and the swallows returned as if they had known each other before" ("Huanxi Sand"), "Last night the west wind withered the green trees.
I climbed up to the tall building alone and looked at the end of the world" ("Die Lian Hua"), "Thinking about it" The red candle in the orchid hall, the heart is long but the flame is short, weeping to others" ("Shaking the Autumn") and other good sentences are widely circulated. He is not only the pioneer of Song poetry, the leader of the Jiangxi Ci School, but also a prolific poet in the history of Chinese poetry. There is "Yan Yuan Xian's Posthumous Documents" compiled by the Qing Dynasty and published in the world.
Political Achievements:
After the death of Zhenzong, the Ming Dynasty Empress Dowager Su was in charge of state affairs. Prime Minister Ding Wei and Privy Councilor Cao Yongli both wanted to see the Empress Dowager alone to discuss matters. There was a stalemate, and Yan Shu stepped forward. When he came out, it was proposed that the Queen Mother would listen to the government behind the curtain, and neither Ding nor Cao could see it, so it was agreed upon. This suggestion played an important role in stabilizing the political situation at that time.
In the Renzong Dynasty, Yuan Hao of the Western Xia Dynasty rebelled, and the world was disadvantaged by the military. Yan Shu was the prime minister and privy envoy at that time. He suggested that Renzong demobilize and supervise the army and not teach the generals with formation diagrams, so that they can assess the situation when facing the enemy. , adapt to changing circumstances. Yan Shu also suggested rectifying the financial system. These suggestions were all adopted by Renzong and achieved good results, finally making Yuan Hao bow his head and obey his orders.
Yan Shu was a simple and powerful man, and treated people with sincerity. Although he was wealthy, his life was quite simple, and he was willing to reward talents. Famous people in the world, such as Fan Zhongyan, Kong Daofu, Ouyang Xiu, etc., all came out of his family. Able to recognize that Fu Bi was poor, he married his daughter to Yan Shu. When Yan Shu was in power, Fan Zhongyan, Han Qi, and Fu Bi were all re-employed, and there were also more talented people in the cabinet, who did many major things that were beneficial to the national economy and people's livelihood.
The "Qingli New Deal" that historians fondly call it was actually led by Yan Shu. Yan Shu was dismissed as prime minister, Fan, Han, Fu and others were demoted, and the "Qingli New Deal" failed. When he was a local official, he set up a large number of schools to cultivate talents. Ouyang Xiu said that "since the Five Dynasties, learning has been abandoned in the world, and it has flourished since the public", which is not a false reputation.
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