"Shu Dai Song Paints Cows" is a prose written by Su Shi, a writer in the Northern Song Dynasty. It narrates an incident in a simple way and satirizes the layman's imagination.
Original text
Shu Daisong painted cows
There was Du Chushi in Shu, who was good at calligraphy and painting and had hundreds of treasures. There is a scroll called "Ox" by Dai Song, which I particularly like. It is a jade scroll with a brocade bag and I often keep it with me.
One day when I was exposing calligraphy and painting, a shepherd boy saw it, put his palms in his hands and laughed, saying: "This painting is like a bullfight. When a bull fights, the power lies in its horns, and its tail twitches between its two legs. Now it turns its tail and fights, which is ridiculous." That's it." The virgin laughed. There is an old saying: "You should ask your slaves for plowing, and your maids for weaving." This cannot be changed.
Annotated translation
Word and sentence annotations
1. Selected from "The Collected Works of Su Shi", Volume 70 (Zhonghua Book Company, 1986 edition). The author is Su Shi (one of the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties, named Zizhan, also known as Dongpo Jushi, from Sichuan). Dai Song, a painter of the Tang Dynasty.
2. Good: Like it.
3. Treasure: collection.
4. Brocade bag and jade scroll: use brocade as the painting pouch and jade as the painting scroll. Bag (náng): bag. This refers to the painting bag.
5. Exposure: sun exposure.
6.拋(fǔ) Palm: Clap your hands.
7. Twitch (chù): twitching.
8. Stock: Thigh.
9. Tail drop: swing the tail.
10. Ran: I think... is right.
11. Yun: Say.
12. Slave: farmer.
13. Maid (bì): weaver.
Vernacular translation
There was a man named Du Chushi in Sichuan who loved calligraphy and painting. His collection of calligraphy and painting could be counted in hundreds. One of them is "Bullfighting" painted by Dai Song, which Du Chushi especially cherished. He packed it in a brocade bag and made a jade scroll, which he often carried with him. One day he spread out his calligraphy and paintings to dry up. A shepherd boy saw Dai Song's painting of a cow clapping his hands and laughing and said: "This painting is about a bullfight? The strength of the bullfight is used on the horns, and the tail is twitched between the thighs. Now The cows in this painting are fighting with their tails wagging, wrong!" Du Chushi smiled and thought he was right. There is an ancient saying: "You should ask the farmers about farming, and you should ask the weavers about weaving." This truth will not change!
Enlightenment
This article tells us: we must observe things seriously and carefully, not make assumptions out of thin air, and not be superstitious about authority. We must proceed from objective facts and ask for advice. Have your own specialties.
About the author
Su Shi (1037-1101), also known as Zizhan and Dongpo layman, is known as "Su Dongpo" by the world. He is the same as his father Su Xun and his younger brother Su Zhe. Called "Three Su". Han nationality, a native of Meizhou (now Meishan, Sichuan, Meishan City in the Northern Song Dynasty), and his ancestral home is Luancheng. He was a famous writer, calligrapher, painter, lyricist, poet, and gourmet in the Northern Song Dynasty. He was one of the eight great writers of the Tang and Song Dynasties and a representative of the Bold and Unconstrained poets. His poems, poems, poems, and prose are all of high achievement. He is also good at calligraphy and painting. He is a rare all-rounder in the history of Chinese literature and art. He is also recognized as one of the most outstanding people in the history of China's thousands of years of literature and art. His prose is known as "the hero of a hundred generations", and he is called Ou Su together with Ouyang Xiu; his poems are called Su Huang together with Huang Tingjian; his poetry is called Su Xin together with Xin Qiji; his calligraphy ranks among the four major calligraphers of the Northern Song Dynasty: "Su, Huang, Mi and Cai". 1; His paintings created the Huzhou School of Painting.