This poem comes from Cui Hu's "Jingshi Nanzhuang" in the Tang Dynasty. The full text of this poem is:
Last spring, in this door, the girl's face contrasted with the peach.
Today, I came here again. I don't know where the girl went. Only the peach blossoms are still there, smiling in full bloom in the spring breeze.
The translation of this poem is as follows:
Today last year, it was at the door of this family in Nanzhuang, Chang 'an. Your beautiful face and the blooming peach blossoms set each other off and made you blush.
Today, a year later, I revisited my old place. I don't know where your beautiful image went, but only peach blossoms still smile at the warm spring breeze.
How did such a beautiful poem come from? Let me show you the background and appreciation of this poem:
Cui Hu met a beautiful girl in the southern suburbs of Chang 'an after failing the Jinshi exam in Chang 'an, and revisited the girl in Tomb-Sweeping Day the following year, so he wrote this poem.
The first two sentences of the poem recall the past: last year today, in this yard, I saw a beautiful woman, who was blooming with the light of peach blossoms. Today last year has a heart. Why did the poet come here on the same day as "today last year"? Just because "today" is an unusual day, on this day last year, the poet found the most beautiful thing in his heart, and today this year, he came here just to find the beauty of the past. The second sentence "Peach blossoms set each other off in red" interweaves people and flowers, because peach blossoms are more lively because of people and beautiful flowers are more charming.
From such a scene, it is not difficult to feel the affection in the author's heart and the beauty at that time. The last two sentences describe the present situation: it is that day again this year, but the gate here is closed. The beauty of last year has disappeared, leaving only the peach blossoms that are still bright.
Although this poem is short, it is graceful and meaningful and memorable. In terms of content, "peach blossom with a human face" has since become a beautiful word to describe the beautiful face of women. Structurally, the time period and the writing style of extremes meet, which had a great influence on the later writers' creation.
There is actually a beautiful and touching legend about this poem:
In the Tang Dynasty, there was a young man named Cui Hu in Boling. He is handsome, talented and withdrawn. He came to Chang 'an, the capital, to take the Jinshi exam. As a result, he failed from Sun Shan. Because I am far away from home, I found a place near the capital and prepared to take the exam again next year.
During the Qingming Festival, he went on an outing alone outside the south gate of Beijing, and met a manor with a house covering an area of about one acre. There are many flowers and trees in the garden, which is very quiet. Cui Hu stepped forward and knocked at the door. After a while, a woman looked at him through the door and asked, "Who is it?" Cui Hu said his name and said, "I went out for a spring outing alone. I was thirsty after drinking wine, so I came for some water." The woman went in and got a glass of water, opened the door and asked him to sit down. She stood there quietly, leaning against the little peach tree, with deep affection for the guests. She is gorgeous, charming and charming. Cui Hu teased her with words, but she just kept silent. Two people staring at each other for a long time, Cui Hu got up to leave. After being sent to the door, she seemed at a loss and went back to the house silently. Cui Hu kept looking around and then came back disappointed.
After a year, Cui Hu didn't go to see her again. The next year, Tomb-Sweeping Day suddenly missed her, and the feeling of missing was uncontrollable, so he went straight to the south of the city to find her. When I got there, I saw that the mentoring manor was still the same, but the door was locked. Cui Hu wrote a poem on a door on the left: "On this day last year, in this door, people's faces and peaches set each other off in red. People don't know where to go, and peach blossoms are still smiling in the spring breeze. "
A few days later, he suddenly came to the south of the city and went to see the woman again. Hearing the crying inside the door, an old father came out and said, "Are you Cui Hu?" Answer: "Exactly." The old father cried again and said, "You killed my daughter." Cui Hu was surprised and afraid, and didn't know how to answer. The father said, "My daughter is an adult, knowledgeable and unmarried. Since Tomb-Sweeping Day last year, I have been in a trance and lost. I went out to play with her that day. When I came home, I saw a sentence on the left door leaf. After reading it, I got sick as soon as I entered the door, so I fasted for a few days and died. I'm old, and I only have one daughter. The reason why I don't marry is to find a reliable husband to entrust me with my life. Now she has died unfortunately. Didn't you kill her? " Say that finish holding Cui Hu cried again.
Cui Hu was also very sad and asked to go in and cry for the dead. The deceased is still lying in bed safely. Cui Hu raised her head and let her rest on her leg, crying and praying: "I am here, I am here!" " After a while, the woman opened her eyes. After a long time, he came to life. Father was surprised and betrothed his daughter to Cui Hu. ?
This poem explains a common life experience: when you accidentally meet something beautiful, you deliberately pursue it, but you can't get it back. So when you meet something beautiful, you must cherish it, and don't wait until you lose it to regret it.