Original text of the work
Two poems by Wang Zhaojun
One of them
The moon in the Qin Dynasty of Han Dynasty illuminates the concubine with its flowing shadow.
Once on the Yuguan Road, you will never return to the end of the world.
The Han moon still rises from the East China Sea, and the concubine Ming will not marry in the west.
The Yan branch is long and the cold snow makes flowers, and the eyebrows are haggard and there is no sand.
Lack of gold in life is a waste of pictures, and death leaves green graves to make people sigh.
Second
Zhaojun brushes his jade saddle, mounts his horse and crows with red cheeks.
Today’s Han palace people were Hu’s concubines in the Ming Dynasty.
"Two Poems by Wang Zhaojun" is a collection of poems created by Li Bai, a great poet of the Tang Dynasty. These two poems are representative works among the many literary works based on the story of Wang Zhaojun.
Translation of the work
Part 1
The bright moon over the Qin land of the Han Dynasty shines on Wang Zhaojun, the concubine of the Ming Dynasty.
I got married in one day, climbed up the Yuguan Road, and never returned to the end of the world.
The Han moon can still rise from the East China Sea, and the concubine Ming will marry in the west and will never return.
The sky and the earth in Yanzhi Mountain are freezing cold, so the snowflakes can be used as flowers, and the haggard eyebrows are buried in the sand.
Because there was no gold during his lifetime, he was painted into an ugly monster by painters. Only the green graves in the desert where he was buried after his death made people lament.
Second
Wang Zhaojun patted the jade saddle, and after mounting his horse, he cried and stained his red cheeks.
A Han Dynasty palace dweller today will become a barbarian’s wife and concubine tomorrow.
Notes on the work
⑴ These two poems are "Xianghe Song Ci". Xianghege is a kind of music formed in the Han Dynasty of China on the basis of "Jiemo Yao" and inherited the pre-Qin Chu sound and other traditions. It is mainly played on occasions such as banquets and entertainments among officials and wealthy businessmen, and is also used in court New Year's Day gatherings and banquets, worshiping gods and even folk custom activities. The earliest record of the name "Xianghe Song" can be found in "Book of Jin·Yue Zhi": "Xianghe is also an old song of the Han Dynasty. Silk and bamboo are more harmonious, and those who hold the knot sing." Its characteristic is that the singer plays the rhythmic drums and accompanies the orchestral instruments. Correspondingly, and hence the name.
⑵ Qin Di: refers to Chang'an.
⑶ Ming Fei: Wang Qiang, a native of the Han Yuan Dynasty, was named Zhaojun. In the Jin Dynasty, she avoided the taboo of Sima Zhao (Emperor Wen) and changed her name to Ming Jun. Later generations also called her Ming Fei.
⑷Yuguan: That is, Yumen Pass. Yumen Pass: Placed by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. It got its name because jade was imported from the Western Regions through this route. In the Han Dynasty, it was the gateway to all parts of the Western Regions. The former site is in today's small Fangpan City northwest of Dunhuang, Gansu Province. Wang Wei of the Tang Dynasty said that "the spring breeze does not pass through Yumen Pass" ("Send the Yuan Dynasty to Anxi").
⑸ Yanzhi: refers to Yanzhi Mountain.
⑹ Mo Mei: Slender and curved eyebrows, mostly refers to beautiful women. Husha: desert or windy sand in the west and north. ‘
Creative background
Zhaojun left the fortress in 33 BC (the first year of Emperor Jingning of the Yuan Dynasty). At that time, the relationship between the Han and Xiongnu tribes was different from that in the early Han Dynasty. During the more than 170 years from the founding of the Han Dynasty by Emperor Liu Bang in 206 BC to Zhaojun's departure, the relationship between Han and Hungary had been tense and tense. Before Emperor Wu came to the throne (140 BC), the Han Dynasty's policy towards the Xiongnu was to make peace with the Xiongnu. Because the country was weak at that time, the purpose of making peace with the Huns was to exchange tolerance for temporary peace on the border.
Overall Appreciation
The story of Zhaojun’s expedition to the fortress has been widely circulated among the people since the Han Dynasty because of its wonderful story and rich meaning. An enduring creative theme. Over the past thousands of years, many touching folk legends have been produced, and countless poems, novels, and dramas have been created based on Wang Zhaojun's story. "Two Poems by Wang Zhaojun" by Li Bai, a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, is a representative work in this regard.
In 752 and 753 AD (the eleventh and second years of Tang Tianbao), Li Bai followed his trip to Youzhou and made another trip to Mobei. He left Youzhou and went south to Wei County and then went north along Taihang, entering Hedong Road, to Yunzhong County, and then went north to Shanyu Duhu Mansion to pay homage to Zhaojun's tomb and wrote "Two Poems of Wang Zhaojun". Because Li Bai was full of regret for Zhaojun's departure, the whole poem is filled with a sad and sentimental atmosphere.
The first poem uses the word "moon" at the beginning to highlight the sad theme of Zhaojun marrying the Huns: the moon of the Han family in the Central Plains, its brilliance follows Zhaojun, who marries the Huns. However, as soon as she set foot on the road to Yumen Pass, it was like she had gone to the end of the world and would never return. "Moon" here represents not only the moon in hometown, but also hometown and motherland. However, a small Yumen Pass can ruthlessly block all of this. Looking back at my hometown, the full moon is about to disappear forever before my eyes. This feeling of separation between life and death cannot help but add a bit of melancholy.
Then the poet used the word "moon" to express a sad sigh: The moon of the Han family will rise from the East China Sea tomorrow, but Zhaojun's marriage to the west will never return. This kind of separation made the poet feel helpless and hopeless, so he became more sad. The poet also mentioned Yanzhi Mountain, which is very cold all year round, with no vegetation and only falling snow to make flowers. Therefore, the poet imagined that Zhaojun married the Xiongnu, and even the beauty that once dominated the country was haggard and old, and was buried outside the rolling yellow sand outside the Great Wall. The main culprit of all this was the painters of the harem of the Han Dynasty. Zhaojun had no gold to give to the painters of the harem during her lifetime, and she only left a green tomb after her death, which made future generations mourn and sigh.
About the author
Li Bai (701~762) was also known as Taibai and Qinglian layman.
He claimed that his ancestral home was Longxi Chengji (southwest of today's Jingning, Gansu). At the end of the Sui Dynasty, his ancestors lived in Suiye, the Western Region (it belonged to the Anxi Protectorate in the Tang Dynasty, near today's Tokmak in northern Kyrgyzstan). When he was young, he moved with his father to Qinglian Township, Changlong, Mianzhou (now Jiangyou, Sichuan). As a young man, he showed his talent, recited poems and composed poems, was knowledgeable and knowledgeable, and was good at chivalry. I left Sichuan at the age of 25 and traveled around various places for a long time, gaining a lot of experience in social life. In 742 AD (the first year of Tianbao), he was called to Chang'an to worship Hanlin. The style of his articles made him famous, and he was highly appreciated by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. However, he was not taken seriously politically and was slandered by the powerful. He left Chang'an in just over a year.