(Song) Zhou Dunyi
The flowers of land and water plants are very fragrant. Tao Jin Yuanming loves chrysanthemums alone; Since Li Tang came, people all over the world love peony. Love lotus alone, dirt-free, clear but not demon. Straight outside, not crawling, fragrant and clear. It is slim and elegant, so you can look at it from a distance without looking ridiculous. Want to call chrysanthemum, the hermit of flowers; Peony, blooming with wealth; Lotus, the gentleman of flowers. Hey! The love of chrysanthemum flowers is rarely heard after Tao; Lotus love, who is the giver; Peony love is suitable for many people.
[Remarks]:
(1) Ailian said: Gong Ji from Zhu Yuanzhang. The author Zhou Dunyi is a famous idealist philosopher. Shuowen is a genre of ancient essays, which can tell things and reason.
(2) Fan: More.
(3) Tao Yuanming's exclusive love for chrysanthemums: Tao Yuanming (365-427), a latent and cheerful figure, was born in Xunyang, Eastern Jin Dynasty (now Jiujiang County, Jiangxi Province) and a famous poet. He loves chrysanthemums very much and often paints with poems. For example, in the poem Drinking, "Picking chrysanthemums under the east fence and seeing Nanshan leisurely" has always been called a famous sentence.
(4) Since Li Tanglai, people have loved peony very much: since the Tang Dynasty, people have loved peony very much. Li Tang refers to the Tang Dynasty. The emperor of the Tang Dynasty was surnamed Li, so he was called "Li Tang". The world, the average person in society. People in the Tang Dynasty loved to eat peony, and there are many records in ancient books. For example, Li Zhao's "Tang Shi Supplement" said: "The capital is expensive to travel, and the peony is respected ... Every Spring Festival Evening, horses and chariots are crazy ... for profit, a book (a plant) has tens of thousands of people (referring to money)."
(5) I love the lotus without touching the mud: I just like the lotus, and I like it without touching the mud. Mud, mud accumulated in the pond.
(6) Zhuo (zhuó) is clear but not enchanting: clean water is not enchanting. Zhuo, clean the ripple, clear water microwave appearance, here refers to clear water. Demon, beautiful but not dignified.
(7) Not creeping: not connected, not branched.
(8) The fragrance is far and clear: the farther the fragrance is, the clearer it is. Benefits, more, more.
(9) Pavilions and pavilions: majestic appearance.
(10) Play: Play. Wretched, closed, not solemn.
(1 1) Hermit: Hermit. In feudal society, some people didn't want to go along with the rulers, so they lived in seclusion.
(12) Peony is a rich flower. Peony is a "rich man" among flowers.
(13) Gentleman: a person with high morality.
(14) Yan (à): an interjection, equivalent to "alas".
(15) love of chrysanthemum: love of chrysanthemum.
(16) Xi m ? n (Xi Finland) Heard of it: seldom heard of it. Fresh, less.
(17): Hey, when, used with "Hu" here, it means "of course".
There are many lovely grass flowers and wood flowers on the water and the ground. Tao Yuanming only loves chrysanthemums in Jin Dynasty. Since the Tang Dynasty, people all over the world have loved peony very much. I only like lotus flowers. It grows from the sludge, but it is not polluted. It was washed with clear water, but it didn't look attractive. Its stem runs through the middle, straight, fragrant, more fragrant and upright. You can watch from a distance, but you can't play lightly.
In my opinion, chrysanthemum is a hermit in flowers; Peony is a rich person in flowers; Lotus is a gentleman among flowers.
Alas! People who love chrysanthemums have rarely heard of them since Tao Yuanming. People who love lotus flowers, who else is like me? As for people who love peony, the number is of course large!
"Shuo" is one of the ancient literary styles, and it often expresses its will by describing things. Zhou Dunyi's "Love Lotus" is a rare masterpiece in this style.
[Appreciation]: Zhou Dunyi, a native of the Northern Song Dynasty, lived a lifetime of fame and fortune, and did not seek Wen Da. His character is noble, as Huang Tingjian, a great writer in the Northern Song Dynasty, said: "His character is very high, and his mind is free and easy, like a romantic moon ..." And his masterpiece On Ailian is the spiritual refraction reflected by his drunken mentality.
Lotus is the object of admiration in literati's works throughout the ages, but most literati are amazed at its beautiful posture and simple appearance and shape it into a pen; However, this excellent essay has a unique way. Through the description of the image and quality of the lotus flower, it praises the faithful character of the lotus flower, and also shows the author's noble personality and generous mind.
From the content point of view, this paper can be clearly divided into two parts: the first part tries to describe the image of hibiscus noble; The second part reveals the metaphorical meaning of the lotus, comments on three flowers and expresses the author's deep sigh for the lotus itself.
In the first part of the article, I wrote that the beauty of lotus lies in its "net" character. First of all, "Lotus grows out of mud without being stained, and lotus grows out of hibiscus without being demon" writes the valuable spirit of lotus growing out of mud without being stained, which does not follow the secular, self-love and naive nature. Secondly, it is "straight outside and straight inside, not loose", which shows its noble quality of being connected inside and outside, straight outside and inward, consistent outside and inward, and not involved in clinging; Once again, "You can watch from a distance, don't play with it", and write that Lotus is like an arrogant gentleman, and will never be lightly played by Shu Ren.
Everything mentioned above is actually a portrayal of the author's personality and a self-evident mind, which can be proved from the second part of the article. As the author said, "Who gave the lotus love?" The subtext is that there are too few people with pure lotus flowers like him.
In terms of writing, the two novels have a common feature, that is, they express their will by supporting things. Starting with "getting out of the mud without staining", the article depicts the bearing and style of lotus flowers with strong colors, which places the author's affirmation and pursuit of ideal personality, and also reflects the author's contempt for the secular mentality of pursuing wealth and fame and his pursuit of a clean and honest life. At the same time, the article also uses the method of comparison and contrast, and compares the beauty of lotus with chrysanthemum and peony several times in the article; It also compares the seclusion of chrysanthemum, the wealth of peony and the nobleness of lotus, so that one of the themes of "Love Lotus" can be deepened, without empty preaching, but through the comparison of three images, it plays a role in highlighting the center and deepening the artistic conception, and the technique can be described as extremely ingenious. Moreover, the word "love" runs through the whole article, which makes the article structure rigorous. At the end of the article, the author laments that there are few real hermits, few noble gentlemen and many vulgar people who are greedy for money, which is intriguing and thought-provoking.
This poem is also very distinctive in language, that is, it is beautiful and concise, and it is indeed as beautiful as a lotus-"no branches and no vines", and there is no superfluous and useless language.