"Sitting up in shock while dying" comes from "Wen Letian Granted the Sima of Jiangzhou" by Yuan Zhen, a poet of the Tang Dynasty.
The whole poem "Wen Letian conferred the title of Sima in Jiangzhou" is as follows: The lamps are broken and there are no flames and shadows, and this evening I heard that the king was banished to Jiujiang. I sat up in shock while dying of illness, the dark wind blew rain into the cold window.
The literal meaning of the poem: The lights are about to go out, and a dark shadow is swaying. Tonight, I suddenly heard that you were relegated to Jiujiang. I was so sick that I suddenly sat up from the bed, and the gloomy wind and rain blew into the cold doors and windows.
Appreciation of the whole poem:
The middle two sentences of this poem are narrative romance, showing the author's sudden surprise when he first heard the unfortunate news. The language is simple and the emotion is strong. . The first and last two sentences of the poem describe the scenery, vividly describing the darkness and desolation of the surrounding scenery, with strong and deep emotions.
When Yuan Zhen wrote this poem, he was in an extremely sad mood. Looking at the scenery with this sad mood, all the scenery became gloomy and dim. So, when I see the "lamp", I think it is a "broken lamp" that has lost its flame; even the shadow of the lamp has become a "bundle" - a dim and swaying appearance. "Wind" originally didn't matter whether it was light or dark, but now it has become a "dark wind". "Window" originally didn't matter whether it was cold or hot, but now it has become a "cold window". Just because of the transfer of emotion, the illumination of emotion, and the penetration of emotion, even the wind, rain, lights, and windows have become "crushed", "dark" and "cold". The two sentences "the broken lamp has no flames and shadows on the buildings" and "the dark wind blows the rain into the cold window" are both landscape language and love language. They use the sad scene to express sadness. The emotion and the scene are integrated into one, and the "wonderful combination is boundless". The phrase "sitting up in shock while dying" in the poem is a vivid expression. Bai Juyi once wrote two poems: "I suddenly woke up on the pillow and turned my clothes upside down." This was written by Bai Juyi when Yuan Zhen was first demoted and went to Jiangling to take office. It shows that he heard the messenger knocking on the door and couldn't wait to see it. The situation of Yuan Zhen's letter is very vivid. The same is true for Yuan Zhen's sentence. The word "shock" in it expresses "emotion" - the feeling of shock at that time; the word "sit up" expresses "like" - the shocked appearance at that time. If you only write "love" but not "state", instead of "sitting up in shock" but "surprised", then I'm afraid it will be dull. The three words "sitting up in shock" vividly describe the author's suddenly startled expression at that time. Coupled with "dying illness", it further strengthens the depth of emotion and makes the poem more expressive. Since it is said to be "dying", it is naturally very difficult to "sit up". However, the author was so shocked that he "sit up", which shows: the shock is as great as the prick of acupuncture; the feeling of solidarity and empathy. The deep friendship between Yuan and Bai is clearly visible here. According to the convention, after the poem "I sat up in shock in a dying illness", there should probably be a literal sentence to express the specific connotation of "surprise". However, the author came up with a poem that describes the scene: "The dark wind blows the rain into the cold window." In this way, the specific connotation of "surprise" is contained in the scenery language, becoming deeply hidden and implicit. Whether the author regrets, is angry, or is saddened by Bai's demotion is not revealed at all. It is all left to the readers to comprehend, imagine and ponder.