From: "Inscribed on Lin'an Residence" by Lin Sheng of the Song Dynasty.
Original text:
How long does it take for the singing and dancing in the West Lake to close outside the Qingshan Tower outside the mountains? The warm wind makes tourists drunk, and they call Hangzhou Bianzhou.
Interpretation:
The endless pavilions on the green hills are endless. When will the singing and dancing on the West Lake stop? The warm fragrant breeze made the noble man so drunk that he almost thought Hangzhou was Bianzhou.
Key points:
1. Lin'an: Now in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, after the Jin people captured Bianjing, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, the rulers of the Southern Song Dynasty fled to the south and established their capital in Lin'an.
2. Di (dǐ): hotel.
3. West Lake: a famous scenic spot in Hangzhou.
4. When to rest: When to rest.
5. Xūn: blow, used for warm and fragrant wind.
6. Straight: simply.
7. Bianzhou: Bianjing, now Kaifeng City, Henan Province.
Extended information
Appreciation of the work
In the first sentence of the poem "The green mountains outside the mountains and the buildings outside", the poet captures the characteristics of Lin'an City - overlapping and overlapping Green hills and row upon row of towers. This first describes the great mountains and rivers of the motherland, the rolling green hills, and the pavilions one after another. What a beautiful nature this is. From the perspective of poetry creation, the poet describes the beauty of mountains and rivers, showing a happy scene.
Then he wrote: "When will the singing and dancing in West Lake stop?" The poet was deeply moved by the reality of the country's situation. Such beautiful mountains and rivers are occupied by the Jin people.
The word "break" in the poem not only hints at the poet's heartache for the real social situation, but more importantly, it shows that the poet blindly "breaks off" and makes peace with the people in power, and has no intention of regaining the lost ground in the Central Plains. , the indignation of only seeking to live in peace, blindly indulge in sensuality, and seek pleasure.
In the poet's mind, "West Lake Songs and Dances" are just obscene songs and dances that kill the spirit of fighting against the Jin Dynasty. How he wished that this kind of singing and dancing would stop soon. Here, the poet uses rhetorical questions to not only strengthen his anger towards those in power who do not want to regain the lost ground, but also expresses the poet's sadness caused by his concern for the fate of the country.
The last two sentences, "The warm wind makes tourists drunk, and they call Hangzhou Bianzhou" are the poet's further expression of his feelings. "Warm breeze" is a pun, referring to both the spring breeze in nature and the decadent wind in society. It is this "warm wind" that blows people's minds as if they are drunk.
"Tourists" cannot be understood as ordinary tourists. It refers specifically to the ruling class of the Southern Song Dynasty who forgot about the national crisis, lived in peace and had fun. The words "Xun" and "Drunk" are used very delicately in the poem, vividly depicting the mental state of those dignitaries who indulged in sex and harmed the country and the people.
The ending "just call Hangzhou Bianzhou" is a direct rebuke to the Southern Song Dynasty authorities for forgetting the hatred of the country and family and treating the temporarily peaceful Hangzhou as the old capital Bianzhou. The bitter satire contains great anger and endless worries.
This poem is cleverly conceived and well-worded: the sarcasm is written from a lively scene; it is extremely indignant, but does not use abusive words. Truly a masterpiece of allegorical poetry.