Four poems in The Book of Songs, Guanluo, Jianjia, Decline and Zijia, are all beautiful, especially Jianjia.
However, in different times, the aesthetics of The Book of Songs are also different, which is related to the mainstream thoughts of different times. In modern society, with the improvement of self-awareness, people are valued as individuals, and literary works created based on individual feelings can get people's praise. Therefore, we will feel that poems like "Jia Jian" and "Guan Ju" are better and more beautiful.
the ancients' views were different from ours. Shi Shuo Xin Yu recorded a conversation between Xie An and his nephew Xie Xuan about The Book of Songs. Xie An asked Xie Xuan: Which sentence in the Book of Songs do you think is the best? Xie Xuan answered: In the past, I was gone, but now I am thinking about it, and it is raining. Xie Xuan's answer won my heart. This poem comes from Xiaoya-Caiwei, which is extremely beautiful in both words and artistic conception. It is the most beautiful poem in the Book of Songs in many people's minds today. But Xie An disagreed, and the best poem in his mind was: It's far too late to tell the truth. "It is said that this sentence is somewhat elegant and profound."
I guess everyone's reaction is the same as mine-what the hell, what's so good about it! This awkward poem comes from "Elegance-Restraint", which means that the state's major policies should be formulated in time and notified to everyone after they are finalized. Well, even if you know the meaning and the source, you can't understand what's good about it. What's more, it's comparable to "I'm gone in the past, and the willows are reluctant"?
It turns out that in Xie An's mind, or in the mainstream values of ancient times, the beauty of a poem is not an important criterion to judge whether it is good or not. Not only the Book of Songs, but also the later poems. So what are the important criteria? It's enlightenment. A poem must first conform to mainstream values, be politically correct, and be able to correct the world and people's hearts. Only in this way can it qualify as a good poem. If the wording is more beautiful on this basis, it will be the icing on the cake, of course, and if the wording is not so beautiful, it will be harmless. Even poems with good literary talent will affect its evaluation, such as Li Shangyin, whose poems are highly praised by people for their unique hazy beauty today, but in the long history when Neo-Confucianism dominated the mainstream in Song and Ming Dynasties, the evaluation of Li Shangyin's poems was not high.
Let's talk about why Xie An thinks it's a good sentence that "it's far better to tell the truth", because it is said that this poem was written by Wei Wugong to satirize Zhou Liwang and guard himself. It is said that Wei Wugong was 95 years old when he wrote this poem. At this age, he was still worrying about state affairs and encouraging himself to guard himself. What a glorious image and noble virtue it is, which is much higher than "I used to go, and the willows are lingering".
Xie An's chatting with his sons and nephews about The Book of Songs is by no means idle, nor does he want to improve the literary attainments of the next generation. This is to practice the educational function of poetry and make young people accept mainstream values in a subtle way. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand that Xie An talked about The Book of Songs more than once in Shi Shuo Xin Yu. He also asked his niece Xie Daowen to talk about the same question: Which poem is the best in the Book of Songs? Xie Daowen's answer is: Ji Fu recited, silent as the breeze, and Zhong Shan Fu cherished it forever to comfort his heart. This poem comes from "Elegance-People", which tells that Zhou Xuanwang sent Zhong Shanfu out on business, and Minister Yin Jifu wrote a poem to bid farewell to Zhong Shanfu, praising Zhou Xuanwang for selecting talents and appointing people, and rejuvenating Zhou Shi. We can't imagine that today's young literary women will have such strange literary interests. However, as the first talented woman in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Xie Daowen's political talents are actually far superior to those of his peers. I believe that Xie An will be bigger after hearing this answer, "to comfort his heart".
So, as the responsible editor of The Book of Songs-Confucius, does his old gentleman agree with Xie An's opinion? I think he probably agrees. Because in "The Analects of Confucius-Governing the Second", he personally said: Poetry is 3, in a word, thinking is innocent. That is to say, the role of the Book of Songs is to guide the politicians to be open, bright and impartial.
But there are obviously many love poems in The Book of Songs, such as Guan Ju and Zi Heng. Isn't this all compiled by Confucius? What does this have to do with enlightenment? Confucius also explained this. In The Analects of Confucius-Eight Essays (yì), Confucius said: Guan Ju is happy but not lewd, sad but not hurt. Prostitution means excessive and excessive, that is to say, joy and sorrow are moderate and not excessive. This poem does describe the love between men and women, but its intention is to encourage everyone to learn the way that one of the gentlemen handles emotions: joy without lewdness, sorrow without injury. This is the golden mean that Confucianism values most. The same is true of Zi Ji.
although most people agree, it is likely that there are still a few who disagree. If Confucius also participated in the discussion of Xie 'an family, I think he would say to Xie 'an: The meaning is good, but you are too pedantic.
Confucius is an open and lively old gentleman. He emphasizes education, but also rhetoric, which is very aesthetic. He once asked his disciples about their aspirations. Some said that they wanted to run the country and secure the country, while others said that they wanted to educate the people. Ceng Dian had been playing the piano beside him. When he saw the teacher asking him, he stopped playing the piano and said: In the late spring, the spring clothes were finished, five or six people won the championship, and six or seven boys bathed in interpretation, and the wind was dancing (yú), singing away. How beautiful! On the day of late spring, spring ploughing has been completed. I went swimming in yi river with five or six adults and six or seven teenagers, then went to the dancing stage to let the wind dry our bodies, and finally went home singing. Confucius sighed with a sigh: I am also with the point. I agree with Ceng Dian!
such a Confucius, I don't think he would say that the best poem is "Xu Mo's decree is far more than a warning". After all, what he put at the head of the Book of Songs is the beautiful and lively Guan Ju! Confucius did advocate that poetry should educate people, but he did not oppose human nature. Love poetry is love poetry, although it can have more functions.
However, later Confucianism became more and more pedantic. They deduced from "parents' orders and matchmakers' words" that the Book of Songs could not describe free love. Therefore, Guanluo is not a love poem, and "My Fair Lady" represents virtue and kings. This is a description of a gentleman's pursuit of virtue and a good monarch.
ok, what about Zitiao? How do you explain that "green flowers are lingering in my heart" and "I don't see you for a day, like March"? Alas, Old Master Q can really explain these things, and it is quite appropriate to explain them. When the answer is published in the next issue, please open your mind and think about what poem Zi Heng would be if it was not a love poem.