1. Translation of "The Flower Burial Song":
The flowers have withered and withered, and the wind is blowing them all over the sky. Its bright red color has faded and its fragrance has disappeared. Who can sympathize with it? The soft spider silk seems to be broken and connected, floating among the trees in spring. Catkins flying all over the sky blew in the wind and covered the embroidered door curtain. The girl in the boudoir feels so regretful when facing the scene of the last spring. Full of melancholy and melancholy, there is no place to put my sorrow. Holding a flower hoe in hand, he opened the door curtain and walked into the garden. There are flowers all over the garden. How can I bear to walk around on them? Frivolous catkins and shallow elm coins only show off their beauty. Regardless of the falling peach blossoms or the flying plum blossoms. When spring returns next year, the peach and plum trees will be in bud and sprouting again. But in the boudoir next year, who will be left? In March of the New Year, swallows burst into bloom, and the nest filled with the fragrance of flowers has just been built. The swallows between the beams have ruined so many flowers and are so ruthless! When the flowers are in full bloom next year, you can still hold flowers and plants in your mouth. How could you have expected that the owner of the house had died long ago, the old nest had fallen down, and only the beams were empty. Three hundred and sixty days in a year, what a life it is! The cold wind like a knife and the severe frost like a sharp sword ruthlessly destroyed the flower branches. The bright spring light and gorgeous flowers can last for how long. Once it was blown away by the strong wind, it was nowhere to be found. It is easy to see the flowers when they are in bloom, but difficult to find once they have fallen. Standing in front of the steps, I was filled with sorrow, which made me, the person who buried flowers, so sad. Holding the flower hoe tightly in my hand, I shed tears silently. Tears filled the empty branches, and the empty branches were stained with blood stains. The cuckoo cried all her blood and was silent, and the sad dusk was coming. I reluctantly went back with my flower hoe and closed all the boudoir doors tightly; the green and cold lights shone on the four walls, and people had just entered the dreamland. The light cold spring rain knocked on the window lattice, and the quilt on the bed was still cold. People wonder what is it that makes me so sad today? Half of it is cherishing the beautiful spring, and half of it is resenting the passing of spring. I am happy for the sudden arrival of spring, but also feel depressed for its hasty return. Spring comes to the world quietly and silently, and leaves without a sound. Last night, bursts of sad singing came from somewhere outside the hospital. I wonder if it is the soul of the flower or the spirit of the bird? Whether it is the soul of a flower or the spirit of a bird, they are equally difficult to retain. Ask the bird, the bird is silent; ask the flower, the flower bows its head shyly. I sincerely hope that I can now have a pair of wings. Follow the flying flowers to the end of heaven and earth. Even if we fly to the end of heaven and earth, where are the soul mounds where fragrant flowers are buried? It's better to use this beautiful sachet to collect your delicate bones. Then pile up a pile of clean soil to bury your unparalleled love. May your noble body be born clean and die clean. Don't let it be contaminated with a trace of filth and be abandoned in that dirty ditch. Hua'er, if you die today, I will bury you. Who knows when I, a poor man like me, will suddenly die? I buried the flowers today, and people laughed at my infatuation. When I die, who will bury me? If you don’t believe it, please look at the withered spring scenery, the flowers are gradually falling. That is the moment when the girl in the boudoir grows old and dies. Once the spring is gone, the girl's hair will be as white as silk. The flowers wither and the people die, and the flowers and the people don’t know anything about it!
2. The poem "The Flower Burial Song":
The Flower Burial Song
When the flowers fade, the sky is full of flowers, and the red fragrance disappears, who will pity it? The soft hairspring is tied to the floating spring pavilion, and the fallen catkins lightly touch the embroidered curtain. The daughter in the boudoir cherishes the twilight of spring, and is filled with melancholy that cannot be relieved. Hands hoe the flowers out of the embroidered curtain, and endure the falling flowers as they come and go. Willow silk and elm pods are blooming, regardless of peach blossoms and plum blossoms. If peaches and plums bloom again next year, who will be in the boudoir next year? The incense nest has been built in March, the swallows in the beams are so ruthless! Although you can peck at the flowers next year, you won’t be able to leave an empty nest without leaving the beams. Three hundred and sixty days a year, the wind, the sword, the frost, the sword force each other; how long can the bright beauty last, and it is hard to find it once it is wandering. Flowers are easy to see when they are in bloom but hard to find when they are gone. I am worried about killing the flower buryer in front of the steps. I lean on the flowers alone and shed my tears secretly. I can see traces of blood on the empty branches. The cuckoo is speechless. It is dusk, and the hoe returns to cover the heavy door; the green lantern shines on the wall, and the man is sleeping for the first time, while the cold rain knocks on the window and the quilt is not warm. What happened to the strange slave is doubly distressing? Half pity for spring and half angry for spring. Lian Chun comes and goes, anger comes and goes, and goes without saying anything. There was a sad song outside the court last night. Did you know it was the spirit of a flower or a bird? The soul of a flower is hard to retain as the soul of a bird. The bird is speechless and the flower is ashamed. May I have wings today and fly with the flowers to the end of the world. Where is the fragrant hill at the end of the sky? It is not like a brocade bag to collect beautiful bones, but a handful of pure soil to cover up the wind. It is better to come and go clean than to be trapped in filthy ditches. If you die now, you will be buried. Who knows when you will be buried? People who bury flowers today are laughing like idiots, but who do you know who they will bury next year? Just look at the flowers that are left in the spring and gradually fall, which is the time when the beauty will die of old age; once the spring is gone, the beauty will grow old and the flowers will fall and people will die without knowing it!
3. Literary Appreciation:
"Ode to Burial Flowers" is a poem recited by the heroine Lin Daiyu in the chapter novel "A Dream of Red Mansions" written by Cao Xueqin. This poem imitates the early Tang Dynasty style of singing in style. It is called chanting flowers, but it is actually about people. The whole poem is a collection of blood, tears, resentment and anger. Through rich and peculiar imagination, dark and desolate pictures, and strong and sad mood, it shows Daiyu's sentimental character, inner conflicts and pain, and subtle and complex psychological activities. It is an experience of anxiety about one's own existence and a feeling of confusion about life that arises in the complex struggle process of life and death, love and hate.
The flower is personified, used as a metaphor for people, and the fate of the flower is closely linked to the fate of people, effectively indicting the evil forces of nature that destroy flowers and the dark social forces that strangle people.
He writes flowers clearly and people realistically, integrating the characters' experiences, fate, thoughts, and emotions into the depiction of scenery and objects, creating an artistic conception with rich connotations, vivid images, and strong artistic appeal. The whole poem is a true portrayal of Lin Daiyu's life philosophy and life value.
The whole poem is vividly lyrical, the language is like weeping and complaining, the sounds are sad, and every word is blood and tears. Every word in the whole poem is not from the heart, and every word is not made of blood and tears. It embodies Lin Daiyu’s feelings about her life experience. The encounters and exclamations are expressed in a penetrating way. "The Burial of Flowers" describes the protagonist's aloof character who is unwilling to be humiliated and tainted, and unwilling to bow his head when he fantasizes about freedom and happiness but cannot obtain it. It is for its ideological value.
Another value of this poem is that it provides future generations with important clues to explore the tragedy of Bao Dai written by Cao Xueqin. Zhi Yanzhai's comment on the Jiaxu version points out that it is impossible to criticize this poem without reading "Baoyu Houwen"; it is also the "houwen" related to this poem that the reviewer "stopped writing to wait". .
The so-called "poster text" of course refers to the text about Daiyu's death in the second half of the lost manuscript. If this poem only generally uses falling flowers to symbolize the fate of a beauty, there is no need to wait for the later text; only when the words written in the poem are not general, and most of them are closely related to the subsequent plot of Daiyu's death, then there is no need to wait for the following text. It is necessary to emphasize that after reading the following text, you should go back and deepen your understanding of this poem. It can be seen from this that "Ode to Burial Flowers" is actually Lin Daiyu's own "poetic prophecy".
I sew brocade bags for fallen flowers and bury incense graves for fallen flowers; I still have to weep and compose poems. This kind of "ridiculous" behavior, which is unprecedented and unprecedented, can only be understood by those who are as infatuated as Bao Dai, and can only be understood by the world if it happened to Bao Dai.
The quatrains of "A Dream of Red Mansions" by Fucha Mingyi, who was written at the same time as Cao Xueqin, said: "A sad poem about burying flowers is like a prophecy coming true. It's better to have a wisp of fragrance to return to the soul, and the Qing Dynasty is deep. "The prophecy seems to come true", these are words that only those who know the plot of Daiyu's death written by the author can say.
In the past, red scholars thought that Ming Yi might not be able to read the entire novel like Zhi Yan. From this quatrain, it can be seen that it is very likely that he has read the second half of the manuscript, or at least not I heard people in the author's circle talk about the main plot of the second half in more detail.
If the later events mentioned in the Mingyi quatrains, such as "gathering together like a spring dream and scattering like smoke" and "the stone returning to the foot of the mountain without aura", can still be known through speculation; then, writing about Baoyu The poems such as "The king and his grandson are thin and jagged" and "I am ashamed of Shi Jilun" that he was convicted and caused people in his heart to die of grief and anger for his misfortune can no longer be imagined.
The same is true for the last two sentences in the poem quoted above: Mingyi said that he really hoped that there would be a soul-reviving fragrance that could bring Daiyu back to life, so that the two lovers Bao and Dai could become dependents. , to reconnect the red silk rope held by the old man under the moon that had been severed. It is conceivable that as long as "Shen Min" can be revived, "Red Silk" can also be continued. This is very different from the later continuators who imagined that the cause of Bao and Dai's tragedy was the involuntary marriage. If everything is as written in the sequel compiled by Cheng Weiyuan and Gao E, then Jia Baoyu belongs to someone else. It has no effect to cause Daiyu to be "sink-in". Of course, the purpose of "renewing the red silk thread" is not to make her the second concubine.
"The Song of Burial of Flowers" "The person who buries flowers today is laughing like crazy, who will he be buried in next year?" The last few sentences are repeated several times in the book, with special emphasis, and even parrots are used to imitate the chant. Poems are also mentioned. It can be seen that the day when the beauty dies of old age is indeed when the spring flowers fall, and it is not an empty comparison. At the same time, it is said here that "I don't know who he will be buried in", and it is said before that "who will pity her when her fragrance fades", "it is hard to find her once she wanders", etc., then Daiyu also died in a very miserable and lonely death like Qingwen. It's okay in the situation. At that time, it was not that everyone was busy organizing a happy event for Baoyu and therefore had no time to take care of it. On the contrary, both Baoyu and Sister Feng were living abroad to avoid disaster. Those were the days when "when a family dies, no one cares about relatives" and "everyone has to find his own family." , in the poem "willow silk and elm pods are fragrant, regardless of peach blossoms and plum blossoms" may have this meaning.
"In March, when the fragrant nest is first built, the swallows in the beams are too ruthless. Although the flowers of the next year can be pecked, the nest will be empty if you go to the beams." These few sentences are originally in the realm of what can be understood and what cannot be understood. It is difficult to understand the meaning of pity for falling flowers and resentment for the return of swallows. If you look at it as a prophecy, it will be more clear. Probably Baodai's marriage was basically decided in the spring, that is, the so-called "fragrant nest was first built". However, in the autumn, something happened, just like the swallows flying ruthlessly between the beams, Baoyu was forced to run away from home. . Therefore, she lamented that "the souls of flowers and birds are always hard to keep", and then left with the fantasy that she could "give birth to two wings". She cried sadly day and night, and finally "all her tears came to bear witness to her fate."
In this way, "Flowers fall and people perish without knowing it." If "flowers fall" is compared to Daiyu, and "people perish" (people go into exile) is used to describe Baoyu, it is completely consistent. Whenever Jia Baoyu encounters a so-called "ugly misfortune", someone else will suffer the same misfortune. First there was Jin Chuan, then Qingwen, and finally it was Daiyu's turn. Therefore, there is a pun in the poem that says, "The nature is originally clean and it will be clean again, and it is better than the dirt sinking into the ditch." It can be used to express and show integrity.
"Farewell to the autumn wind and another year", Baoyu returned to Jia's house in the autumn of the next year, but he saw that the Yihong Courtyard was "red, thin and green" (Zhi Ping), and the Xiaoxiang Pavilion was even more "a mess" The fallen leaves rustle, the cold marriage is deserted" (Zhi Ping) is a desolate scene. Daiyu's boudoir is the same as Baoyu's Jiangyunxuan, only "spider silk is covered with carved beams" (Zhi Ping refers to Bao Dai's residence), although it is still Xue Baochai was there, and it would become his "golden marriage" in the future, but this could not make up for the huge mental pain he suffered when he "mourned his wife". "Although you can peck at the gray hair next year, you won't be able to enjoy it even if you go to the empty nest!" That's what it means. These are just some details that can be confirmed from the clues mentioned in the fat review, and not all of them may be accurate.
However, this poem must correspond to the plot of Bao Dai’s tragedy, and it should not be a subjective assumption; in fact, there are more poems that “seem to come true” than the prophecies. Daiyu’s “Farewell of Generations·Autumn Window” "Wind and Rain" and "Peach Blossom Journey" also have this nature. The former seems to unfortunately describe the scene of her later farewell to Baoyu, and the latter seems to be a pre-portrait of her ending of "dying in tears" (Zhi Ping).
Some people say that "Ode to Burial Flowers" was "derived" from two poems by Tang Yin ("A Dream of Red Mansions"). Of course poetry can be inherited and used for reference, but the relationship between the "source" and "flow" of literary and artistic creation should not be reversed. When it comes to the use of previous works in terms of certain words, sentences, artistic conception and style in "The Song of Burial Flowers", there is no need to look for it in Ming Dynasty collections.
In the early Tang Dynasty, Liu Xiyi's "The Sad Pulsatilla" is well known for its "the color of the flowers will change this year, but who will be there next year when they bloom again" and "the flowers are similar every year, but the people are different every year". The poems are also enough to be borrowed and used. Even the flower burial plot does not necessarily follow Tang Yin's story of "packing the peonies in a brocade bag and burying them on the east side of the medicine column". The author's grandfather Cao Yin's "Mei Pavilion Poetry Notes" also contains the "Hundred Years of Solitary Tomb Burial" The poem "Peach Blossom" was not enough to inspire his ideas.
But these are all "flows" and are just uses. They neither express the main spirit of the poem nor can they replace the author's creation derived from real life. What's more, as mentioned before, the author's uncanny craftsmanship in this poem does not lie in the seemingly sentimental and lingering words about hurting spring and cherishing flowers.
"A sad poem about burying flowers is like a prophecy that comes true without knowing it." Daiyu's lyrical poem is actually a prophecy that hints at her fate. She is like a fragrant and delicate flower that blooms quietly, but is tortured by the violent wind and rain until its branches and leaves are withered, and quietly disappears from the world. To say that this poem is a prophecy is based on its overall thought. It does not mean that every word and sentence hints at Daiyu's specific experience.
The negative and decadent emotions in "The Flower Burial Song" are also extremely strong and cannot be ignored. It has had a negative impact on readers who lack analytical thinking skills. Although this kind of emotion is artistically completely consistent with the ideological and character formed by the environment and status of Lin Daiyu, it is revealed because the author consciously expresses his feelings about his life experience to a certain extent through the mouth of the character he is attracted to. revealed the weakness of his own thinking.
In fact, "The Burial of Flowers" is not only a prophecy written by Daiyu alone, but also a prophecy shared by all the people in the Grand View Garden. Although their specific encounters in the future are different, they are all the same in terms of "fate or destiny". They are all registered characters in the "Unfortunate Life Division". With the decline of the Jia family, all the girls in the Grand View Garden will be trapped in dirt and ditches, and they will not have a good fate.
4. Introduction to "The Song of the Burial Flower":
"The Song of the Burial Flower" is sung by the heroine Lin Daiyu in the twenty-seventh chapter of the novel "A Dream of Red Mansions" by the Qing Dynasty writer Cao Xueqin An ancient poem recited. Through rich and peculiar imagination, dim and desolate pictures, and strong and sad mood, this poem shows Daiyu's spiritual world under the cruel reality and expresses her complicated struggle between life and death, love and hate. An experience of anxiety and confusion. It is the representative of all the lamentations of Lin Daiyu lamenting her life experience. It is also an important work by Cao Xueqin to shape the artistic image of Daiyu and express her character.