The Lotus Pond in the Moonlight (translated by alex Kling)
I'm very upset these days.
In recent days, I have been feeling a little anxious.
Sitting in the yard enjoying the cool tonight, I suddenly remembered the lotus pond I walked through every day. It should look different under the light of this full moon.
That night, I was sitting in the garden enjoying the cool, and suddenly I remembered the lotus pond I passed every day. I wonder if it will look different under the light of the full moon.
The moon rises gradually, and the children's laughter on the road outside the wall can no longer be heard; My wife is patting and skipping in the room, humming a sleeping song in a daze. I slipped on a big shirt and ran out the door.
The moon climbed higher. The children's laughter disappeared in the street outside the wall. My wife hummed a lullaby while patting our son to trot to sleep. I put on my coat quietly, closed the door behind me and went out.
Along the lotus pond, there is a winding little cinder road. This is a secluded road; Few people walk during the day, and it is lonely at night. Around the lotus pond, there are many trees and lush. On one side of the road, there are some willows and some trees with unknown names. On a moonless night, the road is gloomy and a little scary. It's fine tonight, although the moonlight is still very weak.
There is a winding cinder path along the lotus pond. There are few pedestrians during the day and even fewer at night. The lotus pond is surrounded by thick shady trees. Willow trees and nameless trees line the railway. On a moonless night, the railway looks dull and gloomy. The weather was fine that night, although the moonlight was a little dim.
I was the only one on the road, walking around with my hands behind my back. This world seems to be mine; I also like to go beyond my usual self and go to another world. I love excitement and peace; Like to live in groups, like to be alone. Just like tonight, under the boundless moon, a person can think of anything and think of nothing, and feel that he is a free person. What must be done and said during the day can be ignored now. This is the beauty of being alone, and I will enjoy the boundless moonlight with lotus fragrance.
I walked alone on the road with my hands clasped behind my back. It seems that everything around me is mine, and I have sublimated to another dimension. I like excitement, but I also like silence. I like crowds, but I also like loneliness. On that night, in the ubiquitous moonlight, I was free to let my thoughts fly freely, or leave a blank. I can put aside what I need to do or say during the day. This is the advantage of being alone. Besides, I can enjoy the fragrance of lotus flowers and the beauty of moonlight.
On the winding lotus pond, I look forward to the leaves of Tian Tian. The leaves are high out of the water, like an elegant dancer's skirt. Layers of leaves are dotted with some white flowers, some of which bloom gracefully and some are in bud shyly; Like a pearl, like a star in the blue sky, like a beauty who just took a bath. The breeze blows, bringing fragrance again and again, as if it were a faint song from a distant building.
Across the undulating water surface of the lotus pond, there is a leaf full of scenery. The leaves are high above the water, like a ballet dancer's skirt. It is dotted with white flowers. Some are in full bloom, while others are in bud shyly, like sparkling pearls, twinkling stars, or beautiful women who have just taken a bath. The breeze keeps bringing delicious fragrance, just like the faint music coming from the distant tower.
Moonlight, like running water, falls quietly on this leaf and flower. A thin layer of blue mist floats in the lotus pond. Leaves and flowers seem to have been washed in milk; Like a dream in a sarong.
Moonlight, like flowing water, gently poured on that leaf and flower. Add the mist rising from the pond to the mixture, and the leaves and flowers look as if they were washed in milk, or they are dreams covered with fine silk.
Although it is a full moon, there are faint clouds in the sky, so it can't shine; But I think this is just a benefit-deep sleep is indispensable, and nap is unique.
Even if there is a full moon, it can't give off completely bright light, because the sky is full of thin clouds. For me, this is just right, just like a good sleep is essential, but a short nap will be a satisfaction.
The moonlight shone through the trees, and the bushes at the height fell in the uneven shadow of the squad, like a ghost; The lotus leaf is painted with sparse shadows of curved willows. The moonlight in the pond is uneven; But light and shadow have a harmonious melody, such as a famous song played in the Vatican.
The moonlight shone through the Woods, casting uneven shadows in the tall and dense bushes, and stood upright like a ghost. Willow trees with sparse leaves project their curved and symmetrical images on the lotus leaves. The reflection of moonlight is unevenly scattered in the pond, but the lights and shadows are in harmony with the rhythm, just like a musical masterpiece played by a violin.
Around the lotus pond, there are trees far and near, and willows are the most. These trees surround a lotus pond; Only on one side of the path, there are some gaps, which seem to be reserved for moonlight. Trees are all cloudy and at first glance look like a cloud of smoke; But the abundance of willows can be recognized in the smoke. There are distant mountains on the treetops, just a little careless. There are still one or two lamps leaking through the cracks in the tree. What is listless is the eyes of those who are sleepy. At this time, the most lively are cicadas in the tree and frogs in the water; But the excitement is theirs. I have nothing.
The lotus pond is surrounded by trees of different heights and distances. Willow has the largest number. Those trees tightly blocked the lotus pond, leaving several holes beside the path, as if for the moonlight to pass through. The trees all look fuzzy and seem to be shrouded in fog, but the curved outline of willow trees is still clearly discernible. The distant mountains are faintly visible at the top of the tree, though only in outline. A few street lamps pass through the trees, lazily looking like a pair of sleepy eyes. The most active are the humming of cicadas and the croaking of frogs. But when they were partying, I was left out.
I suddenly remembered the matter of picking lotus. Lotus picking is an ancient custom in the south of the Yangtze River. It seems to have a long history, but it flourished in the Six Dynasties. You can get a rough idea from this poem. Lotus pickers are young women. They are swinging their boats and singing colorful songs. Needless to say, the lotus pickers and the lotus pickers. It was a lively season and a romantic season.
Suddenly, my thoughts turned to picking lotus, which was a tradition in Jiangnan a long time ago. It was most popular during the Six Dynasties. Poetry tells us more or less that lotus pickers are girls drifting around in boats, humming beautiful melodies. Needless to say, there are many pic kers and audiences. It was an exciting festival full of legends.
Emperor Liang Yuan put it well in "Lotus Picking Fu":
So the demon is a virgin, and she wants to boat; The snipe makes a first promise and passes the feather cup; I can move, algae can hang, boats can move and sail. Erqi slim waist bundle element, Yan Gubu; After long summer, in late spring, leaves are tender and flowers are early. I'm afraid to smile when I touch my skirt, and I'm afraid to tilt my boat and fold my skirt.
Emperor Liang Yuan described it well in his ode to picking lotus:
In this way, the handsome young man and the sweet girl drifted around in a small boat and vowed to love each other forever. The small raft paddled back and forth, and the glass was passed around. Seaweed covers the paddles, and floating duckweeds make way for moving boats. She wore a white ribbon around her slender waist, hesitated whether to push the boat in, and looked back at the place where she started. It was late spring and early summer, the leaves were turning green and the flowers were in bud. When her skirt was in danger of getting wet, she giggled and lifted the bottom of the skirt for fear that the boat would tilt.
It can be seen that there were wandering scenes at that time. This is really interesting, but unfortunately we are not happy now.
It was a glimpse of playing at that time. This is an interesting event, but it's a pity that we can't enjoy it now.
Then I remembered the sentence in "Xizhou Qu": Lotus is picked in Nantang in autumn, and the lotus is over the head; With his head down, he fiddled with the lotus seeds in the water, which were as green as the lake.
I am reminded of the poem in "Xizhou Ballad": "In autumn, picking lotus seeds in Nantang, the plant grows taller than people. Look down at the treated seeds, they are as clear as water. "
If there are lotus pickers tonight, the lotus here will be considered "over the top"; You can't just see some shadows of running water. This makes me really miss Jiangnan. -think like this, suddenly look up and feel that it is already your own door; Gently pushed the door in, there was no sound, and my wife had slept for a long time.
If there were lotus seed pickers that night, they would think that the plants there were taller than people. However, there is a lack of flowing water in the scene, which seems to be quite wrong; That brought back memories of Jiangnan. Deep in thought, I suddenly looked up and didn't know that I had reached the door. I gently pushed open the door. It's quiet. My wife has been sleeping for a long time.