"Xie Lu" is a eulogy (eulogy song) sung by the ancients when they mourned the dead!
The dew on the leaves
"Yuefu Poems"
The dew on the leaves is so beautiful!
Lu Xi will return to the Ming Dynasty. When will people return after death?
Vernacular translation
How easily the dew on the leaves dries up!
The dew will fall again tomorrow after it dries up. Once human life is gone, when will it come back?
"Xie Lu" is a miscellaneous poem written by Anonymous in the Western Han Dynasty. This is an elegy, expressing condolences for the deceased. The poem is inspired by the fact that the dew on the leaves dries easily in the sun, describing the shortness of life; it also uses the fact that the dew can fall again tomorrow after it dries, reflecting the fact that it is difficult to return a person once he is gone. This poem alternates between three and seven words. The lyrics are well-proportioned and varied. The emotions are lingering and soothing. The sadness is slow and sigh-inducing, and it is easy to move people's hearts.
"Xie Lu" is an elegy from the Han and Wei dynasties. It was sung by people who led coffins during funerals. It was collected in "Xianghe Songs" in "Yuefu Poems". "Xie Lu" and "Hao Li" were originally poems, said to have originated from Tian Heng's disciples during the Chu-Han struggle for hegemony. Tian Heng was born in the Qi clan during the Warring States Period. During the late Qin War, he once proclaimed himself the King of Qi. However, he was defeated and fled to the island with 500 of his followers. After the establishment of the Western Han Dynasty, Tian Heng was recruited by Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty. On the way to Luoyang, he committed suicide because he was unwilling to surrender. His followers composed this elegy to mourn him. At the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the court musician Li Yannian divided the song into two pieces: "Xie Lu" to see off the princes and nobles, and "Hao Li" to see off the gentry and common people.
Literary Appreciation
This poem laments the shortness of human life. The song is inspired by the morning dew. The dewdrops on the leaves are shining brightly against the rising sun, making them look so beautiful and moving. Without the sun, the morning dew would have no way to gain its brilliance, but because of the sun's irradiation, it is fleeting. The poet understood the extremely short life of human beings from the morning dew on the grass, and sighed: "How easy it is for the grass to grow dew!" This is actually people's understanding of life derived from long-term experience, and it occasionally comes from the morning dew. Another ancient poem about Xianghege, "Chang Ge Xing", is quite similar to this one. There are similar sentences in it: "The sunflowers in the green garden are waiting for the morning dew." Qin Jia's "Poetry for Wife" said: "Life "Like morning dew." Cao Cao's poem "Dan Ge Xing" also said that life is "like morning dew." It can be seen that life is like morning dew, which is a universal consciousness rather than the temporary thoughts of individual people. Because this song compares the morning dew to human life, the first two lines of the song lament the morning dew, which means lamenting life. Placing these two sentences at the beginning can be thought-provoking.
Comparing human life with morning dew is shocking enough. But the third sentence of the song goes further and says that human life cannot be compared with morning dew: although morning dew is "easy to fall", the Ming Dynasty can "fall again". The poet made life so sad. Saying that the morning dew is "Xi" and "falling back" naturally reminds people of the idea of ??resurrection from the dead. This idea is determined by the theme of the chant and has a negative connotation. The last sentence "When will a person return after death" comes from this It arises from the negative idea, becomes the opposite meaning of the third sentence, and serves as the bearer of the negative idea. The question "when will a person return after death?" shows confusion about life. The contradiction between life and death has long troubled people. Taking pleasure in the moment or working hard to achieve something are two completely different attitudes towards life. The first three sentences of this article build momentum, and the fourth sentence is the focus of the writing. The last sentence is like a loud bang, revealing the main theme of the entire article.
This poem is perfect for mourning the dead - perfect for mourning your friend!