This sentence comes from the fifth poem of Thirteen Poems in the South Garden written by Li He, a poet in the Tang Dynasty:
Why didn't the great man take weapons to collect the fifty States of the mountain?
Please go to see the paintings of the founder heroes with pictures. Another scholar was once called the aristocrat of a million families?
What does the whole poem mean? Translated into vernacular as follows:
Why don't men wear weapons to recover the fifty States of Guansai River and Mountain, which are divided in the north and south of the Yellow River?
Please go to Lingyange temporarily. Which scholar has been rated as the rank of every household in the food city?
There are several words in the poem, and I think it is necessary to explain them separately in order to better understand the meaning of the poem:
Nanyuan: generally refers to a large piece of flat land south of the author's former residence in Changgu. Yang Qiqun's Textual Research on the Poetic Name of Li Heyong's Yongchang Valley says: Yuan and Yuan can have the same meaning, and any large flat land south of Li Hejia can be called "South Garden" or "South Garden" as long as it can grow grain for food. ?
Wu Gou: A sabre with a hook.
Fifty States: refers to more than 50 counties in Shandong, Henan, Hebei and other places occupied and divided by the vassal areas at that time.
For the time being: try first.
Lingyan Pavilion: the Hall of Outstanding People in Tang Dynasty. In the seventeenth year of Zhenguan (643), Emperor Taizong ordered Yan to paint portraits of twenty-four people, including Wuji, in Lingyan Pavilion, in recognition of Taiyuan's keeping harmony.
If a: which one. Wan Huhou: Marquis who owns a food city of ten thousand households, refers to the high status and generous status.
What is the background of the author's writing this poem?
This poem is the fifth of "Thirteen Poems in the South Garden", which was written by Li Jinshi when he retired to Changgu. The writing time can be traced back to the turn of spring and summer in August11(Tang Xianzong Yuan and six years).
Now that we know the creation background and the meaning of the whole poem, let's enjoy it together:
This poem consists of two rhetorical questions, abrupt and radical, but also straightforward, expressing the pain of home and country and the sadness of life experience to the fullest.
The first question is rhetorical and self-questioning, which contains the lofty sentiments of "everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world". "Why don't men take Wu Gou?" The first sentence is very urgent, followed by the second sentence, "Guanshan gathers fifty states", which looks magnificent like a waterfall falling from a height. "Taking Wu Gou" refers to the action of joining the army, wearing a saber and going to the battlefield. How heroic this spirit is! "Recovering Guanshan" is the purpose of joining the army. The mountains and rivers are broken, and the people are miserable. How can a poet stay in the countryside and do nothing? Therefore, he is eager to make contributions and serve the country. One or two sentences, fourteen words in one go, and the rhythm is bright, which is very in line with the poet's high-spirited mood and urgent mood.
The word "why not" in the first sentence is very expressive. It not only constitutes specific sentences (questions), but also emphasizes the tone of rhetorical questions, which enhances the power of poetry to convey feelings. Faced with the situation of raging fires and wars, the poet was extremely anxious and couldn't wait to go to the battlefield immediately to defend his country. "Why not do it?" At this moment, self-questioning is imperative, and it also implies the critical military situation and the poet's own anxiety. In addition, it also makes people feel the pent-up resentment of the poet. Scholar Li He has long been famous for his poems. He could have learned to be an official, but this road to entry was ruthlessly blocked by the feudal ethics of "avoiding his father and taboo", which made him have no chance to display his talents. The word "why not" means that it is really out of helplessness.
The word "take" in "Fifty States in Guanshan" is easy to lift weights and has the potential to break bamboo, vividly expressing the poet's desire to save the country. However, how easy is it to "gather 50 States in Guanshan"? Scholar's spirit can't achieve the great cause of recovering Guanshan, but if you want to get rid of the sad situation in front of you, you have to go through a military career and kill the enemy to make achievements. This contradiction highlights the poet's anger and injustice.
"If you are a scholar Wan Huhou, please go to Lingyange temporarily." The last two sentences of the poem say, please go to Lingyange, which is painted with founding heroes. Which scholar was once called Wan Huhou?
The poet asked, "Who is a scholar?" ? Here the poet uses rhetorical questions instead of declarative sentences, and the meaning of complaining is stronger. It seems that the poet is setting off the necessity of joining the army from the opposite side, but in fact he is further expressing his incompetence and resentment. From high-spirited agitation to melancholy and sadness, we see not only the strokes of contrast, but also the ups and downs of rhythm, echoing in urgency. In this way, the poet expresses his complex thoughts and feelings in the rhythm of poetry, which allows readers to deepen their understanding and feelings of the theme from the infection of rhythm.
Finally, I think it is necessary to introduce the author of this article:
Li He (about 790 AD-about 8 17) was born in Fuchang, Henan Province (now yiyang county, Luoyang, Henan Province) in the Tang Dynasty. He lived in Fuchangchang Valley, later called Li Changgu, and was a descendant of Li Liang, the imperial clan of the Tang Dynasty. The founder of "Changji Style" poetry is called "Shi Gui", and he is a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty as well as Du Fu, Li Bai, Shi Fo and Wang Wei. He is the author of Long Valley Collection. Li He was a romantic poet in the mid-Tang Dynasty, and he was also called "Sanli" in Tang Dynasty with Li Bai and Li Shangyin. There is a saying that "talents are too white and talents are too long." Li He is another famous romantic poet in the history of China literature after Qu Yuan and Li Bai. Li He has been depressed and sentimental for a long time, and his life style is bitter. In the eighth year of Yuanhe (8 13), he resigned as a gift officer and returned to Changgu due to illness. He died young at the age of 27.