The verses of the ancient poem "Painting" are as follows:
Ancient poem: From a distance, the mountains are colorful, but up close, the water is silent. When spring comes, the flowers are still there, and the birds are not surprised when people come.
Translation: You can see the green color of the mountains in the distance, but you can’t hear the sound of running water nearby. Spring has passed, but the flowers are still blooming and the birds on the branches are not afraid when people come closer.
Notes:
1. Color: color, also means scenery.
2. Spring is gone: Spring has passed.
3. Jing: Surprise, fear, here mainly means to fly up when frightened.
Creative background: This poem is a poem in praise of painting. There are many opinions about the author of this poem. One theory is that it was written by Wang Wei in the Tang Dynasty, but this poem is not found in Wang Wei's works or in "The Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty". One theory is that it was originally part of a verse poem written by Zen Master Chuan, a monk in the Southern Song Dynasty, to comment on the Buddhist classic "Diamond Sutra".
Appreciation of "Hua"
"Hua" is a five-character quatrain created by an unknown poet in the Song Dynasty (some say Wang Wei of the Tang Dynasty or Zen Master Chuan of the Southern Song Dynasty). This poem describes Natural scenery, but it is a painting that is admired. The first two sentences describe its clear mountains and silent flowing water. The last two lines describe the flowers blooming in all seasons, and the birds are not afraid of people. The four lines of the poem constitute a complete landscape painting of flowers and birds.
The contrasts in the whole poem are neat, especially the use of multiple sets of antonyms in the poem, which makes the rhythm clear, distinct, full of charm, and catchy to read. This poem uses concise and simple words to narrate the images on the picture very cleverly. The third character of each poem is mountain, water, flower and bird in that order. Green mountains stand tall, water flows between them, flowers bloom and birds sing on the branches, forming a lively and beautiful overall realm.
Reference for the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia—"Painting"