Original text and appreciation of "Poems, Songs and Prose·Daowu Mountain"
Tan Sitong
The setting sun falls in love with the tall trees, and the dusk enters the green peaks.
The ancient temple is clouded by cranes, and the moon shines on the dragon in the empty pond.
The dust disappears over a hundred-foot waterfall, and the heart breaks with the sound of a bell.
What is the meaning of Zen? Chirping and chirping.
This is a Zen poem that touches the scene and evokes emotions, entering and coming out of Zen. The title of the poem is "Daowu Mountain", which points out the place where the poem is about. This mountain is located 10 miles north of Liuyang County, Hunan Province, the poet's hometown. It runs east-west and looks like a screen in Liuyang County. There are ancient temples, deep pools and peaks on the mountain. The location of the ancient temple is elegant and Buddhist services are flourishing. The pond is quite deep and is known as Laolongtan. There are many peaks, shaped like lotus flowers, known as the Seventy-Two Peaks.
The first couplet "The setting sun falls in love with the tall trees, and the dusk falls on the green peaks" is the distant view of the poet looking west, and also points out the time background of the whole poem. The sun was about to set but had not yet set. It was only as high as a tree. It seemed that it was attached to the trees and mountains and could not bear to fall. However, after all, the twilight is getting thicker and thicker. Once upon a time, the sunset had already set on the west mountain, and the twilight and the mountain color were integrated into one. The word "love" describes the setting sun, and its dynamics are described with emotion. The word "enter" is used to describe the setting sun, and the verb is used to describe the twilight.
The couplet "The clouds in the ancient temple are covered with cranes, and the moon in the empty pond shines on the dragon" is the close-up view seen by the poet. In the ancient temple, there are idle clouds above and cranes below. The idle clouds bow their heads and stand still, as if they are attached to the crane and never leave. Next to it is the Longtan Crescent Moon, which is tranquil, deep and slightly mysterious.
The triptych "The dust disappears from a hundred-foot waterfall, and the heart breaks with a bell" is the poet's feeling of Zen triggering. When the sun sets in the west, birds fly into the woods, travelers return home, and everything longs for their return, it can easily arouse people's melancholy about the end of heaven and earth, and also easily arouse people's daydreams about where they will end up. The idle clouds and wild cranes, the early moon in the deep pool, and the sound of bells in the ancient temple can easily induce people's thoughts of transcendence. Being in the above situation, the poet really triggered his Zen intention. For a moment, all his thoughts disappeared and he entered a spiritual state where he forgot both things and himself. "The dust disappears in a hundred-foot waterfall", which means that thoughts of dust are washed away by a hundred-foot waterfall and disappear. "The heart breaks with the sound of a bell", which means that the distracting thoughts of the world have been alerted by the bell of Buddhism. It can be literal or metaphorical.
The last two sentences, "What is the vague meaning of Zen? Chirping, chirping and crawling under the steps." They ask and answer themselves. They are the poet's pursuit of Zen and what he hears and feels after stepping out of Zen. "Zhu" is the same as "Zhu", which means "falling". "Where is" means where. "蛯" refers to cricket. The poet thought that all his thoughts were gone and triggered the Zen, but the poet couldn't help but ask, where is the vague Zen? As if he had lost his way and found his way back, the poet returned to the mortal world. It's like waking up from a dream, only to hear the chirping of crickets.
The picture and artistic conception of the first six lines of this poem are so solemn and quiet, while the picture at the end is so trivial and light. The contrast between before and after is so great that the poet must be somewhat self-deprecating.
Tan Sitong was born in Beijing and grew up in Beijing. He has been engaged in political activities in various places in the north and south for a long time. However, he returned to his hometown of Liuyang many times since he was 12 years old. This poem was written when he was between 21 and 30 years old.
In his short life, Tan Sitong studied Confucianism, Buddhism, and also studied Christian classics. However, he only studied Confucianism for its positive spirit of using the world, and studied Buddhism for the philosophy of "If I don't go to hell, who will?" ” The devotion to Christianity and the study of Christianity are only based on its spirit of equality for all living beings. He has always been a patriot for social reform and has never believed in any religion. This poem can also be regarded as an example of Tan Sitong's ideological process.