Voiceover: "Ten years of life and death are boundless. If you don't think about it, you will never forget it." Who makes Su Shi so obsessed with it? "There are no fragrant grasses anywhere in the world... I am passionate but I am annoyed by ruthlessness." Who makes Su Shi so sentimental and lingering? Since ancient times, romantic and talented people have always been paired with passionate beauties. So, what kind of happy song will the talented Su Su sing with his family? Associate Professor Kang Zhen from the School of Liberal Arts of Beijing Normal University will continue to take you into Su Shi and interpret Su Shi's family life in "The Joy of Family".
In the previous series of lectures, Teacher Kang Zhen led us to get closer to the great ancient Chinese writer Su Shi, follow Su Shi's ups and downs life experience, and feel the positivity and helplessness he brought to us. Starting today, we will explore various aspects of Su Shi's life in separate topics. As an outstanding representative of the first-class talents and literati in ancient China, Su Shi's family life has always attracted people's attention. So, what kind of family life did Su Shi have? For whom was the mourning phrase "Ten years of life and death" that has been passed down through the ages written? During this period, what kind of grief and melancholy did Su Shi have? Associate Professor Kang Zhen from the School of Liberal Arts of Beijing Normal University will take you into Su Shi's family life and give you a wonderful talk about Su Shi's seventh episode of the "Hundred Lecture Forum" series "Family Happiness". Please stay tuned.
Kang Zhen: His first wife, Wang Fu, was from the same hometown as him, both from Meishan. She was three years younger than Su Shi. When they got married, Su Shi was eighteen and she was fifteen. The son she gave birth to to Su Shi was named Su Mai, who was Su Shi's eldest son. According to the records in the "Epitaph of His Late Wife Wang" written by Su Shi for Wang Fu, Su Shi spoke highly of Wang Fu, mainly for two points: first, he said that his wife was "sensitive and quiet". He is very smart and at the same time unassuming. What's the second thing? It's called "knowledge", having insight. Why are there these two reviews? In this epitaph, Su Shi unfolds a long memory. When he first got married, Su Shi actually didn't think highly of his wife. He felt that his wife had no education. She was only fifteen years old and she was still a little girl. It was enough to do housework at home and serve her parents-in-law. Later this view changed. Why? Sometimes when Su Shi was studying or reviewing his homework, his wife would be beside him, quietly doing needlework without saying a word. Although Su Shi was smart, he sometimes got stuck while reciting something. Hey, there were times when he got stuck and couldn't remember. She, the wife, quietly mentioned something to him beside him. She mentioned something silently, and after saying it, she continued her sewing. Why? Su Shi found this very strange. She reminded me of the lyrics? Pointing to the books in the room, he picked a few and asked her. I didn't notice that this lady could answer everything, eh, I was shocked. I didn't expect that I would marry such a good wife who is very educated, knowledgeable, intelligent, and wise, but also silent. This is a big change in Su Shi's understanding of his wife. She is no longer a stupid girl, but a smart girl. But what is the problem? Su Shi thought he had a new understanding of his wife now, but he was wrong. His wife's understanding of him was much deeper than his understanding of his wife. Wang Fu already knew about her young genius husband. He has culture, he has knowledge, and he is the most talented person in the world. But one thing is that they lack the basic common sense of life and do not know how to treat others. His wife discovered that this person could distinguish between good articles and bad articles, but could not distinguish between good people and bad people. After he became an official, friends often visited him at home. Well, Wang Fu often hides behind this screen and listens carefully to what Su Shi talks to this guest. One day, a visitor left. Wang Fu came out from behind the screen and said to him, "How can you waste your time with such a person? You see, he never has standards when talking to you, and his words are always ambiguous." , whatever you want to say, whatever opinions you have, he will cater to you. Don't associate with a person like this, don't talk to him. Su Shi said yes, yes, but maybe he was a little disapproving. He said in his heart, I am the official, not you, right? One time, a man came over. This man was a familiar person. As soon as he met Su Shi, he became like an old friend. He seemed particularly close. He would say anything nice to Su Shi. After he left, Wang Fu came out and said, "You can't make friends with such a person. What does he belong to?" It goes as quickly as it comes. So do Madam’s words come true or not? In the epitaph he wrote for his wife, Su Shi recalled with great shame: Every time her wife was right, he could not help but believe that her judgment was more accurate than his. So you said that sometimes this is strange. You said that Su Shi was a great talent of our time, a first-class literati, and he was very concerned about major events in the world. Her wife is educated, but not as good as him. She only cares about the little things around her. What's the problem? There are not so many big things in life, it is basically made up of small things. So Su Shi basically had to listen to his wife on such issues. His wife often told him: Now that your father is not with you, no one reminds you all day long that you must be cautious in doing things yourself. Therefore, Su Shi's first wife, Wang Fu, was a very smart, intelligent, and shrewd woman.
Voice-over: Wang Fu married Su Shi, a young genius. In his many years of life, Wang Fu accompanied Su Shi and endured the loneliness of studying hard in a cold window. He also experienced Su Shi's triumph in the spring breeze, Feeling the scenery of being named on the gold list, they share the joys and sorrows and support each other. They are not only a young couple, but also a pair of partners who have grown up together. However, life is unpredictable and world events are unpredictable. Due to physical illness, Wang Fu unfortunately died of illness in Kaifeng, the capital, in the second year of Emperor Yingzong's reign in the Northern Song Dynasty. He was only 26 years old. Wang Fu's early death brought great pain to Su Shi. So, what kind of sad and lingering elegy will the extremely talented Su Shi sing to mourn his deceased wife?
Kang Zhen: After his wife passed away, Su Shi's father told him that your wife was in the same trouble as you and that she and your mother must be buried together in the future. Ten years later, when Su Shi was in his forties, he had gone through all the turmoil in his official career. One night, he dreamed of his first wife, Wang Fu. He was very sentimental and wrote He wrote a very famous eulogy "Jiang Chengzi". This word says: Ten years are a blur of life and death. If you don’t think about it, you will never forget it. Thousands of miles of lonely tomb, no place to speak of desolation. Even if we meet each other, we should not know each other, our faces are covered with dust and our temples are like frost. At night, you suddenly return to your hometown with a deep dream. Xiaoxuan window, dressing up. They looked at each other without words, only a thousand lines of tears. It is expected that the broken heart will occur every year: on a bright moonlit night, there will be short pine hills. It should be said that ten years of isolation from yin and yang could not cut off Su Shi's deep friendship with his first wife. Why? Look at what he said in this sentence, "Ten years of life and death are boundless. I can't think about it. I can't forget it. I am alone in a tomb thousands of miles away. There is no place to talk about desolation." My wife was buried in her hometown in Meishan, and I can never see her again. How sad. desolate. And now he wants to find a lovable person, a close person, to tell her the pain in his heart. No more people will intentionally hide behind the screen and hear his conversation with the guests. I tried to persuade him a few words, but it was gone. If he meets his wife again at this time, he will have changed. He is no longer the handsome young man ten years ago, but a middle-aged man with dusty face and frosty temples. The turmoil in his official career over the years, and the various unsuccessful and ups and downs in his official career over the years, reminded him again and again of how precious his wife was. So when he dreamed at night, he dreamed of his wife. What remained in his mind forever was the young wife dressing up by the small window. "Looking at each other without words, only a thousand lines of tears." After meeting each other, I didn't know what to say, so I just kept crying and crying. Why? No words can describe how much we have missed each other over the years. This great poet and writer, when describing one of the most basic human emotions, is often able to use artistic means that are different from ordinary people, making the communication between yin and yang possible, making it easier to stir the emotions. That very fragile heartstring within us. "It is expected that the broken part of the heart will be cut off every year, and on a bright moonlit night, the pine trees will be short." When the bright moon once again shone on the pine forest and on your tomb, I couldn't help but shed tears again. So Su Shi was able to write such a superb work as "The Great River Goes East". At the same time, he also wrote very movingly about the very small, very subtle love between men and women, the love between men and women. . So in general, what is the first wife Wang Fu in Su Shi's heart? She is smart and wise, and she has left him with long-lasting and affectionate memories.
Voiceover: The early death of his first wife, Wang Fu, brought Su Shi great grief. So, in the years to come, who will continue to write the movement of Su Shi's life and become the second wife? What are the differences between her and Wang Fu? How did Su Shi feel about her?
Kang Zhen: His second wife is Wang Runzhi, who is Wang Fu’s cousin. Eleven years younger than Su Shi, he married Su Shi when he was twenty-one, which means that Su Shi married Wang Runzhi when he was thirty-two. He gave birth to two sons to Su Shi, one named Su Ji and the other named Su Guo. Wang Runzhi has completely different personalities from his cousin. She is not as smart, wise, and shrewd as her cousin, but she is very gentle and considerate. She was only forty-six years old when she died. In the epitaph he wrote for her, Su Shi made two comments about her. The first one was, "She was a good woman, a mother with great etiquette, three sons as one, and great love." Yu Tian." This is a very high rating. She does the best job as a mother. She treats Su Mai, the eldest son left by her cousin, as if he were her own son. Her love for the three children is completely equal and equally deep. This is number one. What's the second thing to say? It is said that "gains and losses are the same, and you can live with the situation." Wang Runzhi is different from Wang Fu, because Wang Fu died very early, when Su Shi had not fully spread his wings to fly in his official career. Wang Runzhi is different. She followed Su Shi for twenty-six years. What did she experience? After Su Shi became an official in the imperial court, what happened next? He was demoted to Huangzhou again. Later, she returned to the court as an official and went through several stages, ups and downs. She had no complaints when she followed Su Shi, and she had no complaints when she suffered. But when Su Shi returned to the court and became prosperous, she did not show off her power and maintained a very ordinary mentality. Su Shi spoke highly of her on this point, and she made a great contribution to maintaining Su Shi's harmonious family.
But Wang Runzhi is definitely not as smart as her sister. This is for sure. For example, we know that when Su Shi was in Huzhou, wasn't he kidnapped by the court officials? Later, Su Shi wrote in a letter to his friend Wen Yanbo, what did he say? After he was captured, Mrs. Wang was very angry. She took out all the manuscripts and poems written by Su Shi and said, what is the benefit of writing these things? Almost scared us all to death. "Click" a lighter or a match, and everything was burned. So when Su Shi came back later, he found out that "eighty-nine out of ten died" and a large part was burned. But you can't blame her, what is it? She, Wang Runzhi, is a very gentle, considerate, and affectionate lady. But she couldn't stand the political turmoil. When his wife (Wang Runzhi) passed away, Su Shi was very sad. Because this Wang Runzhi spent a particularly long time with him. In this memorial poem, he wrote, "You abandoned me first, who welcomed me at the door, who gave me fields, it's all gone, my eyes are dry with tears." He said that after you pass away, no one will stand at the door to welcome me home. No one will take care of our fields anymore. I am so sad. For you, I have shed all my tears. Su Shi was also extremely nostalgic for Wang Runzhi, expressing a very deep feeling.
Voiceover: The two sisters, Wang Fu and Wang Runzhi, have accompanied Su Shi through most of his life. Wang Fu's intelligence helped Su Shi mature; Wang Runzhi's careful care gave Su Shi the warmest love. Thoughtful. However, in Su Shi's life, there was another woman worth writing about. Her appearance completed the legend of Su Shi's romantic talent and passionate beauty. Her existence enriched Su Shi's free and uninhibited life. So, who is she?
Kang Zhen: In Su Shi's emotional life, there is another person who is also very important. It was his concubine Chaoyun. This Chaoyun was twenty-five years younger than Su Shi. It turned out that Su Shi had taken him in as a concubine when Chaoyun was only twelve years old when he was a general judge in Hangzhou. She lived with Su Shi for twenty-three years. There are many folk legends about Chaoyun. It should be said that Su Shi left the most words about Chaoyun and the most words commemorating Chaoyun. He had two evaluations for Chaoyun, two sentences, one was "sensitive and fond of justice", the other was "loyal and respectful as one". What does it mean to be sensitive and fond of righteousness? That is to say, Chaoyun is not only very smart, but also has the same loyalty as her husband. Loyalty and respect means always remaining loyal to me and my family. In other words, as a concubine, the responsibilities she should bear for (this) family are far greater than those two. It was such a heavy burden for my wife to bear, but she shouldered it without hesitation. You may not know it well. In the Northern Song Dynasty, scholar-bureaucrats could recruit many such geishas and concubines. They did not have certain obligations and responsibilities to contribute to the family. So it turns out that there may be some geishas who were recruited. What is their main role? They dance when guests come, or toast them. But if the family declines, many such concubines will leave. family. But Chaoyun didn't. Chaoyun once gave birth to a child named Su Dun by Su Shi. But she died soon after. This incident was a great blow to Chaoyun, but she did not leave Su Shi's home, including when Su Shi was demoted to Huizhou and lived a very embarrassed and difficult life. Always be there for him. So let us say, what is the difference between Chaoyun and the two ladies in front? there is a big difference. Chaoyun should say that in Su Shi's view, he was more like a like-minded confidant of his. There is a widely circulated story that one afternoon, Su Shi was walking in the yard. It was late spring, the sun was shining and it was very comfortable. Everyone at home was busy. Su Shi was walking around in the yard, touching I touched my belly, patted it, and then asked, what do you think I am packing in here? There was a slave next to me who said, "You are filled with beautiful articles here." When Su Shi heard it, he thought it was too vulgar. It’s already full of splendid articles, do you still need to say it? Right, no, another slave said, those are all full of economics, full of economics to govern the country. Su Shi thought that there is no need for you to say this, this is not right either. In the end, Chaoyun was the only one who said that everything you have in your belly is inappropriate. Su Shi laughed loudly after hearing this. He was indeed a confidant. Therefore, Chaoyun has a better understanding of Su Shi's ups and downs in life, faith, and politics.
This understanding is very different from the care and consideration of ordinary housewives in life. So we ask, what did Chaoyun give Su Shi when he was in Huizhou? After the head of the family settled down, she accompanied Su Shi to meditate on Buddhism and talk about poetry and essays. In a difficult and difficult environment, a great scholar like Su Shi certainly needed care in life, but more importantly, he needed a spiritual confidant. It was what Chaoyun could give him. Su Shi wrote a poem called "Butterfly Loves Flowers". It should be said that this poem has no direct relationship with Chaoyun, but in many historical notes, people often like to associate this poem with Chaoyun. How is this poem written? Said: The flowers have faded and become red, green and apricots are small. When the swallows, green water around people. There are few willow trees blowing on the branches, and there is no fragrant grass anywhere in the world! There is a swing inside the wall and a path outside the wall. Pedestrians outside the wall, beautiful women inside the wall smile. The laughter gradually becomes quieter and quieter, but the sentimental one is annoyed by the ruthlessness.
This is a very typical graceful word, which describes a very vague, sensitive, and delicate emotion between men and women. Well, it is said that after Su Shi wrote this poem, he asked Chaoyun to sing it for us. Chaoyun hadn't started singing yet, and his clothes were full of tears. Su Shi was very strange and said, I'll just let you sing a poem. As for you, just cry like this. Chaoyun talked about some truth, what truth? Said: "The only thing that slaves can't sing is 'There are few willows blowing on the branches, and there are no fragrant grasses anywhere in the world.'" Why, because these two sentences express a concept of the impermanence of life. Think about it, there are very few willow cotton blowing on the branches, and there are no fragrant grasses anywhere in the world. You can see the catkins on the willow branches and the willow leaves on the willow branches. They are becoming less and less year by year. The author also Write, there is no grass anywhere in the world, but if you think about it, that is to say, today you are the grass, but tomorrow you will not be the grass. Since there are grasses everywhere, then the grass at this moment may be Not so precious anymore. So what is revealed here, a profound sense of impermanence in life. It is this sense of impermanence that touches Chaoyun's mind and makes her feel that her life, including herself and Su Shi, will She was a passer-by in life, so she was unwilling to sing. She felt that singing this thing was like singing her own lament. Chao Yun passed away not long after. So this poem is like a prophecy written to Chaoyun. Chaoyun passed away at the age of thirty-four. After her death, Su Shi wrote a memorial to her. There was not a single sentence that expressed the tender and longing love between a man and a woman. None. His memorial was written more like a memorial to a comrade, a confidant, and a friend. This fully illustrates Chaoyun's important and unique position in Su Shi's mind.
Voice-over: Concubine Chaoyun made Su Shi's life full of romance and sentimentality. Although she was of humble status, she was able to bring Su Shi spiritual understanding and joy. Su Shi also became known to others because of Chaoyun's existence. Envy. The three women in Su Shi's life are all different but wonderful. It is because of their love for Su Shi that Su Shi became the Su Dongpo we admire today. In the previous episodes, Associate Professor Kang Zhen told us about the outstanding three fathers and sons of Su Shi in Meishan. The success of Su Shi and his younger brother Su Che stems from the good family education they received from their father Su Xun since childhood. Su Shi, as an outstanding representative of ancient Chinese literati, pursued the highest realm of Confucianism to regulate the family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world. So how will Su Shi, who has not gone smoothly on the road to "ruling the country and bring peace to the world", "regulate the family"? His son Are you as talented and knowledgeable as he is?
Kang Zhen: In Su Shi's life, he had two wives, one concubine, and four sons. The youngest son Su Dun died in infancy. So of his three sons, the eldest is called Su Mai, the second is called Su Yi, and the third is called Su Guo. The eldest son was born when Su Shi was twenty-four, Su Shi was born when he was thirty-five, and Su Guo was born when he was thirty-seven. Su Shi had a general principle for the education of his three sons. This general principle was based on his own lessons. What does he say in a poem? He said:
Everyone raises his son to be smart, but I have been fooled by my cleverness my entire life. I hope that my child will be foolish and careless, and that he will be able to come to the palace without any trouble. ---"Xi'er". What does this mean? When people raise children, they all say how smart they are. The smarter the better, but I don’t. I don’t want my children to be smart. I have been smart all my life but I have been misled by my cleverness. I hope my children will be stupid. It's best to grow up slowly and slowly, don't show your cleverness, and grow up without any illness or disaster. So Su Shi had such requirements for his children, which decided it. I have said before that when he was demoted to Huizhou and Danzhou, he did not want to harm his children. He himself suffered a lot in his life. He is no longer willing to let his sons share a lot of suffering and try to alleviate their pain as much as possible. (So) What does this reflect? It is a genius who suffers various misfortunes because of his literary and cultural talents, which are geniuses of the era, and they are reflected in the education of his sons, but he hopes that his children will not be too smart. This is really Time and history played a big joke on Su Shi. Let’s first look at the characteristics of his eldest son Su Mai. This Su Mai is the backbone of the family. Why do you say that? When Su Shi was arrested in Huzhou, only Su Mai was allowed to accompany him to Kaifeng. Later, Su Shi was arrested and imprisoned in Kaifeng Prison, and it was Su Mai who brought him meals every day. Later, after he was demoted to Huangzhou, it was Su Mai who first accompanied his father alone to Huangzhou to settle down the family. After Su Shi was demoted to Huizhou, Su Mai later led more than 20 members of his family to Huizhou to join Su Shi. So he, the eldest, is the backbone of the family. Su Shi had a comment on his boss. In four words, it was called: plain and simple in talent. He is very simple, very down-to-earth, not that smart, but he does practical things. Therefore, the eldest son Su Mai gives us the impression of being very simple. Overall, he is the head of the family and is unassuming. This is a characteristic of his character and also Su Shi's expectation for him.
The middle child was called Su Yan. Su Yan's development was a little slow since he was a child. He couldn't run when he was four years old. So Su Shi was very anxious and hired a monk named Benzai to do a haircut and massage on his head. This child immediately ran as fast as other children. This child has been developing slowly since he was a child. Who did he marry later? Su Yi married Ouyang Xiu's granddaughter. The two families were family friends.
Voiceover: The eldest son Su Mai and the second son Su Yi did not inherit the talents of their father Su Shi, which makes us a little disappointed. Is it the child's own stupid qualifications or the bumps in Su Shi's official career that delayed the child's cultivation? Among the three sons Su Mai, Su Yi and Su Guo, who did Su Shi like the most?
Kang Zhen: Who is Su Shi’s favorite? It's the third child, this is Su Guo. Su Guo had a nickname, Xiaopo. Because Su Shi was called Dongpo and he was called Xiaopo, this child's temperament is most like Su Shi's. And because Su Guo was the only one who accompanied Su Shi through the most difficult years of his life in Hainan, Su Shi had the deepest affection for his youngest son. When he was in Hainan, Su Shi had three aspects of education for Su Guo: one was personality cultivation, the second was academic writing, and the last was the ability to do things. Please note that Su Shi's requirements for his children are very realistic and not excessive. For example, when he was in Hainan, Su Guo accompanied his father through many difficult years and developed a kind of Geng Jie has an unyielding character. He himself said in his poem: Eternal life is not concerned with worries. How can a person grow up if he doesn't experience some suffering? Su Shi admired him very much. What could he say? He said: Because of this, a certain person abandoned the world and felt at peace both physically and mentally, and the child also became detached from other things. Without this father, this son would not have been born, (haha.) What does that mean? I said that after going through the hardships of life, I have been able to maintain peace of mind and body and not be disturbed by external things. He didn't expect that my son, like me, could achieve transcendence. Like father, like son, he felt very happy. So he could always see something in the child Su Guo, his own shadow. This is the reason why people after Su Guo called him Xiaopo. But what is the regret? His three sons, because Su Shi himself was wandering throughout his life, especially in his later years, he was always caught in one political turmoil after another, which also affected his children's career. Among his three sons, none of them had ever held a high-level official position. When it came to poetry creation, only the youngest son Su Guo. Later, many poems were passed down and became the most important among his three children. The most talented in literature. So what do future generations say? It is said that Su Shi is very happy. Why happiness? It is said that when he was a boy, he had good parents; when he was middle-aged and in his prime, he had a good partner; when he was most unlucky in his later years, he had very filial and talented children accompanying him. . But in fact, Su Shi was also very unfortunate. Why? Because when he was young, (the) wife who was very good to him died early. In his middle age, when he was in the most difficult time, Chaoyun and Wang Runzhi also passed away. So in his later years, his three sons could have achieved better development under his education, but it turns out that it was precisely because he suffered a lot of political misfortune in his later years that restricted the development of his children. . So no matter how you put it, in Su Shi's case, we can see from his family that the development of this family and the fate of everyone in this family are actually closely related to Su Shi's fate. But at the same time, although Su Shi encountered many unexpected political disturbances, these children, including his wife, also received a lot of spiritual help from Su Shi. So it should be said that in the course of Su Shi's life, there was another person who also played a very unique and important role. This person is his brother Su Che. As for Su Che, we have to wait until the next episode of "Brotherhood" to tell you about it. That’s it for this episode, thank you all.
Voiceover: Su Shi and Su Che, the twin stars of the Northern Song Dynasty, why did their deep brotherhood remain unchanged throughout their lives? What inspired Su Shi to write the Mid-Autumn Festival song "Shui Diao Ge Tou" that has been passed down through the ages? There is a popular rumor among the people that Su Shi had a smart and beautiful younger sister, Su Xiaomei. Is it true that there was such a person in history? Associate Professor Kang Zhen from the School of Liberal Arts of Beijing Normal University continued to talk about Su Shi's "Brotherhood".