Recalling Li Bai in Spring
Du Fu
Bai Ye's poems are incomparable, and his thoughts are unparalleled.
The fresh Yu opened his mansion, and the handsome Bao joined the army.
Spring trees in Weibei, dusk clouds in Jiangdong.
When a bottle of wine, important and detailed essays.
The friendship between Du Fu and Li Bai was first formed through poetry. This five-meter poem commemorating Li Bai was written by Du Fu in the spring of the fifth year of Tianbao (746) or the sixth year (747) when he lived in Chang'an. It was mainly written from this aspect. The first four sentences are all enthusiastic praise for Li Bai's poems. The first sentence praises his poetry as being unparalleled in contemporary times. The second sentence is an explanation of the previous sentence, saying that the reason why he is "invincible in poetry" is that his thoughts and interests are extraordinary, so the poems he writes are unparalleled and unparalleled. Then the poem praising Li Bai is as fresh as Yu Xin and as handsome as Bao Zhao. Yu Xin and Bao Zhao were both famous poets in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Yu Xin served as an official in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, up to the general of Hushi, and Kaifu Yi shared three divisions (Sima, Situ, and Sikong), so he was known as Yu Kaifu in the world. During the Liu and Song Dynasties, Bao Zhao served as a member of the Jingzhou Former Army and was known as Bao Canjun in the world. These four sentences are written vigorously and passionately. The two auxiliary words "ye" and "ran" in the first couplet not only strengthen the tone of praise, but also increase the weight of "poetry is invincible" and "thinking is unparalleled".
Du Fu always praised Li Bai's majestic and magnificent poems in his poems dedicated to or in memory of Li Bai. From the frank and sincere praise in this poem, we can also see how much Du Fu admired Li Bai's poems. This not only expresses his great love for Li Bai's poems, but also reflects their sincere friendship. Yang Lun of the Qing Dynasty commented on this poem and said: "The first sentence is about reading all the joys and sorrows of ancient and modern times, and I am willing to give in to the local language. I secretly say that the poets of ancient and modern times cannot be beyond the scope of Du; only Taibai is so transcendent that Du cannot overwhelm him. Therefore, I am very convinced, and it is often very true." ("Du Shi Jingquan") This is very true. These four sentences are about remembering the person and remembering the poem. The hymn also means remembering the person. However, the author does not explicitly state this meaning, but naturally makes up for it by writing about separation in the third couplet. This treatment is not only concise, but also avoids straightforward narration, and allows the poetic meaning to be connected and twists and turns.
On the surface, the two sentences in the third couplet only describe the scene where the author and Li Bai are respectively. "Weibei" refers to the Chang'an area where Du Fu was located; "Jiangdong" refers to the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas where Li Bai was roaming. "Spring trees" and "Higurashi clouds" are simply stated without any modification or description. Taken separately, the two sentences are very ordinary and there is nothing special about them. However, the author organized them into a link, and naturally there was a wonderful and close connection. In other words, when the author was in Weibei and missed Li Bai from Jiangdong, it was also the time when Li Bai was in Jiangdong and missed the author from Weibei; and the author looked at the south sky and saw only the clouds on the horizon, while Li Bai looked up to the north and saw only the distant sky. The color of the trees naturally shows the hatred of separation between the two people, like "spring trees" and "twilight clouds", which also carry a deep feeling of separation. Therefore, Huang Sheng in the Qing Dynasty said: "Five lines of fables remind oneself of the other, and six lines of fables remind oneself of the other." ("Du Shi Shuo") The two lines of poems involve the same infinite feelings of both parties. Recalling all the good times together, wondering about the situation after the two separated and the various situations at this time, there must be so much content in it. These two sentences may seem plain, but in fact every word is refined; the language is very simple, but the connotations are extremely rich. They are famous sentences that have been praised throughout the ages. In the Qing Dynasty, Shen Deqian called it "depicting scenery without seeing the emotion" ("Tang Poems"). In the Ming Dynasty, Wang Sixi's "Du Sui" quoted Wang Shenzhong as "a work of lightness", which was highly praised.
The feelings of separation are written very deeply and intensely above, which naturally leads to the fervent hope in the last couplet: When can we get together again and discuss poetry over wine as we did in the past? Discussing poetry over wine is the most unforgettable and most yearning thing for the author. This conclusion echoes the beginning of the poem. The word "respect" means that it has been like this in the past, which makes the current regret of not meeting again more distant and deepens the memory of friends. The interrogative tone of "when" is used to express the desire to reunite as soon as possible, making the ending full of meaning, making people read the complete poem, and the author's infinite thoughts are still echoing in their hearts.
Pu Qilong in the Qing Dynasty said: "This poem is purely based on the poetics" ("Du Xinjie"), which indeed reveals the content and structural characteristics of this poem. The whole poem starts with a hymn and ends with an "essay". It moves from the poem to the person, and from the person back to the poem. The transitions are extremely natural. There is a word "memory" running through the whole poem, connecting the person and the poem. The admiration and yearning for each other make them a perfect union. The technique of using scenes to convey emotions is even more superb, and the author's longing is written in a profound and lasting way.