Original text of Beiqingluo:
As the setting sun enters the west, I visit a lonely monk in a hut. Where is the fallen leaf man? How many floors are there on Hanyun Road? I'm knocking the chime alone at night, leaning against a vine. In the dust of the world, I would rather love or hate. Translation and annotations by Beiqingluo
Translation As the sun set on Kuangji Mountain, I went to visit the lonely monk in the hut. The ground is covered with fallen leaves, where is the monk? The mountains are covered with cold clouds. How long will it take to walk on the mountain road? In the first night, I could only listen to him knocking on the rock alone, leaning against a branch of ivy in leisure. The whole world is in the dust, why should I have love and hate?
Notes 1. Qingluo: a plant growing on rocky cliffs, here it refers to the mountain. "Ode to the Mountain on the River" by Jiang Yan of the Southern Dynasties: "There are thousands of green roses hanging there, and hundreds of red stones standing there." 2.妦(yān): That is, "妦嫫(zī)", the name of the mountain, in Gansu. In ancient times, it was often used to refer to the place where the sun sets. "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" records: Birds and mice share the same cave. There is a mountain in the southwest of the mountain named Huanxi, where the sun enters. 3. First night: dusk. 4. Chime (qing): an ancient percussion instrument, shaped like a ruler, made of jade and stone, and can be hung. A bowl-shaped object used in Buddhist temples. It is made of copper and iron. It can be used as a percussion instrument when chanting sutras and can also be used to gather the temple crowd. 5. "World" sentence: The Chinese version of the Lotus Sutra says: "The affairs of the three thousand worlds are all written in micro-organisms." It means that the vast world is all micro-organisms, so why should I talk about love and hate? "Surangama Sutra" says: "Human beings in this world are as small as dust. Why should we be bound by hatred and love and suffer from this?" Ning: Why. Appreciation of Beiqingluo
The poet was exhausted in the fierce party struggle between Niu and Li. His wandering life and lonely situation made him feel the misfortune of living in the world of mortals, and he urgently needed to get in touch with him. The pure Buddhist world.
The first couplet describes the poet's search for a monk. When the red sun set in the valley, the poet entered the mountains to visit a monk living in a hut. "Thatched cottage" describes the simplicity of the monk's residence, and "lonely monk" describes the monk's unyielding loneliness. At this time, the poet was living in a difficult time when his relatives and friends were separated. He was looking for such a poor and lonely monk, obviously to get inspiration from him and relieve his own troubles. The poor people seek out the poor places, the lonely guests visit the lonely monks, and the lay people and the Buddha have an opportunity for spiritual communication.
The couplets describe the journey the poet took and the scenery he saw. "Where is the fallen leaf man? How many floors are there on Hanyun Road?" It was late autumn, and yellow leaves were falling from the trees all over the mountain. The lone monk the poet was looking for did not know where he lived. "Where is the person?" reminds people of the poet's look around in the mountains and forests, showing the denseness of the mountains and the monk's hiding place, and increasingly showing the lone monk's interest in avoiding the world of mortals. This is exactly what the poet is visiting. purpose. The couplet further exaggerates the monk's hiding place: the poet winds his way up the mountain road shrouded in cold clouds, and no longer knows how many steps he has taken on the winding mountain road. When the mountain road enters the clouds, you can already see how high it is, not to mention the "cold clouds" it enters. "Few Levels of Cold Cloud Road" not only describes the monk's high abode, but also the poet's eagerness to pursue Zen principles without fear of hard work and hardships. The two sentences in this couplet describe the scenery and also record the whereabouts. The scenery implies the shadow of monks and poets. The words are full of meaning and rich in content. It can be called a wonderful pen of the Fang family.
After thousands of twists and turns, the poet finally found the hut and met the lonely monk. The neck couplet described the monk's simple and quiet life with refined pen and ink: "Knocking on the first night rock alone, leaning on a vine." " The word "first night" is related to the first sentence "setting sun", which tells the time of arrival at the hut. As night falls, the monk knocks on the rocks alone in his thatched hut and chants sutras. The word "lone" echoes the word "lone" in the next sentence. Because he is a "lone monk", he knocks on the rock alone. Although he was alone, he did not neglect Buddhist services, which shows his devotion to the Buddha. The poet was standing outside the thatched hut, listening to the clear sound of rocks and looking at the silent stars. He felt deeply the tranquility and serenity of the Buddhist world, where there was no longer the trouble of the world of mortals. After the monk finished his Buddhist service, the poet walked into the thatched hut and had a conversation with him. He only used five words to summarize the conversation: "Leaning on a vine", but it contained rich connotations. The "rattan" is a cane made of rattan, which is extremely simple. It is used by monks to "lean on" and nothing more. You can imagine the hardship of life. What is rare is the "leisure" attitude of monks, who live in poverty but are at ease and leisurely.
The last couplet writes that the poet has gained ideological enlightenment. "In the world's dust, I would rather love or hate." Buddhism believes that the entire world is in the dust, and humans are nothing more than dust. The poet understood this truth and said that in the future he would no longer be entangled in love and hate, everyone would be free from worries, and face the honor and disgrace of official career with indifference.
Looking at this poem, the language is concise, rich in content, and clear in level. The poet first writes about the visit, then the journey, then the encounter with the monk, and finally ends with the harvest of thoughts. The poet first focused his pen and ink on the visit, describing the loneliness of the monk's living situation. It is outlined with the couplet "Du knock". The characters " Du" and "一" both correspond to the word " Gu" in the second sentence. The use of the word "idle" to express Buddhism's denial of the world's material desires highlights the poet's hope to be liberated from Buddhist thought, to put aside love and hate, and to seek inner peace. Finally, the poet visits the monk and suddenly realizes the meaning of Zen, which further highlights the noble soul of the lonely monk. What this poem expresses is a desire to not be afraid of hard work and danger, to pursue Zen principles with all your heart, and to face the honors and disgrace of the official career with an indifferent attitude. It not only praises the quiet and simple life of the monks, but also shows the poet's understanding of the principles and indifference. Face the honors and disgrace of career with a calm mind and face reality.
Poetry work: Beiqingluo Poetry author: Li Shangyin, Tang Dynasty Poetry classification: Three Hundred Tang Poems, Searching