Viewing the Canghai
(Three Kingdoms) Cao Cao
To the east is Jieshi to view the Canghai.
Where is the water? The mountains and islands are standing tall.
There are many trees and lush grass.
The autumn wind is bleak and the waves are rising.
The journey of the sun and the moon would appear within it;
The stars would be brilliant as if they would appear within it.
Fortunately! Sing to express your ambition.
Poetic:
Go east and climb Jieshi Mountain to watch the sea.
The sea is so wide and mighty, and Jieshi Mountain stands high on the seaside.
There are many trees on Jieshi Mountain, and all kinds of grass grow luxuriantly.
The autumn wind is blowing, and huge waves are rising on the sea.
The movements of the sun and the moon seem to start from this vast ocean.
The stars of the Milky Way are brilliant, as if they were produced from this vast ocean.
I am so lucky to express my thoughts and feelings through singing.
Notes:
① Jieshi: the name of the mountain. There are two Jieshi Mountains, and the big Jieshi Mountain is referred to at this time. One theory refers to Jieshi Mountain in present-day Changli County, Hebei Province.
②Dandan: The wave of water is swaying.
③竦志: Stand tall.
④Xinghan: Galaxy.
Background:
"Guan Cang Hai" is Cao Cao's famous poem, written when he conquered Wuhuan. In 207 AD, Cao Cao personally led his army to the north to pursue and annihilate the remnants of Yuan Shao. In May, he vowed to launch a northern expedition. In July, he left Lulong Village and approached Jieshi Mountain. He jumped on his horse and whipped his whip, climbed a mountain to watch the sea, faced the surging sea, and was moved by the scene, and wrote this magnificent poem.
Appreciation:
"Viewing the Canghai" is the first chapter of Cao Cao's "Stepping out of Xiamen". Yuefu poems of the Han Dynasty generally have no titles, and the title "Viewing the Sea" was added by later generations. It turns out that Yuefu poetry can be sung. The last two lines of the poem, "Fortunately, I sing to express my ambition" were added when the music was combined. They are attachments to the poem and have no connection with the content of the poem.
To appreciate Chinese classical poetry, one should know people and the world. In August of the twelfth year of Jian'an (207 years) of Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, Cao Cao borrowed Xu You's plan and pointed his whip to the north, defeating the many with less, and defeated the Wuhuan people (a minority government on the Liaodong Peninsula at that time) and the Wuhuan people entrenched in the northeast of my country. Yuan Shao's remaining forces unified the north. In September of that year, Cao Cao climbed up Jieshi Mountain (located in the southwest of today's Dongting County, Hebei Province. This mountain no longer exists, and is said to have sunk into the sea) on his way back to watch the magnificent scenery of the sea. At this time, Cao Cao was full of ambition and high-spirited, so he wrote the poem "Guan Cang Hai".
This poem describes the scenery from near to far, from real to virtual, combining movement and stillness, using both virtual and real, and clear layers. It shows the vastness of the sea and the grand momentum of the sun and the moon. In fact, it is the poet's best description. The "vast sea"-like feelings express the poet's determination to eliminate all remaining enemies and vow to unify China. It is recommended that readers read the text and appreciate this eternal masterpiece according to the poet's creative ideas of "what he saw" - "what he thought of" - "what he expressed" as he embraced the independent seashore.
The main text of the poem can be divided into three levels:
The first two sentences of the poem, "Landing the Jieshi in the east, to view the sea", describe the place where the poet views the sea. This is the inheritance of the "Book of Songs" The way of writing that tells the story directly seems very simple. Canghai means the sea. The meaning of these two sentences is "I climbed up Jieshi Mountain to the east in order to view the Canghai." These two sentences point out the place where the poet watched the Canghai - Jieshi Mountain. The words "Lin" and "View" The two words "" convey the poet's high-spirited spirit of leaping on his horse and whipping his whip, and looking far ahead. The sea can also be understood as the heroic poet's emotion about the vicissitudes of life. At this time, Cao Cao was invincible and returned victorious, full of ambition, high-spirited, ambitious, and arrogant. He had the image of a "successful talented man" (far beyond the comparison of Prime Minister Cao, who was later defeated in Chibi and lost his soul).
The second level ("How is the water flowing" to "The waves are rising") The following six sentences describe the poet's view of the sea. The rippling sea water is dynamic; the towering mountains and islands are static, reflecting each other, showing the vastness and majesty of the sea; writing about vegetation again is still static, followed by "flood", and then returning to dynamic, showing the amazing power and power of the sea. Magnificent atmosphere. This layer is all about realistic scenes.
Everything Cao Cao saw at this time was as beautiful as his mood at the moment. "The water is sluggish, and the mountains and islands stand tall. There are thick trees and luxuriant grass. The autumn wind is bleak and the waves are rising." He: How so, so many. Dandan: The appearance of rippling water. Longzhi: standing tall. 竦, the same as "shu", high. Stand: stand. Desolation: The sound of autumn wind blowing the grass and trees. loud. It means "how vast the waves of the sea are, and the mountain islands stand in the middle of the water. The trees are green all over the ground, and the grass is dense and luxuriant. The autumn wind rustles and stirs up the waves of the sea." The beautiful scenery of the sea, in the eyes of Cao Cao, who returned home in triumph, How vast and magnificent it is!
"Where the water is, the mountains and islands are standing tall." It writes about the panoramic view overlooking the sea; the two sentences "trees" and "grass" describe the quiet scene, which is what you can see up close. It is a close-up; the two sentences "Autumn Wind" and "Hong Bo" describe moving scenery, the scenery seen from a distance. The description is first summarized and then divided, from near to far, one still and one moving, which effectively depicts the magnificence of the sea and provides The following is a foreshadowing of the expansion of imagination.
The next four sentences are, "The sun and the moon are as if they are coming out of it; the stars are brilliant as if they are coming out of it." This is the third level. The poet uses unique imagination to express the majesty of the sea swallowing up the sun, moon and stars. Xinghan: refers to the Milky Way. The meaning of these four sentences is "The sun and moon traveling in a hurry seem to come from the sea, and the brilliant stars in the sky seem to come from the sea." Judging from the two characters "ruo" in these four sentences, they are false. The author's subjective feeling is the scene imagined by the poet when he saw the turbulent sea water.
The last two sentences are "Fortunately, I sing to express my ambition." They are not only attached to the Yuefu format, but also cleverly highlight the poet's direct expression of his heart. Poems and songs express heroic sentiments. "To be able to go on an expedition here, "come" to Jieshi Mountain, and have the leisure and leisure to "view the sea" is something that cannot be achieved except by a victor.
The tone of the poem "Viewing the Canghai" is desolate and generous, reflecting Cao Cao's extraordinary magnanimity. The poem also reveals some sadness and emotion, which is thought-provoking and has always been regarded as the "Jian'an style". Representative work. This poem describes the scene in every sentence in appearance, but expresses emotion in every sentence in reality. Scenery arises from the heart. The same scenery appears in everyone's eyes, but after thinking and refining it into words, it is different. The poet embodies the heroic aspirations that came to his heart when he looked at the sea in the description of the scenery. "All scenery language is love language" (Wang Guowei's words). This poem well embodies this feature of landscape poetry. , can be called the top grade of landscape poetry, and should also be a model for describing landscapes in poetry, prose and other literary works, and for our compositions to describe landscapes. It is worthy of everyone's careful appreciation, study and reference.