Seven-step poem
[Three Kingdoms·Wei] Cao Zhi
Boil the beans to make a soup,
Pulp the bean sprouts to make juice.
The bean is burning under the cauldron,
The beans are weeping in the cauldron.
They are born from the same roots,
There is no need to worry about each other.
[Note]
1. Cauldron (fǔ): a kind of pot in ancient times.
2． Jian: suffering, a metaphor for persecution. [Brief Analysis]
According to "Shishuo Xinyu·Literature": After Cao Zhi's brother Cao Pi became emperor, he wanted to persecute Cao Zhi, so he ordered Cao Zhi to do something in a short period of time. If a poem fails, it will lead to beheading. As a result, Cao Zhi chanted this "Seven-Step Poem" in response. The poet used the metaphor of frying beans to accuse Cao Pi of cruel persecution of himself and other brothers.
According to legend, Cao Zhi’s brother Wei Wendi (Cao Pi) asked him to compose a poem within seven steps.
Otherwise, he would have his head chopped off. Cao Zhi wrote this poem angrily. poetry. Beans and bean straw grow from the same
roots, just like brothers. The bean straw burned and boiled the beans in the pot until they cried. The metaphor of an older brother forcing his younger brother is very appropriate and touching.