The author of "Song of Children" is the pre-Qin poet Anonymous. The full text of his ancient poem is as follows:
The water in Canglang is clear, and I can wash my tassel.
The water in Canglang is turbid, I can wash my feet.
Translation
The water in the Canglang River is so clear that I can wash my crown tassel. The water in the Canglang River is turbid and can wash my feet.
Appreciation
As far as the connotation of the poem is concerned, first of all, because the water of the river is associated with bathing when the weather is warm, and it is a pleasant thing, so this The poem is beautiful in terms of imagery and relaxing in terms of mood. Secondly, as a folk song, it seems to be related to Qu Yuan's preference for cleanliness shown in his works. Bathing and self-cultivation are a pair of metaphors that people often associate with each other. Thirdly, it expresses an idea of ??unity between man and nature that is close to nature and adapted to nature. It can be said that it embodies the most basic ideas of traditional Chinese philosophy.
This song says: People decide their attitudes and actions according to the clarity of the water. When it is clear, they wash their crowns and tassels, and when it is turbid, they wash their feet. In terms of practical life, it is naturally inconvenient to wash the crown and tassel with turbid water, but it is better to wash the feet with clean water. Even though the feet are cheap, they are not ineligible to wash them in clean water. Therefore, this song expresses a philosophy of life. Everything in the world is interconnected. This poem mentions "water", "I", and the changes in "clear and turbidity" of water. It reveals a certain relationship. Due to the simplicity and implicitness of its language, people can understand it from different aspects. The first thing that comes to mind here is the relationship between people and society and the surrounding environment. "The Songs of Chu: Fisherman" states that Qu Yuan was "alone awake" when "everyone was drunk" and "alone clear" when "everyone was muddy", so he was exiled. The fisherman is a recluse who has an indispensable attitude toward things. He is said to "do not stick to things but move with the world." So he advised Qu Yuan to go with the flow, but Qu Yuan didn't listen, so he sang this song and left in frustration. The fisherman compares world affairs to "water". People cannot control the purity of water, but people can decide their own behavior based on the clarity of water. This is something that water has nothing to do about. From the perspective of the relationship between man and nature, it is right to grasp the laws and use them to our advantage. But the fisherman used this to express his life attitude of being free from right and wrong, unprincipled, and prudent and self-protective. This is problematic, and of course it is incompatible with Qu Yuan's spirit of insisting on the truth and nine deaths without regrets.
If water is used as a metaphor for a person's character, then the different attitudes that people adopt toward water with varying degrees of clarity and turbidity can be used as a metaphor for society's evaluation of a person. The enlightening meaning of this song is different: only if you are "clear", people will use it to "wash your tassel"; if you are "turbid", people will only use you to "wash your feet". Therefore, when Confucius heard the song "Ruzige", he said to his students: "Listen to this, young man! It's enough to wash the tassel from the pure silk and the turbid silk. Take it for yourself. The wife will insult herself, and then others will insult her; family It will destroy itself, and then others will destroy it; the country will destroy itself, and then others will destroy it. Taijia said: "If God does evil, you can still disobey it; if you do evil by yourself, you will not survive." This is the experience of life. , Confucius’ explanation is more positive.
A poem can inspire people with different experiences, in different environments, and face different problems, and it should be immortal. "Song of Children" is exactly like this.