Ouyang Xiu's Translation of Preface to Poems of Mei (Excerpt)
Translated by Qin Huijuan
I've heard people in the world often say that poets have less pride of achievement and more pain. Is that really the case? Probably because most of the poems handed down in the world are the works of ancient suffering people. Most literati with talents and ambitions who can't display them in this world like to indulge in mountains and rivers. Seeing insects, fish, vegetation, clouds, birds and animals, we often explore and study their strangeness; Their inner feelings of sadness, emotion and anger are all pinned on the works of resentment and satire, pouring out the lament of the courtiers and widows, and writing out the feelings that people can't express. Probably the harder a poet is, the better his poems are. In this way, it is not that writing poems can make people feel distressed, but that poets can only write good poems after they feel distressed.
(Hint: Ouyang Xiu's theory of "thinking changes when you are poor" can be traced back to Qu Yuan's Nine Chapters of Random Thoughts, Sima Qian's Angry Pen, Li Bai's Mourning Poet, Du Fu's A Poet Should Beware of Prosperity, Bai Juyi's Many Wonders, and Han Yu's Poems. )
Li Qingzhao's Translation of Luntz
Translated by Qin Huijuan
Yuefu poems and Yuefu poems with five or seven words were popular at the same time, and reached their peak in Kaiyuan and Tianbao years of the Tang Dynasty. There is Li Balang in the world, who is good at singing and beauty. At that time, the new Jinshi hosted a banquet in Qujiang. One of the celebrities in the same list called Li Balang in advance and asked him to change his clothes and remain anonymous. His coat and hat are worn and worn, and he looks sad and depressed. He went to the party with him. Say to everyone: "Cousin is willing to accompany the last seat." Everyone ignored it. When the music started and the singer began to sing, Cao and Niannu were the best at that time. After singing, everyone applauded. The celebrity suddenly pointed to Li Balang and said, "Please ask my cousin to sing." Everyone laughed and got angry. Everyone cried when he sang a song with his voice twisted. Everyone knelt down around him and said, "This is Li Balang."
(Hint: By telling the story of "Qujiang Banquet", the author explained the singing, musical beauty and charm of the lyrics. )
Later, lewd music became increasingly prosperous and decadent. There have been words such as Bodhisattva Xia, Haoquan, Shaji, Genglou, Huanxisha, Dream of Jiangnan and Fisherman. , can't list one by one.
There were frequent wars in the Five Dynasties, the country was torn apart, and literary creations such as lyrics declined and died out. Only officials and ministers such as Li Jing, Li Yu and Feng Yansi advocated literature and art in the Southern Tang Dynasty, so the words they wrote, such as "a small building blowing cold jade" and "a pool of spring water wrinkling", were called "the voice of national subjugation" although the language was novel.
(Hint: From the second and third paragraphs, we can see Li See's requirements for the content of words. )
By this time, the martial arts of ritual making, music making, writing and healing were complete. After more than a hundred years of recuperation, Liu Yong, the foreign minister of the wasteland, began to use the old songs of the Tang and Song Dynasties to transform them into new songs, and his book "Collection of Movements" became famous in the society. Although the melody is harmonious, the lyrics are vulgar and low. Subsequently, Song, Yao Brothers, Shen Tang, Yuan Jiang, Huang and others appeared one after another. Although there are often wonderful sentences, they are fragmented and cannot be famous. In Yan Song, Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi, they are knowledgeable and knowledgeable. Writing short lyrics is as easy as scooping a ladle of water in the sea, but they are all poems with irregular sentences and often out of tune. Why? Probably because poetry is flat, and the lyrics are divided into five tones, five tones, six rhythms and clear turbidity. For example, modern so-called epigrams such as Slow Voice, Flowers in the Rain, and Xi Qian Ying not only flatten the rhyme, but also add rhyme. The epigraph of Yulouchun was originally bound with rhyme, sound and sound. It would have been harmonious if it had rhymed. If you bet on the sound, you won't be able to sing. Wang Anshi's and Ceng Gong's articles are similar to those of the Western Han Dynasty, but if they are short lyrics, they will definitely make people laugh and watch them no longer.
(Hint: In the first four paragraphs, Li Qingzhao described the development of Ci and sharply criticized many famous poets. The key point is to put forward the "harmonious law" to divide the boundaries between poetry and words, and emphasize the stylistic characteristics of words. )
It can be seen that Ci is another style different from poetry and prose, but few people understand this. Later, Yan, He Zhu, Qin Guan, Huang Tingjian and others appeared and began to realize this. Unfortunately, Yan has no narrative, and Zhu He lacks elegance and solemnity. Although Qin Guan specializes in writing emotional charm, he seldom uses allusions and historical facts, just like a beautiful woman from a poor family. It can't be said that she is not beautiful, but lacks rich flavor. Although Huang Tingjian attaches importance to the use of allusions, there are still many shortcomings. It seems that the value of Meiyu is naturally reduced because of its flaws.
(Hint: In combination with the criticism of specific poets, Li Qingzhao put forward other requirements for the creation of ci, and stated his views on the overall characteristics of ci: harmony, elegance, simplicity, heavy code, narration and truth. )
Yan Yu's Translation of "Discrimination of Cang Shi"
Translated by Qin Huijuan
People who study poetry are mainly knowledgeable: the entry should be accurate and the method should be high; Learn from the works of Han, Wei, Jin and Tang Dynasties, and don't be poets like Kaiyuan and Tianbao. If he retires, there will be inferior poets entering his heart, because his ambition is not high. For example, if you don't reach your goal on the road, you can work harder; But if you start from the wrong place at the beginning, you will run farther and farther, because the entrance is incorrect. Therefore, the best students can only reach the middle level; If you learn moderation, you will become inferior. He also said that if you have more knowledge than a teacher, you can teach; As knowledgeable as a teacher, you can only get half the talent and virtue of a teacher. Work should start with the best works, not learn from inferior works. First of all, we should be familiar with the "Songs of the South" and satirize it on this basis sooner or later; Then read Nineteen Ancient Poems and Four Yuefu Poems. You must be familiar with the five-character poems written by Li Ling, Su Wu and Han Wei. Then bury yourself in reading Li Bai and Du Fu's poems, just as people study Confucian classics now, and then widely absorb celebrities in the prosperous Tang Dynasty and brew them in their chests. After a long time, you will naturally understand them. This study may not reach the highest level, but it is also the right way. This is starting from the top of your head, which can be said to be the ultimate in meditation, seeking roots, realizing the true meaning and going straight to the point.
Hint: From the very beginning, Yan Yu thought that poetry should be written after the prosperous Tang Dynasty, and pointed out the way to learn poetry which was different from that of Jiangxi, Late Tang, Siling and Jianghu Poets. )
There are five methods of poetry: system, style, meteorology, interest and syllable.
(Hint: Yan Yu emphasizes "interest" most in five aspects. )
There are nine styles of poetry: high, ancient, deep, far, long, healthy, elegant and sad. There are three key points in writing poetry: ending, syntax and words. There are two general poetic styles: leisurely travel and calm and happy. There is a highest realm in poetry creation: forgetting myself. Being absorbed in poetry is the highest and most perfect, and there is nothing else to ask for! Only Li Bai and Du Fu have reached this level, while others rarely have.
(Hint: Yan Yu divided the poems into nine categories, but there was no specific description. The explanation of later generations is represented by the viewpoint of Tao Yuanming's Miscellaneous Notes on Poems. After dividing into nine categories, Yan Yu further divided the style of poetry into two categories. He also believes that the highest realm of poetry is selflessness, which can only be achieved by the best works in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. )
There are different schools of Zen, including Mahayana and Hinayana, Nanzong and Beizong, and there are ways of good and evil. Only those who acquire Buddhist teachings can understand the true meaning of Buddhism. If we rely on what we hear and what we do, it is not Buddhism. Poetry is like Zen: the poems of Han, Wei, Jin and Tang dynasties have the first meaning, but the poems since Dali have fallen to the second meaning. Poetry in the late Tang Dynasty is like the result of learning sound and taste. Studying Han, Wei, Jin and Tang poetry has always been under Lin Jizong. Studying poetry since Dali is always under the guidance of Cao Dongzong. Probably because Zen Buddhism lies in wonderful enlightenment, and poetry also lies in wonderful enlightenment. Meng Haoran's academic ability is far from Han Yu's, but his poems just surpass Han Yu's, and the only reason is wonderful understanding. Only "enlightenment" is an expert and a profession. But the degree of understanding is shallow and deep, and different places have different understandings. Some people have a thorough understanding, while others have a little knowledge. Poets in the Han and Wei dynasties are excellent, so it is not necessary to borrow "Wu", but to express one's mind directly is a good poem. From Xie Lingyun to the poets in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, they all realized it thoroughly. In addition, although there are people who understand, they can't understand the true meaning. My comments are not excessive, and my comments are not wrong. There are people in the world who can be abandoned, and there is no speech that can be abandoned. The same is true of poetry and Taoism. If this is not the case, then the understanding of poetry is not extensive enough and the study of poetry is not deep enough. Try to study the poems of Han and Wei Dynasties, Jin and Song Dynasties, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Shen Quanqi, Song Dynasty, Yang Jiong, Lu, Luo He, Kaiyuan and Tianbao, Li Bai and Du Fu, and all the poems of the late Tang Dynasty. If you don't see these, you are blinded by heresy and heresy, and you can't understand them after all.
Hint: Although Yan Yu made many intellectual mistakes in using Zen language, he only used Zen as a metaphor for poetry, aiming at putting forward the theory of "wonderful enlightenment". In order to achieve the realm of "wonderful understanding", the specific ways of "mastering ginseng" are put forward. "Familiar with ginseng" refers to studying the excellent works of predecessors repeatedly. This academic exercise of poor reading is the basis of "wonderful enlightenment")
Poetry needs another special talent, which has nothing to do with reading more and learning more; Poetry should have another kind of interest, which is beyond the reach of abstract reasoning. But the ancients did not read much, learned much, and were not familiar with human physics. It is superior to say that you don't use logical reasoning, don't use all words and have implications. Poetry is a celebration of inner feelings. Poets in the prosperous Tang Dynasty focused on poetic interest, just like antelope hanging horns, without trace. Therefore, the beauty of their poems is thorough and delicate, which is difficult to grasp directly, such as the sound in the air, the color of the appearance, the moon in the water and the image in the mirror. In modern times, the governors had a special understanding of this issue, so they took words as poems, talents as poems and arguments as poems. Writing poems like this, where there is no effort, is not as good as the poems of the ancients after all. Probably lack the lasting charm of singing and sighing. Moreover, most of their works are devoted to the use of Canon, rather than charm and affection; Words must have their origins, and rhymes must have their origins. After reading the whole article, I don't know what the purpose is. Their last stream is more serious, called noisy and angry, which greatly violates the tradition of loyalty and righteousness, and almost regards abuse and criticism as poetry. The development of poetry to this point can be said to be a bad luck and a disaster. So modern poetry is not desirable? Yes, I just take those works that are suitable for the ancients. Poetry in the early period of this dynasty is still following the Tang Dynasty: Wang Yucheng studied Bai Juyi, Yang Yi and Li Shangyin, Shengdu studied Wei, Ouyang Xiu studied Han Yu's ancient poems, and Mei studied the plain poetic style of the Tang Dynasty. It was not until Su Shi and Huang Tingjian wrote poems in their own style that the style of learning Tang Dynasty changed. Huang Tingjian worked hard on writing, and his poetic method became very popular later, and he was called China's Jiangxi Poetry School. In modern times, Zhao Zizhi, Weng Lingshu and others only like the poems of Jia Dao and Yao He, which is slightly close to the austere poetic style. Most Jianghu poets imitate this poetic style, and for a time they claimed to be authentic Tang poems. I don't know that they just entered the Mahayana position of fame and fortune, but where did the Mahayana masters in the prosperous Tang Dynasty reach the Mahayana Buddhism position? Alas! Buddhism has been circulating for a long time. The theory of Tang poetry is not strongly advocated, but the true meaning of Tang poetry creation is clear. Nowadays, Jiangxi poetry school is advocated as authentic poetry, and people who study poetry will think that Tang poetry is nothing more than that. Isn't this another misfortune in the development of poetry? Therefore, I overreached myself, thus setting the purpose of poetry, and using Zen as a metaphor, inferring the origin of poetry since the Han and Wei Dynasties, and categorically recognizing the prosperous Tang Dynasty as the law. Even if it will offend contemporary gentlemen, it will not shrink back.
(Hint: This paragraph clearly expounds the connotation of "interest". In Cang Shi Lang Dialect, there are synonyms for "interest" and "interest". Yan Yu's so-called "unique material" is mainly embodied in "wonderful understanding", or the poet can only achieve the realm of "wonderful understanding" through "unique material", which is similar to the specific meaning of his theory of "interesting". From "different material" to "wonderful understanding" and from "wonderful understanding" to "different interest", this reveals the inherent law of poetry creation. (The whole text has been corrected)
Note: The above are three literary theories of the Song Dynasty selected and translated from the textbooks translated by Qin Huijuan of Hebei Radio and TV University, which are enough for college students' reference. Here, as the presiding teacher of this course, I thank Mr. Qin on behalf of the students who have studied this course! In some places, students can also ask questions if they don't agree with the translation. Hanchuanchuan