Personal Library -- Li Bai's Poems

Author: (Tang) Li Bai Li Li edited
Publisher:
Publishing Time: 2004-07-01
Features: Li Bai is one of the greatest poets of the high Tang Dynasty. His poems are outstanding representatives of the high Tang spirit, concentrating on reflecting the era's cultural and social atmosphere. His poetry reflects the characteristics of the Tang Dynasty's peak development and its subsequent decline.
First, Li Bai's poems reflect the positive and progressive spirit of the high Tang era. He was full of confidence in his political abilities, hoping to "apply the wisdom of Guan Zhong and Zhang Liang, plan the governance of emperors, and exert his intelligence, aspiring to be a minister." (From "Reply to Meng Shaofu's Letter"). He often took Guan Zhong, Zhang Liang, Yue Yi, Zhuge Liang, Xie An, and Lu Zhonglian as role models or compared himself to them. He also compared himself to the giant Peng: "One day, the Peng bird rises with the wind, soaring nine thousand miles into the sky. Even if the wind stops, it can still stir the vast ocean." (From "To Li Yong"). He firmly believed that "Heavenly gifts are given to each person for a reason" (From "Drinking Alone") and "When the wind breaks the waves, there will be a time to hoist the sails and cross the vast sea" (From "Hardship of the Journey"). Or, "If you only need Dongshan's Xie Anshi, you can discuss and calm the sands of Hu." (From "Song of Li Wang's Eastern Tour"). These spirits of actively engaging in public life and striving forward are the essence of the high Tang era. Li Bai's poems also express a strong anti-aristocratic consciousness and a clear rejection of fame, wealth, and status. In his poem "Recalling Old Friends and Composing a Letter to Yuan Can of Qiao Prefecture," he writes, "Buying song and laughter with gold and white jade, drinking for months, lightly regarding the nobles" (From "Recalling Old Friends"). In "A Dream Journey to Mount Tianmu, A Farewell to Lu Shiyu," he concludes with the bold lines, "How can I bow my head and serve the nobles, making me unable to open my heart?" (From "A Farewell to Lu Shiyu"). These lines have made it easy for people throughout the ages to appreciate his heroic and bold spirit. Du Fu described him as "The emperor called him, but he did not come aboard, claiming to be a wine-immersed immortal" (From "Eight Immortals Drinking Wine"). Ren Hua said, "For decades, he traveled as a guest, never lowering his demeanor for a single day" (From "A Miscellaneous Poem to Li Bai"). Clearly, the poet longed to achieve greatness and fame while maintaining an independent personality, unwilling to "bow his head and serve the nobles." This may be the reason why ancient scholars said, "Poetry becomes refined only when one is poor" (Ouyang Xiu's words) and "Literature despises those who achieve success" (Ouyang Xiu's words). Maintaining an independent personality is one of the basic prerequisites for creative success, and not bowing to the nobles is essential for maintaining that independence. This is why almost all great ancient writers were "poor" and did not "succeed." From Li Bai, people naturally recall Tao Yuanming, who refused to "bow his head for five bushels of rice."
Third, Li Bai had an extraordinary love for his country's mountains and rivers. The heroic and adventurous poet, half immortal and half knight, could only fully express his character through the magnificent landscapes of his homeland. The "difficult to climb as high as the sky" Sichuan Road; Mount Lu, where "climbing high to admire the world, the vast river flows endlessly. The yellow clouds move with the wind for ten thousand miles, and the white waves flow like snow mountains" (From "A Ballad to Mount Lu, Composed for Lu Shiyu"); Mount Tianmu, where "half a cliff sees the sun rise, and the sky hears the rooster crow"; the mother river of the Chinese nation, the Yellow River, "the Yellow River flows from the sky, rushing to the sea and never returning"; the clear stream, where "people walk in a mirror, and birds fly through a screen," all reflect the poet's noble character and personality, as well as his aesthetic tastes and pursuit of purity and brightness. Li Bai often tied the fate of the country and its people to his heart: his poem "Far Farewell" expresses his worry about "the ruler losing his subject, and the dragon becomes a fish; the power returns to the subject, and the mouse becomes a tiger"; his poem "Hardship of the Sichuan Road" shows his concern about "if the guards are not loyal, they may turn into wolves and tigers"; his criticism of "the ruler cannot learn from Geshu, marching across Qinghai at night with a knife, slaughtering Shibu in the west to take the purple robe"; in his "Ancient Style," he directly targets the high rulers of his time with the lines, "The Yin dynasty disrupted the heavens, and the Chu emperor was also." In contrast, he showed deep affection for ordinary working people, such as iron workers, wine brewers, the old woman under Mount Wusong, and his friend Wang Lun, without any arrogance. After the An Lushan Rebellion, his poems more directly reflected the reality of the war: "In March, the sands of Hu flew over Luoyang, and the people of Luoyang lamented. The waves of Tianjin flowed red with blood, and the white bones supported each other like tangled hemp" (From "A Ballad to the Nobleman of Fufeng"); "White bones formed hills, and what crime did the common people commit?" (From "A Gift to Wei Taoshou of Jiangxia"). In his later years, he was summoned by Yong Wang Lin, perhaps also in line with his desire to "save the state and rescue the people." Li Bai's poems reflect the high Tang spirit from various perspectives and reveal its severe crises. However, there are also some undesirable elements in his poems, such as promoting the idea that "one must enjoy life to the fullest when one is successful," viewing life as a dream, and seeking immortality. These are not acceptable. Li Bai's great achievements in poetry have made it a treasure in the legacy of Chinese poetry. Wang Shi Zhen noted in "Art Garden Notes" that Li Bai's poetry is "dominated by spirit and guided by nature." Li Bai's poems are grand, unrestrained, and dynamic. He said, "Taibai's heart is vast and lofty, as if he were floating in the clouds and encompassing the universe, without the slightest concern for describing objects. His words flow like wind and clouds, leaving no trace behind." (From "Poetry Talks While Drinking Wine"). Li Bai's poetry blends the artistic styles of Qu Yuan and Zhuangzi, creating a style that is heroic, ethereal, and unrestrained. His poems use rich imagination, vivid metaphors, and high exaggeration, forming a powerful and awe-inspiring momentum that leaves people speechless. In some of his masterpieces, such as "Hardship of the Sichuan Road" and "A Ballad to Mount Tianmu," he often uses dynamic brushwork to combine reality and dreams, or ascends to the heavens or dives into the earth, breaking the boundaries of time and space. Or, "When drunk, he shakes the Five Mountains with his brush, and when the poem is finished, he laughs and dominates the vast sea" (From "Singing on the River"); or, "Both share a free spirit and soaring thoughts, wanting to climb the sky to admire the bright moon" (From "Farewell to Xie Qiao in Xuancheng, Composing for Shuyun"); or, "Farewell to Junshan is good, and the Xiang River flows flat" (From "Accompanying Shaofu on a Tour of Dongting, Drunk After"). The structure of his poems is rarely straightforward but rather jumps and falls, with great ups and downs. Some of his famous works, such as "Drinking Alone" and "Hardship of the Journey," particularly embody these characteristics.
Another significant feature of Li Bai's poetry is its naturalness and lack of artificiality. This has long been discussed by ancient scholars. He said, "Taibai is a noble person, and his poetry is like an uncarved jade that naturally has the brilliance of a rainbow." (From "Poetry Talks While Drinking Wine"). Qiao Yi also said, "Try reading Qinglian's poetry—it is like the sea surging with countless wonders, yet it has an endless and serene meaning, making it supreme and extraordinary." (From "Jianxi Talks About Poetry"). Li even clearly pointed out, "Li's poetry is rooted in Tao Yuanming, and Du's poetry is rooted in Yu Zishan." (From "Rain Village Talks About Poetry"). Others also used Li Bai's own lines, "Clear water blooms like a lotus, naturally free of ornamentation" (From "After the Turmoil, Recalling Old Friends and Composing a Letter to Wei Taoshou of Jiangxia"), to praise the style of his poetic language. In fact, this can also be attributed to "naturalness." A few of his short poems illustrate this. One is "A Mountain Reply": "Why do you choose to live in the green mountain? I laugh but do not answer, my heart is at ease. Peach blossoms and flowing water go away gracefully, a world apart from the human realm." Another is "Drinking with a Quiet Person in the Mountains": "Two people drink while the mountain flowers bloom, cup after cup, again and again. I am drunk and want to sleep, you may go. I will come tomorrow with a lute in mind." And some of his famous works, such as "Quiet Night Thoughts," "The Journey from Changgan," and "The Songs of Ziyue in Wu," are also like this.
Li Bai's fu poems and seven-character ballads all have the characteristics of folk songs. Li Bai's poetry is not only simple and natural but also emotionally profound. His highest achievement in poetry is his fu poems, of which there are 149 extant. He continued the old titles of the fu poems and made changes within the traditional framework. His greatness lies not in expanding the subject matter or changing the theme, but rather in developing along the original theme, image, atmosphere, and rhyme, deepening, refining, and fully expressing the topic to an unparalleled extent, making it difficult for later generations to follow." (Yu Xianhao, Preface to "Selected Poems of Li Bai"). Li Bai's seven-character ballads number over 80, many of which are masterpieces, such as "A Ballad to Mount Tianmu, A Farewell to Lu Shiyu," "Farewell to Xie Qiao in Xuancheng, Composing for Shuyun," and "A Ballad to Mount Lu, Composed for Lu Shiyu," all of which are famous poems passed down through the ages. Feng Ban pointed out, "The name of the ballad originally came from the music, with varying lengths of sentences, some imitating ancient fu poems. What we see today, such as in Bao Mingyuan's collection, flourished greatly after the Tianbao period of the Tang, with Li Taibai being the most prominent. Taibai often imitated the three ancestors and Bao Mingyuan, with his language particularly close to the ancient style." (From ""). Guan Shiming also said, "Li's ballads have long sentences that are open and unrestrained, beyond comprehension. Their length and rhythm vary as needed." (From "Preface to the Reading of Snow Mountain Room Tang Poetry"). Feng and Guan's discussions share some common insights: Li Bai's ballads use varying lengths of sentences, are open and unrestrained, and are closer to the ancient style. Li Bai's ballads are even more capable of "having a clear and bright, elegant and free spirit within their unrestrainedness" (Zhu Tingzhen, "Xiao Yuan Talks About Poetry").
Li Bai's "Ancient Style" has 59 poems, with wide-ranging content, not written at one time or place, but with the same form. The poems are about self-reflection, criticizing the corruption of the court, lamenting his own fate, composing historical poems, and seeking immortality. Gao Jie pointed out, "Li Bai's two volumes of 'Ancient Style' are deeply rooted in Chen Ziyang's 'Inspirations,' and Taibai was not far from Chen Ziyang, with such high aspirations." (From "Tang Poetry Selection"). Shen said, "Taibai's poetry is unrestrained and dynamic, but the two volumes of 'Ancient Style' do not boast talent or force, drawing from Ruan Gong, with a style that is outstanding. After Bo Yu's 'Inspirations,' there are successors in 'Ancient Style.'" (From "Tang Poetry Selection"). These works inherit the tradition of Feng and Sao, with deep and sincere expressions, lingering emotions, and often hidden meanings beyond the words.
There are also eight seven-character regulated poems and 110 five-character regulated poems in Li Bai's collection. Li Bai lived in an era when five-character regulated poems were already mature, and seven-character regulated poems were still taking shape. Li Bai's regulated poems generally reflect the creative situation of that era. Some people think that Li Bai disliked constraints, which is why there are few seven-character regulated poems in his collection, but this explanation is not valid. The constraints of seven-character regulated poems are not much stricter than those of five-character regulated poems, as evidenced by the over 100 five-character regulated poems in his collection. Seven-character regulated poems were fully developed in Du Fu's poems while wandering in the southwest. Li Bai and his contemporaries, such as Cui Hao, had seven-character regulated poems that were not particularly refined or orderly, even if they generally met the criteria, they mostly coincided with the rules. Li Bai's achievements in regulated poems are very high. Tian Wen said, "Qinglian composes regulated poems like ancient poems, without hesitation, with a flowing joy, and with a supreme realm." (From "Miscellaneous Notes from the Ancient Joy Hall"). For his five-character regulated poems, ancient scholars praised them even more. Wu Qiao said, "Taibai's five-character regulated poems are simple and natural, the work of a great hand." (From "Heated Hearth Talks About Poetry"). Guan Shiming said, "Taibai's five-character regulated poems are like listening to the music of the heavens, opening the heart and brightening the eyes; like looking at the immortal mountains of the sea, with clouds rising and water surging. Sometimes, the entire poem is without parallel, yet the interest is natural and cannot be forced. Chang Wei and Meng Shanshan sometimes achieve this, but Taibai reaches perfection in this." (From "Preface to the Reading of Snow Mountain Room Tang Poetry"). The three scholars' discussions on Li Bai's regulated poems are fair, both his strengths and weaknesses are accurately described. Taibai's quatrains have only 93 poems, with 48 five-character quatrains and 45 seven-character quatrains. Hu Yinglin pointed out, "Taibai's five-character and seven-character quatrains are each a realm of the spirit, and each a divine work." "Taibai's quatrains are composed effortlessly, as if there is no intention of perfection, yet there is no imperfection." He also said, "There are two paths to five-character quatrains: Mo Jie's mystery and Taibai's transcendence." "Seven-character quatrains, Taibai and Jiangning are the best." "Five-character and seven-character (quatrains) each reach perfection, with Taibai." (From "Poetry Talks"). Mao Xianshu said, "Seven-character quatrains should avoid arrogance at the beginning, Taibai often expresses his thoughts directly, using overflowing thoughts as waves and ripples, with lingering echoes." (From "Poetry Talks"). Modern scholars' discussions on Li Bai's quatrains are roughly within this range. Various Tang poetry anthologies select many of Li Bai's quatrains. Wang Shi Zhen's "Selected Quatrains of Tang Poets" selects 21 seven-character quatrains by Li Bai, Sun Zhu's "Three Hundred Tang Poems" selects eight quatrains by Li Bai, equal to Wang Wei and Du Mu, ranking . Among the most popular Tang quatrains, Li Bai's "Quiet Night Thoughts," "Early Departure from Baidi Town," and "Farewell to Meng Haoran to Guangling" are among the most widely circulated. The line "Before my bed, the bright moon shines" is often the first Tang poem children learn. Li Bai pushed the art of ancient Chinese poetry to its peak, and his influence on later generations was profound. Li Bai was already famous before his time, and even after his death, he received high praise. Li Yangbing said in the preface to "The Grass Hall Collection," "Through the ages, only you are unique." Wu Rong said in the preface to "Zen Moon Collection," "In our dynasty, there were many who could compose songs and poems, but only Li Taibai was the best." Yu Xianhao said in the preface to "Selected Poems of Li Bai," "In the Tang Dynasty, Han Yu, Li He, and Du Mu were all influenced by Li Bai's poetic style from different perspectives; Su Shi and Lu You's poems, Su Shi, Xin Qiji, and Chen Liang's unrestrained ci poems, were clearly influenced by Li Bai's poetry; while in the Jin and Yuan dynasties, Yuan Haowen, Sa Dula, Fang Hui, Zhao Mengfu, Fan Deji, Wang Yun, and others learned Li Bai's ethereal style; in the Ming Dynasty, Liu Ji, Song Lian, Gao Qi, Li Dongyang, Gao Jing, Shen Zhou, Yang Shen, Zong Chen, Wang Deng, and Li Zhi, and in the Qing Dynasty, Qu Dajun, Huang Jingren, Gong Zizhen, and others all admired Li Bai and learned from his creative experience." Since modern times, Li Bai has not only been known to the East but also widely admired in Western countries. Li Bai's poetry has become one of the most brilliant parts of Chinese cultural heritage.