Primary School Ancient Chinese Poetry: According to the Ministry of Education's Primary School Chinese Language Teaching Syllabus, recommended ancient Chinese poetry for memorization

Author: / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2001-12-01
Features:
A Song for a Wayfarer①
Meng Jiao
A mother's hands weave a robe,
A traveler wears it on his back.
Before he departs, she stitches it closely,
Afraid he will return slowly.
Who says the heart of a small grass can repay
The warmth of the three springs of sunlight?②
[Notes]
① A wayfarer: A person who is away from home or lives far away.
② Three springs of sunlight: Sunlight in spring. Three springs refer to early spring, mid-spring, and late spring.
[Explanation]
Meng Jiao (751–814), styled Dongye, was a native of Wu Kang, Huzhou (now Deqing, Zhejiang). A Tang Dynasty poet, he wrote this poem when he was appointed as the county magistrate of Liyang at the age of fifty, expecting his mother to join him for a reunion. The poem depicts the deep bond between mother and son, praising the selfless love of a mother. The last two lines are a timeless masterpiece. Meng Jiao uses a metaphor to compare the inability of a small grass to repay the sunlight of the three springs with the son's inability to fully repay his mother's nurturing love. The imagery is vivid and apt.
A Bamboo Branch Song① (The First)
Liu Yuxi
Willows are green, the river is level,
I hear my lover singing on the river.
Sun rises in the east, rain falls in the west,
Saying it's not sunny, yet it is sunny②.
[Notes]
① Bamboo Branch Song: Originally an ancient folk song from Sichuan.
② Sunny: A pun for "love."
[Explanation]
Liu Yuxi (772–842), styled Mengde, was a native of Luoyang (now Luoyang, Henan). A Tang Dynasty poet, he wrote this group of nine poems. This is the first in the series. The poem depicts the emotional changes of a young woman upon hearing her lover's song. The first line serves as an allusion, with "green" implying youth and "level river" suggesting a calm mind. The lover's song stirs the young woman's originally tranquil heart, causing her emotions to surge. The third and fourth lines use the puns of folk songs to imply the complex and subtle fluctuations in the young woman's emotions, comparing the alternating sunshine and rain in the sky to her shifting feelings.
A Street Where Black-Cloaked Officials Lived①
Liu Yuxi
A Sandbar by the River① (The First)
Liu Yuxi
The Yellow River, winding and long,
Carries sand from the edge of the world.
Now, let's row up the Milky Way,
And visit the home of the Cowherd and Weaver Girl.
[Notes]
① A Sandbar by the River: A Tang Dynasty court music piece created by Liu Yuxi and Bai Juyi, a seven-character quatrain dedicated to the theme of the piece. Later, it became a lyric form.
② Winding: Referring to the nine bends of the river.
③ Rocked: Agitated, tossed about.
④ Milky Way: A large system of stars in space, appearing as a bright band of light resembling a white river, hence the name.
⑤ The Cowherd and Weaver Girl: Two constellations in the Milky Way. According to legend, the Weaver Girl was a celestial being who descended to the mortal world and married the Cowherd. Later, she was recalled by the Queen Mother of the West, and the Cowherd chased after her. The Queen Mother drew a river as a boundary, separating them, allowing them to meet only once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
[Explanation]
Liu Yuxi's "A Sandbar by the River" is a group of nine poems, with this being the first. The poem depicts the scenery of the Yellow River. The first two lines use a series of vivid words to directly describe the Yellow River's winding course, vast distance, strong winds, rough waves, and silt-laden waters, with precise and expressive language. The last two lines, following the "edge of the world," suggest that if one rows up to the sky from the farthest point, they can reach the Milky Way and the home of the Cowherd and Weaver Girl. This transitions from reality to myth. The use of myth serves to enhance the grandeur of the Yellow River and highlight its enduring flow. The myth avoids being flat and provides space for imagination, creating a beautiful artistic atmosphere.