Era: Tang Dynasty Author: Liu Yuxi Genre: Seven Poems
Yangliu is at the level of the river,
We hear the sound of Lang Lang singing on the river.
The sun rises in the east and rains in the west,
The road is clear but there is a clear sky.
The Bamboo Branch Lyrics is one of the folk songs of Bayu (the area of Chongqing in the eastern part of present-day Sichuan Province). When it is sung, it is accompanied by flutes and drums, and danced at the same time. The tone of the song is very melodious. When Liu Yuxi was the assassin of Kui Prefecture, he filled in the lyrics according to the tune and wrote about ten pieces, this is one of them, which is a copy of a folk love song. It is about the feelings of a young girl who is immersed in her first love. She is in love with someone, but she does not yet know the attitude of the other party, so she is both hopeful and skeptical; she is both joyful and worried. In her own words, the poet successfully expresses this subtle and complex psychology.
The first line of the poem is about what she sees in front of her. The willows by the river, drooping green stripes; the river water, flat as a mirror. This is a very beautiful environment. The second sentence is about what she heard in her ears. In such a moving environment, she suddenly heard the singing from the river. It was such a familiar sound! As soon as it drifted into her ears, she knew who was singing it. The third and fourth lines are about her psychological activities after hearing the familiar singing. Although the girl has long been in love with this young man in her heart, but the other party has not shown anything yet. Today, he came from the riverside, and sang while walking, seems to be more or less meaning to himself. This gives her great comfort and encouragement, so she thought: this person ah, is a bit like the yellow plum season rainy weather, say it is sunny, it is still raining in the west, say it is a rainy day, it is also the east of the sun, it is really a little bit of uncertainty. Here the "clear" of rain and sunshine is used to allude to the "love" of feelings, "Dao is no clear and clear", that is, "Dao is no love and love". The words "there is no sunshine but there is still sunshine" also mean "there is no love but there is still love. Through these two extremely graphic and simple poems, her confusion, her longing, her apprehension, her hope and waiting are all portrayed.
This kind of expression, formed according to the characteristics of Chinese phonetics, is customary in folk love songs through the ages. They are harmonic puns and vivid metaphors based on active associations. They are often taken from the scenery that is habitually seen in front of the eyes, and express subtle feelings explicitly but implicitly. For example, some of the Wu songs of the Southern Dynasty used such harmonic puns to express love. For example, the Song of the Son and the Night Yun: "Pitying the joyful and good feelings, I moved to live in the countryside. Tong trees are born in front of the door, and I see Wu Zi when I go in and out." (Huan was the woman's term of endearment for her lover at that time. Wu Zi is related to my son, i.e., my person.) Also: "I miss Huan's, and my son's line is made up of Yu's feelings. Mist and dew hidden hibiscus, see the lotus is not distinguishable." (The) clearness. Yuhu, hesitation. Hibiscus is also the lotus flower. "Seeing the lotus, a pun on seeing pity.) The Song of the Woman on the Night of the Seventh Day: "The woman will not end the night, but the year of parting will come and go, and the silkworm will not make a cocoon, but will hang on to the silk day and night." (Because of the small amount of time spent away from each other, they think about each other all the time. Hanging silk is a pun on hanging thoughts.)
This kind of folk love songs with harmonic puns to express their meaning has a long history and has been loved by the people since then. Writers occasionally imitate them, and they become novel and attractive. Liu Yuxi this poem for the majority of readers love, this is also one of the reasons.