Living under a thatch roof, never wearing fragrant silk, She longs to arrange a marriage, but how could she dare ? Who would know her simple face the loveliest of them all When we choose for worldliness, not for worth ? Her fingers embroider beyond compare, But she cannot vie with painted brows; And year after year she has sewn gold thread On bridal robes for other girls.
Original Poem:
《寻西山隐者不遇》
绝顶一茅茨，直上三十里。
扣关无僮仆，窥室唯案几。
若非巾柴车，应是钓秋水。
差池不相见，黾勉空仰止。
草色新雨中，松声晚窗里。
及兹契幽绝，自足荡心耳。
虽无宾主意，颇得清净理。
兴尽方下山，何必待之子。
Interpretation:
This poem was written by the poet Qiu Wei in his early years, and judging from the thoughts of the woods and springs expressed in the poem, it was written around the time before the poet became a scholar. As the title suggests, the poet made a special trip to the mountains to visit the hermit, but he did not see him, but he was so impressed by the environment in which he lived that he wrote this poem.
It is a poem describing a hermit’s high interest, which is found in many classical Chinese poems, and there is nothing extraordinary about it. This novelty comes mainly from the idea. The poem describes that the author went to the mountain to visit the hermit, of course out of friendship or admiration for the hermit, but he “failed to meet” him, which, according to common sense, would have caused the visitor infinite disappointment and melancholy. The poem, however, is unexpected, for although the poem is about “not meeting”, it shows the life and character of the hermit in a vivid way; but it also uses the title “not meeting” to express one’s own quiet and elegant interest and open-mindedness to the fullest extent. It seems to be more rewarding and satisfying than the encounter. It is the novelty of this idea that makes this poem very fresh.
The poet’s artful state of life and personality had a charm that transcended time and space, and had a profound influence on future generations of poets. In the landscape poetry of the Sheng Tang Dynasty, this spirit of freedom and liberty was better integrated and embodied in the nature represented by the valley of green bamboo and the breeze of the clouds. Qiu Wei is said to be the poet with the highest life expectancy in the Tang Dynasty, and his high life expectancy is not unrelated to his choice of a quiet life.
Qiu Wei (丘为) was a native of Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province, in the Tang Dynasty. In his early years, Qiu Wei took part in the imperial examinations several times, but failed repeatedly, so he studied hard and finally won the scholarship in 742 AD. He resigned at the age of eighty and returned to his hometown at the age of ninety-six, the highest life expectancy of a poet in the Tang Dynasty.
He was famous for his filial respect to his stepmother, who was still alive when he was a government official, and he gave half of his salary to support her until her death. When he first returned to his hometown, the county magistrate came to pay him a visit, he waited respectfully with his back bent, and after the magistrate sat down, he bowed his hands upwards, and only after the magistrate had excused himself did he dare to take his seat; whenever he rode his horse past the county office, Qiu Wei also made sure to dismount and walk through the courthouse.
Qiu Wei was good at writing five lines, and his poetry was simple and calm, mostly about idyllic scenery, which contributed to the formation and maturity of five-line poetry in the early Tang Dynasty and the creation of the landscape and idyllic poetry school in the Tang Dynasty. He contributed to the formation and maturity of the poetry in five lines in the early Tang Dynasty and to the founding of the landscape poetry school.
When Qiu returned to his hometown, Wang Wei wrote the poem “Sending Qiu back to Jiangdong”, expressing his feelings of reluctance and anger that his talent was not appreciated.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
