In twelve chambers the ladies, decked for the day, Peer afar for their lord from their Fairy-View Lodge; The golden toad guards the lock on the door-chain, And the bronze-dragon water-clock drips through the mornmg - Till one of them, tilting a mirror, combs her cloud of hair And chooses new scent and a change of silk raiment; For she sees, between screen-panels, deep in the palace, Eunuchs in court-dress preparing a bed.
Original Poem:
「宫词」
薛逢
十二楼中尽晓妆，望仙楼上望君王。
锁衔金兽连环冷，水滴铜龙昼漏长。
云髻罢梳还对镜，罗衣欲换更添香。
遥窥正殿帘开处，袍袴宫人扫御床。
Interpretation:
This poem is about the feelings of the palace concubines, but it is written in a unique way.
The first two lines of the poem say that the concubines get up early in the morning to dress up and wait for the arrival of the king. The last two lines are about the locked door of the palace and the long day. Through the description of the door lock and the leaky pot, the bleakness of the environment and the slow passage of time are vividly expressed. The “cold” in the previous sentence not only describes the coldness of the metal door ring, but also shows the coldness of the palace, reflecting the coldness of the mood of the palace consort. Through the palace consort to the leaky pot of the monotonous and endless dripping sound of the feeling, shows the palace consort’s inner loneliness and boredom. The palace consort still has hope for the arrival of the king, and from time to time she sits in front of the dressing table to comb her hair again and again, and from time to time she changes her clothes, and before she does so, she also smokes them with incense, hoping that her dress and clothes will attract the attention of the emperor. This is a vivid depiction of the psychology and behavior of the palace concubines.
The last two lines tell the result of a whole day’s visit to the palace, while waiting for the king’s arrival, they sometimes peeped at the emperor’s whereabouts. When they saw the maids cleaning the royal bed in the main hall, they knew that the emperor was going to stay in the main hall and would not come, so they waited for another day in vain. This poem is very meticulous in its psychological portrayal of the characters. From the first and second lines of dressing up and looking forward to the hopefulness of happiness, to the loneliness and boredom of the third and fourth lines, to dressing up again, and finally to the realization of the hopelessness of one’s own hope for happiness, the psychological transition is extremely tactful and delicate.
About the poet:
Xue Feng (date of birth and death unknown) was a native of Yongji, Shanxi Province. In 841 A.D., Xue Feng was awarded the third place in the Jinshe, and was authorized to be the school scholar of the Secretary Province, moved to Wannian County, and served in the Hongwenkan, and then served as the royal secretary and the minister of education. He was appointed as the Assassin of Bazhou because of his passionate arguments, which often contradicted the powerful and the rich. Although his talent was abundant, his poems were not famous enough, and most of his works were rash and shallow.
