My heart has been heavy all day long
Because you have so far to go.
The marriage of a girl, away from her parents,
Is the launching of a little boat on a great river.
…You were very young when your mother died,
Which made me the more tender of you.
Your elder sister has looked out for you,
And now you are both crying and cannot part.
This makes my grief the harder to bear;
Yet it is right that you should go.
…Having had from childhood no mother to guide you,
How will you honour your mother-in-law?
It's an excellent family; they will be kind to you,
They will forgive you your mistakes --
Although ours has been so pure and poor
That you can take them no great dowry.
Be gentle and respectful, as a woman should be,
Careful of word and look, observant of good example.
…After this morning we separate,
There's no knowing for how long…
I always try to hide my feelings --
They are suddenly too much for me,
When I turn and see my younger daughter
With the tears running down her cheek.
Original Poem:
「送杨氏女」
韦应物
永日方戚戚， 出行复悠悠。
女子今有行， 大江溯轻舟。
尔辈苦无恃， 抚念益慈柔。
幼为长所育， 两别泣不休。
对此结中肠， 义往难复留。
自小阙内训， 事姑贻我忧。
赖兹托令门， 仁恤庶无尤。
贫俭诚所尚， 资从岂待周。
孝恭遵妇道， 容止顺其猷。
别离在今晨， 见尔当何秋。
居闲始自遣， 临感忽难收。
归来视幼女， 零泪缘缨流。
Interpretation:
This poem is written by the poet to send off his eldest daughter who got married, feeling the special encounter of losing his beloved wife early and being dependent on his daughters. The poem shows the depth of love between a father and his daughters on earth through the advice, admonition and loving words to the married daughter.
In the first four lines, on the eve of the eldest daughter’s marriage, the poet’s whole family is shrouded in sadness all day long, as the eldest daughter will be married off to a faraway place, going up against the Yangtze River. The use of “light boat” to contrast the heavy mood of the poet’s family, paving the emotional foundation for the following.
Both daughters have lost their mother’s love since they were young, and the poet has been more loving and gentle to them on weekdays. Because of the mother’s early death, the eldest daughter took on the responsibility of raising the youngest daughter, the two sisters have a deep friendship, and when they parted, they cried more than once. In the face of the two women crying endlessly, the poet’s heart is full of grief, women should be married to the right to go, since ancient times, and can not be retained.
The poet then writes about his concern for his eldest daughter’s lack of understanding of the rules of the house, and hopes that she will be loved and pitied by her in-laws. The eldest daughter lacks motherly guidance since childhood, and it is indeed worrying for her to serve her mother-in-law and husband. Fortunately, she is now married off to a good and reputable family, and her in-laws’ nurturing and love can save her daughter from faults.
The poet desires that the eldest daughter should not be inferior and should observe the ways of women. How can she have a generous dowry if she comes from a poor family? She should be filial to her in-laws and respect her husband, and she should obey the rules of her husband’s family in her manners and behavior.
The last six lines are about the author’s own sadness after the farewell, which is related to the love between father and daughter and sister. Farewell in this morning, I do not know in what year we will meet again? Normally, there is nothing to worry about, but the sadness at the time of farewell suddenly becomes uncontrollable. Sending off the married eldest daughter to return to see the youngest daughter is still crying, the poet will soon send off again, after the farewell will be trapped in a more lonely situation, the pain on top of the pain, no longer able to control the tears of sadness, let it fall along the hat band.
This poem is based on family trivia, but also to tell the story, the language is shallow, but sincere, word touching, is rich in the flavor of the family’s masterpiece.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Wei Yingwu (韦应物), circa 737 – 786, was a native of Chang’an, Beijing. His poems were collected in the Wei Suzhou Collection, which included poems concerned with the plight of the people, expressions of disobedience to the times and indignation against the world, and descriptions of idyllic landscapes, etc., of which the ones describing idyllic landscapes are the most famous, and have been sung by posterity in particular.
