Translation of Du Mu's "Qingming"

It is said that after Dayu controlled the floods, people used the words "Qingming" to celebrate that the floods had been eliminated and the world was at peace. At this time, spring is warm, flowers are blooming, everything is revived, and the sky is clear and the earth is bright. It is a good time for spring outings. Outing began as early as the Tang Dynasty and has become a habit inherited by generations. In addition to appreciating the natural scenery of lakes, mountains and spring scenery, outings also carry out various cultural and recreational activities to add interest to life. Now I bring you a Tang poem about Du Mu - "Qingming", I hope you like it!

"Qingming"

Author: Du Mu

Rain during Qingming One after another, pedestrians on the road want to die.

May I ask where the restaurant is? The shepherd boy pointed to Xinghua Village.

Poetry Explanation

On the day of Tomb-Sweeping Day, it rains heavily, and those who travel far on the road feel confused and desolate as if their souls have been cut off. Asking where the restaurant was, the shepherd boy pointed to Xinghua Village from a distance.

Word annotation

Numerous: There are many descriptions.

Broken soul: describes very sad and sad.

Xinghua Village: A village deep in the apricot flowers. Today I am outside the gate of Xiushan, Guichi, Anhui Province. Influenced by this poem, later generations often used "Xinghua Village" as the name of the hotel

Introduction to the poet

Du Mu (803-about 852 AD), courtesy name Muzhi, nicknamed Fanchuan Jushi, Han nationality , a native of Jingzhao Wannian (now Xi'an, Shaanxi). [1] Du Mu was an outstanding poet and essayist in the Tang Dynasty. He was the grandson of Prime Minister Du You and the son of Du Congyu. In the second year of Emperor Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty, he was awarded Jinshi at the age of 26 and was awarded the title of School Secretary of Hongwen Hall. Later, he went to Jiangxi to observe the envoys, transferred to Huainan Jiedu, and then joined the observation envoys. He was in charge of the compilation of the National History Museum, served as a member of the Ministry of Food, Bibu, Si Xunyuanwailang, governor of Huangzhou, Chizhou, and Muzhou, and finally became an official. The person in the middle study room. Because he lived in Fanchuan Villa in South Chang'an in his later years, he was called "Du Fanchuan" by later generations and wrote "Collected Works of Fanchuan". Du Mu's poems are famous for their seven-character quatrains, and their content is mainly about chanting history and expressing feelings. His poems are handsome and full of historical things, and he achieved great success in the late Tang Dynasty. Du Mu was called "Little Du" to distinguish him from Du Fu, "Big Du". Together with Li Shangyin, he is known as "Little Li Du".

Appreciation 1:

The Qingming festival can easily evoke the longing for home for those who are away from home, but the continuous spring rain adds to the sorrow and hardship of the journey. Such a complex thought, but the poet used a very popular language to make a good summary. Next, I asked where the restaurant was, not only because I wanted to rest and relieve my fatigue, but also because I wanted to drink away my sorrows. The whole story ends with the shepherd boy showing the way, which brings comfort and hope to the travelers. It is implicit and has an endless aftertaste. This poem's description of the journey and the expression of the traveler's feelings are very real and natural. The language is also popular and fluent, the syllables are harmonious, the scene is fresh and vivid, and it is easy to understand and remember. Therefore, it has become a household name.

Appreciation 2:

During the Qingming Festival, the weather is changeable. Sometimes the spring is bright and the flowers are red and the willows are green, but sometimes it is drizzle and continuous.

The first sentence "Rains fall heavily during the Qingming Festival" expresses the characteristics of "throwing fire and rain".

The second sentence "Pedestrians on the road want to die" describes the mood of the passers-by.

"Broken soul" refers to the feeling of being very sad and sad but not exposed.

Why does this pedestrian want to die? Because Tomb-Sweeping Day is a big festival in ancient my country. As a rule, the family reunites, visits graves together, or goes out for spring outings.

Now this pedestrian was alone, traveling in a strange place, and he felt uncomfortable in his heart. But he got caught in the rain again, and his clothes were all wet, and his mood became even more miserable and confused.

How to relieve sadness? Pedestrians naturally think: it is best to find a restaurant nearby, where they can rest and take shelter from the rain; secondly, drink some wine to relieve the cold; more importantly, they can use wine to dispel the cold. The sadness in my heart.

So he asked for directions: "May I ask where the restaurant is?" Who he asked was not specified.

The word "shepherd boy" in the last sentence "The shepherd boy points to Xinghua Village in the distance" is not only the subject of this sentence, but also a supplementary explanation of the object of the previous sentence.

The shepherd boy’s answer was with actions instead of words. Pedestrians looked in the direction of his finger and saw a wine grape (the symbol of an ancient hotel) faintly exposed on the top of a tree with red apricots in full bloom. ).

The poem ends abruptly here. As for how the passers-by were happy after hearing the news, they rushed forward excitedly, found a hotel and had a few drinks, and gained the satisfaction of shelter from the rain, relief from the cold, relief of sorrow, etc. , all left to the reader’s imagination.

Due to the widespread circulation of this poem, the three words "Xinghua Village" became the nickname of the restaurant in later generations.