Li Bai’s poems

1. Li Bai's "light boat" crossing the Three Gorges Li Bai (701-762), a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, also known as Taibai and Qinglian Jushi, is known as the "Immortal of Poetry" and his name will always be engraved in China. At the artistic peak of literary history and even world literary history. Li Bai was also a great traveler. He roamed half of China and traveled thousands of miles in his life. His travel activities are worthy of a major chapter in the history of Chinese tourism. His poems, full of romanticism and patriotism, are a true emotional portrayal of his "Never leaving the five mountains to seek immortality, and enjoy traveling to famous mountains all his life." Li Bai visited the Three Gorges three times in his life and wrote many poems praising the Three Gorges. However, his encounters were different each time he crossed the gorge, and the taste of the poems also changed with time. Li Bai's first trip to the gorge was in the 13th year of Kaiyuan of the Tang Dynasty (725). He was born on the banks of the Suiye River south of Lake Balkhash in Central Asia. When he was young, he moved with his father to Qinglian Township, Changlong County, Mianzhou (now Jiangyou, Sichuan). In his youth, he studied "hundred schools of thought" and "wonderful books" in Sichuan, practiced fencing as a knight, visited famous places, and climbed many famous mountains in Emei and Qingcheng. In the spring of 725 AD, the 25-year-old Li Bai left his beloved Shu with the grand ambition of "shooting arrows from the mulberry arc canopy in all directions... A man must have ambitions in all directions, so he goes to his country with a sword and leaves his relatives and travels far away". China, set out for the picturesque Three Gorges of the Yangtze River for the first time. Li Bai, who came out of Sichuan for the first time, was in his prime and had great ambitions. Therefore, his poems about his first trip out of Sichuan appeared brisk and unrestrained. "The evening rain goes to the Three Gorges, and the spring river flows around the two rivers." His yearning for the Three Gorges has become a reality, and the poet's flying emotions have also brought people from Mount Emei to the Three Gorges: The half-moon in Emei Mountain casts its shadow into the water of the Pingqiang River. At night, the clear stream flows towards the Three Gorges. I miss you and go down to Yuzhou without seeing you. "Peach blossoms fly over the green water, and they descend into Qutang in March." Li Bai sailed the boat, passed through Qutang Gorge, and headed towards Wu Gorge. As soon as the boat arrived at Wushan, he abandoned the boat and landed ashore. With the lofty ambition, fearless will and powerful steps of a young wanderer, he paid homage to the ancient sages and sages, and climbed to the highest peak of Wushan. He wrote "Staying at the foot of Wushan Mountain": Yesterday, at the foot of Wushan Mountain, the sound of apes could be heard in my dream. Peach blossoms fly over the green water, and I go down to Qutang in March. The rain-colored wind blows away, traveling south and blowing the King of Chu. Gao Qiu cherishes the jade of the Song Dynasty, and visits the ancient times to wear clothes. When a brisk boat flew out of Nanjinguan at the mouth of Xiling Gorge, what the poet saw was the scene of "the mountains end with the plains, and the river flows into the wilderness. Under the moon, the sky mirror is flying, and the clouds are formed into sea towers." The first trip to the Three Gorges left an indelible impression on Li Bai’s mind! In the long years that followed, he thought about the mountains and rivers of the Three Gorges and his old friends from time to time. In the poems he wrote to his friends in Zigui and Badong, he longed for "clouds and rain flying over Wushan Mountain" and "after waking up, he thought of the White Emperor", hoping that his letters to his friends in the Three Gorges would no longer be sparse. The poet went west to the Three Gorges for the second time. His mood and situation were completely different from the first time he crossed the Three Gorges. This time he entered the gorge in the second year of Qianyuan of the Tang Dynasty (759), and Li Bai was 58 years old. About four years ago, the "Anshi Rebellion" broke out, and wars continued for years, leaving the people in dire straits. Li Bai entered the shogunate of King Yong Li out of a desire to serve the country and care for the people. After Suzong Li Heng ascended the throne, King Li was arrested and executed for treason. Because Li Bai was implicated, he was exiled to Yelang (now east of Tongzi County, Guizhou). On the way to Yelang, Li Bai crossed the Three Gorges again, and his anger and sadness were self-evident. After boating through the Huangniu Gorge, Li Bai wrote "Up the Three Gorges": Wushan Mountain sandwiched the blue sky, and the Ba River flowed like a flowing stream. The water in Ba suddenly disappears, and the blue sky never comes. Three mornings are bullish, three twilights are too late. Three mornings and three evenings passed, and my temples became silky. As the boat passed Zigui, the poet thought that his fate was so similar to that of the great poet Qu Yuan, and he couldn't help chanting: "I've shed all my tears when I'm far away, and my heart has been broken by the long sorrow. After three years of singing by the riverside, how long will it take for me to return to the haggard state?" In the eyes of the exiles, even the magnificent scenery of the Three Gorges was greatly diminished. They just felt that the boat trip was too late and the adversity was unbearable! However, unexpectedly, he found a way out of despair. When the ship arrived at Baidi City, Li Bai was suddenly pardoned. Like a bird escaping from its cage, he decided to buy a boat and sail eastward, turn back to Jiangling, and immediately cross the Three Gorges for the third and final time. At the starting point of the Three Gorges, Li Bai's blood was filled with fresh vitality. His mood suddenly took a 180-degree turn, and he wrote the eternal song "Early Departure from Baidi City": Chao Cibai Among the imperial clouds, thousands of miles of rivers and mountains are returned in one day. The apes on both sides of the bank can't stop crying, and the boat has passed the Ten Thousand Mountains. Poetry critics have always commented that the beauty of this poem lies in the word "light", which makes people feel that the water is rushing and the boat is flying. And Li Bai's joyful mood of being relieved and returning home is also vivid on the page. Although Li Bai's "light boat" has disappeared for more than 1,000 years, the praise of the Three Gorges in the poems he left during his trip still echoes in people's hearts.