The image of plum blossoms in Song Dynasty poetry
Plum blossoms are a common aesthetic image in ancient China. It has been repeatedly sung by ancient literati for its twists and turns and its ability to withstand frost and cold. Poets used this objective image to incorporate their own subjective meanings and endowed plum blossoms with various beautiful qualities. The subjective meaning and objective image are integrated into one, and the artistic image of plum blossoms has both rationality and emotion, stimulating readers' imagination. Now we will focus on Song poetry and talk about the image of plum blossoms. There are three main images: one is symbolizing Zhitu and Zhentu; the other is symbolizing hermit and high soil; the third is symbolizing beauty and fairy.
As early as the Wei and Jin Dynasties, plum blossoms were written into poetry. People first recognized and described them as general spring flowers and trees, such as Xiao Gang's "Looking for Plum Blossoms in the Snow": "Jue Mei Blossoms" In the evening, I came to take a peek in the snow. The lower branches are visible at low levels, but the upper branches are far away and difficult to see. They are both ashamed to show their wrists, and give in to each other to win. The beard was also cut and the ribbon was cut, and two or three branches were learned.> Later, plum blossoms gradually became an independent object of aesthetic expression, not just an embellishment of the spring scenery, and the unique image of plum blossoms was naturally produced.
Bao Zhao of the Southern Dynasties said in his "Plum Blossoms Fall": "There are many miscellaneous trees in the atrium, and most of them are plum blossoms." When I asked you why I was alone, I thought that flowers could grow out of the frost. The dew can make things real, and the spring breeze sways to beautify the spring sun. I think of you scattered and chased by the cold wind, with only frost and no frost quality. >Although I still regard plum blossoms as spring flowers, I have seen the sadness of plum blossoms blooming in the frost and snow, which is intended to express the inability to develop one's own talents. In the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Zhang Jiuling wrote "Ode to the Plum Blossoms in the Garden" when his official career was frustrated: "I pity the weak flower pedicle, which is not affected by the cold weather." Chao Xue is jealous of each other, and the dark wind has been blowing repeatedly. Although the fragrance is still there, who knows how it will drift again. >While expressing his feelings about his life experience, it also embodies the poet's perseverance and unyielding will, which is something Bao Shi does not have. In the poem "Early Plum Blossoms" by Zhu Qingyu in the mid-Tang Dynasty, he praised plum blossoms and their proud snow as a noble character: "Natural roots are different, and everything is difficult to accompany." Since ancient times, spring has been early, and snow has begun to fight in severe winter. ＞It can be seen here that the poet has given the plum blossoms a noble and bright character.
Especially in the Song Dynasty, poets who lived in a dirty world and had no ambitions had an indissoluble bond with plum blossoms. They saw plum blossoms blooming in the frost season, proud of the snow and cold, and alone. Because of its delicate fragrance, it was interpreted as a gentleman's sentiment of being aloof, chaste and self-loving, using plum as a metaphor for one's own virtue. ＜In the harsh winter, thousands of trees will wither and die, and the jade beauty will shine only in the cold weather. ＞Ouyang Xiu's "Remembering Plum Blossoms in Hexue" depicts the elegance and elegance of plum blossoms, which can withstand the cold, and are still proud and tall after being beaten by frost. In the eyes of Han Wei, a poet in the early Song Dynasty, plum blossoms are so aloof and unconventional, maintaining their iron-clad beauty in the severe cold, frost and snow. "Jin Xie" = There is also a description of plum blossoms growing in a harsh environment: "It is stronger than a solitary stone, and does not compete with other trees for beauty" (Shi Xianzhong's "Plum Blossoms in Stone Cracks") Although the growth environment is not good, it is still Be tenacious and work from the bottom up. Don't follow the trend and stay true to yourself.
In the middle of the Northern Song Dynasty, after Su Shi and others chanted it, the image of plum blossoms as a gentleman was further deepened. Su Shi was a chaos of plum blossoms, and wrote a large number of poems about plum blossoms. His poems contained strong subjective expressiveness. On the one hand, like his predecessors, he vividly demonstrated the poet's solitary self-admiration, quiet and self-sustaining character and interests. On the other hand, he also placed his The loneliness and loneliness deep in my heart that I am in conflict with the world but unwilling to give up.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, the country was in turmoil, the society was in turmoil, and the native class was scattered and scattered. When the poets were frustrated, they felt unsatisfactory in the world. Moreover, they were also influenced by the Taoist philosophy of leisurely and adaptive life. Many poets placed their affection on the mountains and forests, longing for life. Living a pure and inactive life without competing with the world, so in the poem about plum blossoms, another image of plum blossoms - the image of the hermit scholar.
Plum blossoms bloom in the early spring and grow in high mountains, valleys, and deserted villages. However, their fragrance remains the same and they are pure and white, giving infinite comfort to poets in adversity. >(Lv Benzhong's "Early Plum Blossoms")_< Originally it was indifferent and difficult to follow the customs, but even in the chaos, it was still dusty. >(Han Yuanji's "Plum Blossom") contains the tranquility and indifference of Lao Zhuang, the relaxed and contented hermit mentality, and also includes the emphasis on personal integrity and the maintenance of personal spiritual freedom. Plum blossoms have had the image of "frost and snow beauty" since ancient times. As early as Liu Zongyuan's "Dragon City Records", a plum blossom legend was recorded. Emperor Kaihuang of the Sui Dynasty, Zhao Shixiong, saw a beauty with light makeup and plain clothes in Luofu Mountain in the cold winter. This girl was plum blossoms. transformed. Since then, poets have loved to compare plum blossoms to "frost beauty", "snow beauty", and "cold beauty". This is because the plum blossom itself has a beautiful appearance and a cool and elegant beauty. People can't help but regard her as the woman in "Xiao Zhuanyun is startled by the arrival of a guest", and the thrilling "Beauty in the Konggu" who is suddenly discovered. The plum blossoms described by Mei Yaochen, a poet in the early Song Dynasty, are the exquisite Xiaojia Jasper: ("Red Plum") In Wu Yi's "Ci Yun Xian Xuande Red Lime Poetry Rhyme", the plum blossom is a noble virgin who does not eat the fireworks of the world: "The jade bones and ice muscles shine coldly on people, the uniform red and light crimson scarf... send a message to the audience. Master Hu Ying, his body is not mixed with dust. >There are also poets who describe the plum blossom as a fairy with ice skin, snow skin, jade bones and frosty heart. >(Chao Duanyou's "Plum Blossom") In fact, the three symbolic images of plum blossoms are often not separated, but integrated and interrelated. In many chanting poems, these three symbolic meanings exist simultaneously. For example, Ouyang Xiu's "Reminiscences of Plum Blossoms in the Snow": "In the cold winter, thousands of trees stand withered, and the jade beauty shines alone in the cold weather. The fresh beauty is as bright as inside the mirror, and the pair is as graceful as a fairy in the wind." >It not only describes the plum blossom's proud and persevering character, but also praises the plum blossom's fairy-like appearance. Another example is Lu You's "In the first half of the year, there are no more plum blossoms blooming in Lake Village. I occasionally found five poems with the rhyme of smoke and wet Luomei Village": "Those who live in empty alleys are suspected to be immortals in the lake." >People who have lived in a deserted land for a long time are both hermits and mysterious immortals. Lu You cleverly interweaves these two images to make the poem richer in content. Zhang Xiaoxiang's "Meeting Plum Blossoms on the Road" depicts plum blossoms as an aloof and self-loving woman. In fact, it also combines the images of chastity and beauty. The reason why the three images of plum blossoms can be integrated is that these three images have a common core - the symbol of chastity. In addition, using plum blossoms to express grief for distant friends is another important image of plum blossoms in ancient poetry. The first plum blossom poem, "Gift to Fan Ye" written by Lu Kai in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, uses plum blossoms to convey friendship: "When the plum blossoms are broken, they are sent to the post envoys and sent to the people of Longtou." Jiangnan has nothing, just give me a spring branch. >Many poets in the Tang Dynasty have used this image to create poems about plum blossoms. Folding plum blossoms and sending them away has become a common allusion. In the Song Dynasty, Wang Anshi and others inherited this image: "When will the messenger leave, I will send you a branch" ("Plum Blossom"). >("He Shicheng's thanks for sending three kinds of plum blossoms to Zhang Mingshu's plum blossom platform") Plum blossoms have become a token of friendship. The image of "Zhemei Sends Friends" to express friendship gradually deepens and develops. By the mid-Song Dynasty, plum blossoms were not only a token in poetry, but also represented an emotion. When poets saw plum blossoms, they couldn't help but think of their friends far away from home. The frosty branches in the north of the mountains were the most missed, and they endured the cold and waited for the envoy to come. >(Su Shi's "Ci Yun Yang Gongji Offers Plum Blossoms")(Zhang Shunmin's "Seeing the Plum Blossoms on the Bank of Hunan" by Zhang Shunmin) There are also poets who express their love for their friends and lovers in their poems about plum blossoms, such as Zhu Song's "Drinking Plum Blossoms and Giving Gifts to Guests": "Being drunk in front of this flower is better than sending lovesickness Extremely sad. >And Zhu Xi's "Meeting Plum Blossoms on the Qingjiang Road": "When he was a thousand miles away, who could express his love for me?" >They all reveal the feeling of longing for lovesickness. There are even poets who express their homesickness by chanting plum blossoms: "I still pity the guest at the foot of Longshan Mountain, but my heart was broken before I broke a branch." >(Lu You's "Guest House Facing Plum Blossoms") "There is no need to send envoys from north to south when looking far away, and guests worry about paying short and long chants". (You Miao's "Plum Blossom") The poet felt that the world was difficult and expressed the sadness of being homesick but unable to return. To sum up, it is not difficult for us to find that poets chanting plum blossoms are not just to describe the physical form of plum blossoms, but more importantly, to use plum blossoms to express feelings, express feelings, and express festivals. What makes plum poems different from ordinary poems about things is that the plum blossoms in the poems have become the objective counterpart of the poet's soul. They embody profound meanings from generation to generation, embodying the independent climax of traditional Chinese literati. spiritual realm. Plum blossoms are also known as spring plums and red plums. Prunus, a genus of the Rosaceae family, is a deciduous tree and rarely a shrub. It can reach 5 to 6 meters high. The crown is spreading and the bark is light gray or light green. Branchlets are slender, pointed at the tip, green, hairless. The leaves are broadly ovate or ovate, with finely serrated edges, apex acuminate or tail-tip, and base broadly wedge-shaped. When young, there may be pubescence along the veins. The petioles are short and glandular. The pedicel is short, with 1 to 2 flowers growing on the tips of 1st and 2nd year old branches. The calyx tube is bell-shaped, with red, dark red and green colors. The flowers have single or double petals, white, red or light red, and are fragrant. They bloom first in early spring from January to February, and then leave leaves. The drupe is nearly spherical, yellow or greenish, and matures in May-June. Plum blossoms are native to my country and are mainly cultivated in the Yangtze River Basin and southwest regions. It likes a warm and slightly humid climate and should grow in a sunny, ventilated and cool place. It is afraid of waterlogging and can tolerate drought. Plum blossoms are world-famous ornamental flowers and trees, especially famous for their beauty. At the end of winter and early spring, the flowers are sparse and their fragrance spreads far and wide. In China, they are known as the "three friends of winter" together with pine and bamboo. Plum blossoms and plum fruits can be used as medicine, and plum blossom water can be used as a substitute for tea. Plum fruit is known as "health food" and can be processed into various dried fruits, too numerous to mention. Plum is a specialty of our country. It is native to the mountains in northwest Yunnan, southwest Sichuan and even eastern Tibet. It was distributed to the south of the Yangtze River about 6,000 years ago, and was introduced and cultivated 3,000 years ago. According to scientific research, the "Preserved Plum" and "Yuan Plum" unearthed in Mawangdui, Changsha have a history of 2,150 years. It was introduced to Korea in the 2nd century BC and to Japan in the 8th century BC. Nowadays, there are also people with lofty ideals in Australia, New Zealand and other countries who are doing research on cultivation. Even friends in Europe and the United States have begun to accept the spirit of plum blossoms, praising the scent of wintersweet as "the sweetness of winter."