in early spring

only two or three flowers are put in the south branch (1), and some powder is made by singing incense in the snow (2).

light smoke is thick on the moon (3), deep water is shallow and sand is shallow (4). [1]

annotation translation

sentence annotation

(1) South branch: plum branch heading south.

(2) get: enjoy. Powder: white. Here refers to the white color of plum blossoms.

(3) wear: attach, wear.

(4) cage: cover. [1] [2]

Vernacular translation

In the early spring, the plum branches in Chaoyang in the south just opened two or three flowers, and it just snowed again. I enjoyed the clear fragrance of plum blossoms and enjoyed their white colors in the snowy fields in the month. The first blooming Bai Meihua has different shades. Night fog and moonlight cling to the flowers with thick colors, just like cold water, and to the flowers with light colors, just like clear sand. [2]

Creation background

The specific creation date of this poem is not available for examination, but according to the poetry, this poem was made during a tour in early spring. [2]

Appreciation of works

Appreciation of literature

This poem sings about early spring through plum blossoms, because plum blossoms bloom earliest in spring. It's early to write plum blossom in the first sentence. "South Branch", because it is facing the sun, the plum blossoms on the south branch are the first to open. "Only released", just opened, also means that flowers bloom early. "Two or three flowers", only two or three flowers bloom, or flowers bloom early.

write the flowers and colors in the second sentence. "In the snow" still means that flowers bloom early, because spring has arrived, and later, there will be no snow. "Singing incense and making powder" means that the poet carefully recited and enjoyed the fragrance of plum blossoms and the shapes and colors of stamens and petals in the snow. These four words obviously adopted intertextual rhetoric. Although "some" has no real meaning, it plays a rhyming role.

The last two sentences describe the open environment of plum blossoms. They obviously use the famous phrase "The smoke cage is cold and the moon is full of sand" in Bo Qinhuai written by Du Mu, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, to create a hazy beauty, and at the same time connect flowers, snow, smoke, moon, water and sand together. The poet not only appreciates the plum blossom, but also appreciates the poetic environment around it. In other words, when a poet appreciates plum blossoms in a poetic environment, he will naturally have a different interest. These two sentences have also made a lot of efforts in antithesis. Not only are the three or four sentences perfectly aligned with each other, but each sentence is also in the form of the right sentence, which enhances the sense of rhythm of the poem.

Volume III of Song Taoyue's Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties tells the story of a word teacher: "When Zheng Gu was in Yuanzhou, Qi Ji paid tribute to his poems because of what he had done. There is a poem called "Early Plum", which says,' In the former village of Zita Law, several branches opened last night.' Gu smiled and said,' it's not too early to count, but one is better.' Qi Ji, however, unconsciously wears three clothes and kowtows to the ground. Naturally, the scholars regard the valley as the teacher of Qi Ji. "From the perspective of emphasizing" early ",Zheng Gu is undoubtedly correct, but it does not necessarily conform to the actual situation. From the perspective of appreciating plum blossoms, "only two or three branches are planted in the south" not only emphasizes "early", but also has more ornamental value, which is more in line with the actual situation, so this poem also has its own vitality. [1] [2]

Comments by famous artists

zhangming: "With a few strokes, the plum blossom will be alive, making the whole poem full of spring and vitality." [1]

author profile

Bai Yuchan (1194-? ), formerly known as Ge Changgeng, was born in Minqing (now Fujian Minqing). After his father's death, his mother remarried to Bai and changed her name to Bai Yuchan. He once lived in seclusion in Wuyishan to learn Taoism. During the reign of Jiading in Ningzong, Southern Song Dynasty, he was recruited to go to Que, called Symmetry Purpose, ordered Taiyi Palace, and was named as a real person of Ziqingming Road. Quanzhen religion is regarded as one of the five southern ancestors. He is the author of forty volumes of Collected Works of Mr. Haiqiong Yuchan, and six volumes of his poems are recorded in The Whole Song Poetry.