Wang Zhideng's ancient poem of the Ming Dynasty at the beginning of winter is as follows:

The beginning of winter

Wang Zhideng [Ming Dynasty]

The autumn wind blows away the old Tingke, and the yellow leaves and red maples Passed as a guest.

A little Zen lantern lights up the half-moon. It’s colder tonight than last night.

Translation

When the autumn wind blows away, it will be winter for the old garden trees. The leaves are turning yellow, the maple leaves are turning red, and I am still a guest in a foreign land.

At night, a green lantern and the half-round autumn moon outside the window accompany me. The beginning of winter is here, and it’s cold tonight, even worse than last night.

Notes

Tingke: Trees in the garden.

Danfeng: fiery red maple leaves.

Zen lantern: The original meaning is the lamp of the Buddhist temple, here it refers to the green lantern.

Appreciation

This is a Beginning of Winter poem by Wang Zhideng, a poet of the Ming Dynasty.

Yuan Hongdao, one of the representatives of the "Gong'an School", believes that Wang Zhideng's poems and essays are "comparable to Mojie (Wang Wei) at the top, and not inferior to Chu (Guangxi) and Liu (Changqing) at the bottom". His poetry was highly praised.

The autumn wind has blown away the old garden trees. This is written about "the cold autumn wind", explaining the time and space of the beginning of winter. The fallen leaves of the trees in the old garden are the result of the cold autumn wind, which withers everything. Yellow leaves and red maples are waiting for guests to spend the winter. This is written "The Cold of Yellow Leaves", which explains the situation at the beginning of winter. That is, during the time of "yellow leaves and red maples", I was a guest in a foreign country. "Yellow leaves and red maples" are adapted from Yan Jidao's poetic conception of "red leaves and yellow flowers in late autumn". The word "Ke" expresses the typical image of a wanderer from far away who "will return home after thousands of miles away".

A little Zen lamp, half an autumn moon. This is written "Cold in the Lights and Moon", explaining the lonely shadow of the beginning of winter. "Zen lantern" originally means the lamp of the Buddhist temple, here it refers to the green lantern. The leaves in the courtyard were blown down, and there was only a solitary lamp left in the house. Looking out from the window, I could only see the half-round autumn moon accompanying me in my loneliness. The continuous use of the two quantifiers "a point" and "half a wheel" further accentuates the poet's inner loneliness.

It’s cold tonight, even worse than last night. This is written "Tonight's Cold", which expresses the feeling of the beginning of winter. The word "cold" can serve as the focus of the entire poem and also sets the emotional tone of the entire poem. Why is it colder tonight than last night? On the surface, it is about the colder weather after the beginning of winter; in fact, it is about the homesickness in my heart, which is stronger than in autumn. As soon as the beginning of winter is over, the end of the year is approaching, and every wanderer's longing for home begins.

At the beginning of winter, I hope that travelers from far away can make arrangements to return home, and I hope that you and I can be treated warmly in the cold wind!