Many people know me here as a US Military Professional, been to war, tough as nail, or a American Troll with false flag, but the fact that, I was a lot more than that, most people that had met me don't think I was a soldier, and they look really surprised when I told them i was in a war or something.
People look at me and they see a student like dude with light manner and soft-spoken and not like scary looking tattooed guy (I have no tattoo even tho i was in the Military) you would have imagine what a soldier looks like. In fact, i was quite academic and i actually got dapple quite deep in Chinese Poem before my move back to America, I was studying Chinese History and Chinese Literature in Chinese University of Hong Kong before i turn 20th. Of the 1 and a half years, i felt in love in ancients Chinese poems.
So, i have decided to show you guy the more academic side of me, after all that military related article.
Today i am going to introduce a very popular Chinese Poem written in late East Han. Was published by the classic 古詩十九首 (19 Ancients Chinese Poem) Which is a list of unnamed 五言詩 (Five Words Poem) that have written up systematically from West Han (Although the actual start may be a bit before) It was at that time the 5 words poem overtaken the 4 words poem as the mainstream poem.
History of Ancient Chinese Poem.
Before we start talking about actual poem itself, it's important to understand at least some history of Chinese Poem.
The early Ancient Chinese poem was published in a book called ???? (Poem Bible) Which contain 305 Chinese poem traces as early as West Chou Dynasty (440BC), the poem is said to be the mother (or bible) of Chinese Poem,
It would be interested to know, the format (5 words, 4 words or 7 words) are not time orientated and even up to Qing Dynasty, scholar still writing 5 words poem (Even tho by then China was dominated by modern poem.) It was strictly a format, but it more like a standard.
SO, today, I am going to discuss one single poem with you guys, people don't know Chinese can enjoy this, but people who do involve with Chinese Literature can discuss this with me, better this then we all troll about Chinese Defence Capability, right??
1.行行重行行，與君生別離，
2.相去萬餘里，各在天一涯。
3.道路阻且長，會面安可知。
4.胡馬依北風，越鳥巢南枝。
5.相去日已遠，衣帶日已緩。
6.浮雲蔽白日，遊子不顧反。
7.思君令人老，歲月忽已晚，
8.棄捐勿復道，努力加餐飯。
Approximately translated into English by me
19 Ancient Poem - Walking further and further away
1.)Walking further and further away, as if we will never see each other
2.)We are separated by ten thousand mile, the distant between us is with heaven and earth
3.)The road we would met is long and full of obstacle, I don't know when will we ever meet again.
4.)Northern Horse long for the northern wind, southern bird long for a southern branch
5.)We have separated for so long, even my dress is too big to fit me (Or you can say I waited and become thinner, but the early meaning is lateral)
6.)The cloud blocking the sun, worried my man will not come back to me
7.)getting tired thinking of you, time passes without me even notice.
8.)I would give up waiting for now, so i can take care of myself when we ever meet again
Format of this poem
Being this is a 5 word poem, each sentence have exactly 5 words. 2 Sentences a pair, 8 pairs in this Poem, with the first 3 pairs (6 sentence) describing the hardship of a woman separated with her loved one, and the last 5 pairs (10 sentences) describing the hardship of waiting for the love one to return.
As with almost all poem in Chinese Poem, this poem have a hidden meaning. The face meaning of this poem is the woman writing on first person describing her love have to leave (For whatever reason, implying travel (遊子) - A men who left home for life. Describing how hard it is for leaving her loved one and how hard it was to wait for him to come back. The first sentence (行行重行行) repeated the word "Walk-行" 4 times, it gives an instant realisation the distant have been far and long. In which set the heavy mood. Then the poem go on and describing some nature of people (or things) longing to go home and set the reader into the mindset of a pair of lover separated by a long distant. And then finally ending the poem with some "Affirmative action" and growing tired of waiting. Imply that the writer is setting herself on a new set of goal in life. Where she intent to start everything afresh
The hidden meaning, however, is the true motive behind this poem. The meaning hidden between sentence and word, and people without knowledge (Or even substantial knowledge) of Chinese Language and Culture or History could not picked up.
The story goes this poems is written based on endless warfare raged by the East Han empire and the woman's husband is a soldier send to the battlefield. And the woman afraid that her husband could never come back home since the war does not seems to end, goes the story of separation. The women also asserted that the emperor of East Han have been blinded his aide to engage in endless warfare via the dual meaning of the sentence 6. Literally
浮雲蔽白日，遊子不顧反
Literally translated to The sun (The emperor) have been blocked by the cloud (People with their own agenda trying to control the emperor) and the person (Implying the emperor again) is lost (Lost as in direction) and do not go back home (The right way)
Conclusion
The poem in itself is a very well written, as with many Chinese poem, you get as less word to trying to express as much meaning as possible. And during the course of the poem, it reflect to the actual situation of the country, where this poem is written, late East Han dynasty is of unstable situation, emperor waging war against most enemy and eventually East Han empire break into 3 nations, and in fact, this is the dying moment of the East Han Empire.
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we are all students alike in this front.
