孟郊诗
Poems of Meng Jiao
Index
送韩愈从军
Accompanying Han Yu on his way to join the army
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志士感恩起 变衣非变性 亲宾改旧观 僮仆生新敬 |
Man of ideals feels sympathies rising As he changes his clothes but not his heart. Close friends observe his new appearance And even the servants show new respect. |
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坐作群书吟 行为孤剑咏 始知出处心 不失平生正 |
Meditating, he sings the common songs. Walking, he chants of lonely swords. He begins to know the basis of his mind As he maintains his lifelong integrity. |
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凄凄天地秋 凛凛军马令 驿尘时一飞 物色极四静 |
Heaven and Earth are sad in autumn's chill. Cavalry horses, shivering and afraid, await orders. Time flies like the dust behind a post horse And all things are colored by silence. |
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王师既不战 庙略在无竞 王粲有所依 元瑜初应命 |
The king's troops do not want war. The courtiers urge him not to fight. They incline to the thought of Wang Can. But, like Yuan Yu, they follow orders. |
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一章喻檄明 百万心气定 今朝旌鼓前 笑别丈夫盛 |
War justified, a call to arms, and now One million hearts are decided. This morning, amid these drums and banners, I smile goodbye to a fine brave man. |
-- 孟郊
废话
Han Yu is Meng Jiao's friend from mutual test-failing days. He is almost twenty years Meng's junior and appears to have been conscripted into one of the many mid-Tang wars. Wang Can was a Han dynasty poet and politician who followed Cao Cao and was called on to establish laws. (For a nice portrayal of Cao Cao, watch Jiang Wen's performance in Guan Yu with Donnie Yen.) Poetic symmetry and the 百家姓 suggest that Yuan Yu, in the line following Wang Can's, is also a person's name. Otherwise we are left with "Original flawless gem first obeys orders" which could be the case as metaphor.