Mo Mei? Wang Mian (Yuan Dynasty)

The tree beside the inkstone washing pond in my house,

The flowers are blooming with faint ink marks.

Don’t let others praise you for your good color.

Just leave the pure energy to fill the universe.

Translation:

In my painting, the plum trees beside the inkstone washing pond and the blooming flowers are all dyed with light ink. It does not need others to praise the beautiful color, it only needs to leave a fragrance that fills the universe.

Notes on difficult points: ① Mo Mei: plum blossoms in ink painting. ②Inkstone washing pool: a pool for washing pens and inkstones after writing and drawing. Wang Xizhi has a legend that "when he came to the pond to study calligraphy, the water in the pond turned black." This allusion is used here. The poet has the same surname as Wang Xizhi, a calligrapher of the Jin Dynasty, so he said "my family".

[Note]

1. Mo Mei: plum blossom in ink painting.

2. Inkstone washing pool: a pool for washing brushes and inkstones after writing and drawing. Wang Xizhi has a legend that "when he came to the pond to study calligraphy, the water in the pond turned black." This allusion is used here.

3. Light ink: Ink colors are divided into several types in ink painting, such as light ink, thick ink and burnt ink. What it means here is that the blossoming plum blossoms are dotted with light ink.

4. Qingqi: A refreshing smell.

5. Qiankun: heaven and earth.

[Brief Analysis]

This is a poem about painting. Mo Mei is the plum blossom in ink painting. The poet praises the virtue of the plum blossoms without asking for praise from others, but only wants to leave a fragrance to the world. In fact, he uses the plum blossoms as a metaphor to express his attitude towards life and his noble sentiments of not flattering the world.

The first two sentences, "My family washes inkstones on the tree at the head of the pond, and the flowers are blooming with faint ink marks" directly describe the plum blossom. In the painting, the plum trees beside the small pond are in full bloom, and the blossoming plum blossoms are dyed with light ink. "Washing the inkstone pool" is an allusion to Wang Xizhi's allusion of "Linside the pool to study calligraphy, the pool water is completely black". The poet has the same surname as Wang Xizhi, a calligrapher of the Jin Dynasty, so he said "my family".

Three or four sentences praising Mo Mei for her noble character and integrity. It is painted with light ink. Although it is not delicate in appearance, it has an inner temperament of pure bones, nobility and dignity, and solitude and elegance. It does not want to use bright colors to attract people, please people, and seek praise from people. May a fragrance spread out and remain between heaven and earth. These two sentences are exactly the poet's self-portrait. Wang Mian was poor since he was a child. He herded cattle during the day and went to the Buddhist temple to study hard at night. Finally, he learned a lot of economics and was good at poetry and painting, and was versatile. However, he failed despite repeated attempts and was unwilling to curry favor with the powerful, so he abandoned his ambition for fame and fortune and retired to Jiuli Mountain in eastern Zhejiang, where he made a living by painting. The two sentences "Don't let others praise the good color, just leave the pure air to fill the universe" express the poet's despising the popular customs, being alone, and admiring himself.

This poem is titled "Mo Mei", which is intended to describe aspirations. The poet organically integrates painting style, poetic style and personality. Literally praising plum blossoms, actually praising one's own moral integrity.

[Ink Plum] Plum blossoms painted with ink alone. [Chitou] Poolside. [Inkstone washing pond (y4n)] A pond for washing brushes and inkstones. [Light ink mark] A light black mark, referring to the color of the flower. [Qingqi] A refreshing smell. [Qian (qi2n) Kun (kamp; n)] refers to heaven and earth.

Poetic:

This painting is about a tree next to the inkstone washing pond in my house. Each plum blossom shows a faint black color, without bright colors. I don't need others to praise how beautiful its color is, as long as it leaves a light fragrance between heaven and earth.

One "light" and one "full" show personality

——Appreciation of "Mo Mei"

Plum blossoms bloom in the cold season when thousands of flowers wither. She is proud of ice and snow. She has the fairy appearance of clear skin and jade bones, and can announce spring before the flowers. The more cold the weather, the more fragrant her fragrance will be. Therefore, ancient people often regarded her as a symbol of strong character and noble integrity. The plum blossoms in this lesson refer to plum blossoms painted only with ink and no color. They look very elegant and generous. The author of this poem, Wang Mian, was born in the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty and is known as the "Master of Plum Painting". This is a poem in which the author himself praises the plum blossoms he painted. The plum blossoms described in the poem are strong, fragrant and outstanding.

When the ancients wrote poems, they paid attention to word refinement.

The plum blossoms in the poem (also in the painting) grow beside the pond where the author washes his brushes and inkstones every day. The blooming plum blossoms all show faint traces of ink. The first and second sentences use line drawing to describe the shape of plum blossoms. The word "light" not only expresses the technique of painting plum blossoms, but also depicts the plum blossoms' simple and elegant character, which stands proudly in the severe cold. It is refreshing.

Looking at the last sentence again, why does the poet particularly like to paint plum blossoms with light ink without color? It turned out that he didn't care about those vulgar people praising the beautiful color of the plum blossoms. He just wanted to keep the fresh fragrance filling the world between heaven and earth. The word "full" not only expresses the fullness and excitement of the plum fragrance vividly, but also makes the poet's personality charm stand out and radiate exceptionally dazzlingly! This kind of unconventional and proud integrity is exactly what Wang Mian is as a poet. This method of expression that does not pursue the superficial and beautiful appearance but loves the spirit of plum blossoms is the ingenuity of Wang Mian as a painter.

"The painting of plum blossoms must have the spirit and bones of plum blossoms, and people are as clear as plum blossoms." This is how people praised Wang Mian. Wang Mian in reality is just like the plum blossoms in his works, unyielding and self-admiring. It is said that Wang Mian was very good at painting. The local magistrate and a powerful rich man admired his name, and wanted to see him several times but were rejected. Finally, when the magistrate went to the countryside to see him in person, he hid quickly after hearing the news and asked the magistrate again. The official was rejected. Therefore, the poem "Dark Plum Blossoms" not only reflects the style of the plum blossoms he painted, but also reflects the author's noble taste and indifference to fame and fortune. It clearly shows his steadfastness and purity of ethics in not flattering the world.

In this poem, one "light" and one "full" fully show the personality. On the one hand, the plump plum blossoms and the poet's proud image appear vividly on the paper; on the other hand, it makes people feel the fragrance of calligraphy. The fragrance of plum blossoms seems to come to your face! Thus, "poetry style", "painting style" and personality are skillfully integrated.