Xia Ke Xing [Tang Dynasty] Li Bai

Original text Translation comparison

Zhao Keman Hu Ying, Wu Gou Shuangxue Ming.

The silver saddle shines on the white horse, rustling like a shooting star.

Kill one person in ten steps and leave no trace in a thousand miles.

When the matter is over, he brushes off his clothes and goes away, hiding his body and name.

While passing Xinling for a drink, I took off my sword and stretched my knees forward.

He will eat Zhu Hai while holding a wine glass to persuade the marquis to win.

Three cups of Tu Runuo, the five mountains are lighter.

After the eyes are dazzled and the ears are hot, the spirit and spirit are born.

He waved the golden mallet to save Zhao, Handan was shocked first.

Two heroes of Qianqiu, who are famous in Daliang City.

Even if you die, your heroic bones will remain fragrant, and you won’t be ashamed to be the best in the world.

Who can write your Excellency, Baishou Taixuan Sutra?

Translation

The chivalrous hats of Zhao are casually dotted with Hu tassels, and the Wu-gou sword is as bright as frost and snow.

The silver saddle and the white horse complement each other, and they gallop like a rustling meteor.

Within ten steps, one person will be killed for sure, and no one can be left behind at a thousand-mile pass.

After finishing, he brushed off his clothes and left without making a sound, hiding his identity.

Sometimes when I have free time, I walk through Xinling County, have some wine, and take off my sword and lay it across my knees.

Eat a large piece of meat with Zhu Hai, and drink from a large bowl with Hou Ying.

Three cups of wine are enough to make a promise worth a thousand gold, and the loyalty is more important than the five mountains.

After drinking, the eyes are dizzy and the ears are hot, the spirit is high, and the rainbow is swallowed up with anger.

Zhu Hai swung a golden mallet to kill the general and stole the military talisman to save Zhao, which shocked the army and people of Handan.

Zhu Hai and Hou Yingzhen are two heroes who will be famous throughout the ages in Daliang City.

As a knight, even if he dies, his bones will remain fragrant. He is worthy of being a hero for a lifetime.

Who can be like that Confucian scholar Yang Xiong, who closed his book all his life, his hair turned white, and he was still writing the "Tai Xuan Jing".

Notes

(1) This is an ancient five-character poem that describes and praises knights. It is one of the three poems in Li Bai's Yuefu. Line, here is not the line of walking, but the line of singing, which is equivalent to saying "the song of the knight".

(2) Zhao Ke, a knight from the land of Yan and Zhao. Since ancient times, Yan and Zhao have many generous and tragic people. "Zhuangzi: Talking about Swords": "In the past, King Wen of Zhao was good at swords, and the swordsmen held the door open for more than 3,000 guests." Man, no pattern. Hu Ying, in ancient times, the northern ethnic minorities were commonly known as Hu; Ying, the belt used to tie the crown and hat. Manhuying is a rough-made and patternless belt from ethnic minorities. This sentence describes the knight's crown and belt.

(3) Wu Gou, the name of the sword. Frost and snow are bright, which means that the edge of the sword is as bright as frost and snow.

(4) Whispering, flying in a group, describes horses running fast.

(5) These two sentences are originally from "Zhuangzi: Talking about Swords": "The sword of the minister can be used by one person at ten steps, and leaves no trace for thousands of miles." This means that the knight has strong swordsmanship and is brave.

(6) Xinling, Lord Xinling, one of the four princes of the Warring States Period, was a polite and virtuous man, with more than 3,000 guests at his door.

(7) Zhu Hai and Hou Ying are both disciples of Lord Xinling. Zhu Ben was a butcher, and Hou Yuan was the gate official at the east gate of Daliang, the capital of Wei State. Both of them received courtesy from Lord Xinling and were used by Lord Xinling. Roast, grill. Eat, eat. Eat Zhu Hai, let Zhu Hai come and eat.

(8) These two sentences say that after a few glasses of wine (in ancient poetry, three and nine are often fictitious references), a promise was made, and the promise was taken more seriously than the five mountains.

(9) Suni, Baihong. The ancients believed that whenever an unusual event occurs, there will be an unusual celestial phenomenon, such as a "white rainbow penetrating the sun". This sentence means that the knight's spirit of attaching importance to promises and despising life and death moved heaven. It can also be understood that with the knight's promise, great things will happen in the world. This will tie it more tightly to the following.

(10) These two sentences tell the story of Zhu Hai hammering Jin Bi. Lord Xinling was a minister of Wei, and Wei and Zhao formed an alliance to deal with Qin together. This was an alliance to fight against Qin. Lord Xinling actively advocated unification. Handan, the capital of Zhao State. The Qin army besieged Handan, and Zhao asked Wei for help. The king of Wei sent Jin Bi to lead an army to rescue Zhao. Later, because of the threat of the king of Qin, he ordered Jin Bi to stand still. In this way, the Wei-Zhao alliance is bound to collapse.

Lord Xinling prepared to personally lead his servants to fight the Qin army, and went to say goodbye to Hou Ying (actually to test Hou Ying), but Hou said nothing. Lord Xinling came back to see Hou Ying halfway. Hou smiled and said: "I know you will come back." So he designed it for Lord Xinling, colluded with the King of Wei's favored concubine, stole the tiger talisman, and went to Jin Bi's army, pretending to ask the King of Wei to lead the army on Jin Bi's behalf. Jin Bi became suspicious, so Zhu Hai took out a 40-pound iron awl and shot Jin Bi to death. Lord Xinling then led the Wei army to attack the Qin army and relieved the siege of Handan.

(11) Yang Xiong once worked as a school magazine in Tianlu Pavilion, where the emperor collected books. "Tai Xuan Jing" is a philosophical work written by Yang Xiong.

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Creative background

This poem was written around AD 744 (the third year of Tianbao reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty) when he visited Qizhou. The style of knight-errants was quite popular in the Tang Dynasty. This was due to the popular social consciousness of knight-errants at that time. Driven by careerism and ambition, young men who were knight-errants all aspired to do something bold and satisfying, and gain widespread praise from the society. Li Bai's song "Xia Ke Xing" was created under the background of this chivalrous consciousness.

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Author

Li Bai (701-762), also known as Taibai, also known as Qinglian Jushi, also known as "Exiled Immortal". He was a great romantic poet in the Tang Dynasty and was hailed as the "Immortal of Poetry" by later generations. Together with Du Fu, they are called "Li Du". In order to distinguish them from the other two poets Li Shangyin and Du Mu, who are called "Little Li Du", Du Fu and Li Bai are also called "Big Li Du". He is cheerful and generous, loves drinking, writing poetry, and making friends.

Li Bai's "Collection of Li Taibai" has been handed down from generation to generation, and most of his poems were written when he was drunk. His representative works include "Looking at Lushan Waterfall", "The Road is Difficult", "The Road to Shu is Difficult", "About to Drink", "Yue Nu Ci", "Early Departure from Baidi City" and many other poems.

The Song Dynasty people have biographies of Li Bai's poems and poems (such as the first volume of Wen Ying's "Xiangshan Wild Records"). In terms of its pioneering significance and artistic achievements, "Li Bai's Ci" enjoys an extremely high status.