"The road is long and long, and I will go up and down to pursue it." means: The road ahead is long and far, and I will go up and down to pursue my ideal.

Source

"The road is long and long, I will search up and down" comes from Qu Yuan's famous work "Li Sao". "Li Sao" is a poem written by Qu Yuan, a poet during the Warring States Period in China. It is the longest lyric poem in ancient China.

Original text fragment

If you want to keep this spirit as trivial as possible, the sun will fade and it will become dusk.

I ordered Xihe to destroy the festival, and look at the concubines but not force them.

The road is long and long, and I will search up and down.

The remaining horses are drinking in the salty pond, and the remaining bridles are like fusang.

Broken like a tree to brush against the sun, chatting leisurely to meet the sheep.

Fragment translation

I originally wanted to stay in Lingsuo for a while, but the sun was setting in the west and it was already dark.

I ordered Xi He to stop his whip and move slowly, and not to let the sun approach the Kuangji Mountain.

The road ahead is long and far, and I will pursue my ideal up and down.

Let my horse drink from the salty pond and tie its reins to the hibiscus tree.

If I fold down the wooden branches to block the sun, I can wander leisurely for the time being.

Creative background

As for the creation time of "Li Sao", Sima Qian said in "Historical Records Taishi Gong's Preface" that "Qu Yuan was exiled and wrote "Li Sao"", and in "Report to Ren An" It is also said in the book that "Qu Yuan was exiled and wrote "Li Sao". The Han people have no different words for this. According to this, "Li Sao" is regarded as after Qu Yuan's exile. People today have different opinions on this. Some say it was written during the period of King Huai of Chu after Qu Yuan was alienated. Some say it was written during the period of King Qingxiang of Chu after Qu Yuan was exiled. Some say it was written at the end of King Huai and the beginning of King Qingxiang. Some say it was the beginning. It was written during the reign of King Huai and completed in the early days of King Qingxiang. There is no conclusion yet. The writing time will be in autumn.

As for the reason for the creation of "Li Sao", Sima Qian quoted Liu An's "Li Sao Biography" in "Historical Records: Biography of Qu Yuan" and said: "Qu Pingji, the king of Ji, was not wise, and he was framed to obscure his understanding. The evil song harms the public, and the uprightness cannot be tolerated, so he wrote "Li Sao" with sorrow and meditation. "Qu Yuan followed the right path, devoted his loyalty and wisdom to his king, and slandered the world. He can be said to be poor and honest." Doubtful, loyal and slandered, can we not complain? Qu Ping's "Li Sao" is based on self-pity. "Qu Yuan's "sorrow, meditation" and resentment are closely related to the political reality of Chu State. "Li Sao" is a political lyric poem that he wrote based on the political reality of Chu State and his own unfair experience, "with the purpose of expressing his anger". Because the twists and turns in it fully describe the poet's life experience, thoughts and circumstances, some people regard it as an image record of Qu Yuan's life and call it the poet's autobiography.

About the author

Qu Yuan, a poet of the Chu State at the end of the Warring States Period. The name is Ping and the word is Yuan. It also comes from the cloud name Zhengze and the word Lingjun. Born into a noble family of Chu State. He first assisted King Huai and served as Zuo Tu and Sanlu doctor. He is knowledgeable, advocates clarifying the law, promoting talents and talents, uniting Qi in the east, and resisting Qin in the west. Later he was slandered and resigned. He was exiled during the reign of King Qingxiang and wandered in the Yuanxiang River Basin for a long time. Later, due to the political corruption of the Chu State, the capital of Ying was also captured by the Qin soldiers. He was unable to save the Chu State from danger, and felt deeply that his political ideals could not be realized, so he threw himself into the Miluo River and died. Liu Xiang's collection of "Chu Ci" contains more than twenty pieces of his works, mainly including "Li Sao", "Nine Chapters", "Tianwen", "Nine Songs", etc.