【Famous Works by Celebrities】Tang Dynasty, Du Xunhe – “Lament in the Spring Palace”

Appreciation: Throughout history, most poems dealing with the grievances of those in the palace have not included the word “spring.” Even among those poems that speak of the grievances related to the imperial harem, none manage to depict the connection between “spring” and these grievances as vividly as Du Xunhe’s poem does. The first two sentences are the beginning. ““Chanjuan” refers to having a beautiful appearance. A palace maid was chosen to enter the palace because of her good looks; yet once there, all that accompanied her was loneliness and sorrow. Hence the word \"mistake\" was used to express her lament: \"Today in Changmen, I’m far less fortunate than when I was ugly.\" (Yu Bi, \"Palace Sorrow\") At this moment, she was looking at herself in the bronze mirror, indulging in self-pity. She had wanted to get dressed up, but thinking that beauty can lead to mistakes, she hesitated and didn’t feel like doing it. The word “early” in the previous sentence is like a deep sigh coming from the depths of the heart, indicating that one has been misunderstood for so long ； The following line also delicately conveys resentment through the action of wanting to dress up but then giving up. These two sentences possess a natural and subtle charm within their simplicity. The third and fourth lines use antithetical couplets, with the meanings of the upper and lower lines flowing continuously like water, in a seamless sequence, thereby further illustrating the thought process of wanting to get dressed but then deciding not to. ““If it’s for tolerance,” means “how to dress up”; in this context, it actually means that dressing up is useless. The palace maid said, “Since what matters to the emperor is not one’s beauty, then what’s the use of me dressing up anymore?” ”In other words, it is other factors that play a decisive role, such as scheming and flattery to gain favor. In the fifth and sixth lines, the focus suddenly shifts; the poet’s pen moves from the maids by the mirror to the spring scenery outside: a gentle spring breeze, soft bird songs, a bright sun shining high, and layers of flower shadows. These two descriptions of the scenery seem unrelated to the earlier descriptions of the palace maids, but in fact they still revolve around what the maids feel (\"the warm wind\”), hear (\"the sounds of birds\\") and see (\"the shadows of flowers\")). At the moment when she was about to put on makeup but then stopped, warm breeze brought the pleasant sounds of birds through the curtains; looking out the window, she saw a scene with deep flower shadows under the high sun. The maid facing the mirror was filled with deep sorrow; accidentally discovering spring in nature only heightened her sense of loneliness and emptiness, a feeling of lack of spring in her heart. The emotions depicted in the scene are in line with those expressed earlier. “The couplet \"Warm Breeze\" features vivid colors, and \"Poets’ Jade Fragments\" (Volume 3) classifies it under the category of \"elegant and gorgeous\" style. The wind is “warm” ； The sound of birds is \"fragmented\"――by \"fragmented\" is meant that it’s light and frequent, with continuous chirping, full of vitality, standing in sharp contrast to a state of complete silence ； ““Hidaka” – bright and sunny ； “\"Heavy flower shadows\" suggests the lushness of blooming flowers. It is beautiful and exquisite; it not only depicts the typical scene of midday in full spring but also serves to highlight feelings of resentment. Moreover, it acts as a link between what has come before and what will follow, sparking new associations. The scene before her eyes, with its intermingling sounds, lights, and colors, reminded the palace maid of the joyful moments she spent each year before entering the palace, picking lotus flowers by the streams in her hometown: lotus leaves and silk skirts of the same color; faces like lotus blossoms, and lotus blossoms like faces. They worked in groups of three or five, with the sound of the stream and constant laughter filling the air. ““Yuexi” refers to Ruoye Creek, located in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. It was the place where Xi Shi washed silk in ancient times, and here it is used to denote the hometown of palace maids. These two sentences contrast the past with the present, using the joys of the past to highlight the sorrow of the present, thereby endowing the subtle resentment with a more profound depth. Although the last four lines of the poem describe scenes and tell a story in an objective manner, beneath the surface of those words one can hear the faint yet extremely painful sobs of the palace maid. From the perspective of the poem’s artistic conception, “Spring Palace Lament” seems not only to be the poet expressing the grievances of palace maids, but also a reflection of the poet’s own situation. A subject’s gaining favor does not mainly depend on talent or learning, which is exactly the same as the case with palace maids, for whom receiving favor does not depend on their appearance ； The complexity of struggles within the palace and the perils of an official career inevitably make one long for a free life outside the palace, just as palace maids envy the innocent life of the girls from Yue Xi. It is not only the resentment of the palace maids, but also a metaphor for the oppressive regime of that time’s destruction of talented people. This poem is renowned in the world of poetry for its line \"warm breeze,\" and as a whole, it is also a fine poem with a harmonious artistic atmosphere.