014. Parting with Qiwu Qian, Who Is Going Home after Failing the Imperial Examination
A poem by Wang Wei, translated by Hyun Woo Kim
In a halcyon age, there are no hermits:
Every bright soul would come back.
The dweller of Dongshan was ordered
That he may not pick bracken fern.
Now it happens, the Golden Gate is far;
Who will say that our way is wrong?
Having celebrated Hanshi at Jianghuai,
we sewed spring clothes in the capital.
Having a banquet in the street of Changan,
I say goodbye to a like-minded man.
You will be floating, pulling a laurel oar,
And soon, push open the thorn-branch door.
From afar, trees are waiting for the traveler;
The evening glow descends on a lonely castle.
Our talents could not find their use, but
Do not say that someone who knows you is rare.
聖代無隱者
英靈盡來歸
遂令東山客
不得顧采薇
旣至金門遠
孰云吾道非
江淮度寒食
京洛縫春衣
置酒長安道
同心與我違
行當浮桂棹
未幾拂荊扉
遠樹帶行客
孤城當落暉
吾謀適不用
勿謂知音稀
From Hyun Woo:
In pre-modern East Asia, passing the imperial examination was the life goal of gentlemen. Passing it to serve the emperor and the country was the Confucian ideal. You were considered somewhat socially worthless if you did not make it. Quite often, many who failed the examination blamed society for not recognizing their talents, and they were not always wrong.
Today’s poem was written by Wang Wei for his friend Qiwu Qian, who failed the examination. Wang Wei tells Qiwu Qian that the society is to blame, not him. If they were living in “a halcyon age”, their talents would be recognized and they would “come back” to the capital, never having to choose the life of a hermit (dwelling in Dongshan and picking bracken fern were what famous hermits from the Chinese history did). Still, despite that Qiwu Qian came all the way to the capital through Jianghui, he has to go back home now.
The term I translated as “someone who knows you” is 知音, zhiyin. It literally means: to know the musical note. In the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a musician called Boya. His friend, Zhong Ziqi, would always be able to tell what Boya had in mind whenever he heard Boya playing a note. Later, when Zhong Ziqi died, Boya smashed his instrument, grieving that no one understood his music anymore. The term zhiyin came out of this story. It refers to a friend who truly understands you. In other words, no matter what others think about him, Wang Wei is implying that he understands Qiwu Qian and recognizes his worth.
I believe many people receiving this newsletter are writers or other types of creators. We all need a Zhong Ziqi or Wang Wei by us, I guess.
If you enjoyed my work, you can buy me a cup of tea. I am not a coffee person, by the way.
So lovely
Beautiful.