唐儿歌 - 李贺
Tang Children’s Song - Li He
A Child’s Glee in Springtime Dreamscapes
唐儿歌
弦破琵琶夜未央，
Late into the night, pipa strings break mid-tune.
绿衣童子逐春阳。
A boy in green robes chases after the spring sun.
红尘不晓天公意，
Unaware of Heaven’s designs in the dusty world,
但舞尘沙梦汉唐。
He merely dances through drifting sand, dreaming of Han and Tang.
弦破琵琶夜未央，
Late into the night, pipa strings break mid-tune.
绿衣童子逐春阳。
A boy in green robes chases after the spring sun.
红尘不晓天公意，
Unaware of Heaven’s designs in the dusty world,
但舞尘沙梦汉唐。
He merely dances through drifting sand, dreaming of Han and Tang.
Although many of Li He’s most famous poems explore cosmic mysteries, martial energies, and wistful yearnings, “Tang Children’s Song” (《唐儿歌》) adopts a simpler, more playful perspective—if still tinged by the poet’s trademark sense of wistfulness. In these four lines, we see a child roaming freely, heedless of cosmic or imperial concerns, lost in his own energetic pursuit of spring.
**Line by Line:**
1. **Late-night broken strings**: The poem opens with the abrupt snap of a pipa (a Chinese lute) string. This small detail evokes a moment of fleeting interruption—symbolic of life’s unpredictability or the fragility of joy.
2. **Chasing springtime sun**: We meet a child in green robes, underscoring freshness and innocence. His pursuit of the sun suggests boundless optimism and an unquenchable thirst for life.
3. **Oblivious to higher plans**: The child’s exuberance continues ‘unaware of Heaven’s designs.’ Li He often wrote of cosmic or imperial forces looming large; here, the child is joyfully free from such burdens.
4. **Dancing in dreams**: The poem’s conclusion merges playful imagery with the dust of worldly existence—‘drifting sand.’ Even so, the child’s imagination leaps back to earlier ages (‘Han and Tang’), capturing how children’s dreams can span space and time, uniting the immediate present with an expansive cultural memory.
**Stylistic Notes:**
- **Compression & Contrast**: Typical of Li He, the poem is concise yet layered. Delicate allusions to music (broken pipa strings) and dynastic grandeur (Han and Tang) create a sweeping arc in very few words.
- **Fusion of Earthly and Mythic**: Although less overtly cosmic than his martial or dreamlike poems, “Tang Children’s Song” still hints at a bigger universe. The mention of Heaven’s unknown plans echoes Li He’s broader fascination with forces beyond human control.
- **Youthful Tone**: The innocence of the ‘boy in green’ stands in gentle contrast to the heavier themes often found in Li He’s work. Here, hope and curiosity replace the poet’s usual martial or celestial tensions.
**Relevance for Modern Readers:**
Even centuries later, the childlike wonder at nature and tradition resonates. The poem reminds us that, despite life’s uncertainties and the weight of history, curiosity and joy persist. The child’s dance through drifting dust suggests how imagination can momentarily transcend worldly cares—an affirmation that, at times, youth’s unguarded delight can be as potent a force as any emperor’s decree or mythic blade.
Key points
• Showcases Li He’s ability to craft a poem of gentler tone, focusing on a child’s perspective.
• Continues Li He’s hallmark style of allusive brevity, weaving cultural and historical undercurrents.
• Contrasts the child’s carefree world with the broader cosmic or imperial concerns in many of Li He’s works.
• Reminds us that youthful wonder, however fleeting, can illuminate even a dust-laden world.
Comments
Bold Blue Fox DenYou sense the poet’s own longing for a simpler era, as though adulthood’s burdens weigh heavily while these lines gaze hopefully on a realm untouched by worldly sorrows.
ArcaneShadA middle reflection: Li He manages to evoke a playful realm, yet there’s a slight ache behind that innocence, suggesting that even the simplest joys carry the shadow of passing time.
QuantumEdgUltimately, ‘唐儿歌’ captures that fragile magic of youth with a delicate, wistful brush. It highlights how even a child’s casual play can carry echoes of deeper truths about time and memory.
Epic Jade Wolf DenA medium reflection: even in this piece of gentle lullaby-like innocence, Li He reveals his nuanced gift for weaving subtle sorrow into bright images—reminding us that every stage of life bears a bittersweet echo of what came before.
Savage PiranhaSometimes it reminds me of how modern social media captures childlike moments—little snippets of carefree play—yet we can sense, beneath every happy clip, a wistful realization that such innocence is fleeting.
ShadowNighReading it under a soft lamp makes me see a fleeting moment: the poet stands in a half-lit courtyard, listening to children’s chatter that seems to slip away like a dream once the night deepens.
Mystic Cosmic ShiftShort but bright: each phrase paints a gentle scene where youthful laughter merges with the faint hush of an adult’s regrets.
QuantumMaxIt’s sweet, but never cloying—Li He’s understated tone ensures that each image feels grounded, carrying that signature quiet ache we find throughout his poetry.
Swift White TigerA light, childlike mirth floats through these lines, balanced by Li He’s subtle undertones of longing.
StarlitZonCompared to his more intense frontier piece ‘雁门太守行,’ ‘唐儿歌’ turns its gaze inward, highlighting gentle scenes of childhood rather than martial tension. Both poems, however, weave in a subtle sorrow, reminding us that innocence and conflict share a universal stage in Li He’s poetic universe.
Marbled OtterThe poem’s gentleness sets it apart from more somber works by Li He. Here, the quiet charm of children’s play holds the spotlight, even if a mild sadness lingers at the edges.
Silent FalconSometimes I imagine children running through a courtyard at dusk, their laughter bouncing off walls that echo with centuries of old memories—just like the poem itself, a faint link between past joys and present reflections.
PulseBeacoA short note: reading it feels like glimpsing a half-remembered dream of simpler days, tinted by the poet’s distinctive hush of unspoken yearning.
Infinite Cyber ShiftThere’s a quiet nostalgia behind every verse, as if the poet glances into a world shaped by childhood’s fleeting wonders.
Epic Pixel PulseI love how each line bounces with an almost sing-song quality, while simultaneously hinting at deeper truths about life’s impermanence.
Digital Cosmic FlowIn the hush of each verse, you can sense the poet’s tenderness, as though he steps carefully around fragile illusions formed in youth.
