To My Sons - Lu You
/示儿 - 陆游/
When the Central Plains Are Liberated, Remember to Tell Me
【Original Chinese】
示儿
死去元知万事空，
但悲不见九州同。
王师北定中原日，
家祭无忘告乃翁。
【Literal English Translation (Line by Line)】
I knew when dying that all worldly affairs turn to emptiness,
Yet I only grieve I cannot see all the Nine Provinces unified.
When our royal armies triumph and reclaim the Central Plains,
During the household rites, forget not to tell your departed father.
示儿
死去元知万事空，
但悲不见九州同。
王师北定中原日，
家祭无忘告乃翁。
【Literal English Translation (Line by Line)】
I knew when dying that all worldly affairs turn to emptiness,
Yet I only grieve I cannot see all the Nine Provinces unified.
When our royal armies triumph and reclaim the Central Plains,
During the household rites, forget not to tell your departed father.
Written in the Southern Song era, “示儿” (“To My Sons”) is one of Lu You’s most famous—and final—poems. Born in 1125, Lu You dedicated much of his life to lamenting the Song court’s failure to fully reclaim northern territories seized by the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty. In these four concise lines, composed near the end of his life, he lays bare the depth of his patriotic longing.
1. **Line-by-Line Reflection**
- The poet begins by noting that death renders all human concerns “empty”—a nod to the Buddhist or philosophical idea that worldly attachments ultimately fade. However, this acceptance of mortality does not diminish his heartbreak that China remains divided.
- “九州同” (Nine Provinces unified) evokes the classical notion of a fully united realm, echoing the Tang and earlier dynasties’ aspiration to consolidate all Chinese territories under one rule. The poet’s sorrow stems from never witnessing that dream realized.
- “王师北定” (the royal armies reclaiming the north) crystallizes the poet’s ardent hope: a victorious campaign to restore the lost heartland (the “Central Plains” or 中原). He pleads with his descendants to relay these tidings to his spirit.
2. **Historical Context**
- During Lu You’s lifetime, the Song court had retreated south (to today’s Hangzhou area), leaving the north in foreign hands. Generations of military campaigns to retake the lost territories ended in stalemates or peace treaties that many viewed as humiliating. Lu You joined the ranks of loyalists advocating active reconquest.
3. **Emotional Core**
- “示儿” embodies Lu You’s blend of personal and patriotic devotion: on one hand, it’s a parting word to his children, instructing them on how to remember him during ancestral rites. On the other, it’s an undying testament to his faith in a future unification.
- The final line—“家祭无忘告乃翁” (at the household sacrifice, do not forget to inform your father)—captures both solemn tradition and ongoing hope. Even in death, Lu You’s spirit yearns for the day that news of a reclaimed north will be brought to him.
4. **Stylistic Economy**
- True to the classical Chinese quatrain form, Lu You’s poem uses brevity to evoke centuries of history and heartbreak. The lines compress personal resignation, national sorrow, and a charged directive for the next generation into just twenty characters.
5. **Legacy**
- “示儿” remains an iconic expression of patriotism in Chinese literature. Students and admirers frequently quote its lines to illustrate the depth of Song loyalists’ wish for a reunited realm. Centuries later, the poem still resonates as a testament to how patriotic grief and hope can transcend a single lifetime.
Key points
• Embodies Lu You’s lifelong desire to see a reconquest of lost northern territories.
• Ties personal family ritual (the home sacrifice) to the grand vision of national unification.
• Uses the quatrain format’s brevity for a potent mix of resignation, patriotism, and final instruction.
• Stands as one of the most famous patriotic farewell poems in Chinese literary history.
