詩経
二子乘舟
Anonymous
二子乘舟
泛泛其景
愿言思子
中心养养
二子乘舟
泛泛其逝
愿言思子
不瑕有害
翻訳
The two young men board the boat; its shadow drifts and floats upon the water. I think of them deeply, and my heart is troubled and uneasy. The two young men board the boat; it drifts and drifts away. I think of them deeply. How can there be no danger?
解説
"Er Zi Cheng Zhou" is the final poem of the "Bei Feng" section of the Book of Songs. It is extremely short, but it carries a heavy tragic atmosphere. Traditionally, it has been connected with the story of two sons of Duke Xuan of Wei, whose fate was entangled in political and familial conflict. Even without relying fully on that historical reading, the poem clearly presents anxiety over two young men departing into danger. The opening image is simple: two young men board a boat. There is no elaborate introduction. The stillness of the image makes the unease stronger. A boat suggests departure, exposure, and the surrender of one's path to water and circumstance. "The shadow drifts and floats upon the water" gives the scene a fragile visual quality. The speaker is watching from a distance. The boat is still visible, but already separated from the shore. The people on board are moving beyond reach. "I think of them deeply, and my heart is troubled and uneasy." This is not ordinary longing. It is anxious thought. The speaker senses that something may happen to them and cannot be calm. The second stanza changes the image from drifting shadow to actual departure: the boat "drifts and drifts away." The movement is irreversible. The young men are leaving the range of protection. The final question, "How can there be no danger?" gives the poem its tragic force. The poem does not describe the disaster. It only leaves us with the fear of it. That restraint is precisely what makes it powerful. "Er Zi Cheng Zhou" is a poem of watching and helplessness. Someone sees the young men leave, thinks of them, and fears harm. There is no action that can stop the boat, no answer that can remove the danger. The result is a deep and quiet sorrow.
作者紹介
"Er Zi Cheng Zhou" comes from the "Bei Feng" section of the "Airs of the States" in the Book of Songs. Its author is unknown. The Book of Songs is the earliest anthology of Chinese poetry, containing more than three hundred poems from roughly the early Western Zhou to the mid-Spring and Autumn period. "Bei Feng" preserves songs associated with the region of Bei and the state of Wei, many of which concern marriage, family, politics, war, exile, labor, and social distress. "Er Zi Cheng Zhou" is remembered for its brief but haunting image of two young men drifting away by boat, leaving behind a speaker filled with anxious foreboding.