Book of Songs
郑风·有女同车
佚名
有女同车，颜如舜华。
将翱将翔，佩玉琼琚。
彼美孟姜，洵美且都。
有女同行，颜如舜英。
将翱将翔，佩玉将将。
彼美孟姜，德音不忘。
Translation
A young woman rides with me in the carriage; her face is like the hibiscus flower. As we move, she seems about to soar and fly, wearing pendants of fine jade. Beautiful Meng Jiang—truly lovely and graceful. A young woman travels with me; her face is like the hibiscus bloom. As we move, she seems about to soar and fly, her jade ornaments ringing clear. Beautiful Meng Jiang—her noble voice and virtue cannot be forgotten.
Analysis
“You Nü Tong Che” praises a woman named Meng Jiang through movement, color, sound, and virtue. Her face is compared to the hibiscus flower, bright and fresh. The image suggests youthful beauty, but also a delicate, transient brilliance. The phrase “as if to soar and fly” gives the scene lightness. The woman is not static; she moves with the carriage, her jade ornaments shining and ringing. The poem is therefore both visual and musical. Beauty is seen in her face, heard in her jade pendants, and felt in the grace of her bearing. The final lines shift from appearance to moral presence. Meng Jiang is not only lovely and elegant; her “dé yīn,” her virtuous sound or reputation, is unforgettable. The poem presents an ideal of beauty in which outward grace and inner virtue belong together.
About the Author
“You Nü Tong Che” is an anonymous poem from the Zheng Airs of the Book of Songs. The Zheng Airs often portray courtship, admiration, and the vivid presence of men and women in social life. This poem combines floral imagery, jade ornaments, movement, and moral praise to create an image of beauty that is both physical and ethical.