Yuan Dynasty

庆东原·忘忧草

Qìng dōng yuán · Wàng yōu cǎo

白朴

Bái Pǔ

Wàng yōu cǎo, hán xiào huā,

忘忧草，含笑花，

Quàn jūn wén zǎo guān yí guà.

劝君闻早冠宜挂。

Nǎ lǐ yě néng yán Lù Jiǎ,

那里也能言陆贾，

Nǎ lǐ yě liáng móu Zǐ Yá,

那里也良谋子牙，

Nǎ lǐ yě háo qì Zhāng Huá?

那里也豪气张华？

Qiān gǔ shì fēi xīn,

千古是非心，

Yī xī yú qiáo huà.

一夕渔樵话。

Translation

The forget-sorrow herb and the smiling flower are in bloom. I urge you to hang up your official cap early and leave office behind. Where now is there room for eloquence like Lu Jia’s? Where is there need for strategy like Jiang Ziya’s? Where is there grandeur like Zhang Hua’s? The judgments of right and wrong through the ages will, in the end, become only one night’s talk among fishermen and woodcutters.

Analysis

This lyric expresses a distinctly Yuan-dynasty withdrawal from public ambition. The opening flowers—forget-sorrow herb and smiling flower—create a symbolic space outside office and contention. The phrase “hang up the official cap” makes the argument explicit. By invoking Lu Jia, Jiang Ziya, and Zhang Hua, Bai Pu does not dismiss talent; rather, he questions whether the world still has a place for such talent. The final couplet is quietly devastating: all historical judgments of right and wrong end as evening talk among fishermen and woodcutters.