Yuan Dynasty
寿阳曲
姚燧
【双调】寿阳曲
酒可红双颊，愁能白二毛，
对樽前尽可开怀抱。
天若有情天亦老，
且休教少年知道。
红颜褪，绿鬓凋，
酒席上渐疏了欢笑。
风流近来都忘了，
谁通道也曾年少？
襄王梦，神女情，
多般儿酿成愁病。
琵琶慢调弦上声，
相思字越弹着不应。
Translation
Wine can redden both cheeks, but sorrow can turn the temples white. Before the wine cup, one may still open the heart as much as possible. If Heaven had feeling, Heaven too would grow old; better not let the young know such things. The rosy face fades, the dark temples wither, and laughter at the banquet grows thin. Lately even the old romances have been forgotten. Who would believe that I too was once young? The dream of King Xiang and the feeling of the Goddess have brewed many forms of lovesick illness. The pipa is slowly tuned and sounds upon the strings, yet the word “longing” receives no answer however it is played.
Analysis
Yao Sui’s “Shou Yang Qu” consists of three short songs centered on wine, aging, love, and sorrow. The opening contrast—wine reddening the cheeks while sorrow whitens the temples—captures the difference between temporary pleasure and lasting emotional cost. The allusion to “If Heaven had feeling, Heaven too would grow old” lifts private sorrow into a cosmic register, while the line about not letting youth know suggests both pity and resignation. The second song focuses on fading youth. The face loses color, dark hair withers, and the laughter of banquets thins. The final question, “Who would believe that I too was once young?” is especially poignant: it expresses not only nostalgia but the loneliness of an aging self whose youth is no longer visible to others. The third song turns to lovesickness. The allusions to King Xiang and the Goddess evoke desire, dream, and unattainable union. The pipa can sound, but the word “longing” receives no answer. The suite is plain in diction but deep in feeling, combining Yuan colloquial directness with late-life melancholy.
About the Author
Yao Sui was a Yuan-dynasty writer, official, and sanqu poet, courtesy name Duanfu and literary name Mu’an. A learned man of letters, he served in high cultural offices and was known for classical prose. His surviving sanqu are not numerous, but they often carry a literati tone of reflection, wine, aging, and emotional restraint. Compared with more theatrical or urban sanqu, Yao Sui’s songs are quieter, more meditative, and marked by late-life melancholy.