Yuan Dynasty
骤雨打新荷
元好问
绿叶阴浓，
遍池亭水阁，
偏趁凉多。
海榴初绽，
朵朵簇红罗。
老燕携雏弄语，
有高柳鸣蝉相和。
骤雨过，
珍珠乱撒，
打遍新荷。
人生百年有几，
念良辰美景，
休放虚过。
穷通前定，
何用苦张罗。
命友邀宾玩赏，
对芳樽浅酌低歌。
且酩酊，
任他两轮日月，
来往如梭。
Translation
The green leaves cast a dense shade; all around the pond, the pavilions, and waterside chambers, there is especially abundant coolness. The pomegranate flowers have just begun to bloom, each cluster gathered like red silk. Old swallows bring their young and chatter softly, while cicadas in the tall willows call in answer. A sudden shower passes; pearls scatter wildly, striking all over the new lotus leaves. How many years does a human life truly have, even if one says a hundred? Thinking of this fine hour and beautiful scene, do not let it pass in vain. Poverty and success are fixed by fate; why struggle and scheme so bitterly? Call friends and invite guests to enjoy the scene; before fragrant cups of wine, drink lightly and sing softly. For now, let us become drunk, and let the two wheels of sun and moon come and go like shuttles on a loom.
Analysis
"Sudden Rain Striking the New Lotus" is one of Yuan Haowen's lively seasonal songs. It begins with a summer landscape and ends with a philosophy of life: since time is brief and uncertain, one should not waste moments of beauty. The opening creates a cool summer setting. Dense green leaves shade the pond, pavilions, and waterside chambers. The scene is not oppressive summer heat, but a refreshing retreat beside water. The pomegranate blossoms add strong color. Their red clusters stand out vividly against the deep green shade. Yuan Haowen's scene is full of contrast: shade and brightness, coolness and color. The old swallows with their young and the cicadas in the willows bring sound into the picture. This is not a still landscape. It is animated by birds, insects, rain, water, leaves, and human presence. The central image comes after the sudden shower: raindrops scatter like pearls and strike the new lotus leaves. The comparison to pearls captures both brightness and movement. The word "new" gives the lotus a fresh, washed quality after rain. The second half turns from scenery to reflection. Human life may be called a hundred years, but how many truly good moments does it contain? Since the present scene is beautiful, it should not be allowed to pass emptily. "Poverty and success are fixed by fate" expresses a late-life detachment from ambition. This is not laziness, but the wisdom of someone who has seen political and historical upheaval. Striving cannot control everything, and excessive scheming only wastes life. The alternative is modest pleasure: invite friends, enjoy the scene, drink lightly, and sing softly. The verbs are restrained. This is not reckless indulgence, but a cultivated and conscious enjoyment of the present. The final image of sun and moon moving like shuttles on a loom gives the poem its deeper force. Time moves rapidly and cannot be stopped. The speaker's response is not despair, but temporary release: drink, sing, and inhabit the moment before it disappears. The piece is bright, but not naïve. Its pleasure is grounded in awareness of transience. That is why its joy feels mature rather than shallow.
About the Author
Yuan Haowen, courtesy name Yuzhi and literary name Yishan, was a major writer and historian of the late Jin and early Yuan periods. Born in Xiurong, Taiyuan, he was one of the most important literary figures of the Jin dynasty, accomplished in poetry, ci, qu, and prose. After the fall of the Jin, he devoted himself to preserving Jin literary culture and compiled the influential anthology Zhongzhou ji. His works often express historical sorrow and memory of a fallen state, but he also wrote fresh and elegant pieces on landscape, banquets, seasonal scenes, and late-life retreat.