Cao Cao (曹操, Wade-Giles: Tsao Tsao) (155-220), with style name 孟德 Mengde, was the Chancellor of the Han Dynasty who laid the foundations for the future 魏 Wei kingdom (曹魏 Cao Wei, 220 CE – 265 CE, was one of the three states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period). Cao Cao, descended from the former Han Prime Minister 曹参 Cao Can, was a master of sword and pen. As a warlord and strategist, he excelled in wars and in politics. As a poet, Cao Cao together with his two sons and other poets of his time, created 建安 Jian An style poetry, developed Han 乐府 Yue fu poems and contributed to the creation of Tang Dynasty’s regular five-character line shi 诗 poetry （五言绝句 Wu yan jue ju). Cao Cao’s son, 曹植 Cao Zhi (192–232) was regarded as the greatest poet of the age.
For Cao Cao’s biography, see 曹操
Cao Cao’s famous quote:
“I would rather betray the world, than let the world betray me.”
— Cao Cao, Romance of the Three Kingdoms (三国演义 San guo yan yì Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by 罗贯中 Luo Guanzhong (c. 1330–1400) in the 14th century, is a historical novel set amidst the turbulent years around the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era (169-180).)
宁我负人,休教人负我。(direct quote from 三国演义)
níng wǒ fù rén ,xiū jiāo rén fù Wǒ .
宁可我负天下人，休叫天下人负我. (modified version of the quote)
nìngkě wǒ fù tiānxià rén , xiū jiào tiānxià rén fù Wǒ .
宁可我背叛天下的所有人，也不能让天下的人背叛了我。(modern Chinese version of the quote)
nìngkě wǒ bèipàn tiānxià de suǒyǒu rén , yě bù néng ràng tiānxià de rén bèipàn le Wǒ .
The poem 短歌行
短歌行 is Cao Cao’s most well known poem. It was written right before the Battle of Red Cliffs in the winter of 208 AD. (The Battle of Red Cliffs － 赤壁之战 chi pi zhi zhan – also is known as the Battle of Chibi, was a decisive fiercely fought battle at the end of the Han Dynasty, immediately prior to the Three Kingdoms period.)
短歌行
duǎngē xíng
Short Song Style
曹操
cáocāo
[ca_audio url=”http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Cao-Cao.mp3″ width=”500″ height=”27″ css_class=”codeart-google-mp3-player” autoplay=”false”]
对酒当歌，人生几何？譬如朝露，去日苦多。
duì jiǔ dāng gē , rénshēng jǐhé ? pìrú cháo lòu , qù rì kǔ duō .
Facing wine (one) should sing (for who knows) how long (one’s) life will be?
Such as morning dews, past days are bitterly so many (while future ones are few.)
慨当以慷，幽思难忘。何以解忧？唯有杜康。
kǎi dāng yǐ kāng , yōu sī nán wàng . hé yǐ jiè yōu ? wéi yǒu dù kāng .
(One) should be fervent and passionate, however, the deep embedded thoughts are hard to forget.
What should one use to loosen sorrow? Only Du Kang.
青青子衿，悠悠我心。但为君故，沉吟至今。
qīng qīng zǐ jīn , yōu yōu Wǒ xīn . dàn wèi jūn gù , chén yín zhì jīn .
My heart still lingeringly thinks about the blue collar of yours.
You are the reason why I have been still deeply reciting (this poems) till now.
呦呦鹿鸣，食野之苹。我有嘉宾，鼓瑟吹笙。
you you lù míng , shí yě zhī pín . wǒ yǒu jiā bīn , gǔ sè chuī shēng .
Bleating, bleating, deers cry while feeding on wild mugworts.
I am having a esteemed guest, (so I make my musicians) play zithers and blow reed pipes.
明明如月，何时可掇？忧从中来，不可断绝。
míng míng rú yuè , hé shí kě duō ? yōu cóng zhōng lái , bù kě duàn jué .
(The talent) is so bright like the moon. When can I pick it up?
(My) sorrow comes from deep inside and it can’t be severed.
越陌度阡，枉用相存。契阔谈宴，心念旧恩。
yuè mò dù qiān , wǎng yòng Xiāng Cún . qī kuò tán Yàn , xīn niàn jiù ēn .
(You) crossed over paths and roads, troubling yourself to visit me.
After long parting, (now) we are chatting and feasting, and our hearts are thinking of old time’s kindness and favor.
月明星稀，乌鹊南飞，绕树三匝，何枝可依？
yuè míng xīng xī , wū què Nán fēi , rǎo shù sān zā , hé zhī kě yī ?
The moon is bright and the stars are sparse. Crows and magpies fly to the south.
(They) rotate around the tree three times, which branch can they perch on?
山不厌高，海不厌深。周公吐哺，天下归心。
shān bù yàn gāo , hǎi bù yàn shēn . zhōu gōng tǔ bǔ , tiān xià guī xīn .
Mountains don’t object to be tallness, and seas don’t object to be deep.
The Duke of Zhou spitted out (food during meal times), thus, the whole world converted to him.
Poem analysis:
短歌行
duǎngē xíng
曹操
cáocāo
The genre of duǎn gē xíng Poem: Yue fu 乐府
The poetic form of duǎ ngē xíng 短歌行 belongs to the genre of Yue fu (乐府), Music Bureau. Yue 乐 means music while fu 府 means bureau. The title, Duǎn gē xíng 短歌行 is one of old Yue fu tunes.
For information about Yue fu poem genre, see: http://www.chinesetolearn.com/shu-dao-nan-the-difficulty-of-the-shu-road/
对酒当歌，人生几何？譬如朝露，去日苦多。
duì jiǔ dāng gē , rénshēng jǐhé ? pìrú cháo lòu , qù rì kǔ duō .
We never know how long we can live. Maybe we will be able to live a long, long life, or maybe our life will be cut short due to an accident, a hidden illness or a lingering mental distress. There always will have a tomorrow, however, it can be a tomorrow without us living in it. So, when you have a drinking chance, why not sing songs and try to be joyful when you still can? Treasure moments and live in the moment. Mortal beings’ life is like morning dews; when the sun comes up, dews will soon be evaporated. The days and years that are gone, sadly are bitterly so many. When there is a beginning, there will be an ending. Nothing will live forever. The appearance of human beings seems strong, however we are fragile and weak in some ways.
慨当以慷，幽思难忘。何以解忧？唯有杜康。
kǎi dāng yǐ kāng , yōu sī nán wàng . hé yǐ jiè yōu ? wéi yǒu dù kāng .
Destined to live for only a limited time, however, we should not be discouraged; on the contrary, we should be fervent and passionate. In reality, it is rare that a person’s life journey will all be smooth sailing. It is unavoidable that our thoughts sometimes would be tormented in deep, persistent, dark and unpleasant torrents which would strike our will and root for living. How to solve all these miseries? Drink to numb all the thoughts and senses is one of the ways that people seek for a temporary anesthesia from pains and sorrows.
Du Kung is the legendary inventor of wine, hence, the name is used to refer to wine.
青青子衿，悠悠我心。但为君故，沉吟至今。
qīng qīng zǐ jīn , yōu yōu wǒ xīn . dàn wèi jūn gù , chén yín zhì jīn .
The line 青青子衿，悠悠我心 comes from 诗经 Shi Jing (the Classic of Poetry/Book of Songs/ Book of Odes). In 诗经, this line is used to describe a lady who yearns for a scholar who wears a robe with blue collar. However, this poem is nothing to do with romance or love theme. The poet Cao Cao was an ambitious warlord, and his goal is to exert his power and to conquer the whole world. Therefore, in this poem, the allusion of scholar with blue collar refers to the talented strategist who would be extremely useful for Cao Cao’s determined political driving. Cao Cao had him in his mind and would like to persuade him to come to his court and assist him, and he even composed this everlasting classic poem for him.
呦呦鹿鸣，食野之苹。我有嘉宾，鼓瑟吹笙。
you you lù míng , shí yě zhī pín . wǒ yǒu jiā bīn , gǔ sè chuī shēng .
Compared to grass-roughage eaters – cattles, deers are concentrate food selectors. Deers’ rumen is small relative to body size. Being picky and conscious eaters, they choose nutritious food to eat. What did deer eat in this poem? I saw some translate this 苹 as 苹果 ( Píngguǒ, apples); if so, then these deers were eating fallen apples from the apple trees. However, if you check MBDG Chinese-English dictionary, then, besides apple, it can also refer to duckweeds. Duckweed is a tiny aquatic flowering plant (family Lemnaceae, esp. the genus Lemna) that floats in large quantities on still water. Unless deers know how to swim, otherwise, this is definitely not our answer. Another explanation is 苹 is 皤蒿 pó hāo which has common name 艾蒿 ( aì hāo mugwort). Mugwort is a common name for several species of aromatic plants in the genus Artemisia. In Chinese traditional medicine, Mugworts are used medicinally to enhance body health, and it is also used as an herb to flavor food. Guess these deers were not only picky but also health gurus. What do you eat everyday? Maybe we should eat like a deer.
The next two lines describe the poet, Cao Cao, was having a quest over — a rare quest, a highly expected guest, and that is why he was asking his musicians to perform a welcome concert for this special guest of honor.
明明如月，何时可掇？忧从中来，不可断绝。
míng míng rú yuè , hé shí kě duō ? yōu cóng zhōng lái , bù kě duàn jué .
The talent of the guest is so brilliant like the bright moon in the pitch-dark night sky. How much did Cao Cao want to have him as his advisor of top officials？ Very very much. Did the guest agree to help? The answer is no, or not yet. For from 忧从中来，不可断绝, we saw the consistent flow of stirring sorrows from Cao. Cao Cao knew very well that in order to develop a powerful kingdom, he needed the help of talented strategists. Cao thirsted for them and even pained for the fact that he could not have them all.
越陌度阡，枉用相存。契阔谈宴，心念旧恩。
yuè mò dù qiān , wǎng yòng Xiāng Cún . qī kuò tán Yàn , xīn niàn jiù ēn .
To Cao Cao’s surprise, the special guest crossed over paths and roads from far away and came to visit him. Would you feel elated if the one who you yearn for has come unexpectedly to pay you a visit? Surely you would be ecstatically happy. So happy that you and your guest of dream thought of your past friendship and mutual kindness, heartfeltly chatted and feasted like the best time of your life?
月明星稀，乌鹊南飞，绕树三匝，何枝可依？
yuè míng xīng xī , wū què Nán fēi , rǎo shù sān zā , hé zhī kě yī ?
The scenes of the moonlight sky, crows and magpies flying south and encircling trees, might be the actual scenes Cao Cao saw during the time he wrote the poem or the image he had in mind at that moment. The scenes are also metaphorically used to remind the guest or those talented scholars, who Cao Cao admired and would like to attract them to his court, that they should not hesitate and be half-hearted, on the contrary, they need to have vision and make their mind soon and come to assist him to fulfill his splendid politic goals.
山不厌高，海不厌深。周公吐哺，天下归心。
shān bù yàn gāo , hǎi bù yàn shēn . zhōu gōng tǔ bǔ , tiān xià guī xīn .
Mountains don’t dislike to be tall and oceans don’t hate to be deep. The more talented people, the merrier the ruler will be. Cao uses this line to tell whose bright scholars that they should not be fearful about so many strategists Cao already had at that time, because he would be happy to have them, and each of them would be able to fulfill their goal and be useful under Cao’s ruling. At the end of the poem, Cao uses the Duke of Zhou’s allusion. The Duke of Zhou (周公, Zhōugōng) was a member of the 周 Zhou dynasty (c. 1050–256 BC) who played a major role in consolidating the kingdom established by his elder brother，King 武 Wu of Zhou Dynasty . In 史记 Shǐ Jì（The Records of the Grand Historian）， it describes how how the Duke of Zhou won over people’s hearts all over the world. In 史记 it says: During one bath, (the Duke of Zhou) had to grab his hair three times and in one meal, three times he had to spit out his food to stand up and greet talented people who came to visit him, for he was afraid that he might lose talented people of the world (一沐三捉发，一饭三吐哺，起以待士，犹恐失天下之贤人 yī mù sān zhuō fā , yī fàn sān tǔ bǔ , qǐ yǐ dāi shì , yóu kǒng shī tiānxià zhī xiánrén.) Through this allusion, we thus know that these two lines were meant to inform great strategists that Cao himself will be like the Zuke of Zhou, and treat his future advisors and assistants with great respect and cordial hospitality.
This classic Chinese drinking poem is a poem of purpose. By now, you should know what purpose the poem conveys. Or we might as well say that this poem is sort of like a drinking poem of federal government job advertisement. It is not a poem for anyone, but for those who have specific brilliant talents and meet the government’s critical needs. If Cao Cao were able to put the advertisement online, it might go like:
For those highly qualified individuals who meet the requirements, please apply for the positions as soon as possible to fulfill your life career goal. Besides a kind and friendly supervisor, these highly ranked and esteemed positions will come with best pay as well as excellent benefit etc.. Click the link and apply now.
Poem translated and analyzed by Shu
JJ Lin has a song called Cao Cao
林俊傑-曹操
See the lyrics, pinyin and translation about this song at:
http://www.chinesetolearn.com/?p=6174
