石灰吟[1]
[明]于谦
千锤万凿[2]出深山，
烈火焚烧若等闲[3]。
粉身碎骨浑不怕，
要留清白[4]在人间。
注释：
[1]石灰吟：石灰的赞歌。吟，古代一种诗歌体裁。
[2]千锤万凿：指反复地捶打敲击。
[3]若等闲：好像平常事一样。
[4]清白：高尚节操。
Song of the Lime
Yu Qian[1]
You come out of deep mountains after hammer blows;
Under fire and water tortures you’re not in woes.
Though broken into pieces, you will have no fright;
You’ll purify the world by washing it e’er white.
注释：
[1]Minister of war, Yu Qian beat back the foe who had captured the emperor in 1449, but was put to death after the emperor’s restoration.
“Lime Chant” is a seven-character quatrain written by Yu Qian, a politician and writer in the Ming Dynasty. This poem uses symbols to express the poet’s aspirations. It literally sings about lime, but actually uses objects to represent people and express the poet’s lofty ideals. The whole poem is concise and completed in one go. The language is simple and natural, without any embellishment, and it is very appealing; especially the author’s positive and enterprising attitude towards life and fearless and upright spirit, which are more inspiring and encouraging.
