Feng Zikai

Early Winter Bathing Day "is an article by Feng Zikai, selected from" Selected Essays of Feng Zikai ", published by Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House in 1981. The article uses a comparative approach to show different attitudes towards the same thing in different periods of winter and summer. The language is plain and not sophisticated, and it is narrated in a simple yet profound way, revealing a simple yet profound philosophy. Every word and line is infused with a pursuit of free life and a subtle experience of life. 初冬浴日漫感 On Winter Sunshine 丰子恺 Feng Zikai （欧阳利锋 译） 离开故居一两个月，一旦归来，坐到南窗下的书桌旁时，第一感到异样的，是小半书桌的太阳光。原来夏已去，秋正尽，初冬方到。窗外的太阳已随分南倾了。 After being away for a couple of months, I returned to my old home and took my place by the south window, but was surprised to find that most of my desk was now in the shade. Summer was long gone, and autumn was giving way to winter, so naturally enough the sun’s rays were now tilted from the south. 把椅子靠在窗缘上，背着窗坐了看书，太阳光笼罩了我的上半身。它非但不像一两月前地使我讨厌，反使我觉得暖烘烘地快适。这一切生命之母的太阳似乎正在把一种祛病延年，起死回生的乳汁，通过了她的光线而流注到我的体中来。 I put a chair against the window and, with my back to the sunshine, sat down to read. The sun’s glow enveloped my upper body, and instead of roasting me as it did a couple of months ago, it…

Spring "is a prose written by modern painter and essayist Feng Zikai, titled" Spring ". Feng Zikai, through delicate observation and vivid description, showcases the multifaceted nature of spring in different contexts, with both beautiful and uncomfortable aspects. 春  Spring 文/丰子恺 译/张梦井、杜耀文 春是多么可爱的一个名词！ What a lovely word “Spring” is! 自古以来的人都赞美它，希望它长在人间。诗人，特别是词客，对春爱慕尤深。试翻词选，差不多每一页上都可以找到一个春字。 Men have praised it since ancient times, hoping for it to stay in the human world forever. Poets, especially ci [1] composers, cherish it with an especial deep love for spring. Try to leaf through the collection of ci (poetry) and you can find the character “春” (spring) on nearly every page. [1] ci (词), poetry written to certain tunes with strict tonal patterns and rhyme schemes, in fixed numbers of lines and words, originating in the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907) and fully developed in the Song Dynasty (960 – 1279). 后人听惯了这种话，自然地随喜附和，即使实际上没有理解春的可爱的人，一说起春也会觉得欢喜。 The descendents become used to listening to these and they naturally begin to love and chime in with those around them. Even those who do not really understand the loveliness of spring, while taking about it, they would feel a pleasant sensation. 这一半是春这个字的音容所暗示的。“春！”你听，这个音读起来何等铿锵而惺忪可爱！这个字的形状何等齐整妥贴而具足对称的美！ This is partly because the likeness is suggested by the word spring. Listen “Chun!”…

The main idea expressed by Feng Zikai in the article is that as time passes unconsciously, people's hearts gradually change, making it difficult to grasp their own life trajectory, chasing after things in the secular world, and being completely unaware of it. He emphasized the importance of maintaining the mentality of "innocence, romance," "generosity, heroism," and "vitality" that he had since childhood, believing that the role of "gradual" is to conceal the traces of time's past and the changes of things with extremely subtle and gradual steps. 渐① ◎　丰子恺 使人生圆滑进行②的微妙的要素，莫如“渐”；造物主骗人的手段，也莫如“渐”。在不知不觉之中，天真烂漫的孩子“渐渐”变成野心勃勃的青年；慷慨豪侠的青年“渐渐”变成冷酷的成人；血气旺盛的成人“渐渐”变成顽固的老头子。因为其变更是渐进的，一年一年地，一月一月地，一日一日地，一时一时地，一分一分地，一秒一秒地渐进，犹如从斜度极缓的长远的山陂上走下来，使人不察其递降的痕迹③，不见其各阶段的境界，而似乎觉得常在同样的地位，恒久不变④，又无时不有生的意趣与价值，于是人生就被确实肯定，而圆滑进行了。假如昨夜的孩子今朝忽然变成青年；或朝为青年而暮忽成老人，人一定要惊讶，感慨，悲伤，或痛感人生的无常，而不乐为人了。故可知人生是由“渐”维持的。这在女人恐怕尤为必要：歌剧中，舞台上的如花的少女⑤，就是将来火炉旁边的老婆子⑥，这句话骤听使人不能相信，少女也不肯承认，实则现在的老婆子都是由如花的少女“渐渐”变成的。 人之能堪受境遇的变衰，也全靠这“渐”的助力。巨富的纨袴子弟因屡次破产而“渐渐”荡尽其家产，变为贫者；贫者只得做雇工，雇工往往变为奴隶，奴隶容易变为无赖，无赖与乞丐相去甚近，乞丐不妨做偷儿……这样的例，在小说中，在实际上，均多得很。因为其变衰是延长为十年二十年而一步一步地“渐渐”地达到的⑦，在本人不感到甚么强烈的刺激。故虽到了饥寒病苦刑笞交迫的地步，仍是熙熙然贪恋着目前的生的欢喜。假如一位千金之子忽然变了乞丐或偷儿，这人一定愤不欲生了。 这真是大自然的神秘的原则，造物主的微妙的工夫！阴阳潜移⑧，春秋代序⑨，以及物类的衰荣生杀⑩，无不暗合于这法则。由萌芽的春“渐渐”变成绿阴的夏；由凋零的秋“渐渐”变成枯寂的冬。我们虽已经历数十寒暑，但在围炉拥衾⑪的冬夜仍是难于想像饮冰挥扇的夏日的心情；反之亦然。然而由冬一天一天地，一时一时地，一分一分地，一秒一秒地移向夏，由夏一天一天地，一时一时地，一分一分地，一秒一秒地移向冬，其间实在没有显著的痕迹可寻。昼夜也是如此：傍晚坐在窗下看书，page上“渐渐”地黑起来，倘不断地看下去，（目力能因了光的渐弱而渐渐加强）几乎永远可以认识page上的字迹，即不觉昼之已变为夜。黎明凭窗，不瞬目地注视东天，也不辨自夜向昼的推移的痕迹。儿女渐渐长大起来，在朝夕相见的父母全不觉得，难得见面的远亲就相见不相识了。往年除夕，我们曾在红蜡烛底下守候水仙花的开放，真是痴态！倘水仙花果真当面开放给我们看，便是大自然的原则的破坏，宇宙的根本的摇动，世界人类的末日临到了！ “渐”的作用，就是用每步相差极微缓的方法来隐蔽时间的过去与事物的变迁的痕迹，使人误认其为恒久不变。这真是造物主骗人的一大诡计！这有一件比喻的故事：某农夫每天朝晨抱了犊而跳过一沟，到田里去工作，夕暮又抱了它跳过沟回家。每日如此，未尝间断。过了一年，犊已渐大，渐重，差不多变成大牛，但农夫全不觉得，仍是抱了它跳沟。有一天他因事停止工作，次日再就不能抱了这牛而跳沟了。造物的骗人，使人留连于其每日每时的生的欢喜而不觉其变迁与辛苦，就是用这个方法的，人们每日在抱了日重一日的牛而跳沟，不准停止。自己误以为是不变的，其实每日在增加其苦劳！ 我觉得时辰钟是人生的最好的象征了。时辰钟的针，平常一看总觉得是“不动”的，其实人造物中最常动的无过于时辰钟的针了。日常生活中的人生也如此，刻刻觉得我是我，似乎这“我”永远不变，实则与时辰钟的针一样地无常！一息尚存，总觉得我仍是我，我没有变，还是留连着我的生，可怜受尽“渐”的欺骗！ “渐”的本质是“时间”。一般人对于时间的悟性，似乎只够支配搭船、乘车的短时间；对于百年的长期间的寿命，他们不能胜任，往往迷于局部而不能顾及全体⑫。试看乘火车的旅客中，常有明达的人，有的宁牺牲暂时的安乐而让其坐位于弱者，以求心的太平（或博暂时的美誉）；有的见众人争先下车，而退在后面，或高呼“勿要轧，总有得下去的！”“大家都要下去的！”然而在乘“社会”或“世界”的大火车的“人生”的长期的旅客中，就少有这样的明达之人。所以我觉得百年的寿命，定得太长。像现在的世界上的人，倘定他们搭船乘车的期间的寿命，也许在人类社会上可减少许多凶险残惨的争斗。而与火车中一样地谦让，和平，也未可知。 然人类中也有几个能胜任百年的或千古的寿命的人。那是“大人格”，“大人生”。他们能不为“渐”所迷，不为造物所欺。 Gradualness ◎ Feng Zikai The subtle factor that makes life endurable is "gradualness". It is by this "gradualness" that the Creator deceives all humans. Through the process of imperceptible gradual change, innocent kids become ambitious youths, chivalrous youths become unfeeling grownups, aggressive grownups become mulish old fogeys. Since the change takes place by slow degrees — year by year, month by month, day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute, second by second, you feel as if you were permanently your same old self always seeing much fun and meaning in life, like one, walking a long, long way down an extremely gentle…