阅秋声赋 - mauriceling/mauriceling.github.io GitHub Wiki
七夕扫阅秋声赋
成住坏空自然途
王侯九等皆为是
何以天地争辉路
— 22/08/23
Commentary: 秋声赋 was written by 欧阳修 (Ouyang Xiu) in 1059 when he was 53 years old. The original classical Chinese text (原文) is
欧阳子方夜读书，闻有声自西南来者，悚然而听之，曰：异哉！初淅沥以萧飒，忽奔腾而砰湃；如波涛夜惊，风雨骤至。其触于物也，鏦鏦铮铮5，金铁皆鸣；又如赴敌之兵，衔枚疾走，不闻号令，但闻人马之行声。余谓童子7：“此何声也？汝出视之。” 童子曰：“星月皎洁，明河在天，四无人声，声在树间。”予曰：“噫嘻，悲哉！此秋声也。胡为而来哉？”
“盖夫秋之为状也，其色惨淡，烟霏云敛；其容清明，天高日晶；其气栗冽，砭人肌骨；其意萧条，山川寂寥。故其为声也，凄凄切切，呼号愤发。丰草绿缛而争茂，佳木葱茏而可悦。草拂之而色变，木遭之而叶脱。其所以摧败零落者，乃其一气之余烈。夫秋，刑官也，于时为阴；又兵象也，于行用金。是谓天地之义气，常以肃杀而为心。天之于物，春生秋实，故其在乐也，商声主西方之音，夷则为七月之律。商，伤也，物既老而悲伤；夷，戮也，物过盛而当杀。”
“嗟夫！草木无情，有时飘零。人为动物，惟物之灵。百忧感其心，万事劳其形，有动于中，必摇其精。而况思其力之所不及，忧其智之所不能，宜其渥然丹者为槁木，黟然黑者为星星。奈何以非金石之质，欲与草木而争荣？念谁为之戕贼，亦何恨乎秋声！”
童子莫对，垂头而睡。但闻四壁虫声唧唧，如助余之叹息。
The modern Chinese translation (白话译文) is
欧阳先生正在夜里读书，听到有声音从西南方向传来，惊异地注意听取，说：奇怪啊！开始时淅淅沥沥细碎凄凉，忽然间飞驰跳跃响亮宏壮，像惊涛骇浪午夜汹涌，疾风暴雨突然降临；它和别的物体接触时，发出清越的撞击声，如同金属轰鸣。又像奔敌营的士兵，口中衔着枚行进，听不到号令，只听到人和马奔跑的声音。我对书童说：“这是什么声音呢？你出去看一下。”书童回答说：“星星月亮光辉灿烂，银河高高挂在天空，四周寂静无人，声音在树木中间。”我说：“唉，可悲啊！这是秋季的声音呀，为什么就到来了呢？”
“那秋季呈现的状态是：它的色彩单调，烟散云收，凄凉暗淡；它的容貌洁净，天清气爽，阳光灿烂；它的气候酷烈，凉意袭人，深入肌骨；它的意象冷落，山寒水瘦，萧森寂寞。所以它发出的声音，凄凉悲切，愤怒激烈。茂草绿毯子一般争相滋长，树木青翠欲滴令人喜爱，茂草遇到它就枯黄，树木遭逢它就落叶。秋季所以能摧毁茂草，凋零树木，因为是自然界的运化规律。这秋季，是人间罚恶的法官，在四季中属于阴；又是战争的象征，在五行中代表金。属于天地间的刚正之气，经常以严酷暴戾作为本性。自然界对于万物，春季生长秋季结果。所以秋季在音乐中，商声是西方的音符，夷则是七月的乐律。商即悲伤，万物已经衰老就产生悲伤；夷即杀戮，万物过于茂盛就应该杀戮、消减。”
“可叹啊！茂草树木没有感情，在一定的时间仍不免飘飞零落。人是有血肉的动物，一切生物中的灵长。成百种忧虑感触人的内心，成万项事务劳累人的身体，只要内心有所触动，必然扰乱他的精神；而且还要考虑他力量所不能完成的事务，担心他智慧所无法解决的问题。理所当然地会使人鲜细涧泽的容颜变得枯瘠苍老，乌黑茂密的须发变得花白稀疏。为什么要用不是金石那样坚固不变的本质，想去和茂草树木争一时之景呢？考虑到究竟是什么原因摧残了人，又何必怨恨这秋季的声音呢！”
书童没有回答，低着头打瞌睡了。只听到四边墙壁外唧唧的虫鸣，好像在附和着我的叹气声。
The only law in this universe is natural law of change and balance – 天地不仁，以万物为刍狗；圣人不仁，以百姓为刍狗。As much as we want, we cannot change the coming and going of the seasons; neither can we change the wheels of history. We can only go with it, enjoy the benefits, joy, pains and sorrows as they comes. Be in the market and mitigate the risks by strategies like dollar-cost averaging is much better than trying to time the market. Even Qing dynasty resolved all the issues plaguing previous dynasties, it falls flat in the face of industrial revolution and global maritime explorations. As Ouyang Xiu said, we are not plants and stones; yet, we want to bear their burden – of course we will be tired. Even this planet is doomed when our sun becomes a red giant. 成住坏空 is natural creation and destruction – a Mayfly may only live for 24 hours but Bistlecone Pine may live for thousands of years – even then, Bistlecone Pine will not survive our planet’s eventual destruction. It is a matter of just how long. Maybe some relationships are meant to last a lifetime while others for years or months or days – it is just a natural cycle. Whether emperors or commoners, there is no real difference. So, why fight against this law? 尽人事，听天命 – put in appropriate efforts or even the best efforts, then let it go.