A Mortal Life, Born of One Thought · Stubborn and Foolish by Nature · 20 / 102
Chao Tianzi: The Top Scholar in Red
The fine horse is draped in red satin; outside the palace gates the peach blossoms burst open. The literary style is lush and lovely—freely now, the wish of a whole life.
Two-staff drums and the blown reed pipes shift and turn together; rank and the robes of office come at twenty, the capping age. Received at the jade hall, the girdle-pendants slow, and spring warms the world of men.
Glosses—
The capping age (ruo guan): in old times a Han Chinese man of twenty was said to be at the capping age;
Girdle-pendants (jin bu): an ornament of antiquity. Jade pendants of various shapes were strung on colored cords into a set and tied at the waist, used at first to weight down the hem of the skirt. Worn while walking, they gave out a sound measured in its pace and proper in its weight. If the rhythm fell into disorder it was held to be a breach of manners, and the ancients took this very seriously.
*This work is original. If you repost it, please credit the original author Guang Zhi Shiyi; any infringement, once discovered, will be pursued to the full extent of the law. In addition, the accompanying image comes from the internet and belongs to the original artist Nayan Yao Niepanpan.