Origin: Qu Yuan's Nine Songs of National Mourning in the Pre-Qin Period.
Selected paragraph:
No return, no return, the plain is hazy and the road is very remote.
Wearing a long sword, holding a strong crossbow, leaving your head, Zhuang Xin will not change.
Brave and fearless, you are the most. You will stick to your post until you die.
The body is dead, the spirit will never die, and your soul is the ghost of a hero!
Translation:
Going to war without returning, the plain is dense and the road is long. Wear a long sword with a strong crossbow, separate your head and body, and be strong. Really brave and hard, always strong. No one can violate it. The body is dead, the spirit is immortal, and your soul is a hero among ghosts!
Poetry appreciation
National mourning is one of Qu Yuan's nine songs, which is a song to mourn and praise the soldiers who died for their country. Yes, there are two meanings, one is to die young, and the other is to die in a different place. National mourning refers to the martyrs who died for their country. Starting from the spirit of patriotism, Qu Yuan enthusiastically eulogized the ordinary soldiers who fought bravely and died heroically, permeated with deep feelings of mourning.
Since these soldiers left their hometown for the battlefield, they have no intention of survival. They came to the vast plains in remote areas, carrying long swords and A Qin bows. Although their heads were separated, their hearts did not change. They are brave and strong, can't be bullied, and swear to serve the country. They are really ghosts. The whole poem is vigorous and tragic in style and simple in language, showing a noble and tragic beauty.