春

　　豐子愷

　　春是多么可愛的一個(gè)名詞!自古以來的人都贊美它，希望它長(zhǎng)在人間。詩人，特別是詞客，對(duì)春愛慕尤深。試翻詞選，差不多每一頁上都可以找到一個(gè)春字。后人聽?wèi)T了這種話，自然地隨喜附和，即便實(shí)際上沒有理解春的可愛的人，一說起春也會(huì)覺得歡喜。這一半是春這個(gè)字的音容所暗示的�！按�!”你聽，這個(gè)音讀起來何等鏗鏘而惺忪可愛!這個(gè)字的形狀何等齊整妥帖而具足對(duì)稱的美!這么美的名字所隸屬的時(shí)節(jié)，想起來一定很可愛。好比聽見名叫“麗華”的女子，想來一定是個(gè)美人。

　　然而實(shí)際上春不是那么可喜的一個(gè)時(shí)節(jié)。我積三十六年之經(jīng)驗(yàn)，深知暮春以前的春天，生活上是很不愉快的。

　　梅花帶雪開了，說道是漏泄春的消息。但這完全是精神上的春，實(shí)際上雨雪霏霏，北風(fēng)烈烈，與嚴(yán)冬何異?所謂迎春的人，也只是瑟縮地躲在房櫳內(nèi)，戰(zhàn)栗地站在屋檐下，望望枯枝一般的梅花罷了!

　　再遲個(gè)把月罷，就像現(xiàn)在：驚蟄已過，所謂春將半了。住在都會(huì)里的朋友想象此刻的鄉(xiāng)村，足有畫圖一般美麗，連忙寫信來催我寫春的隨筆。好像因?yàn)槲屹税�著春，惹他們妒忌似的。其�?shí)我們住在鄉(xiāng)村間的人，并沒有感到快樂，卻生受了種種的不舒服：寒暑表激烈地升降于三十六度至六十二度之間。一日之內(nèi)，乍暖乍寒。暖起來可以想起都會(huì)里的冰淇淋，寒起來幾乎可見天然冰，飽嘗了所謂“料峭”的滋味。天氣又忽晴忽雨，偶一出門，干燥的鞋子往往拖泥帶水歸來�！耙淮耗苡袔追�晴”是真的;“小樓一夜聽春雨”其實(shí)沒有什么好聽，單調(diào)得很，遠(yuǎn)不及你們都會(huì)里的無線電的花樣繁多呢。春將半了，但它并沒有給我們一點(diǎn)舒服，只教我們天天愁寒，愁暖，愁風(fēng)，愁雨。正是“三分春色二分愁，更一分風(fēng)雨!”

　　春的景象，只有乍寒、乍暖、忽晴、忽雨是實(shí)際而明確的。此外雖有春的美景，但都隱約模糊，要仔細(xì)探尋，才可依稀仿佛地見到，這就是所謂“尋春”罷?有的說“春在賣花聲里”，有的說“春在梨花”，又有的說“紅杏枝頭春意鬧”，但這種景象在我們這枯寂的鄉(xiāng)村里都不易見到。即使見到了，肉眼也不易認(rèn)識(shí)。總之，春所帶來的美，少而隱;春所帶來的不快，多而確。詩人詞客似乎也承認(rèn)這一點(diǎn)，春寒、春困、春愁、春怨，不是詩詞中的常談么?不但現(xiàn)在如此，就是再過個(gè)把月，到了清明時(shí)節(jié)，也不見得一定春光明媚，令人極樂。倘又是落雨，路上的行人將要“斷魂”呢。

　　可知春徒美其名，在實(shí)際生活上是很不愉快的。實(shí)際，一年中最愉快的時(shí)節(jié)，是從暮春開始的。就氣候上說，暮春以前雖然大體逐漸由寒向暖，但變化多端，始終是乍寒、乍暖，最難將息的時(shí)候。到了暮春，方才冬天的影響完全消滅，而一路向暖。寒暑表上的水銀爬到temperate上，正是氣候最temperate的時(shí)節(jié)。就景色上說，春色不須尋找，有廣大的綠野青山，慰人心目。古人詞云：“杜宇一聲春去，樹頭無數(shù)青山�！痹瓉砩揭�到春去的時(shí)候方才全青，而惹人注目。我覺得自然景色中，青草與白雪是最偉大的現(xiàn)象。造物者描寫“自然”這幅大畫圖時(shí)，對(duì)于春紅、秋艷，都只是略蘸些胭脂、硃磦，輕描淡寫。到了描寫白雪與青草，他就毫不吝惜顏料，用刷子蘸了鉛粉、藤黃和花青而大塊地涂抹，使屋屋皆白，山山皆青。這仿佛是米派山水的點(diǎn)染法，又好像是Cezanne風(fēng)景畫的“色的塊”，何等潑辣的畫風(fēng)!而草色青青，連天遍野，尤為和平可親，大公無私的春色。花木有時(shí)被關(guān)閉在私人的庭園里，吃了園丁的私刑而獻(xiàn)媚于紳士淑女之前。草則到處自生自長(zhǎng)，不擇貴賤高下。人都以為花是春的作品，其實(shí)春工不在花枝，而在于草�？椿ǖ哪苡袔兹�?草則廣泛地生長(zhǎng)在大地的表面，普遍地受大眾的欣賞。這種美景，是早春所見不到的。那時(shí)候山野中枯草遍地，滿目憔悴之色，看了令人不快。必須到了暮春，枯草盡去，才有真的青山綠野的出現(xiàn)，而天地為之一新。一年好景，無過于此時(shí)。自然對(duì)人的恩寵，也以此時(shí)為最深厚了。

　　講求實(shí)利的西洋人，向來重視這季節(jié)，稱之為May(五月)。May是一年中最愉快的時(shí)節(jié)，人間有種種的娛樂，即所謂May-queen(五月美人)、May-pole(五月彩柱)、May-games(五月游藝)等。May這一個(gè)字，原是“青春”、“盛年”的意思�？芍�西洋人視一年中的五月，猶如人生中的青年，為最快樂、最幸福、最精彩的時(shí)期。這確是名符其實(shí)的。但東洋人的看法就與他們不同：東洋人稱這時(shí)期為暮春，正是留春、送春、惜春、傷春，而感慨、悲嘆、流淚的時(shí)候，全然說不到樂。東洋人之樂，乃在“綠柳才黃半未勻”的新春，便是那忽晴、忽雨、乍暖、乍寒、最難將息的時(shí)候。這時(shí)候?qū)嶋H生活上雖然并不舒服，但默察花柳的萌動(dòng)，靜觀天地的回春，在精神上是最愉快的。故西洋的“May”相當(dāng)于東洋的“春”。這兩個(gè)字讀起來聲音都很好聽，看起來樣子都很美麗。不過May是物質(zhì)的、實(shí)利的，而春是精神的、藝術(shù)的。東西洋文化的判別，在這里也可窺見。

　　Spring

　　Feng Zikai

　　What a lovely word “spring” is!

　　Men have praised it since ancient times, hoping for it to stay in the human world forever. Poets, especially ci 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. The descendants 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 talking about it, they would feel a pleasant sensation. This is partly because the likeness is suggested by the word spring. Listen “Chun!” (spring) How sonorous, sleepy and lovely the sound flows! Notice how the formation of the character “春”is neatly arranged and symmetrically aesthetic! Thus, the season attached by such a beautiful name must also be lovely to think of. It seems the sound of a girl’s name “Li Hua” must remind us of a beautiful woman.

　　However, spring, in fact, is by no means such a pleasant season. With my experience of thirty-six years, I feel deeply that life before late spring is rather unpleasant.

　　The plum blossom in snow is said to be the harbinger of spring. But it is just a spring in the mind. Actually, there is still rain and snow and the north wind is still chilly cold. Is there any difference between spring and winter? The so-called spring ushers can just curl up in the cold behind the window or stand trembling under the eaves to watch the plum blossom on the dry twigs!

　　In another month, as in these days, the Waking of Insects (the third solar term) is over, known as half of the spring has passed. My friends living the cities think that villages at this time are picturesque and beautiful. They sent me a letter, urging me to write something about spring as if I were snuggling up to the spring and had provoked their jealous feelings. Actually, those living in the countryside to not enjoy the pleasures of spring. On the contrary, they suffer from the various discomforts; the thermometer shows a sharp change between thirty-six and sixty-two degrees. These abrupt temperature changes are all within a day. When it is hot, you may think of the ice-cream in the city; and when it is cold, you can see natural ice. You can taste the so-called “chill of spring” to the fullest. When you are away from home and the weather changes from sunny to rainy, your shoes often become sloppy when you return. “How many fine days we have within a spring season!”is true; but “We can hear spring rain falling in a small mansion all night!”is really nothing special. Actually, it is very boring and far inferior to the various wireless broadcasts in your city. Now half of spring is over, but it gives us no comfort. On the contrary, every day it makes us worry about the chill, warmth, wind and rain. In fact, “within the three portions of spring two for sorrows and one for wind and rain!”

　　In a spring scene, only the abrupt changes from warmth to cold and the unusual clearness after the rain is distinct. Although there are some beautiful spring sights, they are mostly dim. Only by careful search will you find traces of spring. Is this the so-called “seeking spring”? Someone says “Spring lies in the calls of the flower girls”, while others say “Spring lies in the pear flowers” and still others say “Spring flourishes on top of the red apricot tree”. However, this scene can hardly be found in our dull and lonely village. Even if we could find spring, we may not easily recognize it. In short, the beauty that spring brings to us is little and somewhat concealed. The uneasiness that spring gives to us is plenty and obvious. It seems as if poets and ci composers reveal this point as well. Aren’t spring chills, spring sleepiness, spring sorrow and the complaints in spring time frequent topics of their poetry? It is not the only case now, but even if a month later, when the Pure Brightness (the fifth solar term) arrives, it is not likely to be a charming and most pleasant time. And if it rains again, the many street pedestrians will become “heartbroken”.

　　From this we know that spring is not worth such a beautiful name, for in practical life it is rather unpleasant. Actually, the most pleasant season of the year begins in late spring. So far as weather is concerned, although in general it becomes warmer and warmer, it varies frequently. There is always the abrupt change from warmth to cold, we can find no time without weather change. It is until late spring when the influences of winter have completely disappeared that it gradually becomes warmer and warmer. When the mercury in the thermometer rises to temperate, it is just the temperate season. So far as the scenery is concerned, there is no need to seek out a spring scene, for there is a vast expanse of green hills which are pleasant to the eyes. An ancient poem goes: “The song of cuckoo symbolizes spring’s departure and hills turn green above the treetops.” It turns out that only when spring has gone will the hills become green and attractive. In my opinion, among the natural scenery, green grass and white snow are the greatest of phenomena. When God depicts nature on a huge scroll, he paints the red spring and colourful autumn with only a dab of carmine upon his brush and a little touch upon the paper. But when he paints white snow and green grass, he would spare no dye to immense his brush in the white lead powder, gardenia and cyanine and paint in big strokes, making all the houses white and all the hills green. It seems like the “details adding method” of landscape painting at the Michelangelo School and also like the “colour chunk method” of Cezanne landscape painting. What a pungent style it is! The vast expanse of green grass is especially affable and unselfish. Sometimes the flowers are secluded within the private yards, and having suffered from their private penalty by the gardeners, they apologize to the ladies and gentlemen, while grass can grow anywhere it likes with no distinction between superior and inferior classes. Everyone thinks that flowers are the product of spring. Actually, the work of spring lies not in flowers but in grass. How many people can enjoy flowers? But grass grows freely across the fields, and is generally accepted and appreciated. This kind of beautiful scenery is seldom seen in early spring. For then the fields are covered with dry grass, a desolate scene fills our eyes and gives us nothing but an unpleasant sensation. It is only in late spring when dry grass is replaced by lush fields and real blue mountain and green fields that the world would take on a new look. The view at this time of the year is the finest. And the kindness to man bestowed by Nature is the deepest.

　　The practical westerners have always paid attention to this season: they call it May. May is the most pleasant time of the year. There are various kinds of festive occasions in the human world, including the May-queen, the May-pole, May-games, etc. Originally, the word May means “youth” and “vigour”. From this we can see that westerners regard the month of May as the youth of a man, the most pleasant, happiest and the most excellent period of one’s life. It is really worthy of the name. However, easterners hold a different view: they call it late spring. It is a time of asking spring to stay, sending spring off, cherishing spring, grieving for spring and a time of sighing, grieving and sobbing. It’s no time for pleasure at all. The pleasure of easterners is in the new spring when half of the green willows begin turning yellow. It is a time of sudden shine, sudden rain, now warmth and now cold. One can never see time without change. Actually, at this time of the year, life is by no means comfortable. It is only through a careful examination of the budding of flowers and willows and a close examination of the arrival of spring in nature that we can have a pleasant sensation in our hearts. Thus, May in the western world is actually equal to Spring in the east. These words are both pleasant to the ears and good-looking to the eyes. But while May implies material and profit, Spring is spiritual and artistic. From this we can get a hint of cultural distinctions between the east and the west.

　　(張夢(mèng)井、杜耀文 譯)