sòng送cuī崔jiǔ九

Cui the Ninth was leaving to live as a hermit on Zhongnan Mountain. Pei Di saw him off on horseback and made up this poem on the spot. The original title is long; it means "Cui the Ninth is going to the Southern Mountain, and I say goodbye in a poem made up on horseback." Three Hundred Tang Poems calls it "Seeing Off Cui the Ninth". Cui the Ninth was a friend surnamed Cui who was ninth among his cousins. He is usually thought to be Cui Xingzong, the younger brother of Wang Wei's wife. The poet urges him: now that you have chosen this life, stick with it and do not give up halfway.

崔九要到终南山去隐居，裴迪在马上为他送别，随口吟出了这首诗。原题较长，意思是“崔九要去南山，我在马上随口作诗和他告别”，《唐诗三百首》题作《送崔九》。崔九是排行第九的崔姓朋友，一般认为就是王维的内弟崔兴宗。诗人劝他：既然决定隐居，就要坚持下去，不要半途而废。

Pei Di was a Tang poet from the Guanzhong region, in today's Shaanxi. His dates are unknown. He was a close friend of Wang Wei. The two once lived together at Wangchuan, in today's Lantian in Shaanxi, wandering the hills and writing poems back and forth. His poems are mostly about landscapes and the hermit's life, and only a few survive.

裴迪，唐代诗人，生卒年不详，关中（今陕西一带）人。他是王维的好朋友，两人曾一起住在辋川（今陕西蓝田），游山玩水、互相写诗唱和。他的诗大多写山水和隐居生活，留下来的作品不多。

This is a farewell poem, yet not one line is sad. The first two lines are a blessing: go to the mountains, and wherever you wander, enjoy the scenery to the full. The last two lines are advice: do not be like the fisherman in "The Peach Blossom Spring", who stayed only a few days, left, and could never find his way back. Using a story everyone knew, the poet gently reminds his friend: if you become a hermit, mean it and stay with it. Do not run back to busy official life after a while. The words are light, like a friend's casual reminder, but they are sincere, with just a touch of teasing.

这是一首送别诗，可是没有一句写难过。前两句是祝福：你去山里吧，不管走到哪里，都要把美景看个够。后两句是劝告：别像《桃花源记》里的渔夫，进了桃花源只待几天就出来，以后想回去再也找不到了。诗人借这个大家熟悉的故事，委婉地提醒朋友：隐居要真心，要坚持，不要过一阵子又跑回热闹的官场。话说得轻松，像朋友间随口的叮嘱，却很真诚，也有一点点开玩笑的味道。