饮湖上初晴后雨
苏轼
水光潋滟晴方好，
山色空蒙雨亦奇。
欲把西湖比西子，
淡妆浓抹总相宜。
"These pools,so lovely when their bright.Wavelets are glancing in sunlight.Still,when the hills are dimmed with rain.Their pristine loveliness retain.For symbol of the Western Lake The Western Maid you well may take.Whether adorned with white and rose.Or in unpainted grace she goes."
Su Shi wrote this poem while drinking wine with his friends by the Western Lake.The Lake is located to the west of Hangzhou City,Zhejing Province,hence the name of "the Western Lake".When Su and his friends started drinking on that day,it was clear and sunny.And soon it became cloudy and rain was coming down.So the poet had the opportunity to enjoy two different scenic views of the Lake.Much impressed by what he had seen,the poet wrote in admiration the following lines:
Su's vivid description of the scenic views of the Western Lake in different weathers is a perfection of artistic presentation and generalization.One comments that Su's poem is so well written that it has made all other verses about the Western Lake look pale.Of all the beautiful ladies,why did the poet chose the Western Maid?Su did so for two reasons.One,her home was in Wanxisha Village(now in present Zhuji County,Zhejiang Province)which was not far from the Western Lake.Second,the first character of the names of Lake and the Lady was the word"Western",which was a poetic coincidence.In fact,people of later generations warmly endorsed his choice and began to call the Lake by another name of the "Western Maid Lake" or "Xizi Lake"in Chinese.