小满，才是最好的状态
二十四节气中的中华文化之小满（中文版）
小满节气，是农历二十四节气中第八个节气，意味着夏熟作物籽粒开始逐渐饱满，但尚未成熟，田野间苦菜欢长，麦秋可以上场了。因此《月令七十二候集解》中云：“四月中，小满者，物致于此小得盈满。”
宋诗里歌咏小满节气的诗句不少。如赵蕃的“玉历检来知小满，又愁阴久碍蚕眠”，再比如王之道的“久阴东虹断，小满北风寒。”
在描写小满时节农家生活的古诗中，当数欧阳修的《归田园四时乐春夏》最为著名。其中第二首写道：“南风原头吹百草，草木丛深茅舍小。麦穗初齐稚子娇，桑叶正肥蚕食饱。”他为我们呈现出了这样一幅田园惬意美景：夏季南风频频，丛深草木摇曳，小小的茅舍依稀可见。嫩绿的麦穗已经抽齐，桑树叶子长得肥肥壮壮，足可以让蚕儿吃饱。对于农家来说，他们最盼望的就是个丰收年。他的另一首五绝诗“夜莺啼绿柳，皓月醒长空。最爱垄头麦，迎风笑落红。”也是写小满的。
还有不少佳句赞颂小满，如“牡丹立夏花零落，玉簪小满布庭前”，还有“立夏桑果像樱桃，小满养蚕又种田”。相传，小满为蚕神的诞辰日，是养蚕的好时节，最早的《诗经·豳风·七月》中就有“春日载阳，有鸣仓庚，女执懿筐，遵彼微行，爰求柔桑”，生动形象地描写了古代劳动妇女在春天田陌上采桑的情景。关于蚕，最为人熟知还是唐代诗人李商隐的千古名句：“春蚕到死丝方尽，蜡炬成灰泪始干。”后来这名句诗被用来比喻对爱情的坚贞。
小满时节，万物将熟未熟，孕育着丰收的希望。《尚书》有云：“满招损，谦受益”，古人对小满节气的命名，无不蕴含着做人做事的道理，满而不盈，满而不溢。时节如此，人生也应如此。
二十四节气中的中华文化之小满（英文版）
XIAO MAN
Xiaoman is the 8th of the 24 solar terms, meaning that the seeds of the summer crops are becoming full but not yet ripe. Xiaoman is the time when bitterly tasted herbs are growing fast and early summer is approaching. Thus, Xiaoman is referred to as “Lesser Fullness” in a Chinese book written 800 years ago.
In the Song Dynasty, many poems were written about Xiaoman.
The famous Song Dynasty poet Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072) has this to say about Xiaoman: “Warm south breeze turns grass green. In the distance a small cottage is hidden across the field. The ears of wheat are also turning green, and silkworms are feeding on mulberry leaves.” This poem describes a pleasant rustic scene. The rural people hope good weather in Xiaoman will bring a good harvest. In another poem, Ouyang Xiu described the scene in Xiaoman: “Nightingales are singing on the green willow, and the bright moon shines in the sky. The breeze makes wheat swing in the field, as if laughing at falling flowers.”
Xiaoman is also the subject of many other Chinese classic poems. Some lines read: “Peony petals fall to the ground in Lixia, while hostas bloom in the garden in Xiaoman”. “In Lixia, mulberries are as big as cherries, while Xiaoman is the time for growing crops and raising silkworms”. According to legend, Xiaoman is the birthday of God Silkworm, so it is a good time to raise silkworms. This tradition was mentioned in “The Book of Songs”, a collection of poems and songs from the 11th century BC to the 6th century BC. In this book, a poem vividly describes women picking mulberries in the spring field. The best-known lines about silkworm were written by Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin (813-858): “Spring silkworm never stops spinning silk until its death; a candle never stops shedding light until it is burned out.” Later, this verse is used as a metaphor for true love.
Around the time of Xiaoman, every crop is full of life, but not yet ripening, and people hope for a good harvest. It is said in the Book of History, a Chinese classic, that “One loses by being arrogant and gains by being modest.” This is why the solar term of Xiaoman was named “Lesser Fullness” by ancients. As they believed it, things should be full but not overflowing, a principle that applies to both movement of nature and human life.
东园载酒西园醉，摘尽枇杷一树金。
时至小满
祝你人生亦小得盈满
文字素材来源 / 《光明日报》2015年5月22日16版
出品 / 光明日报&中国传媒大学
总监制 / 王玮
执行主编 / 张燕
副主编 / 跃升
责编 / 张燕
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