Major Cold

The old snow has not yet had time to melt, and new snow has piled up again, blocking the doorway. The “silver bed” before the steps—the stone rim of the well—has frozen solid, while icicles hang from the eaves like stalactites. Even the clear sunlight has lost its radiance, and the fierce wind howls in anger. Everyone has a tongue in their mouth, yet the cold leaves them unable to speak.

Shao Yong takes Major Cold as the background of this poem and writes the severity of the cold to its utmost. The opening couplet, “旧雪未及消，新雪又拥户”, describes the continual accumulation of snow through the layering of new snow upon old snow that has not yet melted, while “拥户”, “crowding against the door,” gives the concrete image of snow sealing the entrance. The second couplet, “阶前冻银床”, writes the well railing frozen solid, while “檐头冰钟乳” describes icicles hanging beneath the eaves like stalactites. One image is “silver,” the other “ice,” together conveying the texture of the frozen world. The third couplet, “清日无光辉”, says that even though the sun shines in a clear sky, it gives no brilliance—the sun of Major Cold appears, yet provides little warmth; “烈风正号怒” describes the violent winter wind howling as though in rage. The final couplet, “人口各有舌，言语不能吐”, says that everyone has a tongue, yet the extreme cold freezes them so thoroughly that they cannot speak. Through exaggeration, the line expresses a cold so severe that even words themselves seem impossible to utter. The poem advances layer by layer, from snow to ice, from sun to wind, and from things to human beings, exhausting every dimension of the “cold” in Major Cold.