鐔津文集 11.34

11.34

郭子喜潛子之道。欲資之以正其修辭立誠。潛子可當耶。郭子縉紳先生之徒。乃獨能揭然跂乎高世之風。可重可愧。吾說不足以相資也。然郭子俊爽天才逸發。少年則能作歌聲累千百言其氣不衰而體平淡。韻致高古格力優贍。多多愈功。含萬象於筆端。動乎則辭句驚出而無窮。與坐客聽其自誦。雖千言必記。語韻清暢若出金石。使人驚動。而好之雖梅聖俞章表民。以為李太白復生以詩張之。四海九州學輩未識郭子者何限。朝廷公卿孰嘗覩郭子如此之盛耶。夫龜龍麟鳳其亦偉奇之物也。使其汩於泥塗委於荊枳。則君子之所惜。吾恐郭子盡是紆餘誕謾。遂與世浮沈。因別故賦詩以祝之。

Master Guo takes delight in Qianzi's Way, wishing to rely upon it to rectify his refinement of words and establishment of sincerity. Could Qianzi be worthy of this? Master Guo belongs to the class of gentlemen of the gentry, yet he alone is able, distinctly and aloft, to emulate the aloof style of high antiquity; he is worthy of respect and brings me shame. My words are not enough to assist him. Yet Master Guo is talented, brisk, and his natural genius bursts forth with ease. In his youth, he was already able to compose songs of several hundred or thousand words, his vital breath never flagging while his style was placid and unadorned. His tone and demeanor are lofty and ancient, and the strength of his style is abundant and masterful. The more he writes, the greater the mastery; he encompasses the myriad phenomena at the tip of his brush, and when stirred, expressions and lines burst forth with wondrous power and without end. When listening with the seated guests to his own recitations, though they be of a thousand words, he unfailingly remembers them; the rhythm of his words is clear and unobstructed, as though issuing from metal and stone, causing people to be astonished and moved. People are so fond of him that even Mei Shengyu and Zhang Biaomin considered him Li Taibai reborn, extolling him in poems. Across the four seas and the nine provinces, how many students are there who have not yet met Master Guo? Which of the ministers and noblemen at the imperial court has ever witnessed Master Guo in such flourishing glory? Now, the tortoise, dragon, lin, and phoenix are indeed magnificent and extraordinary creatures; if they were left to wallow in the mire or be cast down among thorns and brambles, that would be a cause of lament for a gentleman. I fear that Master Guo will expend all of this in wandering about and unrestrained ease, thereby drifting along with the world; therefore, on the occasion of parting, I have composed a poem to offer him my blessings.