Wang Wei enchants with a folk song
...that's not a folk song
The Keepsake Tree Wang Wei In a southern land, Scarlet berries grow. In spring they bloom a scarlet host. Pick a spray of berries, Lord, before you go. The scarlet berries miss us most. 王维 相思 红豆生南国，春来发几支。 愿君多采撷，此物最相思。
This poem was written as lyrics for a famous singer, Li Guinian, to put to music. It has a simple, folk feel, with the cute image of the red berries (the word used in the Chinese is actually “red beans”), and particularly in the last line, where the emotion is loaded onto the berries. At the same time, it is distinctively poetic: the form is a classic poetic form, and it doesn’t have the repetition or elaboration that folk songs often have. It combines the innocence and freshness of a traditional lay with the crispness of a poem.
The title means “missing,” but is also the name of a tree or bush. Historians are not sure exactly which species Wang Wei was referring to, and he may not have had any specific plant in mind. It’s not clear whether Wang had yet visited the south when he wrote this poem, so it’s possible that he was just working from impressions given by others.