The sensual beauty of spring rain

Poetry by Nguyen Binh, Anh Tho, Hoang Cam… each with their own style, has contributed to creating a Vietnamese spring space that fascinates people. Poet Nguyen Viet Chien, besides his contributions to contemporary Vietnamese poetry with many works imbued with epic qualities, is also the author of many unique lyrical poems that resonate deeply in the hearts of readers. “January Rain” is a poem that is good in structure and imagery, arousing love for one’s homeland, love between couples, and philosophical depth about human life and art.

Perhaps the sense of space and time is the most unique mark in the poem “January Rain” by Nguyen Viet Chien. From that space and time, the poet expressed his thoughts on life. Therefore, in the 5 stanzas, there is an alternation from January space to January time. The connection between the stanzas is the beauty of the image of January spring rain, which is so evocative and transformative: both fragile and illusory, both poetic and sad and meditative… Thanks to that, the poem is gentle, spreading and imbued with a special lyrical emotion.

The first stanza depicts a space of January spring rain on the street. The street is quiet, without a single person, no noisy vehicles, only a gentle rain like mist. The trees on both sides of the street also turn into mist, drifting as if "sleepwalking in the sky". A strangely quiet spring picture, is that the silence of the human soul, the soul of poetry in the dreamy moment of January? The author uses the artistic technique of comparison twice, but not clumsily, creating more interesting and unique associations: "January rain on the street / Rain like mist / The silhouettes of trees like smoke / Like sleepwalking in the sky".

After the feeling of spring space with the January rain like mist "sleepwalking" on the street, the poet makes the reader feel nostalgic and thoughtful through a sensitive and poetic perception of time. A feeling of regret and nostalgia in the space of January is coming to reside. People often philosophize about time, about human life at the end of the year, when the last calendar pages are about to run out. Here, Nguyen Viet Chien feels "the days are too thin" and then regrets what has passed with the sound of rain "falling sadly" on the other side of the calendar page. Looking at the calendar page and feeling "the days are too thin", time passing quickly is indeed an interesting association. A very good, very unique feeling about time and sadness. This can be considered the best stanza in the poem: "January, the days are too thin/ The sadness sounds old/ But on the other side of the calendar page/ The sadness of rain falls sadly".

From the space of January rain on the street (stanza 1), moving to the sense of regretful time (stanza 2), then to the space of January rain at the compassionate temple gate is a meaningful association. Still the same thin strands of rain like mist, but the rain now becomes more meditative, more compassionate. The rain transforms into the sound of sutras, the deep, thoughtful sound of wooden fish: "January rain on hair / People go to the temple / Follow the raindrops to pray for blessings / The sound of compassionate bells in a dream".

Still the beauty of the space of the gentle January rain, but the next stanza opens up a fresh, rustic space with the breath of new poets. A fresh, dreamy spring ferry. However, the author only focuses on describing the image of the ferrywoman "Her eyes are fluttering in the rain/ Tied me up with nothingness". Unlike the poet Anh Tho who simply describes the spring scene, thereby expressing the emotions of the human soul: "The rain falls softly on the deserted wharf/ The ferry lies lazily, letting the river flow/ The thatched hut stands still in the silence/ Beside the cluster of purple flowers falling in disarray" (Spring Afternoon). What is special is that at the end of the poem, the author expresses his profound contemplation of time, of the infinite universe. It is a vast, immense space imbued with the philosophical colors of medieval literature. The January rain is like the color of young grass "green to the sky" which is the eternal message of unchanging time. Only human life becomes small and impermanent. The verses are also misty and fragile like a thin layer of rain: "January rain like grass/ Green mountains reach to the sky/ Before the infinite years/ My poetry - just mist".

The poem “January Rain” by Nguyen Viet Chien is as gentle as a thin mist before a beautiful spring. From imagery, language, structure to artistic techniques… Everything is harmonious and measured in a beautiful five-word verse form. The poem cannot be read just once, the more we read it, the more we realize the gentle, meaningful spread of emotions and profound philosophy.

LE THANH VAN