龍江留別詩 The poems

【About the author】

王守仁，又名雲，字伯安，餘姚人。弘治十二年進士，正德初以論救言官戴銑等忤劉瑾，杖闕下，謫龍場驛丞。瑾誅，移盧陵知縣，累擢右僉都御史，巡撫南贛，平大帽山諸賊，定宸濠之亂，世宗時封新建伯，總督兩廣，破斷藤峽賊，明世文臣用兵，未有如守仁者，卒謚文成。其學以良知良能為主，謂格物致知，當自求諸心，不當求諸事物，故於宋儒特推重陸九淵，而以朱子集註、或問之類為中年未定之論，世稱為姚江派。嘗築室陽明洞中，學者稱陽明先生。有《王文成公全書》，其文博大昌達，詩秀逸有致，即文章亦足傳。

Inside Story

According to the preface the poems were written during a farewell party for Wang Shoujen, who was ordered to transfer to south Chianghsi Province by the imperial government. At the farewell party, all his good friends wrote poems for him as going away presents; therefore, he also wrote several poems in accordance with the rhymes of friends’ poems and presented to his friends as gifts in return.