酒之我见 -酒文化-苏州东方翻译院译文

酒之我见

Wine in My Eyes

 酒-物外物 文明产物

Wine-a material thing that transcends material, a product of civilization

酒是什么

What Is Wine?

什么是酒？我们可以不假思索地回答：用粮食、水果等含淀粉或糖的物质发酵制成的含乙醇的饮料。倘若换一种提法，酒是什么？那我以为肯定得费些斟酌，答案也肯定迥异得很。

What is wine? To this we can reply without a second thought: an alcoholic beverage fermented of materials containing starch or sugar such as grain and fruits. However, if the question is rephrased in another way--what wine is?--then we will surely have to wrestle over it longer and the answer we provide will certainly be vastly different.

酒是一种特殊之物,具有多重性：

首先就其本质而言，酒是一种物质，是含有酸、酯、醇等多种化学成分的混合饮料，其中的主要成分乙醇（酒精）无需经过消化系统就可被肠胃直接吸收。饮酒后几分钟，酒精首先被血液带到肝脏，在肝脏过滤后，到达心脏，再到肺，从肺又返回心脏，然后通过主动脉到静脉，再到达大脑和高级神经中枢……进而对人的生理和心理产生奇妙的作用。这可能就是人类喜酒的最基本的动机和诱因吧！

Wine is a special thing open to multiple interpretations:

First, it is by nature a material, a mixed drink containing such chemical ingredients as acids, esters, and alcohols, of which ethyl alcohol can be directly absorbed by the intestines and stomach. A few minutes after you drink wine, alcohol is first carried by blood to the liver; after a filtering process there, it reaches to the heart, then to the lungs, and then back to the heart; in the heart, it finishes its journey in the main artery and enters the veins, through which it is conveyed to the brain and the higher nervous center…and works wonderful biological and psychological effects on human. This may account for the basic motive and incentive of human’s liking booze.

酒是人类文明的产物，又是人类文明的标志。自从有了酒，从达官贵人到平民百姓，各个阶层与酒都有着密切联系，酒成了人们日常生活中不可或缺的一部分。更准确地说，酒是一种文化，已经融入了中国几千年的历史。是否可以这样讲,有数千年悠久历史的"酒文化"已是中华民族文化宝库中的重要组成部分：一方面，它的发展与中华民族文化相融相随；另一方面，它极大地丰富了中华民族文化的内涵。所以有人比喻，酒是文化的酵母，是中华民族传统文化光彩夺目的瑰宝。国兴则酒业兴旺，酒香四溢；国衰则酒业凋敝，酒味苦涩，酒里荡漾着国家的兴衰与时代的嬗变。从酒诞生以来，酒就和我们人类社会朝夕相伴，密不可分。酒与经济、酒与政治、酒与战争、酒与友谊、酒与诗画、酒与爱情、酒与宗教……酒与人类所有的一切都有着密切的联系并产生作用。

Wine is a product, as well as a sign, of human civilization. Every since it was born, it has established close relationships with people of all strata--ranging from high officials, noble lords to people in the street--and become an inseparable part of people's common life. More precisely, it has found its way into Chinese history, which has lasted thousands of years. Or, in other words, the culture embodied by wine, thousands of years old, has been an important treasure in the treasury of Chinese culture. On the one hand, it has developed as part of Chinese culture; on the other, it has greatly enriched the latter. That explains why some people liken wine to a 'yeast for culture', and to a dazzling gem of Chinese traditional culture. The times of prosperity have always coincided with a booming brewing industry, while the hard times with a weakened one. Therefore, in wine we can see the ups and downs of the nation, the changes of times. Since wine was born, it has developed inseparable ties with all facets of human society: economy, politics, war, friendship, poetry & painting, love, religion…What is more, on all of these facets, wine has exerted its influences.  

国人喜酒，表现和痕迹无处不在，影响之大、之深恐他物所不能及。在集中反映中国政治、经济、军事、文化生活的四大古典文学名著中，《水浒传》出现饮酒场面647次，平均每回饮酒5次多；《三国演义》出现饮酒场面319次，平均每回也饮酒近3次，足见酒生豪情，长侠气，遗千秋。《西游记》写的佛门生活也出现饮酒场面103次，平均每回有饮酒1次，可谓酒肉穿肠过，佛祖心中留，诚即可也！反映荣、宁二府生活的《红楼梦》,出现饮酒场面152次,有的整回写的都是饮宴场面，说明酒与爱情、家庭、社会变迁是多么荣辱与共、休戚相关啊！由此可见，酒在社会生活中所占地位是何等重要。

The Chinese people like wine. Signs of this liking can be found everywhere. The influence of wine is greater and more profound than any other thing. In the Four Chinese Classical Literary Masterpieces, which reflect Chinese politics, economy, military, and cultural life all at once, there are many scenes involving wine, 647 in the case of Heroes of the Marshes (5 for each chapter on average), 319 in the case of Romance of Three Kingdoms (nearly 3 for each chapter on average). From this, it can be seen that wine has a lingering effect that can encourage valor and inspire chivalry. Even though Pilgrimage to the West is a novel on Buddhism which practices abstinence, there are 103 scenes involving wine, one in each chapter on average, which testify the famous Chinese saying, 'Wine and meat go through the intestines, but the Buddha stays in the heart'. The Dream of the Red Mansions, which depicts the life in the Rong and Ning Mansions, presents the reader with 152 scenes involving wine. Some chapters are even committed to dining and wining scenes. This illustrates how closely wine is linked to love, family, and social changes, and how important the role played by wine in social life is.  

酒作为一种文化形态和文化现象，因时代不同、地域不同、民族不同,其内涵自然也千变万化,异彩纷呈。

As a form and phenomenon of culture, wine varies in meaning from time to time, from region to region, from nationality to nationality.

酒之起源

Origin of Wine

酒，是人类在长期历史发展过程中创造的一大饮料系统。世界上最古老的实物酒是伊朗撒玛利亚出土的葡萄酒，距今三千多年，仍芳醇迷人；中国最古老的实物酒是西安出土的汉代御酒，据专家考证系粮食酒（也有专家认证为黄酒），至今仍香醇可饮，可谓奇也！中国甲骨文中早就出现了酒字和与酒有关的醴、尊、酉等字，从中可以佐证酒的存在之久。至于文史中的记载更是不胜枚举，如中国第一部诗歌总集《诗经•大雅•即醉》中有"即醉以酒，即饱以德"的诗讯，《周易》、《周礼》、《礼记》、《左传》等典籍中关于古代酒俗的记载更多，如"酒者可以养老也"（《礼记》）、"酒以成礼"（《左传》）等。这说明酒存在着多种用途，是生活习俗中必不可少的。

Wine is a major beverage created by humankind in the course of historical development. The oldest wine in the world is the grape wine unearthed in Samaria, Iran, which remains fragrant though made over 3,000 years ago. The oldest wine in China is the imperial liquor of the Han Dynasty unearthed in Xi’an, which, according to some experts, was made of grain (other experts believe that it was made of rice). Amazingly, this ancient liquor has retained its fragrance and aroma! As a matter of fact, the inscriptions on oracle bones in China include such wine-related characters as li (醴), zun (尊), and you (酉), which proves the long existence of wine. Records in history and literature are innumerable. For instance, in Book of Poems—China’s first collection of poems, there are lines like ‘I am drunk with your wine, and gorged with your grace’; in other Chinese classics like Book of Changes, Rites of Zhou, Book of Rites, and Zuo's Commentary, there are more records on ancient wine-related customs. To serve as evidence are lines such as ‘wine is a good friend in old age’ (in Book of Rites), ‘wine is part of ritual’ (in Zuo’s Commentary), which proves that wine had many functions and was indispensible in life and customs.

酒产生于何时,现在已无可考证。

It is now hard to find out when exactly wine was brought into the world.

大约在原始社会的采集渔猎经济时期，人类通过品尝成熟后自然坠落在树洞里、石缝中已发酵的野生果实，发现了酒的稚物。

It was probably in the primitive society when the major forms of economy included collecting, fishing and hunting that people discovered the prototype of wine by tasting the fermented wild fruits which had naturally fallen into tree holes or stone crevices.

随着原始农业文明的发展，人们开始有了剩余"米粮"，这些屡屡"变质"的食物有的酸败腐坏，有的却成了可食用的米酒。随着生产力的提高，先民们开始观察食物成酒的过程，探究其原因，并摸索之。

With the development of primitive agricultural civilization, people began to possess extra ‘rice or grain’, which often went ‘bad’. In some cases, they really turned sour or rotten, but in other case, they became edible rice liquor. As productivity improved, primitive people began to observe the process of food turning into wine, ponder its causes and make experiments.  

同样关于它的发明创造，中国各民族民间流传着许多优美的传说。《战国策•魏策二》中载："昔者帝女令仪狄作酒而美，进之禹，禹饮而甘之，遂疏仪狄，绝旨酒曰：后世必有以酒亡其国者。"这则传说可能是后人杜撰的，但它至少表明早在中国历史的传说时代已有酒的产生。民间还传说夏代的杜康是造酒业的鼻祖，曹操的《短歌行》中有"何以解忧，惟有杜康"的名句，可见当时的杜康酒按现代词的表述已属名优产品了。倘若今天我们想知道中国古老的酿酒技术，恐怕已十分困难了。但从《礼记•月令篇》中记录的造酒的六点注意事项"秫稻必齐，曲蘖必时，湛炽必絜，水泉必香，陶器必良，火齐必得"，不难看出古人已对原料、投曲、浸煮、水质、器皿、火候等做酒之重要工艺环节提出了如此之高、之明确的要求，说明当时的酿酒法已趋于成熟。当时可能酿造的是果酒和米酒之类的低度酒，而烧酒等高度酒的酿造始于元代。明代李时珍在《本草纲目》中说："烧酒非古法也，自元间始创其法。"看来缘于元代蒸馏技术的发明，酒的生产有了长足的进步。当时还有了专门的烧酒作坊，米酒、果酒则民间早已有之。

There are many beautiful legends on the creation or discovery of wine among the people of the different nationalities in China. As recorded in Strategy of Wei II in Strategies of the Warring States (Zhan Guo Ce), ‘Once, the Emperor’s daughter ordered Yidi to make wine. It turned out to taste good and was then presented to Yu, who drank and liked it. Then Yu alienated Yidi and forbad people to present wine to him again, asserting that nations would fall because of wine in later ages.’ This is probably a concoction. However, it does indicates that wine may be traced as far back as the Legendary Period in Chinese history. Legend also has it that Dukang, living in the Xia Dynasty, was the inventor of wine. In fact, Cao Cao, great ancient Chinese statesman and strategist, writes in his famous poem A Short Song, ‘In order to assuage my worries, I have to turn to nothing but Dukang.’ From this household line, it can be seen that Dukang was a ‘famous brand’ for quality wine in Cao’s time according to modern standards. Most supposedly, it is difficult nowadays for us to acquire a thorough knowledge of wine making in ancient China. However, judging by the six definite specifications on wine production exacted in The Chapter on Monthes in Book of Rites, ancient Chinese people had mastered the major techniques as to raw materials, use of yeasts, immersion & steaming, quality of water used, containers, and timing; and the techniques of wine makings had attained maturity at that time. It may probably have been fruit wine and rice wine that had been brewed then; hard drinks such as hard liquor had not been made until the Yuan Dynasty. As written in Compendium of Materia Medica by Ming herbalist Li Shizhen, ‘hard liquor was not made according to an ancient formula; but rather, the formula was not invented until the Yuan Dynasty’. It seemed that the invention of distillation technology had contributed to the great headway in wine production. Furthermore, the period witnessed the appearance of specialized hard liquor workshops, while the existence of rice wine and fruit wine can be traced much farther back.

酒与政治

酒成为政治饮料，是从中国儒家学说的礼治思想直接生发出来的。礼必须贯彻到政治实践中去,而国家政权是靠两手来维持的,即文的一手和武的一手。《左传•成公十三年》有云:"国之大事,在祀与戎"。在中国古代，祭祀是君王向臣民推行礼治的示范，也是臣民向代表上天旨意来治理百姓的帝王表示虔诚和崇拜的一种方式。在祭祀仪式中体现出来的上下尊卑的等级名分，臣民必须恪守不逾。南宋词人刘克庄的"天下英雄，使君与操，余子谁堪共酒杯"，别的人都没有资格同刘备与曹操同桌碰杯，政治等级何其森严。直到今天，此等现象，还在自觉不自觉地影响着我们的日常生活。酒宴席位的尊卑有别，仍然是以礼为核心的。此外，象征楚汉相争成败的"鸿门宴"、三国时期曹操"醉后杀杨修"、北宋开国皇帝赵匡胤的"杯酒释兵权"等等，以及宫廷之中运用毒酒谋求权力的政治事件，酒都在其中充当了媒质。

Wine and Politics

The Confucian theory of ‘rule by ritual’ has resulted directly in wine’s being used as a political drink. Ritual must be implemented in political practice; and a state power has to be maintained by two means: one civil and the other martial. As The 13rd Year in the Reign of Chenggong in Zuo Zhuan puts it, ‘ceremony and war are two matters of vital importance for a nation.’ In ancient China, sacrificial ceremonies were exemplary occasions on which emperors reinforced their rule by ritual over subjects; they were also a occassions on which the subjects showed respect and royalty to emperors who were supposedly ruling on behalf of Heaven. The subjects must uphold the hierarchy demonstrated through the sacrificial ceremonies. In a poem by Southern Song poet Liu Kezhuang, there is a line which goes, ‘Governor Liu Bei and Cao Cao were the greatest heroes under Heaven; who of the rest were qualified to clink goblets with the two?’ This line, implying that few were even qualified to drink at the same table with Liu Bei and Cao Cao, may shed some light on the rigorousness of the hierarchy. Up to today, ritual is still exerting its influences on our daily life even though observing ritual may be either a conscious or unconscious act. For example, underlying the arrangement of seats at a banquet table remains ritual. Besides, in political events such as the ‘banquet at Hongmen’ which determined the result of the war between Chu and Han, ‘drunk Cao Cao killing Yang Xiu’ in the period of the Three Kingdoms, Zhao Kuoyin (Founder Emperor of the Song Dynasty) ‘relieving the generals of their command of military forces with a toast at a banquet’, and using poisonous wine in the struggle for the crown, wine had served an important medium.

酒与军事

某人不才观历史，揣摩酒还可在军事中作为动员令。无论是古代还是现代，酒与军队征战的关系都是密不可分的。军队出征前，要喝出征壮行酒；凯旋后，要喝庆祝胜利的祝捷酒。"野幕敞琼宴，羌戎贺劳旋。醉和金甲舞，雷鼓动山川"（卢纶）。军队打了胜仗，接踵而至的是：盛大的宴会，异族的祝贺，乘醉的狂舞，震天的鼓声。历史上，这类以酒壮行、以酒祝捷的事例比比皆是。越王勾践在率兵伐吴之前，将酒倒在河的上流，与将士一起迎流共饮，士气大振，留下了"箪醪劳师"之千古佳话。秦穆公讨伐晋国前，打算犒劳将士，以鼓舞将士斗志，但酒醪却仅有一盅，于是秦穆公将这一盅酒倒入河中与大家分享，三军饮后，酒不醉人心自醉。西汉时，大将军霍去病收复河西失地有功，汉武帝赐酒犒劳。因酒少兵多，霍去病下令将酒倾入一眼井中，与士卒共饮。斯人已逝，但历史永存，今日的酒泉还在默默地向人们诉说着久远的故事。电影《上甘岭》插曲中的"朋友来了有好酒，若是那豺狼来了，迎接它的有猎枪"，实质上也是志愿军保家卫国的"动员令"。事实说明，酒确实具有鼓舞士气、振奋精神的作用。

Wine and Military

As is of my humble opinion, wine can also be used to inspire soldiers in the course of mobilization. Whether in ancient times or now, wine has been closely connected with war. Before an expedition, soldiers drink wine to bolster morale; having returned triumphantly, soldiers drink wine to celebrate their victory. As Lu Lun writes in a poem, ‘banquets are thrown in the wilderness, to treat the soldiers who have routed the Qiang people; intoxicated, the soldiers clad in shimmering armors began to dance, with thundering drums rocking mountains.’ This peom presents us with a scene of celebration after a victory: grand banquets, drunk dancing, and thundering drumbeats. Chinese history has seen numerous such scenes. Before Goujian, King of Yue, led his troops on the expediation against Wu, wine was poured in the water upstream and he and his soldiers laddled to drink downstream. As a result, the morale of the army was greatly boosted. And this has been a legend through ages. Before Duke Mu of Qin launched a crusade against Jin, he decided to reward his generals and soldiers with food and drink to bolster morale. However, he had only one goblet of wine. So he poured it into the river and shared it with his men, who were immensely moved. In the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of Han rewarded General-in-Chief Huo Qubing  with wine after the army led by the latter reclaimed the lost land west of the Yellow River. As the wine was too little for the soldiers, Hu ordered that the wine be poured into a well so that he and his men could share it. Though these historical figures deceased long ago, their stories have been passed on from generation to generation. The place in Northwest China called Jiuquan (literally Wine Well) is silently testifying the story that happened long long ago in Chinese history. As a line in the interlude of the famous film Shang Gan Ling goes, ‘we treat our visiting friends with good wine, and intruding enemies with hunting guns.’ This song had greatly lifted the Chinese volunteer army’s morale. All these facts have proved that wine does play an important role in morale raising.

酒与名人

酒与诗，水乳交融，源远流长。"李白斗酒诗百篇"、"何时一樽酒，重与细论文"、"敏捷诗千首，飘零酒一杯"，杜甫歌怀李白的这些名句和欧阳修的"天乐地乐,山乐水乐,皆因为有酒"当属显例。这显例彰显着一种道理：酒是水与火的结晶（二个极端的融合，事物的中庸，产生了极其美妙的意想不到的结果，这是人类伟大的杰作），它能给人带来畅快，加倍感悟到人的本质和人生的真谛。古今中外不知有多少诗人，因酒而萌生创作冲动，打开情感大门，展开想象翅膀；也不知有多少诗篇、杰作、墨宝，因酒而成，酣畅淋漓，形神兼备。酒饮微醺之时的心理感受与创作灵感到来时的心理体验，异曲同工，殊途同归，就像一对孪生兄弟，尽管不是一个人，却难分你我。艺术灵感到来之时，犹如进入"迷狂"境界，情感喷薄而出，幻想展翅高飞，形象纷至沓来，思想活跃异常，刹那间物我两忘，超越时空的限制和功利的欲求，获得浑然天成的审美境界。徐渭的醉酒绘青藤，苏轼的把酒问青天，皆为世间罕见杰作，当属酒之功劳！历代诗人墨客饮酒欲诗，赋诗思酒，诗中有酒，酒中出诗。李太白"举杯邀明月"，苏东坡"把酒问青天"，杜子美"说诗能累夜，醉酒或连朝"，毛泽东"把酒酹滔滔，心潮逐浪高"等著名诗句，都充分表明酒是诗人想象的翅膀。

Wine and Celebrities

The union between wine and peotry has a long history. Serving as obvious cases in point are the famous lines by great Tang poet Du Fu praising Li Bai, (i.e. ‘Li Bai can compose a hundred poems with one goblet of wine’, ‘when can we review poems again/with a goblet of wine at hand? ’, and ‘with an agile mind, he has composed hundreds of poems/drifting all over, he has but one wine goblet’), and Ouyang Xiu’s famous quotation that ‘I enjoy the views of the sky, the ground, the mountains and the rivers, all because of wine’. This has revealed to us a truth that, being a product of water and fire (the combination of two extremes and the approach of moderation have brought about a wonderful result—a masterpiece by mankind), wine can bring people joy and enable people to get a keener feeling of the nature of humanity and the essence of life. Since ancient times, at home and abroad, numerous poets have been inspired by wine so that they open their minds and spread the wings of their imagination; and numerous poems, essays, and calligraphic works, being created in a state of intoxication, acquire an usual charm because of the spontaneous expression of feelings and the perfect incorporation of form and spirit. Slight intoxication and the arrival of inspiration tend to give the artists similar feelings; the feelings generated by wine and inspiration are like twins, who can not be distinguished from each other though essentially different.  When an inspiration comes, the artist is plunged into a state of ‘delirious ecstacy’: the torrents of his emotions find vent and surge forth; his imagination soars; and images keep surfacing in his active mind. Then for a moment, he becomes unaware of the self and the outside world, feels as if he had transcended the bounds of time and space and broken free of the chains of the desires for fame and gains, and reaches an elevated level of aesthetic appreciation. The green vines painted by Xu Wei after he was drunk and the poems composed by Su Shi after he was intoxicated are all artistic masterpieces, which should invariably be attributed to wine! Through all ages, poets and scholars often want to compose poems after they are drunk and desire wine when they conduct literary creation. In poems, we see wine and from wine come inspirations for poems, to wit: ‘raising a cup, I invite the moon to drink’ by Li Bai, ‘with a goblet of wine in hand, I ask the azure sky’ by Su Dongpo, ‘our talk on poetry may last over nights; and we are drunk morning after morning’ by Du Zimei, and ‘I pay tribute to the river with wine golbet in hand, and the surges in my mind rise higher than the waves’ by Mao Zedong. All these lines fully demonstrate that wine can give wings to poets’ imagination.

同样酒之于书画艺术家，堪是神品的催化剂。有着"画圣"头衔的吴道子，"每欲挥毫，必须酣饮"，唐明皇命他画嘉陵江三百里山水的风景，他酒后挥毫，一日而就；王羲之醉中挥毫，成就了《兰亭集序》，至酒醒时，"更书数十本，终不能及之"。怀素酒醉泼墨，方留下惊鬼神的《自叙帖》。"三杯草圣传"张旭"每大醉，呼叫狂走，乃下笔"，才有了"挥毫落纸如云烟"的《古诗四帖》。

Similarly, wine is an effective and powerful catalyst to calligraphers and painters. Wu Daozi, known as ‘painter of all painters’, was said to ‘carouse every time he wants to paint’. Once Emperor Ming of Tang ordered him to draw a painting of the 300-kilometer-long Jialing River, he applied brushes to the paper in intoxication and finished the painting within one day. Wang Xizhi completed his most important calligraphic work Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection when he was drunk, and after he sobered up, he ‘composed dozens more, all of which fail to reach the notch’. Huaisu, Tang calligrapher and monk, poured ink over paper in intoxication and created the wonderful calligraphic work Autobiography. Zhang Xu, ‘master of incursive script’, who ‘will not apply the brush to paper until he is on a gag and keeps running about’, also calligraphed Four Ancient Poems in complete intoxication.

酒与经济

酒在经济中担有活力素之功。酒，本身就是一种高附加值的商品。由于饮酒是一项非常普遍的社会活动，消费群体非常广泛，所以酿酒业历来是获利丰厚的行业。在古代，开办酒坊便预示着滚滚财源，不断成就着富商巨贾。南宋时期，赵构皇帝避金南退至绍兴，为支付其庞大的费用开支，就出政策大力扶植绍兴酒的生产发展，于是有了"越地无处不酒家"、"城中酒垆千百家"之景象。今天，名牌名酒往往是当地的"支柱产业"，担当着振兴当地经济的重任。白酒中的六朵金花、啤酒中几大巨头、葡萄酒中的三大支柱、黄酒中的古越龙山，无不为之倾力贡献。此外，酒在经济交往、密切关系、沟通情感方面有着其他商品无法替代的作用，在招商引资、搞活地区经济方面始终发挥着"活力素"的作用。

Wine and Economy

Being a comodity with high added value, wine has injected vigor into economy. Now that wine drinking is a very common social activity undertaken by a wide range of consumer groups, wine brewery has always been a highly lucrative industry. In ancient times, running a wine shop promised profits that kept rolling in; many commercial giants were made in the trade. In the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhao Gao, the Emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, took refuge from the invasion of the Jin Dyansty in Shaoxing. In order to cover his huge expenses, he promulgated policies to grant strong support for the wine making industry in the place. As a result, ‘there are wine shops everywhere’ and ‘tens of hundreds of wine workshops in the city’. Today, more often than not, wineries that produce wine or liquor of certaim famous brands serve as pillars for local economy. In the case of spirits, there are the six most famous producers; as for beer, there are a couple of giants; when it comes to grape wine, there are three major makers; and as far as millet wine is concerned, there is the most famous brand ‘Dragon Hill from Ancient Yue’ (Gu Yue Long Shan). All of them have made their due contribution. In addition, wine has been playing irreplaceable roles in economic exchanges, building close relationships and emotional communication. In the meantime, it has also served as ‘invigorator’ in inviting investment and boosting local economy.

酒与社会交往

酒在交往中是媒介，是黏合剂。常言道，酒逢知己千杯少，话不投机半句多。喝酒是表达友好的一种方式。俗话说，要交友，常喝酒。酒与社交有内在的联系，饮酒为结交朋友提供了良好的契机。有了酒，朋友间的感情会更融洽，"五花马，千金裘，呼儿将出换美酒，与尔同销万古愁"（李白）、"自古圣贤皆寂寞，唯有饮者留其名"是一种真情的流露。酒还是化解个人之间恩怨的有效手段。"度尽劫波兄弟在，酒杯一端泯恩仇"。双方之间不管有多深的积怨，只要一端杯，矛盾差不多就化解了。饮酒为交友提供了良好的契机。到一个朋友那里喝酒，会结识许多新朋友，朋友的朋友会发展成为你的朋友，如此滚动下去，你的朋友就会遍天下了。举杯同饮的"同心酒"，交臂搭脖一饮而尽的"盟誓酒"，不仅会起到增进了解、密切感情的作用，甚至会达到同生死共命运的盟誓效果。饮酒也是展示个人风采和魅力的重要窗口。温雅的姿态、得体的举止、文明的谈吐都会给人留下美好的印象，提高你的社会地位和知名度。

Wine and Socializing

Wine plays an important adhensive role in social communications. As the Chinese saying goes, ‘For a congenial friend a thousand toasts are too few; in a disagreeable conversation one word more is too many.’ Making toasts is a way of expressing friendliness. As another saying goes, ‘In order to make friends, often make toasts.’ Wine has an intrinsic relationship with socializing and drinking wine provides us with an opportunity to make friends. Wine can serve as a lubricant in your friendships. Lines like ‘let me tell my son to trade the five-colored jade horse and precious fur for delicous wine; /and let drown our woes of ten thousand generations’ (Li Bai), and ‘saints have always been lonely since ancient times, / only those who drank have left their names’ constitute a spontaneous outflow of the artists’ true emotions. Wine is also an effective means to dissolve personal enmities. No matter how deep-rooted their rancor may be, it almost always dissolves the moment the two parties raise their glasses and propose a toast. Wine drinking also provides an opportunity to make friends. Attending a banquet at a friends may enable you to make more friends; your friend’s friends may become yours too. If you keep this virtuous cycle rolling, you will have friends all over the world. ‘Wine of common minds’ drunk at the same time and ‘wine of oath’ drunk with crossed arms around necks not only can deepen our understanding of each other, arouse intimate feelings, but also may encourage the parties involved to cast in our lot with each other. Wine parties also provide us with chances to demonstrate our personal charm. Graceful carriage, appropriate conduct, and civilized speech may leave your good impression on others and improve your social status as well as your fame and popularity.

酒与人民生活

作为一种表现形式，酒亦可作为人民生活中的一种刻度表。酒，有人称它为上品，有人称它为妙品，有人称它为珍品，有人称它为贡品，有人称它为带来丰厚利润的畅销商品……随着时代的变迁、社会的进步和人民生活水平的不断提高，我国人民的日常消费已经从延续生命的需要，发展演变为享受生命的过程。这一变化可以从各类酒的消费人群的迅速扩大得以证明。人喝酒主要是想刺激精神世界，这种消费不是延续生命而是在享受生命。但人很难控制酒量，事与愿违伤害身体健康也是常有的事。现在酒的糖度低、热量低、氨基酸丰富、维生素丰富、无机盐丰富，使人既享受生命又延长了寿命，极大地满足了人民对生活水平不断提高的要求，成为人民生活水平不断提高的"刻度表"。

当然成也萧何败也萧何，酒之功之大、影响之深人所共知，但因酒之祸亦不绝于耳，唯量有度，重在自律，凡物凡事，均应二利相权取其重，二弊相权取其轻，为之、顺之、适之、好之……

美酒，是一件艺术佳作，以其水的外形，火的性格的独特魅力，渗透在人类生活的每一个角落，人类文化的每一个方面。她是生活困苦中的乐观，是惊涛骇浪中的坚强，是努力奋发中的进取，因而能为我们的生命带来如此丰富的色彩，如此无限的欢乐。

Wine and People’s Life

As a means of expression, wine is also an indicator of people’s life. Some call it a thing of the highest grade, some think it excellent, some consider it valuable, some look on it as a proper tribute, and some regard it as a fast-selling commodity that brings considerable profits… With the changes of times, the advances of society, and the constant improvement of people’s life, Chinese people’s consumption has evolved from meeting the needs of life sustenance to enjoying life. This change may be proved by the rapid expansion of consumer groups of various alcoholic drinks. People booze to meet spiritual needs. This consumption is no longer intended to meet the need of life sustenance, but the need of life enjoyment. On the other hand, now that it is hard for people to control how much wine they drink, it is very common that this beverage does harm to their health against their will. Alcoholic drinks today featuring lower sugar content and heat, rich amino acids, vitamins and inorganic salts, have not only enabled people to enjoy life, but also prolonged their life spans, thereby satisfying the demand of people’s improving life. They have become an indicator of the level of people’s life.

Of course, every coin has two sides. The positive influences of wine is universally acknowledged; their disasters and tragedies caused by it have also been frequently heard of. Thus, self-discipline is key to avoiding its disadvanages and bringing to play its advantages. When comparing two advantages, we should choose the one that is more advantageous; when weighing two disadvantages, we should settle for the one that is less disadvantageous. We have to make balances and compromises…

Good wine is an excellent work of art. With its form of water and character of fire, it can be found everywhere in human’s life and in every facet of human civilization. In a life of destitution, she brings optimism; in a life of turbulence, she brings hardiness; and in a time of enterprise, she adds momentum. Therefore, she can always many colors and much joy to our life.

【发布时间】2014-01-10 【信息来源】管理员 【浏览点击】3295次