Far above the Yellow River, among the white clouds, is an isolated city. What does Ren in the Ten Thousand Ren Mountains mean?

One ren is equivalent to seven or eight feet. Ren is an ancient unit of length. One Ren is equivalent to seven or eight feet. 1 foot≈33.3333 centimeters.

Far above the Yellow River, among the white clouds, is an isolated city. Ten Thousand Renshan is from "Liangzhou Ci" written by Tang Dynasty poet Wang Zhihuan. The original text is as follows:

Far above the Yellow River, among the white clouds, there is an isolated city. Ten thousand ren. Mountain.

Why should the Qiang flute blame the willows? The spring breeze does not pass through Yumen Pass.

Meaning:

The Yellow River seems to be rushing from the white clouds, and Yumen Pass stands alone in the mountains. Why should the soldiers complain that the willow trees have not sprouted? The spring breeze cannot blow outside Yumen Pass.

The poet's description of "an isolated city with thousands of mountains" reflects that the city is "isolated" and "one", while the mountains are numerous, as high as ten thousand ren. The height of the mountain makes the city smaller, and the mountains make the city more isolated. Through this contrasting description, the majestic and vast beauty of the northwest frontier of the motherland is revealed.

Extended information

The author of this poem is Wang Zhihuan:

Wang Zhihuan (688-742) was a famous poet in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. His courtesy name was Ji Ling. Han nationality, from Jimen, one said to be from Jinyang (now Taiyuan, Shanxi). He had a bold and unrestrained personality, and often sang sad songs while fencing. Many of his poems were composed and sung by musicians at that time. He became famous for a while, and he often sang harmoniously with Gao Shi, Wang Changling, etc., and was famous for his ability to describe the scenery of frontier fortresses. His representative works include "Climbing the Stork Tower" and "Liangzhou Ci".

Wang Zhihuan moved from Bingzhou (Taiyuan, Shanxi) to Jiangzhou (now Xinjiang County, Shanxi) in his early years, and served as the chief registrar of Hengshui in Jizhou. Li Di, the magistrate of Hengshui County, betrothed his third daughter to him. Because he was slandered, he resigned from the official position, and later returned to serve as Wen'an County Lieutenant. He died during his tenure.

Wang Zhihuan was proficient in articles in his early years and was good at writing poems, most of which he quoted as lyrics. He is especially good at five-character poems and is particularly good at describing the scenery of frontier fortresses. He is a romantic poet. However, only six quatrains of his works exist, including three frontier poems. His poems are represented by "Climbing the Stork Tower" and "Liangzhou Ci". Zhang Taiyan praised "Liangzhou Ci" as "the best quatrain".