“Guan Ju”
Waterbirds on
River islands:
Shy the Nymph
our
Shepherd’s
chosen!
Waterlilies
Wreathe around
her:
Shy the Nymph
he
Walking,
sleeping
Never reaches;
Walking,
sleeping,
Longing,
longing,
Turning,
tossing!
Waterlilies
To adorn her:
Shy the Nymph
we
Greet with
zither!
Waterlilies
To array her:
To the shy
Nymph
Bell, drum
bring glee!
Translated by Arthur Cooper
“Li Shao”
(Encountering Sorrow)
…….
With a
profusion of innate virtues I was endowed;
Augmented them
with many cultivated talents.
Clad myself in
selinea and shady angelica,
I wove
together autumn orchids for girdle pendants.
… I could
hardly keep my race with fleeting time
Dreading that
the years wouldn’t wait for me,
Mornings, I
plucked magnolia blossoms…
Evenings, I gathered
winter sedges in the islet.
The sun and
moon sped away and never lingered;
Spring and
autumn followed each other in …
As grass and
tress will wither and fall,
I also feared
the Lovely One would decline in…
You won’t
cherish your youth or abandon the filthy;
But, why can’t
you mend your ways and manners?
Come, gallop
forth on your spirited stteed,
And I’ll guide
you on the road ahead!
….
Those rulers,
Yao and Shun, were great and…
Following the
right principles, they found the way.
But how wild
and licentious were Jie and Zhou!
They took the
narrow path and they stumbled.
For partisans
who indulged themselves in lust,
The road was
dark, narrow, and dangerous.
I was not
afraid of falling into disaster myself,
But I feared
the wreck of the royal carriage.
Hastily I
rushed back and forth,
To follow the
footsteps of former kings.
The Fragrant
One failed to discern my feelings;
Instead, he
believed in slanders and raged against ..
I knew, for
sure, my obdurate loyalty would cause…
I would rather
be patient but could hardly constrain
I pointed to
the Nine Heavens as my witness—
All that I did
was for the sake of the Holy One!
….
The crowd vied
with each other for sordid gain;
Insatiable
they were in craving and extortion.
While
measuring other according to their own…
They each set
their mind on envy and malice.
To rush about
in mad pursuit
Was not my
most pressing concern.
As old age
slowly came upon me,
I worried that
my good name had not been established…
…
Long I sighed
and my tears I wiped away—
I grieved that
people could suffer so much
….
These were the
things my heart desired,
..I wouldn’t
regret even if I died a thousand deaths.
“Going on
always on and on”
Going on
always on and on
alive, but
parted from you.
gone ten
thousand miles and more,
each to a far
edge of the sky.
the road is
hard and long
with nothing
sure about meeting again.
Tartar horses
lean to the northern wind
Viet birds
nest on southern boughs.
days advance,
the parting grows long
days advance,
the sash grows loose
floating clouds
hide the bright sun—
the wanderer
can think of no return
loving you I
became old
suddenly the
time is late—
enough, I
speak no more;
try hard to
stay well.
* * *
Green is the
grass on riverbanks,
Dense are the
willows in the garden.
Fair is the
woman upstairs,
Bright as the
moon at her window.
Lovely is her
rouge-powered face,
Slender are
her white hands.
At one time
she was a singing-girl,
Now she is a
wanderer’s wife.
He went away
and has not returned,
An empty bed,
hard to keep alone.
“Song of Gaixia”
–Xiang Ji (232-202BC)
Strength I had
to uproot hills,
my spirit
dominated the age;
Now in this
hour of misfortune,
my dappled
steed cannot flee.
Dappled steed,
unable to break away,
what hope is
left?
Ah, Lady Yü,
my Yü!
what will
become of you?
“Song of the
Great Wind”--Liu Pang (256-195 BC)
A great wind
arose,
the clouds
flew up and away;
My majesty now
grown to the sea’s edges
I return to my
old home.
Yet where
shall I find brave men to guard
the four
quarters?
by Juan Chi
(210-263)
Deep in the
night and unable to sleep
I rise and sit
to play my singing lute
thin curtains
mirror the bright moon
clear breezes
tug my lapels
a single swan
shrieks past the fields
hovering birds
cry in the north woods,
pacing round,
what is it that awaits me?
Anxious
thoughts alone that hurt the heart.
by Tao Qian
(365-427)
When I was
young, I did not fit into the common…
By instinct, I
love mountains and hills.
By error, I
fell into this dusty net
And was gone
from home for thirteen years.
A caged bird
yearns for its native woods;
The fish in a
pond recalls old mountain pool.
Now I shall
clear the land at the edge of the south…
And, clinging
to simplicity, return to garden and…
My house and land
on a two-acre lot,
My thatched
hut of eight or nine rooms—
Elms and
willows shade the eaves back of the house
Peach and plum
trees stand in a row before the hall.
Lost in a haze
is the distant village,
where smoke
hovers above the homes.
Dogs bark somewhere
in deep lanes,
Cocks crow
atop the mulberry trees.
My home is
free from dust and care,
In a bare room
there is leisure to spare.
Long a
prisoner in a cage,
I am now able
to come back to nature.
by Tao Qian
I built my
cottage among the habitations of men,
And yet there
is no clamor of carriages and horses.
You ask: “Sir,
how can this be done?”
“A heart that
is distant creates its own solitude.”
I pluck
chrysanthemums under the eastern hedge,
Then gaze afar
toward the southern hills.
The mountain
air is fresh at the dusk of day,
The flying
birds in clocks return.
In these
things there lies a deep meaning,
I want to tell
it, but have forgotten the words.
“Miscellaneous
Poems”
A man has no
roots.
Blown
about—like dust on the road
In all directions,
he tumbles with the wind:
Our lives are
brief enough.
We come into
this world as brothers and sisters:
But why must
we be tied to flesh and blood?
Let’s enjoy
our happiness:
Here’s a jug
of wine, call in the neighbors.
The best times
don’t come often:
Each day dawns
only once.
The seasons
urge us on—
Time waits for
no man.
In Praise of
Jing Ke
Prince Dan of
Yan knew how to treat a man-
His aim was
vengeance on mighty Ying.
He long had
looked for the man worth a hundred
And then as the
years ran out he got Jing Ke.
“A gentleman
will die for one who knows his worth;
With sword in
hand I will leave Yan’s capital,
My pallid
charger whinnying through the streets
As they escort
me, filled with high resolve.”
The hero’s
hair thrusts through his high hat,
His valor
saturates the long capstring.
A farewell cup
beside the River Yi,
Around him sit
the heroes of the realm.
Gao Jianli
strikes the sad lute,
Song Yi sings
the high-pitched mournful song.
A plaintive
wind begins its lonely wail,
The cold waves
surge in the swelling flood.
When the not yu
is struck the hero is startled:
He knows he
will leave and never return
But after him
his name will live forever.
He mounted his
carriage and never once looked back.
Canopy flying,
he headed for the court of Qin.
Straight for
his goal he dashed, ten thousand miles
Around and
through a thousand towns he drove.
When the chart
unrolled, the thing was there—
Even the
intrepid ruler drew back in fear.
Alas, this his
swordsmanship was faulty
And left the
unimaginable deed undone!
Although the
man is long since dead and gone,
After a
thousand years he inspires us still.
White hair
shrouds both my temples,
My skin and
flesh have lost their fullness.
Though I have
five male children,
Not one of
them loves brush and paper.
in laziness he’s
never been rivaled.
But cares
nothing for letters or learning.
All he does is
hunt for chestnuts and pears.
If this is the
luck Heaven sends me,
Then pour me
the “thing in the cup”!
“Climbing
Stone Drum Mountain Above the Shores of Shang-shu”
by Xie Lingyun
(385-433)
A traveler’s
thoughts stretch on forever,
Sorrow follows
grief and grief follows sorrow.
The road home
is interminably far,
The rivers and
highlands are impassable.
Wandering on,
… no one to share a happy moment,
…at the start
of spring I devote myself to climbing.
Since I cannot
share my joys and hopes,
Perhaps my
melancholy is most in place.
Extending my
gaze leftward, I see the broad plains,
Around to the
right, I behold a narrow gorge.
As the sun
sinks the waters grow choppy,
And clouds
form midst the multiplying ranges.