(1892–1978)
A pioneer in new verse, Guo Moruo was a major figure in twentieth century China. Son of a small-town landlord in Sichuan, Guo went to study medicine in Japan in 1914. There he fell in love with a Japanese nurse named Sato Tomiko and revoked his earlier arranged marriage. He lived with Sato for twenty years and had five children with her. Influenced by Western romantic poets such as Shelley, Goethe, and Whitman, Guo in 1921 published a collection of poems, Goddesses. Exploding with intense emotions and espousing individualism and pantheism, his work fully grasped the zeitgeist of the May Fourth Movement. Versatile, energetic, rebellious, Guo was influential in both state politics and scholarly pursuits, holding important official positions and claiming expertise in history, archeology, and other disciplines.
The streetlights in the distance have brightened
Like countless bright stars sparkling.
The bright stars in heaven have appeared
Like countless luminous streetlights.
Surely in that misty sky
There are lovely streets.
The items displayed there
Must be treasures unfound on this earth.
Look, that shallow Milky Way
Surely cannot be too wide.
The cowherd and weaving maid across the river
Surely can ride their buffaloes to meet each other.
I think just at this moment, they
Surely must be strolling along those streets of heaven.
If you do not believe me, look at the blooming comet.
It must be the lantern they carry on their walk.
—1921
Ya, I am a sky dog!
I have swallowed the moon,
I have swallowed the sun.
I have swallowed all the planets,
I have swallowed the entire universe.
I am I!
I am the light of the moon,
I am the light of the sun.
I am the light of all the planets,
I am the light of X-ray,
I am the total energy of the entire universe.*
I am flying,
I am screaming,
I am burning,
I am burning like a fierce fire!
I am screaming like the mighty ocean!
I am running like electricity!
I am running,
I am running,
I tear my skin,
I eat my flesh,
I chew my heart,
I am running on my nerves,
I am running on my spines,
I am running in my brain.
I am I!
The I of I is about to explode!
—1920
The Nirvana of the Feng and Huang: Prelude
On the threshold of the new year, there in the sky
The Feng and Huang fly back and forth.†
Singing mournful tunes as they fly away,
Bearing twigs of fragrant wood as they return,
Return to Tan-hsüeh Mountain.
To the right of the mountain is the withered Wu-t’ung tree,
To the left of the mountain is the dried-up spring.
Before the mountain is the wide expanse of the sea,
Behind the mountain is the vast dreary plain,
And over the mountain a frozen sky of bitter winds.
The sky is now darkened,
The fragrant wood is now piled high,
The Feng is now wearied from flying,
The Huang is now wearied from flying,
Their hour of death is nearing.
The Feng pecks at the fragrant wood,
Sparks of fire upward dart;
The Huang fans the fire sparks,
Strands of smoke rise upward.
Again pecks the Feng,
Again pecks the Huang,
On the mountain the scented smoke swirls,
On the mountain the firelight fills the sky.
The night has deepened,
The fragrant wood is lighted,
The Feng is wearied from pecking,
The Huang is wearied from fanning,
Their hour of death is nearing!
Ah, ah,
Sad, sad are Feng and Huang!
Feng starts his dance, now slow, now high!
Huang starts her songs, now sad, now exalted!
Again Feng dances,
Again Huang sings,
A flock of birds has now flown over
Beyond the sky to attend the burial.
—1920
(Translated by Julia C. Lin)
* Both “X-ray” and “energy” were English in the original poem.
† Both Feng and Huang in Chinese mean “phoenix,” with Feng being the male bird and Huang the female.