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Li Pai (701–762), aka Li Po, was born in what is now Kyrgyzstan and grew up in Szechuan, north of Chengtu. Ranked with Tu Fu as one of China’s two greatest poets, he left behind over one thousand poems. This is one of his most famous, and critics sigh at the effortlessness of his technique and his ability to transport the reader not only to a place but also to a state of mind. When the Chinese see the moon, it reminds them that friends and family members living elsewhere are looking at the same moon.

Thoughts on a Quiet Night

LI PAI

Before my bed the light is so bright

it looks like a layer of frost

lifting my head I gaze at the moon

lying back down I think of home