Poetry

1

cáo zhí
曹植

qī bù shī
七步诗*

zhǔ dòu rán dòu qí
煮豆燃豆萁
dòu zài fǔ zhōng qì
豆在釜中泣
běn shì tóng gēn shēng
本是同根生
xiāng jiān hé tài jí
相煎何太急

A Poem Composed in Seven Steps

By Cao Zhi

Beans are cooking on a beanstalk fire.

Beans in the pot are a weeping choir:

“Why are you, born of the root we share,

Bent on scalding us with heat so dire?”

*Tweeted by Elon Musk in November 2021

2

lǐ bái
李白

jìng yè sī
静夜思

chuáng qián míng yuè guāng
床前明月光，
yí shì dì shàng shuāng
疑是地上霜。
jǔ tóu wàng míng yuè
举头望明月，
dī tóu sī gù xiāng
低头思故乡。

Homesick on a Quiet Night
By Li Bai

Before my bed the moonlight shines so bright,
I thought the floor was paved with hoarfrost white.
I raise my head and watch the moon up high;
I bow my head and ache for home tonight.

3

lǐ bái
李白

huáng hè lóu sòng mèng hào rán zhī guǎng líng
黄鹤楼送孟浩然之广陵

gù rén xī cí huáng hè lóu
故人西辞黄鹤楼，
yān huā sān yuè xià yáng zhōu
烟花三月下扬州。
gū fān yuǎn yǐng bì kōng jìn
孤帆远影碧空尽，
wéi jiàn cháng jiāng tiān jì liú
唯见长江天际流。

Farewell at Yellow Crane Tower (on the occasion
of Meng Haoran’s departure for Yangzhou)

By Li Bai

Leaving the Yellow Crane Tower in the west,

My friend is going downstream to Yangzhou,
Through the April blossoms and the flowering willow.
The lone sail now is a faraway shadow
and then, against the void blue, a nothing,

Save the waters of Yangtze that to the skyline flow.

4

lǐ bái
李白

shān zhōng wèn dá
山中问答

wèn yú hé yì qī bì shān
问余何意栖碧山，
xiào ér bù dá xīn zì xián
笑而不答心自闲。
táo huā liú shuǐ yǎo rán qù
桃花流水杳然去，
bié yǒu tiān dì fēi rén jiān
别有天地非人间。

Q&A in the Hill
By Li Bai

You ask why I have chosen to live in Emerald Hill.

To which I reply with a smile of ease, but wordless withal.

Peach blossoms, buoyed on the stream, sail into oblivion,

Where lies another world, unlike the one of the mortal.

5

lǐ bái
李白

yuè xià dú zhuó
月下独酌

huā jiān yì hú jiǔ
花间一壶酒，
dú zhuó wú xiāng qīn
独酌无相亲。
jǔ bēi yāo míng yuè
举杯邀明月，
duì yǐng chéng sān rén
对影成三人。
yuè jì bù jiě yǐn
月既不解饮，
yǐng tú suí wǒ shēn
影徒随我身。
zàn bàn yuè jiāng yǐng
暂伴月将影，
xíng lè xū jí chūn
行乐须及春。

wǒ gē yuè pái huái
我歌月徘徊，

wǒ wǔ yǐng líng luàn
我舞影零乱。
xǐng shí tóng jiāo huān
醒时同交欢，
zuì hòu gè fēn sàn
醉后各分散。
yǒng jié wú qíng yóu
永结无情游，
xiāng qī miǎo yún hàn
相期邈云汉。

(See next page for translation)

Drinking Alone Under the Moon
By Li Bai

In the midst of flowers a flagon is set

For a lone drinker with no company yet.

I raise my cup to the moon in a plea

That it join this party of three:

Me, my shadow and thee.

The moon is not one to know drinking;

My shadow tags along without thinking.

But for now, I shall revel with the moon and the shadow

For one must catch the springtide and move with the flow.

When I sing, the moon saunters to and fro;
When I dance, flail about does my shadow.

When sober, we make merry together;

When drunk, we finish and scatter.

Here, among the insentient revelers, is made a pact for eternity

That we shall meet again in the far realm of celestial infinity.

6

mèng hào rán
孟浩然

chūn xiǎo
春晓

chūn mián bù jué xiǎo
春眠不觉晓，
chù chù wén tí niǎo
处处闻啼鸟。
yè lái fēng yǔ shēng
夜来风雨声，
huā luò zhī duō shǎo
花落知多少。

Daybreak in Springtime
By Meng Haoran

From a spring slumber waking,

surprised to find dawn breaking,

All around I hear birds singing.

With the wind and rain soughing in the night,
How many flowers, I wonder,

have fallen in the lashing?

7

dù fǔ
杜甫

chūn yè xǐ yǔ
春夜喜雨

hǎo yǔ zhī shí jié
好雨知时节，
dāng chūn nǎi fā shēng
当春乃发生。
suí fēng qián rù yè
随风潜入夜，
rùn wù xì wú shēng
润物细无声。
yě jìng yún jù hēi
野径云俱黑，
jiāng chuán huǒ dú míng
江船火独明，
xiǎo kàn hóng shī chù
晓看红湿处，
huā chóng jǐn guān chéng
花重锦官城。

Welcome Rain on a Spring Night
By Du Fu

Good rain knows to fall in the right season;*
Now it is here, spring being the reason.
Carried on a breeze, gliding into the night,

It moistens all life, soundless and light.
Trails and clouds tarred by the dark,

The lamp on a riverboat is the only spark.
By dawn, the doused petals shall emerge;
Across Brocade City a sea of blooms surge.

*Quoted in Squid Game, S1E9.

8

bái jū yì
白居易

dà lín sì táo huā
大林寺桃花

rén jiān sì yuè fāng fēi jìn
人间四月芳菲尽，
shān sì táo huā shǐ shèng kāi
山寺桃花始盛开。
cháng hèn chūn guī wú mì chù
长恨春归无觅处，
bù zhī zhuǎn rù cǐ zhōng lái
不知转入此中来。

Peach Blossom of the Dalin Temple
By Bai Juyi

The fourth moon is when the floral feast the
world quits

Or peach trees start to bloom where the temple sits.
As the spring gone is sorely missed,

’Tis refound here, in a fortuitous twist.

9

bái jū yì
白居易

fù dé gǔ yuán cǎo sòng bié
赋得古原草送别

lí lí yuán shàng cǎo
离离原上草，
yí suì yì kū róng

一岁一枯荣。
yě huǒ shāo bú jìn
野火烧不尽，
chūn fēng chuī yòu shēng
春风吹又生。
yuǎn fāng qīn gǔ dào
远芳侵古道，
qíng cuì jiē huāng chéng
晴翠接荒城。
yòu sòng wáng sūn qù
又送王孙去，
qī qī mǎn bié qíng

萋萋满别情。

A Farewell (composed under the assigned topic of
grass on a paleoplain)

By Bai Juyi

Across the prairie roll the lush grasses;

They thrive and wither as each year passes.
Wildfires may rage but survive they will;
When spring breathes again revive they shall.
Their scents, carried afar,
the ancient paths pervade;

Their hues, unclouded,
the forsaken city raid.

Here I am again bidding my friend goodbye,
The pain of parting
not by the verdure allayed.

10

lǐ shāng yǐn
李商隐

yè yǔ jì běi
夜雨寄北

jūn wèn guī qī wèi yǒu qī
君问归期未有期，
bā shān yè yǔ zhǎng qiū chí
巴山夜雨涨秋池。
hé dāng gòng jiǎn xī chuāng zhú
何当共剪西窗烛，
què huà bā shān yè yǔ shí
却话巴山夜雨时。

Writing Home on a Rainy Night
By Li Shangyin

You asked when I was coming home,
but I do not yet know.

Bashan’s rain tonight is swelling
an autumn-chilled pond.

When can we trim the candlewick together
by the west window

And recall this night rain of Bashan
as a memory fond?

11

lǐ shāng yǐn
李商隐

jǐn sè
锦瑟

jǐn sè wú duān wǔ shí xián
锦瑟无端五十弦，
yì xián yí zhù sī huá nián
一弦一柱思华年。
zhuāng shēng xiǎo mèng mí hú dié
庄生晓梦迷蝴蝶，
wàng dì chūn xīn tuō dù juān
望帝春心托杜鹃。
cāng hǎi yuè míng zhū yǒu lèi
沧海月明珠有泪，
lán tián rì nuǎn yù shēng yān
蓝田日暖玉生烟。
cǐ qíng kě dài chéng zhuī yì
此情可待成追忆，
zhǐ shì dāng shí yǐ wǎng rán

只是当时已惘然。

Jin Se (The Lavishly Adorned Zither)
By Li Shangyin

Jin Se, with no rhyme or reason, takes on fifty
strings,

Each string, with its post, a reminder of the age
of bloom.

Zhuangzi the Wise dreams of morphing into a
butterfly of binary self;

Wangdi the Great returns in spring as a wistful
cuckoo from his tomb.

Above the sea of azure waters the moon shines on
clams whose tears become pearls;

Atop the mountain of Blue Fields the sun warms
the jade that oozes an ethereal plume.

What they evoked in me has become the stuff of
nostalgia,

But I was lost then, and little import to it I did
assume.

12

wáng zhī huàn
王之涣

dēng guàn què lóu
登鹳雀楼

bái rì yī shān jìn
白日依山尽，
huáng hé rù hǎi liú
黄河入海流。
yù qióng qiān lǐ mù
欲穷千里目，
gèng shàng yì céng lóu
更上一层楼。

Up on the Stork Tower
By Wang Zhihuan

The white sun retires behind the hills;
Seaward goes the Yellow River’s flow.

To stretch your vision to a thousand miles,
Ascend another floor so your vistas grow.

13

wáng zhī huàn
王之涣

liáng zhōu cí
凉州词

huáng hé yuǎn shàng bái yún jiān
黄河远上白云间，
yí piàn gū chéng wàn rèn shān
一片孤城万仞山。
qiāng dí hé xū yuàn yáng liǔ
羌笛何须怨杨柳，
chūn fēng bú dù yù mén guān
春风不度玉门关。

Lyrics for the Tune of Liangzhou (Prefecture of
Cold Climes)

By Wang Zhihuan

The Yellow River rolls on, joining the clouds in
the sky.

A lone city stands in the mountains myriad
fathoms high.

O, shepherd’s flute, why play the plaintive willow
tune?

The Jade Gate Pass is to the spring breeze
immune.

14

wáng wéi
王维

niǎo míng jiàn
鸟鸣涧

rén xián guì huā luò
人闲桂花落，
yè jìng chūn shān kōng
夜静春山空。
yuè chū jīng shān niǎo
月出惊山鸟，
shí míng chūn jiàn zhōng
时鸣春涧中。

Birds Sing in the Valley
By Wang Wei

No man is about, calm descends,

petals falling, from osmanthus flowering.

In the hollow of the mountains, hushed by the
night of spring,

Birds stir at the moon rising—

off and on, in the spring-lulled valley, they sing.

15

dù mù
杜牧

qīng míng
清明

qīng míng shí jié yǔ fēn fēn
清明时节雨纷纷，
lù shàng xíng rén yù duàn hún
路上行人欲断魂。
jiè wèn jiǔ jiā hé chù yǒu
借问酒家何处有，
mù tóng yáo zhǐ xìng huā cūn
牧童遥指杏花村。

Qingming (Remembrance Day)
By Du Mu

Pestering rain falls on Remembrance Day.
Heartsick travelers in a gray mood cower.

“Could you show me the way to a tavern please?”
Herdboy points to a village yon, where apricots
flower.

16

lǐ shēn
李绅

mǐn nóng
悯农

chú hé rì dāng wǔ
锄禾日当午，
hàn dī hé xià tǔ
汗滴禾下土。
shéi zhī pán zhōng cān
谁知盘中餐，
lì lì jiē xīn kǔ
粒粒皆辛苦。

Pitying the Farmers
By Li Shen

Farmers hoe the crop in the midday sun.
Down goes their sweat, dripping unto soil.
Of the food on your plate,
if you care to know,

Each grain comes from arduous toil.

17

liú yǔ xī
刘禹锡

qiū cí
秋词

zì gǔ féng qiū bēi jì liáo
自古逢秋悲寂寥，
wǒ yán qiū rì shèng chūn zhāo
我言秋日胜春朝。
qíng kōng yí hè pái yún shàng
晴空一鹤排云上，
biàn yǐn shī qíng dào bì xiāo
便引诗情到碧霄。

Ode to Autumn
By Liu Yuxi

The age-old myth paints autumn as bare and
forlorn.

But autumn suns, I contend, outshine the spring
morn.

Up in the azure, a soaring crane cleaves the
clouds,

Taking with it, to high sky, the poet’s whim
reborn.

18

liǔ zōng yuán
柳宗元

jiāng xuě
江雪

qiān shān niǎo fēi jué
千山鸟飞绝，
wàn jìng rén zōng miè
万径人踪灭。
gū zhōu suō lì wēng
孤舟蓑笠翁，
dú diào hán jiāng xuě
独钓寒江雪。

Snowing on the River
By Liu Zongyuan

Of the many mountains, none has a bird in flight;
Of the many more trails, none has a soul in sight.
A lone boat carries an old man, caped and hatted
in rush,

Angling on the river, chilled by the snowy hush.

19

sū shì
苏轼

tí xī lín bì
题西林壁

héng kàn chéng lǐng cè chéng fēng
横看成岭侧成峰，
yuǎn jìn gāo dī gè bù tóng
远近高低各不同。
bù shí lú shān zhēn miàn mù
不识庐山真面目，
zhǐ yuán shēn zài cǐ shān zhōng
只缘身在此山中。

Written on the Wall of Xilin Temple at
Mount Lushan

By Su Shi

Seen front on, an undulation; sidewise, many a peak:
From near, far, high, low, each view is unique.

Yet the true face of Lushan forever eludes me,

All because I am here, in the midst of what I seek.

20

lǐ qīng zhào
李清照

bó wù nóng yún chóu yǒng zhòu (jié xuǎn)
薄雾浓云愁永昼（节选）

dōng lí bǎ jiǔ huáng hūn hòu, yǒu àn xiāng yíng xiù
东篱把酒黄昏后，有暗香盈袖。
mò dào bù xiāo hún, lián juǎn xī fēng

莫道不销魂，帘卷西风，
rén bǐ huáng huā shòu
人比黄花瘦。

Hazy Gloom Rules the Day (An Excerpt)
By Li Qingzhao

By the eastern hedge, I drink to the gathering eve
As a quiet scent steals into my sleeve.

Verily blighting is this moment,
of a rising zephyr stirring the portiere,

And of me, a pining figure,
slighter
than the florets of the chrysanth fair.