Seeing Off My Elder Brother Lu Zhaolin (634-684/686) You’ll travel home through frontier mountain roadsTo see the blooms and willows of Chang’än;But now it’s time we part our hands goodbye,To gaze in silent sorrow, and journey on. Chinese 送二兄人蜀盧照鄰 關山客子路花柳帝王城此中一分手柑顧憐無聲 Pronunciation Sòng Èr Xiōng Rén ShǔLú Zhàolín Guān shān kè …
Read MoreCrossing the Yangtze River
Crossing the Yangtze River Du Shenyan (645-708) Late afternoon, this garden grove, where ancient sorrow roams;It’s spring, but birds and blossoms too do fill the edge with dread.Alone, expelled, down south in savage lands, my homeland far—The Yangtze River water flow shows not its northern tread. …
Read MoreAt Yi River, Seeing Off a Friend
In ancient times a troubled king did send,Along this very spot, a hero bold—And though those men have drowned in time’s lost flood,These waters now are just as dark and cold. Chinese 於易水送人駱賓王 此地別燕丹壯士發衝冠昔時人已沒今日水猶寒 Pronunciation Yú Yì Shuǐ Sòng RénLuò Bīn wáng Cǐ dì bié yān dānZhuàng shì fà …
Read MoreUnearthed
rewarded onceon sight unseenthis gift’s delighta daylight dream * the beggar barehe seeks his alms—the woman walkshe’s lost his charm * a jailed man richhe sits and waitsin a block cell Ritzwithout a gate * winter barethe dead leaves waitin springtime prayerfor …
Read MoreAnchored at Jiande River
Meng Haoran This anchored boat’s astir in fog and breeze,As sunset rends my fears up once again,But as the sky descends beneath the trees,The river, moon, and quiet become my friends. Chinese Pronunciation 宿建德江 Sù jiàn dé jiāng 移舟泊煙渚， Yí zhōu …
Read MoreA Chance Encounter
By chance I saw her at the cornerOf Fifth and Forty-Eight;The crowd moved past, we talked at last,And smiled as on a date.We planned to meet again sometimeOr talk at any rate,But the number she gave I failed to save,As charm’s a poor cousin to …
Read MoreWitch’s Brew
A fern surrounds my life like a hollow mazeIn the intricate lattice of love’s first gaze;Following a pattern that guides me on this roadI reach for her lips beneath the mistletoe. My love comes forth with the apple of desire,A tangled taste that takes a life …
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