My friend is
continuously
merry.
Amy Lowell - Chinese Poets
I look at the clear streams
a long way off.
I see distinctly the three branches of the Hsiang River, I hear the
sound of its swift current.
The water flows coldly; it is on its way to the lake.
The horizontal Autumn clouds hide the sky.
I go by the "Bird's Path. " I calculate the distance to my old home.
Oh-h-h-h-h!
I do not know how many thousand _li_ it is from Ching to Wu.
It is the hour of the Western brightness, of the half-round sun.
The dazzle on the island is about to disappear;
The smooth lake is brilliantly white--from the moon?
Over the lake, the moon is rising.
I think of the moment of meeting--the long stretch of time before
it.
I think of misty Yen and gaze at Yüeh.
The lotus-flowers have fallen--Oh-h-h-h-h! The river is the colour
of Autumn.
The wind passes--passes. The night is endless--endless.
I would go to the end of the Dark Sea. How eagerly I desire this!
I think much of fishing for a leviathan from the Island of the Cold
Sea.
There is no rod long enough to raise it.
I yield to the great waves, and my sorrow is increased.
I will return. I will go home. Oh-h-h-h-h!
Even for a little time, one cannot rely upon the World.
I long to pick the immortal herbs on the hill of P'êng.
POIGNANT GRIEF DURING A SUNNY SPRING
BY LI T'AI-PO
The East wind has come again.
I see the jade-green grass and realize that it is Spring.
Everywhere there is an immense confusion of ripples and agitations.
Why does the waving and fluttering of the weeping-willow make me sad?
The sky is so bright it shines; everything is lovely and at peace.
The breath of the sea is green, fresh, sweet-smelling;
The heaths are vari-coloured, blue--green--as a kingfisher feather.
Oh-h-h-h-h--How far one can see!
Clouds whirl, fly, float, and cluster together, each one sharply
defined;
Waves are smoothed into a wide, continuous flowing.
I examine the young moss in the well, how it starts into life.
I see something dim--Oh-h-h-h-h--waving up and down like floss silk.
I see it floating--it is a cobweb, coiling like smoke.
Before all these things--Oh-h-h-h-h--my soul is severed from my
body.
Confronted with the wind, the brilliance, I suffer.
I feel as one feels listening to the sound of the waters of the
Dragon Mound in Ch'in,
The gibbons wailing by the Serpent River.
I feel as the "Shining One" felt when she passed the Jade Frontier,
As the exile of Ch'u in the Maple Forest.
I will try to climb a high hill and look far away into the distance.
Pain cuts me to the bone and wounds my heart.
My Spring heart is agitated as the surface of the sea,
My Spring grief is bewildered like a flurry of snow.
Ten thousand emotions are mingled--their sorrow and their joy.
Yet I know only that my heart is torn in this Spring season.
She of whom I am thinking--Oh-h-h-h-h--is at the shore of the Hsiang
River,
Separated by the clouds and the rainbow--without these mists I could
surely see.
I scatter my tears a foot's length upon the water's surface.
I entrust the Easterly flowing water with my passion for the
Cherished One.
If I could command the shining of the Spring, could grasp it without
putting it out--Oh-h-h-h-h--
I should wish to send it as a gift to that beautiful person at the
border of Heaven.
TWO POEMS WRITTEN AS PARTING GIFTS TO TS'UI (THE OFFICIAL) OF CH'IU PU
BY LI T'AI-PO
I love Ts'ui of Ch'iu Pu.
He follows the ways of the Official T'ao.
At his gate, he has planted five willow-trees,
And on either side of the well, crowding it between them, stand two
wu-t'ung trees.
Mountain birds fly down and listen while he transacts business;
From the eaves of his house, flowers drop into the midst of his
wine.
Thinking of my Lord, I cannot bear to depart.
My thoughts are melancholy and endless.
II
My Lord is like T'ao of P'êng Tsê.
Often, during the day, he sleeps at the North window.
Again, in the moonlight, he bends over his table-lute and plays,
His hands follow his thoughts, for there are no strings.
When a guest comes, it is wine alone which he pours out.
He is the best of officials, since he does not care for gold.
He has planted many grains on the Eastern heights,
And he admonishes all the people to plow their fields early.
SENT AS A PARTING GIFT TO THE SECOND OFFICIAL OF CH'IU PU
BY LI T'AI-PO
In the old days, Ch'iu Pu was bare and desolate,
The serving-men in the Official Residence were few.
Because you, my Lord, have planted peach-trees and plum-trees,
This place has suddenly become exuberantly fragrant.
As your writing-brush moves, making the characters so full of life,
you gaze at the white clouds;
And, when the reed-blinds are rolled up, at the kingfisher-green of
the fading hills;
And, when the time comes, for long at the mountain moon;
Still again, when you are exhilarated with wine, at the shadow of
the moon in the wine-cup.
Great man and teacher, I love you.
I linger.
I cannot bear to leave.
THE SONG OF THE WHITE CLOUDS
SAYING GOOD-BYE TO LIU SIXTEEN ON HIS RETURN TO THE HILLS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The hills of Ch'u,
The hills of Ch'in,
White clouds everywhere.
White clouds follow my Lord always,
From place to place. They always follow
My Lord,
When my Lord arrives at the hills of Ch'u.
Clouds also follow my Lord when he floats
In a boat on the river Hsiang,
With the wild wistaria hanging above
The waters of the river Hsiang.
My Lord will go back
To where he can sleep
Among the white clouds,
When the sun is as high
As the head of a helmeted man.
WIND-BOUND AT THE NEW FOREST REACH. A LETTER SENT TO A FRIEND
BY LI T'AI-PO
Tidal water is a determined thing, it can be depended on;
But it is impossible to make an appointment with the wind of Heaven.
In the clear dawn, it veers Northwest;
At the last moment of sunset, it blows Southeast.
It is therefore difficult to set our sail.
The thought of our happy meeting becomes insistent.
The wide water reflects a moon no longer round, but broken.
Water grass springs green in the broad reach.
Yesterday, at the North Lake, there were plum-flowers;
They were just beginning to open, the branches were not covered.
To-day, at dawn, see the willows beyond the White Gate;
The road is squeezed between them, they drop down their bright green
silk threads.
Everything stirs like this, with the year--
When will my coming be fixed?
Willow-blossoms lie thick as snow on the river,
I am worried, the heart of the traveller is sad.
"At daybreak I will leave the New Forest Reach"--
But what is the use of humming Hsieh T'iao's poem.
IN THE PROVINCE OF LU, AT THE ANCESTRAL SHRINE OF KING YAO. SAYING
FAREWELL TO WU FIVE ON HIS DEPARTURE FOR LANG YA
BY LI T'AI-PO
King Yao has been dead for three thousand years,
But the green pine, the ancient temple, remain.
As we are bidding you good-bye, we set out offerings of cassia wine;
We make obeisance, we bend our knees, and, rising, turn our faces to
Heaven. Our hearts and spirits are pure.
The colour of the sun urges our return.
Song follows song, we tip up the flagon of sweet-scented wine.
The horses whinny. We are all tipsy, yet we rise.
Our hands separate. What words are there still to say?
DRINKING ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT
BY LI T'AI-PO
I
A pot of wine among flowers.
I alone, drinking, without a companion.
I lift the cup and invite the bright moon.
My shadow opposite certainly makes us three.
But the moon cannot drink,
And my shadow follows the motions of my body in vain.
For the briefest time are the moon and my shadow my companions.
Oh, be joyful! One must make the most of Spring.
I sing--the moon walks forward rhythmically;
I dance, and my shadow shatters and becomes confused.
In my waking moments, we are happily blended.
When I am drunk, we are divided from one another and scattered.
For a long time I shall be obliged to wander without intention;
But we will keep our appointment by the far-off Cloudy River.
DRINKING ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT
BY LI T'AI-PO
II
If Heaven did not love wine,
There would be no Wine Star in Heaven.
If Earth did not love wine,
There should be no Wine Springs on Earth.
Why then be ashamed before Heaven to love wine.
I have heard that clear wine is like the Sages;
Again it is said that thick wine is like the Virtuous Worthies.
Wherefore it appears that we have swallowed both Sages and Worthies.
Why should we strive to be Gods and Immortals?
Three cups, and one can perfectly understand the Great Tao;
A gallon, and one is in accord with all nature.
Only those in the midst of it can fully comprehend the joys of wine;
I do not proclaim them to the sober.
A STATEMENT OF RESOLUTIONS AFTER BEING DRUNK ON A SPRING DAY
BY LI T'AI-PO
This time of ours
Is like a great, confused dream.
Why should one spend one's life in toil?
Thinking this, I have been drunk all day.
I fell down and lay prone by the pillars in front of the house;
When I woke up, I gazed for a long time
At the courtyard before me.
A bird sings among the flowers.
May I ask what season this is?
Spring wind,
The bright oriole of the water-flowing flight calls.
My feelings make me want to sigh.
The wine is still here, I will throw back my head and drink.
I sing splendidly,
I wait for the bright moon.
Already, by the end of the song, I have forgotten my feelings.
RIVER CHANT
BY LI T'AI-PO
Fig-wood oars,
A boat of the wood of the sand-pear.
At either end,
Jade flageolets and pipes of gold.
Amidships,
Jars of delectable wine,
And ten thousand pints
Put by.
A boat-load of singing-girls
Following the water ripples--
Going,
Stopping,
Veering--
The Immortal waited,
Then mounted and rode the yellow crane.
But he who is the guest of the sea has no such desire,
Rather would he be followed by the white gulls.
The _tzŭ_ and _fu_ of Ch'ü P'ing hang suspended like the sun and
moon.
The terraces and the pleasure-houses
Of the Kings of Ch'u
Are empty heaps of earth.
I am drunk with wine.
With the sweet taste of it;
I am overflowed with the joy of it.
When I take up my writing-brush,
I could move the Five Peaks.
When I have finished my poem,
I laugh aloud in my arrogance.
I rise to the country of the Immortals which lies in the middle of
the sea.
If fame followed the ways of the good official,
If wealth and rank were long constant,
Then indeed might the water of the Han River flow Northwest.
SEPARATED BY IMPERIAL SUMMONS FROM HER WHO LIVES WITHIN
BY LI T'AI-PO
I
The Emperor commands; three times the summons. He who left has not
yet returned.
To-morrow, at sunrise, he will go out by the Pass of Wu.
From the upper chamber of white jade, I shall gaze far off; but I
shall be able to make out nothing.
Our thoughts will be with each other. I must ascend the
Looking-for-Husband Hill.
II
As I left my door, my wife dragged my clothes with all her strength.
She asked me in how many days I should return from the West.
"When I return, supposing I wear at my girdle the yellow gold seal,
You must not imitate Su Ch'in's wife and not leave your loom. "
III
The upper chamber of kingfisher jade, the stairs of gold--
Who passes the night alone, leaning against the door and sobbing?
She sits all night by the cold lamp until the moon melts into the
dawn.
Her streaming, streaming tears are exhausted--to the West of the
Ch'u Barrier.
A WOMAN SINGS TO THE AIR: "SITTING AT NIGHT"
BY LI T'AI-PO
A Winter night, a cold Winter night. To me, the night is unending.
I chant heavily to myself a long time. I sit, sit in the North Hall.
The water in the well is solid with ice. The moon enters the Women's
Apartments.
The flame of the gold lamp is very small, the oil is frozen. It
shines on the misery of my weeping.
The gold lamp goes out,
But the weeping continues and increases.
The Unworthy One hides her tears in her sleeve.
She hearkens to the song of her Lord, to the sound of it.
The Unworthy One knows her passion.
The passion and the sound unite,
There is no discord between them.
If a single phrase were unsympathetic to my thoughts,
Then, though my Lord sang ten thousand verses which should cause
even the dust on the beams to fly, to me it would be nothing.
THE PALACE WOMAN OF HAN TAN BECOMES THE WIFE OF THE SOLDIERS' COOK
BY LI T'AI-PO
Once the Unworthy One was a maiden of the Ts'ung Terrace.
Joyfully lifting my moth-pencilled eyebrows, I entered the
carnation-coloured Palace.
Relying on myself, my flower-like face,
How should I know that it would wither and fade?
Banished below the jade steps,
Gone as the early morning clouds are gone,
Whenever I think of Han Tan City
I dream of the Autumn moon from the middle of the Palace.
I cannot see the Prince, my Lord.
Desolate, my longing--until daylight comes.
THE SORREL HORSE
BY LI T'AI-PO
The sorrel horse with the black tail gallops, gallops, and neighs,
Lifting, curving, his grey-jade hoofs.
He shies from the flowing water, unwilling to cross,
As though he feared the mud for his embroidered saddlecloth.
The snow is white on the far frontier hills,
The clouds are yellow over the misty frontier sea.
I strike with my leather whip, there are ten thousand _li_ to go.
How can I accomplish it, thinking of Spring in the Women's
Apartments?
A POEM GIVEN TO A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN ENCOUNTERED ON A FIELD-PATH
BY LI T'AI-PO
The magnificent horse, galloping swiftly, tramples the fallen
flower.
Down comes the riding-whip, straight down--it strikes the Five Cloud
Cart.
The young person who lifts the pearl door-screen is very beautiful.
Moreover, she smiles.
She points to a Red Building in the distance--it is the home of the
Flower Maiden.
SAYING GOOD-BYE TO A FRIEND
BY LI T'AI-PO
Clear green hills at a right angle to the North wall,
White water winding to the East of the city.
Here is the place where we must part.
The lonely water-plants go ten thousand _li_;
The floating clouds wander everywhither as does man.
Day is departing--it and my friend.
Our hands separate. Now he is going.
"Hsiao, hsiao," the horse neighs.
He neighs again, "Hsiao, hsiao. "
DESCENDING THE EXTREME SOUTH MOUNTAIN; PASSING THE HOUSE OF HU SSŬ,
LOVER OF HILLS; SPENDING THE NIGHT IN THE PREPARATION OF WINE
BY LI T'AI-PO
We come down the green-grey jade hill,
The mountain moon accompanies us home.
We turn and look back up the path:
Green, green, the sky; the horizontal, kingfisher-green line of the
hills is fading.
Holding each other's hands, we reach the house in the fields.
Little boys throw open the gate of thorn branches,
The quiet path winds among dark bamboos,
Creepers, bright with new green, brush our garments.
Our words are happy, rest is in them.
Of an excellent flavour, the wine! We scatter the dregs of it
contentedly.
We sing songs for a long time; we chant them to the wind in the
pine-trees.
By the time the songs are finished, the stars in Heaven's River are
few.
I am tipsy.
My friend is continuously merry.
In fact, we are so exhilarated that we both forget this complicated
machine, the world.
THE TERRACED ROAD OF THE TWO-EDGED SWORD MOUNTAINS
BY LI T'AI-PO
Looking South and straight from Hsien Yang for five thousand _li_,
One could see, among the full, blowing clouds, the rocky sharpness
of peaks,
Were it not for the horizontal line of the Two-Edged Sword Mountains
cutting across the view.
They are flat against the green sky, and open in the middle to let
the sky through.
On their heights, the wind whistles awesomely in the pines; it booms
in great, long gusts; it clashes like the strings of a
jade-stone psaltery; it shouts on the clearness of a gale.
In the Serpent River country, the gibbons--Oh-h-h-h-h--all the
gibbons together moan and grieve.
Beside the road, torrents flung from a great height rush down the
gully,
They toss stones and spray over the road, they run rapidly, they
whirl, they startle with the noise of thunder.
I bid good-bye to my devoted friend--Oh-h-h-h-h--now he leaves me.
When will he come again? Oh-h-h-h-h--When will he return to me?
I hope for my dear friend the utmost peace.
My voice is heavy, I sigh and draw my breath haltingly.
I look at the green surface of the water flowing to the East.
I grieve that the white sun hides in the West.
The wild goose has taken the place of the swallow--Oh-h-h-h-h--I
hear the pattering, falling noises of Autumn.
Dark are the rain clouds; the colour of the town of Ch'in is dark.
When the moon glistens on the Road of the Two-Edged
Sword--Oh-h-h-h-h--
I and you, even though in different provinces, may drink our wine
opposite each other,
And listen to the talking
Of our hearts.
HEARING A BAMBOO FLUTE ON A SPRING NIGHT IN THE CITY OF LO YANG
BY LI T'AI-PO
From whose house do the invisible notes of a jade flute come flying?
The Spring wind scatters them. They fill the City of Lo Yang.
To-night, as the phrases form, I hear "The Snapped Willow. "
To whom do they not bring back the love of his old, early garden?
THE RETREAT OF HSIEH KUNG
BY LI T'AI-PO
The sun is setting--has set--on the Spring-green Mountain.
Hsieh Kung's retreat is solitary and still.
No sound of man in the bamboo grove.
The white moon shines in the centre of the unused garden pool.
All round the ruined Summer-house is decaying grass,
Grey mosses choke the abandoned well.
There is only the free, clear wind
Again--again--passing over the stones of the spring.
A TRAVELLER COMES TO THE OLD TERRACE OF SU
BY LI T'AI-PO
The old Imperial Park--the ruined Terrace--the young willows.
The water-chestnut pickers are singing, a simple song unaccompanied
by instruments--but joy is unbearable.
For now the moon over the Western River is alone.
The time is past when she gazed upon the concubines in the Palace of
the King of Wu.
THEME OF THE REST-HOUSE ON THE CLEAR WAN RIVER
BY LI T'AI-PO
I love the beauty of the Wan River.
One can see its clear heart shining a hundred feet deep.
In what way does it not equal the river Hsin An?
For a thousand times eight feet one can see its bright bed,
The white sand keeps the colour of the moon.
The dark green bamboos accentuate the Autumn sounds.
Really one cannot help laughing to think that, until now, the rapid
current celebrated by Yen
Has usurped all the fame.
DRINKING SONG
BY LI T'AI-PO
Do you not see the waters of the Yellow River coming down from Heaven?
They rush with incredible speed to the sea, and they never turn and
come back again.
Do you not see, in the clear mirror of the Guest Hall, the miserable
white hair on my head?
At dawn it is like shining thread, but at sunset it is snow.
In this life, to be perfectly happy, one must drain one's pleasures;
The golden wine-cup must not stand empty opposite the moon.
Heaven put us here, we must use what we have.
Scatter a thousand ounces of silver and you are but where you were.
Boil the sheep,
Kill the ox,
Be merry.
We should drink three hundred cups at once.
Mr. Wise Gentleman Ts'en,
And you, Mr. Scholar Tan Ch'iu,
Drink, you must not stop.
I will sing one of my poems for you,
Please lean over and listen:
"Bells! Drums! Delicacies
Worth their weight in jade--
These things
Are of the slightest value.
I only want to be drunk
For ages and never wake.
The sages and worthies of old times
Have left not a sound,
Only those who drank
Have achieved lasting fame.
The King of Ch'ên, long ago, caroused
In the Hall of Peaceful Content.
They drank wine paid
At a full ten thousand a gallon;
They surpassed themselves in mirth,
And the telling of obscene stories.
How can a host say
He has very little money.
It is absolutely imperative
That he buy wine for his friends.
Horses of five colours, dappled flower horses,
Fur coats costing
A thousand ounces of silver--
He sends his son to exchange
All these for delectable wine,
So that you and I together
May drown our ancient grief. "
ANSWER TO AN AFFECTIONATE INVITATION FROM TS'UI FIFTEEN
BY LI T'AI-PO
You have the "bird's foot-print" characters.
You suggest that we drink together at the Lute Stream.
The characters you wrote are in the centre of a foot of pure white
silk,
They are like exquisite clouds dropped from Heaven.
Having finished reading, I smile at the empty air,
I feel as though my friend were before me
Reciting verses for a long time.
The characters are not faded. I shall keep them in my sleeve, and
they should last three years.
PARROT ISLAND
BY LI T'AI-PO
The parrots come, they cross the river waters of Wu.
The island in the river is called Parrot Island.
The parrots are flying West to the Dragon Mountain.
There are sweet grasses on the island, and how green, green, are
its trees!
The mists part and one can see the leaves of the spear-orchid, and
its scent is warm on the wind;
The water is embroidered and shot with the reflections of the
peach-tree blossoms growing on both banks.
Now indeed does the departing official realize the full meaning of
his banishment.
The long island--the solitary moon--facing each other in the
brightness.
THE HONOURABLE LADY CHAO
BY LI T'AI-PO
Moon over the houses of Han, over the site of Ch'in.
It flows as water--its brightness shone on Ming Fei, the "Bright
Concubine,"
Who took the road to the Jade Pass.
She went to the edge of Heaven, but she did not return;
She gave up the moon of Han, she departed from the Eastern Sea.
The "Bright Concubine" married in the West, and the day of her
returning never came.
For her beautiful painted face, there was the long, cold snow
instead of flowers.
She, with eyebrows like the antennæ of moths, pined and withered.
Her grave is in the sand of the Barbarians' country.
Because, when alive, she did not pay out yellow gold,
The portrait painted of her was distorted.
Now she is dead no one can prevent the bright green grass from
spreading over her grave,
And men weep because of it.
THINKING OF THE FRONTIER
BY LI T'AI-PO
At what season last year did my Lord leave his Unworthy One?
In the Southern garden, the butterflies were fluttering in the young
green grass.
Now, this year, at what season does the Unworthy One cherish
thoughts of her Lord?
There is white snow on the Western hills and the clouds of Ch'in are
dark.
It is three thousand _li_ from here to the Jade Barrier.
I desire to send the "harmonious writings," but how can they reach
you?
A SONG OF RESENTMENT
BY LI T'AI-PO
At fifteen, she entered the Palace of Han,
Her flower-face was like a river in Spring.
The Prince chose her of the jade colour
To attend his rest within the embroidered screen.
As she presented the pillow, she was lovely as the evening moon.
He who wears the dragon robes delighted in the sweetly scented wind
of her garments.
How was it possible for the "Flying Swallow" to snatch the Emperor's
love?
Jealousy unending! Profoundest grief which can so wound a person
And turn the black cloud head-dress to frosted thistledown!
If, for one day, our desires be not satisfied,
Verily the things of the world are nothing.
Change the duck-feather dress for sweet wine,
Cease to embroider dragons on the dresses for the wu dance.
She is chilly with bitterness,
Words cannot be endured.
For one's Lord one plays the table-lute of wu-t'ung wood with
strings of silk,
But when one's bowels are torn with grief, the strings also break.
Grief in the heart at night is anguish and despair.
PICKING WILLOW
BY LI T'AI-PO
The drooping willow brushes the very clear water,
Beautifully it flickers in this East-wind time of the year.
Its flowers are bright as the snow of the Jade Pass,
Its leaves soft as smoke against the gold window.
She, the Lovely One, bound in her long thoughts;
Facing them, her heart is burnt with grief.
Pull down a branch,
Gather the Spring colour
And send it far,
Even to that place
Before the Dragon Gate.
AUTUMN RIVER SONG
ON THE BROAD REACH
BY LI T'AI-PO
In the clear green water--the shimmering moon.
In the moonlight--white herons flying.
A young man hears a girl plucking water-chestnuts;
They paddle home together through the night, singing.
VISITING THE TAOIST PRIEST ON THE MOUNTAIN WHICH UPHOLDS HEAVEN.
HE IS ABSENT
BY LI T'AI-PO
A dog,
A dog barking.
And the sound of rushing water.
How dark and rich the peach-flowers after the rain.
Every now and then, between the trees, I see deer.
Twelve o'clock, but I hear no bell in the ravine.
Wild bamboos slit the blue-green of a cloudy sky,
The waterfall hangs against the jade-green peak.
There is no one to tell me where he has gone.
I lean against the pine-trees grieving.
REPLY TO AN UNREFINED PERSON ENCOUNTERED IN THE HILLS
BY LI T'AI-PO
He asks why I perch in the green jade hills.
I smile and do not answer. My heart is comfortable and at peace.
Fallen peach-flowers spread out widely, widely, over the water.
It is another sky and earth, not the world of man.
RECITING VERSES BY MOONLIGHT IN A WESTERN UPPER CHAMBER IN THE CITY OF
THE GOLDEN MOUND
BY LI T'AI-PO
The night is still in Chin Ling, a cool wind blows.
I am alone in a high room, gazing over Wu and Yüeh.
White clouds shine on the water and blur the reflection of the still
city.
The cold dew soaks my clothes, Autumn moonlight is damp.
In the moonlight, murmuring poems, one loses count of time.
From old days until now, people who can really see with their eyes
are few,
Those who understand and speak of a clear river as being bright as
silk.
I suggest that men meditate at length on Hsieh Hsüan Hui.
PASSING THE NIGHT AT THE WHITE HERON ISLAND
BY LI T'AI-PO
At dawn, I left the Red Bird Gate;
At sunset, I came to roost on the White Heron Island.
The image of the moon tumbles along the bright surface of the water.
The Tower above the City Gate is lost in the twinkling light of the
stars.
I gaze far off, toward my beloved, the Official of Chin Ling,
And the longing in my heart is like that for the Green Jasper Tree.
It is useless to tell my soul to dream;
When it comes back, it will feel the night turned to Autumn.
The green water understands my thoughts,
For me it flows to the Northwest.
Because of this, the sounds of my jade table-lute
Will follow the flowing of its current and carry my grief to my
friend.
ASCENDING THE THREE CHASMS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The Sorceress Mountain presses against Green Heaven.
The Serpent River runs terribly fast.
The Serpent River can be suddenly exhausted.
The time may never come when we shall arrive at the Green Heaven.
Three dawns shine upon the Yellow Ox.
Three sunsets--and we go so slowly.
Three dawns--again three sunsets--
And we do not notice that our hair is white as silk.
PARTING FROM YANG, A HILL MAN WHO IS RETURNING TO THE HIGH MOUNTAIN
BY LI T'AI-PO
There is one place which is an everlasting home to me:
The Jade Woman Peak on the High Southern Mountain.
Often, a wide, flat moonlight
Hangs upon the pines of the whirling Eastern stream.
You are going to pick the fairy grasses
And the shooting purple flower of the _ch'ang p'u_.
After a year, perhaps, you will come to see me
Riding down from the green-blue Heaven on a white dragon.
NIGHT THOUGHTS
BY LI T'AI-PO
In front of my bed the moonlight is very bright.
I wonder if that can be frost on the floor?
I lift up my head and look full at the full moon, the dazzling moon.
I drop my head, and think of the home of old days.
THE SERPENT MOUND
SENT AS A PRESENT TO CHIA THE SECRETARY
BY LI T'AI-PO
Chia, the Scholar, gazes into the West, thinking of the splendour of
the Capitol.
Although you have been transferred to the broad reaches of the river
Hsiang, you must not sigh in resentment.
The mercy of the Sainted Lord is far greater than that of Han Wên Ti.
The Princely One had pity, and did not appoint you to the station of
the Unending Sands.
ON THE SUBJECT OF OLD TAI'S WINE-SHOP
BY LI T'AI-PO
Old Tai is gone down to the Yellow Springs.
Yet he must still wish to make "Great Spring Wine. "
There is no Li Po on the terrace of Eternal Darkness.
To whom, then, will he sell his wine?
DRINKING IN THE T'AO PAVILION
BY LI T'AI-PO
The house of the lonely scholar is in the winding lane.
The great scholar's gate is very high.
The garden pool lies and shines like the magic gall mirror;
Groves of trees throw up flowers with wide, open faces;
The leaf-coloured water draws the Spring sun.
Sitting in the green, covered passage-way, watching the strange, red
clouds of evening,
Listening to the lovely music of flageolets and strings,
The Golden Valley is not much to boast of.
A SONG FOR THE HOUR WHEN THE CROWS ROOST
BY LI T'AI-PO
This is the hour when the crows come to roost on the Ku Su Terrace.
In his Palace, the King of Wu is drinking with Hsi Shih.
Songs of Wu--posturings of Ch'u dances--and yet the revels are not
finished.
But already the bright hills hold half of the sun between their lips,
The silver-white arrow-tablet above the gold-coloured brass jar of
the water-clock marks the dripping of much water,
And, rising, one can see the Autumn moon sliding beneath the ripples
of the river,
While slowly the sun mounts in the East--
What hope for the revels now?
POEM SENT TO THE OFFICIAL WANG OF HAN YANG
BY LI T'AI-PO
The Autumn moon was white upon the Southern Lake.
That night the Official Wang sent me an invitation.
Behind the embroidered bed-curtain lay the Official Secretary--drunk.
The woven dresses of the beautiful girls who performed the wu dance
took charming lines,
The shrill notes of the bamboo flute reached to Mien and O,
The phrases of the songs rose up to the silent clouds.
Now that we are parted, I grieve.
We think of each other a single piece of water distant.
DRINKING ALONE ON THE ROCK IN THE RIVER OF THE CLEAR STREAM
BY LI T'AI-PO
I have a flagon of wine in my hand.
I am alone on the Ancestor Rock in the river.
Since the time when Heaven and Earth were divided,
How many thousand feet has the rock grown?
I lift my cup to Heaven and smile.
Heaven turns round, the sun shines in the West.
I am willing to sit on this rock forever,
Perpetually casting my fish-line like Yen Ling.
Send and ask the man in the midst of the hills
Whether we are not in harmony, both pursuing the same thing.
A FAREWELL BANQUET TO MY FATHER'S YOUNGER BROTHER YÜN, THE IMPERIAL
LIBRARIAN
BY LI T'AI-PO
When I was young, I spent the white days lavishly.
I sang--I laughed--I boasted of my ruddy face.
I do not realize that now, suddenly, I am old.
With joy I see the Spring wind return.
It is a pity that we must part, but let us make the best of it and
be happy.
We walk to and fro among the peach-trees and plum-trees.
We look at the flowers and drink excellent wine.
We listen to the birds and climb a little way up the bright hills.
Soon evening comes and the bamboo grove is silent.
There is no one--I shut my door.
IN THE PROVINCE OF LU, TO THE EAST OF THE STONE GATE MOUNTAIN, TAKING
LEAVE OF TU FU
BY LI T'AI-PO
When drunk, we were divided; but we have been together again for
several days.
We have climbed everywhere, to every pool and ledge.
When, on the Stone Gate Road,
Shall we pour from the golden flagon again?
The Autumn leaves drop into the Four Waters,
The Ch'u Mountain is brightly reflected in the colour of the lake.
We are flying like thistledown, each to a different distance;
Pending this, we drain the cups in our hands.
THE MOON OVER THE MOUNTAIN PASS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The bright moon rises behind the Heaven-high Mountain,
A sea of clouds blows along the pale, wide sky.
The far-off wind has come from nearly ten thousand _li_,
It has blown across the Jade Gate Pass.
Down the Po Têng Road went the people of Han
To waylay the men of Hu beside the Bright Green Bay.
From the beginning, of those who go into battle,
Not one man is seen returning.
The exiled Official gazes at the frontier town,
He thinks of his return home, and his face is very bitter.
Surely to-night, in the distant cupola,
He sighs, and draws heavy breaths. How then can rest be his?
a long way off.
I see distinctly the three branches of the Hsiang River, I hear the
sound of its swift current.
The water flows coldly; it is on its way to the lake.
The horizontal Autumn clouds hide the sky.
I go by the "Bird's Path. " I calculate the distance to my old home.
Oh-h-h-h-h!
I do not know how many thousand _li_ it is from Ching to Wu.
It is the hour of the Western brightness, of the half-round sun.
The dazzle on the island is about to disappear;
The smooth lake is brilliantly white--from the moon?
Over the lake, the moon is rising.
I think of the moment of meeting--the long stretch of time before
it.
I think of misty Yen and gaze at Yüeh.
The lotus-flowers have fallen--Oh-h-h-h-h! The river is the colour
of Autumn.
The wind passes--passes. The night is endless--endless.
I would go to the end of the Dark Sea. How eagerly I desire this!
I think much of fishing for a leviathan from the Island of the Cold
Sea.
There is no rod long enough to raise it.
I yield to the great waves, and my sorrow is increased.
I will return. I will go home. Oh-h-h-h-h!
Even for a little time, one cannot rely upon the World.
I long to pick the immortal herbs on the hill of P'êng.
POIGNANT GRIEF DURING A SUNNY SPRING
BY LI T'AI-PO
The East wind has come again.
I see the jade-green grass and realize that it is Spring.
Everywhere there is an immense confusion of ripples and agitations.
Why does the waving and fluttering of the weeping-willow make me sad?
The sky is so bright it shines; everything is lovely and at peace.
The breath of the sea is green, fresh, sweet-smelling;
The heaths are vari-coloured, blue--green--as a kingfisher feather.
Oh-h-h-h-h--How far one can see!
Clouds whirl, fly, float, and cluster together, each one sharply
defined;
Waves are smoothed into a wide, continuous flowing.
I examine the young moss in the well, how it starts into life.
I see something dim--Oh-h-h-h-h--waving up and down like floss silk.
I see it floating--it is a cobweb, coiling like smoke.
Before all these things--Oh-h-h-h-h--my soul is severed from my
body.
Confronted with the wind, the brilliance, I suffer.
I feel as one feels listening to the sound of the waters of the
Dragon Mound in Ch'in,
The gibbons wailing by the Serpent River.
I feel as the "Shining One" felt when she passed the Jade Frontier,
As the exile of Ch'u in the Maple Forest.
I will try to climb a high hill and look far away into the distance.
Pain cuts me to the bone and wounds my heart.
My Spring heart is agitated as the surface of the sea,
My Spring grief is bewildered like a flurry of snow.
Ten thousand emotions are mingled--their sorrow and their joy.
Yet I know only that my heart is torn in this Spring season.
She of whom I am thinking--Oh-h-h-h-h--is at the shore of the Hsiang
River,
Separated by the clouds and the rainbow--without these mists I could
surely see.
I scatter my tears a foot's length upon the water's surface.
I entrust the Easterly flowing water with my passion for the
Cherished One.
If I could command the shining of the Spring, could grasp it without
putting it out--Oh-h-h-h-h--
I should wish to send it as a gift to that beautiful person at the
border of Heaven.
TWO POEMS WRITTEN AS PARTING GIFTS TO TS'UI (THE OFFICIAL) OF CH'IU PU
BY LI T'AI-PO
I love Ts'ui of Ch'iu Pu.
He follows the ways of the Official T'ao.
At his gate, he has planted five willow-trees,
And on either side of the well, crowding it between them, stand two
wu-t'ung trees.
Mountain birds fly down and listen while he transacts business;
From the eaves of his house, flowers drop into the midst of his
wine.
Thinking of my Lord, I cannot bear to depart.
My thoughts are melancholy and endless.
II
My Lord is like T'ao of P'êng Tsê.
Often, during the day, he sleeps at the North window.
Again, in the moonlight, he bends over his table-lute and plays,
His hands follow his thoughts, for there are no strings.
When a guest comes, it is wine alone which he pours out.
He is the best of officials, since he does not care for gold.
He has planted many grains on the Eastern heights,
And he admonishes all the people to plow their fields early.
SENT AS A PARTING GIFT TO THE SECOND OFFICIAL OF CH'IU PU
BY LI T'AI-PO
In the old days, Ch'iu Pu was bare and desolate,
The serving-men in the Official Residence were few.
Because you, my Lord, have planted peach-trees and plum-trees,
This place has suddenly become exuberantly fragrant.
As your writing-brush moves, making the characters so full of life,
you gaze at the white clouds;
And, when the reed-blinds are rolled up, at the kingfisher-green of
the fading hills;
And, when the time comes, for long at the mountain moon;
Still again, when you are exhilarated with wine, at the shadow of
the moon in the wine-cup.
Great man and teacher, I love you.
I linger.
I cannot bear to leave.
THE SONG OF THE WHITE CLOUDS
SAYING GOOD-BYE TO LIU SIXTEEN ON HIS RETURN TO THE HILLS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The hills of Ch'u,
The hills of Ch'in,
White clouds everywhere.
White clouds follow my Lord always,
From place to place. They always follow
My Lord,
When my Lord arrives at the hills of Ch'u.
Clouds also follow my Lord when he floats
In a boat on the river Hsiang,
With the wild wistaria hanging above
The waters of the river Hsiang.
My Lord will go back
To where he can sleep
Among the white clouds,
When the sun is as high
As the head of a helmeted man.
WIND-BOUND AT THE NEW FOREST REACH. A LETTER SENT TO A FRIEND
BY LI T'AI-PO
Tidal water is a determined thing, it can be depended on;
But it is impossible to make an appointment with the wind of Heaven.
In the clear dawn, it veers Northwest;
At the last moment of sunset, it blows Southeast.
It is therefore difficult to set our sail.
The thought of our happy meeting becomes insistent.
The wide water reflects a moon no longer round, but broken.
Water grass springs green in the broad reach.
Yesterday, at the North Lake, there were plum-flowers;
They were just beginning to open, the branches were not covered.
To-day, at dawn, see the willows beyond the White Gate;
The road is squeezed between them, they drop down their bright green
silk threads.
Everything stirs like this, with the year--
When will my coming be fixed?
Willow-blossoms lie thick as snow on the river,
I am worried, the heart of the traveller is sad.
"At daybreak I will leave the New Forest Reach"--
But what is the use of humming Hsieh T'iao's poem.
IN THE PROVINCE OF LU, AT THE ANCESTRAL SHRINE OF KING YAO. SAYING
FAREWELL TO WU FIVE ON HIS DEPARTURE FOR LANG YA
BY LI T'AI-PO
King Yao has been dead for three thousand years,
But the green pine, the ancient temple, remain.
As we are bidding you good-bye, we set out offerings of cassia wine;
We make obeisance, we bend our knees, and, rising, turn our faces to
Heaven. Our hearts and spirits are pure.
The colour of the sun urges our return.
Song follows song, we tip up the flagon of sweet-scented wine.
The horses whinny. We are all tipsy, yet we rise.
Our hands separate. What words are there still to say?
DRINKING ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT
BY LI T'AI-PO
I
A pot of wine among flowers.
I alone, drinking, without a companion.
I lift the cup and invite the bright moon.
My shadow opposite certainly makes us three.
But the moon cannot drink,
And my shadow follows the motions of my body in vain.
For the briefest time are the moon and my shadow my companions.
Oh, be joyful! One must make the most of Spring.
I sing--the moon walks forward rhythmically;
I dance, and my shadow shatters and becomes confused.
In my waking moments, we are happily blended.
When I am drunk, we are divided from one another and scattered.
For a long time I shall be obliged to wander without intention;
But we will keep our appointment by the far-off Cloudy River.
DRINKING ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT
BY LI T'AI-PO
II
If Heaven did not love wine,
There would be no Wine Star in Heaven.
If Earth did not love wine,
There should be no Wine Springs on Earth.
Why then be ashamed before Heaven to love wine.
I have heard that clear wine is like the Sages;
Again it is said that thick wine is like the Virtuous Worthies.
Wherefore it appears that we have swallowed both Sages and Worthies.
Why should we strive to be Gods and Immortals?
Three cups, and one can perfectly understand the Great Tao;
A gallon, and one is in accord with all nature.
Only those in the midst of it can fully comprehend the joys of wine;
I do not proclaim them to the sober.
A STATEMENT OF RESOLUTIONS AFTER BEING DRUNK ON A SPRING DAY
BY LI T'AI-PO
This time of ours
Is like a great, confused dream.
Why should one spend one's life in toil?
Thinking this, I have been drunk all day.
I fell down and lay prone by the pillars in front of the house;
When I woke up, I gazed for a long time
At the courtyard before me.
A bird sings among the flowers.
May I ask what season this is?
Spring wind,
The bright oriole of the water-flowing flight calls.
My feelings make me want to sigh.
The wine is still here, I will throw back my head and drink.
I sing splendidly,
I wait for the bright moon.
Already, by the end of the song, I have forgotten my feelings.
RIVER CHANT
BY LI T'AI-PO
Fig-wood oars,
A boat of the wood of the sand-pear.
At either end,
Jade flageolets and pipes of gold.
Amidships,
Jars of delectable wine,
And ten thousand pints
Put by.
A boat-load of singing-girls
Following the water ripples--
Going,
Stopping,
Veering--
The Immortal waited,
Then mounted and rode the yellow crane.
But he who is the guest of the sea has no such desire,
Rather would he be followed by the white gulls.
The _tzŭ_ and _fu_ of Ch'ü P'ing hang suspended like the sun and
moon.
The terraces and the pleasure-houses
Of the Kings of Ch'u
Are empty heaps of earth.
I am drunk with wine.
With the sweet taste of it;
I am overflowed with the joy of it.
When I take up my writing-brush,
I could move the Five Peaks.
When I have finished my poem,
I laugh aloud in my arrogance.
I rise to the country of the Immortals which lies in the middle of
the sea.
If fame followed the ways of the good official,
If wealth and rank were long constant,
Then indeed might the water of the Han River flow Northwest.
SEPARATED BY IMPERIAL SUMMONS FROM HER WHO LIVES WITHIN
BY LI T'AI-PO
I
The Emperor commands; three times the summons. He who left has not
yet returned.
To-morrow, at sunrise, he will go out by the Pass of Wu.
From the upper chamber of white jade, I shall gaze far off; but I
shall be able to make out nothing.
Our thoughts will be with each other. I must ascend the
Looking-for-Husband Hill.
II
As I left my door, my wife dragged my clothes with all her strength.
She asked me in how many days I should return from the West.
"When I return, supposing I wear at my girdle the yellow gold seal,
You must not imitate Su Ch'in's wife and not leave your loom. "
III
The upper chamber of kingfisher jade, the stairs of gold--
Who passes the night alone, leaning against the door and sobbing?
She sits all night by the cold lamp until the moon melts into the
dawn.
Her streaming, streaming tears are exhausted--to the West of the
Ch'u Barrier.
A WOMAN SINGS TO THE AIR: "SITTING AT NIGHT"
BY LI T'AI-PO
A Winter night, a cold Winter night. To me, the night is unending.
I chant heavily to myself a long time. I sit, sit in the North Hall.
The water in the well is solid with ice. The moon enters the Women's
Apartments.
The flame of the gold lamp is very small, the oil is frozen. It
shines on the misery of my weeping.
The gold lamp goes out,
But the weeping continues and increases.
The Unworthy One hides her tears in her sleeve.
She hearkens to the song of her Lord, to the sound of it.
The Unworthy One knows her passion.
The passion and the sound unite,
There is no discord between them.
If a single phrase were unsympathetic to my thoughts,
Then, though my Lord sang ten thousand verses which should cause
even the dust on the beams to fly, to me it would be nothing.
THE PALACE WOMAN OF HAN TAN BECOMES THE WIFE OF THE SOLDIERS' COOK
BY LI T'AI-PO
Once the Unworthy One was a maiden of the Ts'ung Terrace.
Joyfully lifting my moth-pencilled eyebrows, I entered the
carnation-coloured Palace.
Relying on myself, my flower-like face,
How should I know that it would wither and fade?
Banished below the jade steps,
Gone as the early morning clouds are gone,
Whenever I think of Han Tan City
I dream of the Autumn moon from the middle of the Palace.
I cannot see the Prince, my Lord.
Desolate, my longing--until daylight comes.
THE SORREL HORSE
BY LI T'AI-PO
The sorrel horse with the black tail gallops, gallops, and neighs,
Lifting, curving, his grey-jade hoofs.
He shies from the flowing water, unwilling to cross,
As though he feared the mud for his embroidered saddlecloth.
The snow is white on the far frontier hills,
The clouds are yellow over the misty frontier sea.
I strike with my leather whip, there are ten thousand _li_ to go.
How can I accomplish it, thinking of Spring in the Women's
Apartments?
A POEM GIVEN TO A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN ENCOUNTERED ON A FIELD-PATH
BY LI T'AI-PO
The magnificent horse, galloping swiftly, tramples the fallen
flower.
Down comes the riding-whip, straight down--it strikes the Five Cloud
Cart.
The young person who lifts the pearl door-screen is very beautiful.
Moreover, she smiles.
She points to a Red Building in the distance--it is the home of the
Flower Maiden.
SAYING GOOD-BYE TO A FRIEND
BY LI T'AI-PO
Clear green hills at a right angle to the North wall,
White water winding to the East of the city.
Here is the place where we must part.
The lonely water-plants go ten thousand _li_;
The floating clouds wander everywhither as does man.
Day is departing--it and my friend.
Our hands separate. Now he is going.
"Hsiao, hsiao," the horse neighs.
He neighs again, "Hsiao, hsiao. "
DESCENDING THE EXTREME SOUTH MOUNTAIN; PASSING THE HOUSE OF HU SSŬ,
LOVER OF HILLS; SPENDING THE NIGHT IN THE PREPARATION OF WINE
BY LI T'AI-PO
We come down the green-grey jade hill,
The mountain moon accompanies us home.
We turn and look back up the path:
Green, green, the sky; the horizontal, kingfisher-green line of the
hills is fading.
Holding each other's hands, we reach the house in the fields.
Little boys throw open the gate of thorn branches,
The quiet path winds among dark bamboos,
Creepers, bright with new green, brush our garments.
Our words are happy, rest is in them.
Of an excellent flavour, the wine! We scatter the dregs of it
contentedly.
We sing songs for a long time; we chant them to the wind in the
pine-trees.
By the time the songs are finished, the stars in Heaven's River are
few.
I am tipsy.
My friend is continuously merry.
In fact, we are so exhilarated that we both forget this complicated
machine, the world.
THE TERRACED ROAD OF THE TWO-EDGED SWORD MOUNTAINS
BY LI T'AI-PO
Looking South and straight from Hsien Yang for five thousand _li_,
One could see, among the full, blowing clouds, the rocky sharpness
of peaks,
Were it not for the horizontal line of the Two-Edged Sword Mountains
cutting across the view.
They are flat against the green sky, and open in the middle to let
the sky through.
On their heights, the wind whistles awesomely in the pines; it booms
in great, long gusts; it clashes like the strings of a
jade-stone psaltery; it shouts on the clearness of a gale.
In the Serpent River country, the gibbons--Oh-h-h-h-h--all the
gibbons together moan and grieve.
Beside the road, torrents flung from a great height rush down the
gully,
They toss stones and spray over the road, they run rapidly, they
whirl, they startle with the noise of thunder.
I bid good-bye to my devoted friend--Oh-h-h-h-h--now he leaves me.
When will he come again? Oh-h-h-h-h--When will he return to me?
I hope for my dear friend the utmost peace.
My voice is heavy, I sigh and draw my breath haltingly.
I look at the green surface of the water flowing to the East.
I grieve that the white sun hides in the West.
The wild goose has taken the place of the swallow--Oh-h-h-h-h--I
hear the pattering, falling noises of Autumn.
Dark are the rain clouds; the colour of the town of Ch'in is dark.
When the moon glistens on the Road of the Two-Edged
Sword--Oh-h-h-h-h--
I and you, even though in different provinces, may drink our wine
opposite each other,
And listen to the talking
Of our hearts.
HEARING A BAMBOO FLUTE ON A SPRING NIGHT IN THE CITY OF LO YANG
BY LI T'AI-PO
From whose house do the invisible notes of a jade flute come flying?
The Spring wind scatters them. They fill the City of Lo Yang.
To-night, as the phrases form, I hear "The Snapped Willow. "
To whom do they not bring back the love of his old, early garden?
THE RETREAT OF HSIEH KUNG
BY LI T'AI-PO
The sun is setting--has set--on the Spring-green Mountain.
Hsieh Kung's retreat is solitary and still.
No sound of man in the bamboo grove.
The white moon shines in the centre of the unused garden pool.
All round the ruined Summer-house is decaying grass,
Grey mosses choke the abandoned well.
There is only the free, clear wind
Again--again--passing over the stones of the spring.
A TRAVELLER COMES TO THE OLD TERRACE OF SU
BY LI T'AI-PO
The old Imperial Park--the ruined Terrace--the young willows.
The water-chestnut pickers are singing, a simple song unaccompanied
by instruments--but joy is unbearable.
For now the moon over the Western River is alone.
The time is past when she gazed upon the concubines in the Palace of
the King of Wu.
THEME OF THE REST-HOUSE ON THE CLEAR WAN RIVER
BY LI T'AI-PO
I love the beauty of the Wan River.
One can see its clear heart shining a hundred feet deep.
In what way does it not equal the river Hsin An?
For a thousand times eight feet one can see its bright bed,
The white sand keeps the colour of the moon.
The dark green bamboos accentuate the Autumn sounds.
Really one cannot help laughing to think that, until now, the rapid
current celebrated by Yen
Has usurped all the fame.
DRINKING SONG
BY LI T'AI-PO
Do you not see the waters of the Yellow River coming down from Heaven?
They rush with incredible speed to the sea, and they never turn and
come back again.
Do you not see, in the clear mirror of the Guest Hall, the miserable
white hair on my head?
At dawn it is like shining thread, but at sunset it is snow.
In this life, to be perfectly happy, one must drain one's pleasures;
The golden wine-cup must not stand empty opposite the moon.
Heaven put us here, we must use what we have.
Scatter a thousand ounces of silver and you are but where you were.
Boil the sheep,
Kill the ox,
Be merry.
We should drink three hundred cups at once.
Mr. Wise Gentleman Ts'en,
And you, Mr. Scholar Tan Ch'iu,
Drink, you must not stop.
I will sing one of my poems for you,
Please lean over and listen:
"Bells! Drums! Delicacies
Worth their weight in jade--
These things
Are of the slightest value.
I only want to be drunk
For ages and never wake.
The sages and worthies of old times
Have left not a sound,
Only those who drank
Have achieved lasting fame.
The King of Ch'ên, long ago, caroused
In the Hall of Peaceful Content.
They drank wine paid
At a full ten thousand a gallon;
They surpassed themselves in mirth,
And the telling of obscene stories.
How can a host say
He has very little money.
It is absolutely imperative
That he buy wine for his friends.
Horses of five colours, dappled flower horses,
Fur coats costing
A thousand ounces of silver--
He sends his son to exchange
All these for delectable wine,
So that you and I together
May drown our ancient grief. "
ANSWER TO AN AFFECTIONATE INVITATION FROM TS'UI FIFTEEN
BY LI T'AI-PO
You have the "bird's foot-print" characters.
You suggest that we drink together at the Lute Stream.
The characters you wrote are in the centre of a foot of pure white
silk,
They are like exquisite clouds dropped from Heaven.
Having finished reading, I smile at the empty air,
I feel as though my friend were before me
Reciting verses for a long time.
The characters are not faded. I shall keep them in my sleeve, and
they should last three years.
PARROT ISLAND
BY LI T'AI-PO
The parrots come, they cross the river waters of Wu.
The island in the river is called Parrot Island.
The parrots are flying West to the Dragon Mountain.
There are sweet grasses on the island, and how green, green, are
its trees!
The mists part and one can see the leaves of the spear-orchid, and
its scent is warm on the wind;
The water is embroidered and shot with the reflections of the
peach-tree blossoms growing on both banks.
Now indeed does the departing official realize the full meaning of
his banishment.
The long island--the solitary moon--facing each other in the
brightness.
THE HONOURABLE LADY CHAO
BY LI T'AI-PO
Moon over the houses of Han, over the site of Ch'in.
It flows as water--its brightness shone on Ming Fei, the "Bright
Concubine,"
Who took the road to the Jade Pass.
She went to the edge of Heaven, but she did not return;
She gave up the moon of Han, she departed from the Eastern Sea.
The "Bright Concubine" married in the West, and the day of her
returning never came.
For her beautiful painted face, there was the long, cold snow
instead of flowers.
She, with eyebrows like the antennæ of moths, pined and withered.
Her grave is in the sand of the Barbarians' country.
Because, when alive, she did not pay out yellow gold,
The portrait painted of her was distorted.
Now she is dead no one can prevent the bright green grass from
spreading over her grave,
And men weep because of it.
THINKING OF THE FRONTIER
BY LI T'AI-PO
At what season last year did my Lord leave his Unworthy One?
In the Southern garden, the butterflies were fluttering in the young
green grass.
Now, this year, at what season does the Unworthy One cherish
thoughts of her Lord?
There is white snow on the Western hills and the clouds of Ch'in are
dark.
It is three thousand _li_ from here to the Jade Barrier.
I desire to send the "harmonious writings," but how can they reach
you?
A SONG OF RESENTMENT
BY LI T'AI-PO
At fifteen, she entered the Palace of Han,
Her flower-face was like a river in Spring.
The Prince chose her of the jade colour
To attend his rest within the embroidered screen.
As she presented the pillow, she was lovely as the evening moon.
He who wears the dragon robes delighted in the sweetly scented wind
of her garments.
How was it possible for the "Flying Swallow" to snatch the Emperor's
love?
Jealousy unending! Profoundest grief which can so wound a person
And turn the black cloud head-dress to frosted thistledown!
If, for one day, our desires be not satisfied,
Verily the things of the world are nothing.
Change the duck-feather dress for sweet wine,
Cease to embroider dragons on the dresses for the wu dance.
She is chilly with bitterness,
Words cannot be endured.
For one's Lord one plays the table-lute of wu-t'ung wood with
strings of silk,
But when one's bowels are torn with grief, the strings also break.
Grief in the heart at night is anguish and despair.
PICKING WILLOW
BY LI T'AI-PO
The drooping willow brushes the very clear water,
Beautifully it flickers in this East-wind time of the year.
Its flowers are bright as the snow of the Jade Pass,
Its leaves soft as smoke against the gold window.
She, the Lovely One, bound in her long thoughts;
Facing them, her heart is burnt with grief.
Pull down a branch,
Gather the Spring colour
And send it far,
Even to that place
Before the Dragon Gate.
AUTUMN RIVER SONG
ON THE BROAD REACH
BY LI T'AI-PO
In the clear green water--the shimmering moon.
In the moonlight--white herons flying.
A young man hears a girl plucking water-chestnuts;
They paddle home together through the night, singing.
VISITING THE TAOIST PRIEST ON THE MOUNTAIN WHICH UPHOLDS HEAVEN.
HE IS ABSENT
BY LI T'AI-PO
A dog,
A dog barking.
And the sound of rushing water.
How dark and rich the peach-flowers after the rain.
Every now and then, between the trees, I see deer.
Twelve o'clock, but I hear no bell in the ravine.
Wild bamboos slit the blue-green of a cloudy sky,
The waterfall hangs against the jade-green peak.
There is no one to tell me where he has gone.
I lean against the pine-trees grieving.
REPLY TO AN UNREFINED PERSON ENCOUNTERED IN THE HILLS
BY LI T'AI-PO
He asks why I perch in the green jade hills.
I smile and do not answer. My heart is comfortable and at peace.
Fallen peach-flowers spread out widely, widely, over the water.
It is another sky and earth, not the world of man.
RECITING VERSES BY MOONLIGHT IN A WESTERN UPPER CHAMBER IN THE CITY OF
THE GOLDEN MOUND
BY LI T'AI-PO
The night is still in Chin Ling, a cool wind blows.
I am alone in a high room, gazing over Wu and Yüeh.
White clouds shine on the water and blur the reflection of the still
city.
The cold dew soaks my clothes, Autumn moonlight is damp.
In the moonlight, murmuring poems, one loses count of time.
From old days until now, people who can really see with their eyes
are few,
Those who understand and speak of a clear river as being bright as
silk.
I suggest that men meditate at length on Hsieh Hsüan Hui.
PASSING THE NIGHT AT THE WHITE HERON ISLAND
BY LI T'AI-PO
At dawn, I left the Red Bird Gate;
At sunset, I came to roost on the White Heron Island.
The image of the moon tumbles along the bright surface of the water.
The Tower above the City Gate is lost in the twinkling light of the
stars.
I gaze far off, toward my beloved, the Official of Chin Ling,
And the longing in my heart is like that for the Green Jasper Tree.
It is useless to tell my soul to dream;
When it comes back, it will feel the night turned to Autumn.
The green water understands my thoughts,
For me it flows to the Northwest.
Because of this, the sounds of my jade table-lute
Will follow the flowing of its current and carry my grief to my
friend.
ASCENDING THE THREE CHASMS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The Sorceress Mountain presses against Green Heaven.
The Serpent River runs terribly fast.
The Serpent River can be suddenly exhausted.
The time may never come when we shall arrive at the Green Heaven.
Three dawns shine upon the Yellow Ox.
Three sunsets--and we go so slowly.
Three dawns--again three sunsets--
And we do not notice that our hair is white as silk.
PARTING FROM YANG, A HILL MAN WHO IS RETURNING TO THE HIGH MOUNTAIN
BY LI T'AI-PO
There is one place which is an everlasting home to me:
The Jade Woman Peak on the High Southern Mountain.
Often, a wide, flat moonlight
Hangs upon the pines of the whirling Eastern stream.
You are going to pick the fairy grasses
And the shooting purple flower of the _ch'ang p'u_.
After a year, perhaps, you will come to see me
Riding down from the green-blue Heaven on a white dragon.
NIGHT THOUGHTS
BY LI T'AI-PO
In front of my bed the moonlight is very bright.
I wonder if that can be frost on the floor?
I lift up my head and look full at the full moon, the dazzling moon.
I drop my head, and think of the home of old days.
THE SERPENT MOUND
SENT AS A PRESENT TO CHIA THE SECRETARY
BY LI T'AI-PO
Chia, the Scholar, gazes into the West, thinking of the splendour of
the Capitol.
Although you have been transferred to the broad reaches of the river
Hsiang, you must not sigh in resentment.
The mercy of the Sainted Lord is far greater than that of Han Wên Ti.
The Princely One had pity, and did not appoint you to the station of
the Unending Sands.
ON THE SUBJECT OF OLD TAI'S WINE-SHOP
BY LI T'AI-PO
Old Tai is gone down to the Yellow Springs.
Yet he must still wish to make "Great Spring Wine. "
There is no Li Po on the terrace of Eternal Darkness.
To whom, then, will he sell his wine?
DRINKING IN THE T'AO PAVILION
BY LI T'AI-PO
The house of the lonely scholar is in the winding lane.
The great scholar's gate is very high.
The garden pool lies and shines like the magic gall mirror;
Groves of trees throw up flowers with wide, open faces;
The leaf-coloured water draws the Spring sun.
Sitting in the green, covered passage-way, watching the strange, red
clouds of evening,
Listening to the lovely music of flageolets and strings,
The Golden Valley is not much to boast of.
A SONG FOR THE HOUR WHEN THE CROWS ROOST
BY LI T'AI-PO
This is the hour when the crows come to roost on the Ku Su Terrace.
In his Palace, the King of Wu is drinking with Hsi Shih.
Songs of Wu--posturings of Ch'u dances--and yet the revels are not
finished.
But already the bright hills hold half of the sun between their lips,
The silver-white arrow-tablet above the gold-coloured brass jar of
the water-clock marks the dripping of much water,
And, rising, one can see the Autumn moon sliding beneath the ripples
of the river,
While slowly the sun mounts in the East--
What hope for the revels now?
POEM SENT TO THE OFFICIAL WANG OF HAN YANG
BY LI T'AI-PO
The Autumn moon was white upon the Southern Lake.
That night the Official Wang sent me an invitation.
Behind the embroidered bed-curtain lay the Official Secretary--drunk.
The woven dresses of the beautiful girls who performed the wu dance
took charming lines,
The shrill notes of the bamboo flute reached to Mien and O,
The phrases of the songs rose up to the silent clouds.
Now that we are parted, I grieve.
We think of each other a single piece of water distant.
DRINKING ALONE ON THE ROCK IN THE RIVER OF THE CLEAR STREAM
BY LI T'AI-PO
I have a flagon of wine in my hand.
I am alone on the Ancestor Rock in the river.
Since the time when Heaven and Earth were divided,
How many thousand feet has the rock grown?
I lift my cup to Heaven and smile.
Heaven turns round, the sun shines in the West.
I am willing to sit on this rock forever,
Perpetually casting my fish-line like Yen Ling.
Send and ask the man in the midst of the hills
Whether we are not in harmony, both pursuing the same thing.
A FAREWELL BANQUET TO MY FATHER'S YOUNGER BROTHER YÜN, THE IMPERIAL
LIBRARIAN
BY LI T'AI-PO
When I was young, I spent the white days lavishly.
I sang--I laughed--I boasted of my ruddy face.
I do not realize that now, suddenly, I am old.
With joy I see the Spring wind return.
It is a pity that we must part, but let us make the best of it and
be happy.
We walk to and fro among the peach-trees and plum-trees.
We look at the flowers and drink excellent wine.
We listen to the birds and climb a little way up the bright hills.
Soon evening comes and the bamboo grove is silent.
There is no one--I shut my door.
IN THE PROVINCE OF LU, TO THE EAST OF THE STONE GATE MOUNTAIN, TAKING
LEAVE OF TU FU
BY LI T'AI-PO
When drunk, we were divided; but we have been together again for
several days.
We have climbed everywhere, to every pool and ledge.
When, on the Stone Gate Road,
Shall we pour from the golden flagon again?
The Autumn leaves drop into the Four Waters,
The Ch'u Mountain is brightly reflected in the colour of the lake.
We are flying like thistledown, each to a different distance;
Pending this, we drain the cups in our hands.
THE MOON OVER THE MOUNTAIN PASS
BY LI T'AI-PO
The bright moon rises behind the Heaven-high Mountain,
A sea of clouds blows along the pale, wide sky.
The far-off wind has come from nearly ten thousand _li_,
It has blown across the Jade Gate Pass.
Down the Po Têng Road went the people of Han
To waylay the men of Hu beside the Bright Green Bay.
From the beginning, of those who go into battle,
Not one man is seen returning.
The exiled Official gazes at the frontier town,
He thinks of his return home, and his face is very bitter.
Surely to-night, in the distant cupola,
He sighs, and draws heavy breaths. How then can rest be his?
