I try to drink, but food’s still cold on festive day;
In hermit’s cap, at table, drear and bleak I stay.
My boat is drifting on above a mirrored sky,
The flowers look veiled in mist to wrinkled eye.
The listless curtains see butterflies dancing past;
Over the rapids gulls on gulls are skimming fast.
For miles and miles outspread cloud on cloud, hill on hill,
But the imperial town lies farther northward still.
佳辰强饮食犹寒，隐几萧条戴鹖冠。
春水船如天上坐，老年花似雾中看。
娟娟戏蝶过闲幔，片片轻鸥下急湍。
云白山青万余里，愁看直北是长安。
* Cold food day, also known as Haishi Day or Hansik, is a traditional festival that takes place in China, South Korea, and Vietnam. The festival honors ancestors and commemorates the death of Jie Zitui, a Jin nobleman from the 7th century BC. The festival is celebrated on the 105th day after the December solstice, which is usually April 4 or 5, and ends on the 107th day after the December solstice, which is usually April 6 or 7. The festival's primary activity is a taboo against using fire.
The poem expresses the poet’s deep concern for the safety and security of the Tang dynasty even though he was in his twilight years in the rivers and lakes. The first couplet summarizes the author’s life story, the first couplet describes what the poet saw and felt in the boat, the neck couplet describes the scenery on the river in the boat, and the last couplet summarizes the poem’s thoughts and feelings. The language of the poem is natural and refined, and the style is pale and melancholy.
Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.
Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.
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