From an Upper Story
- Poetry of Du Fu

《登楼》

English Rendering

Flowers, as high as my window, hurt the heart of a wanderer

For I see, from this high vantage, sadness everywhere.

The Silken River, bright with spring, floats between earth and heaven

Like a line of cloud by the Jade Peak, between ancient days and now.

...Though the State is established for a while as firm as the North Star

And bandits dare not venture from the western hills,

Yet sorry in the twilight for the woes of a longvanished Emperor,

I am singing the song his Premier sang when still unestranged from the mountain.

From an Upper Story by Du Fu
From an Upper Story by Du Fu

Original Text (中文原文)

花近高楼伤客心,万方多难此登临。

锦江春色来天地,玉垒浮云变古今。

北极朝廷终不改,西山寇盗莫相侵。

可怜后主还祠庙,日暮聊为梁甫吟。

Analysis & Context

Seven-character-regular-verse

This poem was composed in the spring of 764 AD, shortly after Du Fu's return to his thatched cottage in Chengdu. Prior to this, Tibetan forces had briefly captured Chang'an and continued to harass the western regions, leaving the state in precarious turmoil. In the first month of that year, Du Fu's close friend Yan Wu was reappointed as Military Governor of Jiannan, bringing a measure of stability to the Shu region. Amidst the spring scenery, the poet ascended a tower to gaze into the distance. Confronted with the "multitude of woes on every side" and his own brief respite at the cottage, complex feelings of concern for the nation, sorrow for the times, and personal lament surged within him, culminating in this renowned seven-character regulated verse, majestic in scope and profound in sentiment.

Reader's Companion

The Essence of the Verse

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.

Reading Between the Lines

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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