Each day upon the river falls cold rain;
The southern land in autumn looks forlorn,
The high wind blows down withered leaves again;
All night long I sit in my furs outworn.
No deeds achieved, in mirror oft I frown;
Unused for long, I lean on balustrade.
At this critical hour I’d serve the crown.
Though feeble, can I give up and evade?
江上日多雨，萧萧荆楚秋。
高风下木叶，永夜揽貂裘。
勋业频看镜，行藏独倚楼。
时危思报主，衰谢不能休。
“On the River ” is a poem in five lines composed by Du Fu in Kui Prefecture in the first year of the Dali era (766) of the Tang Dynasty.
The first four lines describe the scenery, expressing the traveler’s sadness for autumn; the second four lines express the feelings of the old minister’s sorrow for his country.
This work was composed in the late autumn of 769 CE, during the fourth year of the Dali era under Emperor Daizong. It stands as a spiritual portrait from the final three years of Du Fu’s life, a period of relentless wandering. At this time, the poet was adrift in the Jing‑Chu region (present‑day Hubei and Hunan). Although the An Lushan Rebellion had been quelled, the Tang Empire was in an irreversible decline, beset by separatist warlords, Tibetan incursions, and a corrupt court. At fifty‑eight, Du Fu was impoverished, ill, and without hope of returning north, yet his fervent concern for the nation and his desire to serve his sovereign remained undimmed. This poem was born precisely from the acute conflict between his physically depleted state and his spiritually unyielding resolve—a poignant “spiritual autobiography of an aged and unwavering patriot.”
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