English Rendering
Stories of passion make sweet dust,
Calm water, grasses unconcerned.
At sunset, when birds cry in the wind,
Petals are falling like a girl s robe long ago.
The Garden of the Golden Valley
- Poetry of Du Mu
《金谷园》
Original Text (中文原文)
繁华事散逐香尘，流水无情草自春。
日暮东风怨啼鸟，落花犹似坠楼人。
Analysis & Context
Seven-character-quatrain
This poem was composed by Du Mu during his visit to the Golden Valley Garden in Luoyang. Originally the luxurious villa of Shi Chong, a wealthy aristocrat of the Western Jin Dynasty, the garden was renowned for its opulence. Shi Chong's beloved concubine, Green Pearl, famously leapt to her death from a tower to preserve her honor. As Du Mu wandered through the garden, he was struck by the contrast between its former glory and its current state of decline. Inspired by the story of Green Pearl, he wrote this poem to reflect on the impermanence of life and the passage of time.
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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