Sailing far off from Jingmen Ferry,
Soon you will be with people in the south,
Where the mountains end and the plains begin
And the river winds through wilderness....
The moon is lifted like a mirror,
Sea-clouds gleam like palaces,
And the water has brought you a touch of home
To draw your boat three hundred miles.
渡远荆门外，来从楚国游。
山随平野尽，江入大荒流。
月下飞天镜，云生结海楼。
仍怜故乡水，万里送行舟。
Five-character-regular-verse
This poem was composed around 730 AD, when Li Bai left the Shu region and traveled east along the Yangtze River, passing through Jingmen. Jingmen is the gateway where the Yangtze River enters the Jianghan Plain, with the towering mountains on both banks gradually receding and the river broadening, creating a magnificent landscape. As a young poet embarking on his first long journey, Li Bai felt both the sorrow of leaving his hometown and the excitement and anticipation for the adventures ahead. This poem captures that complex mood, expressing both his attachment to his homeland and his bold aspirations as he faced the vast world.
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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