I have a long, long-existing cot
‘Neath the Fair Maiden Peak, a lovely spot.
I will keep for you a brilliant moon
Above the pine-clad east creek, hung so high.
You’ll go to cull the herb of immortality
With the grass of sweet flag ‘neath the purple sky.
I’ll visit you there some day, for long
I’ll ride a white dragon in the blue sky.
我有万古宅，嵩阳玉女峰。
长留一片月，挂在东溪松。
尔去掇仙草，菖蒲花紫茸。
岁晚或相访，青天骑白龙。
Composed during Li Bai's travels through the Liang-Song and Qi-Lu regions, this poem represents a quintessential example of his farewell verses dedicated to reclusive friends. The dedicatee, "Hermit Yang"—a noble scholar dwelling in seclusion on Mount Song (though historical details remain obscure)—embodies Li Bai's idealized conception of the eremitic tradition. As a sacred Daoist site whose Jade Maiden Peak is steeped in legends of immortal inhabitants, Mount Song serves not merely as a geographical backdrop for the parting, but as a symbolic conduit for expressing the poet's yearning for transcendent realms and spiritual liberation.
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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