Farewell to Two Friends in Lu on an Autumn Day
- Poetry of Li Bai (Li Po)

《秋日鲁郡尧祠亭上宴别杜补阙范侍御》

Lu - Present-day Shandong Province.

English Translation

I feel that autumn's glad.

Who says that autumn's sad?

Hills bring down setting sun;

Water and sky seem one.

Drink wine from pot jade-white;

From golden horse alight.

Repose and set it free;

Hang belt upon old tree.

Chant by the stream aloud!

Songs soar into the cloud.

Back to blue sea clouds fly,

Wild geese lost in blue sky.

Like them we'll sever too,

In vain I'll long for you.

中文原文( Chinese )

我觉秋兴逸，谁云秋兴悲？

山将落日去，水与晴空宜。

鲁酒白玉壶，送行驻金羁。

歇鞍憩古木，解带挂横枝。

歌鼓川上亭，曲度神飙吹。

云归碧海夕，雁没青天时。

相失各万里，茫然空尔思。

Why Chinese poems is so special?: The most distinctive features of Chinese poetry are: concision- many poems are only four lines, and few are much longer than eight; ambiguity- number, tense and parts of speech are often undetermined, creating particularly rich interpretative possibilities; and structure- most poems follow quite strict formal patterns which have beauty in themselves as well as highlighting meaningful contrasts.

How to read a Chinese poem?: Like an English poem, but more so. Everything is there for a reason, so try to find that reason. Think about all the possible connotations, and be aware of the different possibilities of number and tense. Look for contrasts: within lines, between the lines of each couplet and between successive couplets. Above all, don't worry about what the poet meant- find your meaning.

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