Mount Heaven's Gate Viewed from Afar
- Poetry of Li Bai (Li Po)

《望天门山》

- Last updated: 2024-04-16 21:27:05

中文原文

天门中断楚江开，碧水东流至此回。

两岸青山相对出，孤帆一片日边来。

English Translation

Breaking Mount Heaven's Gate，the great River rolls through,

Is east-lowing green billows, hurled back here, turn north.

From the two river banks thrust out the mountains blue,

Leaving the sun behind,a lonely sail comes forth.

By Li Bai (Li Po)

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.

List of Chinese poets