The Bronze Statue Leaving Han Palace
- Poetry of Li He
The emperor was gone just like his autumn breeze;
At night his steed would neigh, at dawn no trace was seen.
By painted rails fragrance still wafts over laurel trees,
His thirty palaces overgrown with mosses green.
Wei eunuch drove a dray to go a long, long way;
In Eastern Pass the sour wind stung the bronze's eyes.
Only the moon of yore saw him leave palace door;
Thinking of his dear lord, he shed tears and heaved sighs.
Withered orchid would say, "Farewell and go your way."
Heaven would have grown old if it could feel as man.
He went with moon-shaped plate beneath the moon desolate;
The waves unheard, far from the town the horses ran.
This poem is one of the representative works of the Tang Dynasty poet Li He, composed in 813 CE (the 8th year of the Yuanhe reign of the Tang Dynasty). At that time, Li He, suffering from illness, resigned from his position as Ceremonial Attendant and wrote this piece on his journey from Chang'an to Luoyang. The poet uses the story of the golden bronze immortal being removed from the Han palace as the main thread, expressing nostalgia for the prosperity of the Han Dynasty under Emperor Wu and lamenting the fall of the empire. Meanwhile, the poem also conveys Li He’s complex emotions as he left office and departed from the capital. The poem, with its imaginative narrative and profound emotions, intertwines the grief for the nation’s fate with personal sorrow, making it a masterpiece.
茂陵刘郎秋风客，夜闻马嘶晓无迹。
画栏桂树悬秋香，三十六宫土花碧。
魏官牵车指千里，东关酸风射眸子。
空将汉月出宫门，忆君清泪如铅水。
衰兰送客咸阳道，天若有情天亦老。
携盘独出月荒凉，渭城已远波声小。
- 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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