Writing to my Friends from my Hotel at Chang-le
- Poetry of Li Qingzhao
Long into the night I sing "Yang-guan's" refrain,
till my brocade gown by powders and tears stained,
cut off by so much more than rivers and mountains,
rain-showers cover my whispers in seclusion.
In fierce sorrow I go, a heart broken with pain.
I forget which cup this is, or how many I've drained.
Let the flying geese be the messengers we send!
Donglai is not as far as Penglai, that fairy land!
(Translated by Gordon Osing and Julia Min)
This ci is thought to have been composed in 1120 on her way from Qingzhou to join her husband Zhao Mincheng who became governor of Laizhou. Li Qing-zhao had lived in Qingzhou for over ten years and had intimate friends there. These friends would have followed her out several miles from the town to see her off. She has come to her first night alone in a hotel and it has been raining all night while she passed painfully her lonely hours drinking. It was likely Autumn.
泪湿罗衣脂粉满，四叠阳关，唱到千千遍。
人道山长山又断，萧萧微雨闻孤馆。
惜别伤离方寸乱，忘了临行，酒盏深和浅。
好把音书凭过雁，东莱不似蓬莱远。
- 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.
- Song of Qiupu XV
- Song of Qiupu XIV
- Song of Qiupu XIII
- Song of Qiupu XII
- Sobering from Drunkenness in Spring Day
- Lodging with the Master of the Clear Stream
- An Impromptu Verse After Being Drunk on Tongguan Mountain
- Song of a Southern Maiden: Winter
- Staying Overnight with a Friend
- The Sick Horse