The Flower-admirers
- Poetry of Liu Yuxi
Dust raised by cabs on grassy lane caresses my face;
No flower-admirers but follow the cabs' trace.
Thousands of peach trees in the Taoist temple's place
Are all planted after I fell into disgrace.
This poem was written in 815 (the tenth year of the Yuanhe era) after Liu Yuxi, who had been exiled due to the failure of the Yongzhen Reform, was briefly recalled to Chang'an. However, his short return to office did little to improve his situation. Faced with the opulence of Chang'an and the ostentatious display of the wealthy elite, Liu Yuxi used this poem to express his dissatisfaction, subtly criticizing the opportunism and power-hungry nature of the new aristocrats. The poem’s sharp language angered the powerful, leading to Liu’s second exile to Lianzhou.
紫陌红尘拂面来，无人不道看花回。
玄都观里桃千树，尽是刘郎去后栽。
- 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.