English Rendering
A foot of silk like unmelted snow
Is tied in the shape of two carp.
If you want to know what's in my heart,
Let's read the book of what I feel.
Tying Silk Fish for Friends
- Poetry of Li Ye
《结素鱼贻友人》
Original Text (中文原文)
尺素如残雪，结为双鲤鱼。
欲知心里事，看取腹中书。
Analysis & Context
Perhaps it's ephemeral, like making Jacob's Ladder with her hands, as she thinks of friends with her heart.
Reader's Companion
The Essence of the Verse
Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.
Reading Between the Lines
Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.
- Seeing Yan Bojun Off to Shan County
- On Yan Bojun's Manuscript
- Tying Silk Fish for Friends
- Chance Respite
- Parting Gift on a Moonlit Night
- Spring Boudoir Complaint
- The Summit Temple
- <Prelude to Water Melody> Sent to Ziyou on Mid-autumn Festival
- Invitation to Wine
- Question and Answer in the Mountains
- Cold sheet
- Coming Home ( Returning Home )
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