On Hearing a Flute at Night From the Wall of Shouxiang
- Poetry of Li Yi
The sand below the border-mountain lies like snow,
And the moon like frost beyond the city-wall,
And someone somewhere, playing a flute,
Has made the soldiers homesick all night long.
Seven-character-quatrain
Composed during the mid-Tang Dynasty when national power was declining and border conflicts were frequent, this poem captures the intense homesickness of garrison soldiers stationed long-term at the frontier. The Surrender-Receiving Fortress, once a symbol of triumph in early Tang, had by this time transformed into an emblem of endless warfare and separation. On an autumn night, the poet ascended a tower to behold the desolate frontier scenery. The melancholy sound of reed pipes carried by the night wind stirred profound empathy for the soldiers' longing, inspiring this timeless frontier poem.
回乐峰前沙似雪，受降城外月如霜。
不知何处吹芦管，一夜征人尽望乡。
- 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.