Palace Visited at Night - A Dream
- Poetry of Lu You

《夜游宫·记梦寄师伯浑》

English Rendering

On snowy morning I hear flute on flute pell-mell.

Where did I dream? I know not well.

I seemed to see a flood of silent cavaliers

On the northern frontiers,

West of the Wild Geese Pass

By desert-side, alas! 


Awake, I only find cold candlelight,

The water clock no longer goes,

At my paper window peeps the slanting moonlight.

I promised to win victory far away.

But, O, who knows?

My hope sinks dead, my hair turns grey.

Palace Visited at Night - A Dream by Lu You
Palace Visited at Night - A Dream by Lu You

Original Text (中文原文)

雪晓清笳乱起,梦游处,不知何地。

铁骑无声望似水。

想关河:雁门西,青海际。

睡觉寒灯里,漏声断,月斜窗纸。

自许封侯在万里。

有谁知,鬓虽残,心未死!

Analysis & Context

By  Lu You

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.

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