The Shy East Wind Breezes
- Poetry of Nalan Xingde

《生查子》

- Last updated: 2024-03-24 15:43:55

中文原文

东风不解愁，偷展湘裙衩。

独夜背纱笼，影著纤腰画。

爇尽水沉烟，露滴鸳鸯瓦。

花骨冷宜香，小立樱桃下。

English Translation

The shy east wind breezes

her dress up among the cherry trees.

She leans on the colourful lantern,

light reflects her slim shadow.

The incense has burned out,

little dewdrops fall on the pairs of tiles.

This night gets colder than before,

she smells the sakura,love tastes more sweet.

By Nalan Xingde

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.

List of Chinese poets