English Rendering
Why won't you stay on Southern River any more?
Why leave its water clear, sand bright and mossy shore?
You cannot bear the grief revealed in the moonlight
By the Princess' twenty-five strings, so you take flight.
To the North-flying Wild Geese
- Poetry of Qian Qi
《归雁》
Original Text (中文原文)
潇湘何事等闲回，水碧沙明两岸苔。
二十五弦弹夜月，不胜清怨却飞来。
Analysis & Context
Composed during Qian Qi's prolonged northern sojourn after assuming official post, this poem was inspired by southbound wild geese that stirred his homesickness and wanderer's melancholy. Titled "Returning Geese," it expresses nostalgic longing and reflections on life's journey through avian imagery.
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.
- To the North-flying Wild Geese
- Meeting a Knight-Errant
- Night at Dongkou Post Station
- Farewell to Imperial Editor Xiahou Shen Returning East
- Autumn Night Gazing at the Moon by the Southern Gate
- Admiring Vice Censor Yang’s Pure Prose
- 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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