Colourful cloud drifts
- Poetry of Qin Guan

《鹊桥仙》

English Rendering

Colourful cloud drifts,

shooting stars strike the sky.

Tonight i sneak into the Milky way,

Encountering you in the dewy autumn,

it's the happiest thing in my life.


Your tenderness is like water,

we've had a fairylike dream.

Part from each other on Magpie Bridge.

Don't worry,baby,as long as we truly love,

time can't defeat the yearning between you and me.

Colourful cloud drifts by Qin Guan
Colourful cloud drifts by Qin Guan

Original Text (中文原文)

纤云弄巧,飞星传恨,银汉迢迢暗度。

金风玉露一相逢,便胜却人间无数。

柔情似水,佳期如梦,忍顾鹊桥归路。

两情若是久长时,又岂在朝朝暮暮。

Analysis & Context

Qin Guan:秦观,he's a talented lyricist who's good at the writing pure poem.He always can use some refreshing conceptions to create a beautiful feeling

Qin Guan (1049-1100)wes another follower of Su Shi.This lyric eclipsed all other love poems by versifying the old legend concering the Cowherd and the Maid or the Weaver,two starts separated by the Milky Way,who were to meet across a magpie bridge once every year on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month when the golden autumn wind embraced the dew impearled like jade.

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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