Seeking Spring
- Poetry of Su Shi

《正月二十日与潘、郭二生出郊寻春，忽记去年是日同至女王城作诗，乃和前韵》

- Last updated: 2024-03-23 14:24:34

Seeking Spring by Su Shi
中文原文

东风未肯入东门，走马还寻去岁村。

人似秋鸿来有信，事如春梦了无痕。

江城白酒三杯酽，野老苍颜一笑温。

已约年年为此会，故人不用赋招魂。

English Translation

Seeking spring with two friends on the 20th day of the 1st lunar month reminded me of the poem written on the same day last year,and I wrote these lines in the same rhymes.

The east wind will not enter the east gate with glee,I ride to seek the village visited last year.

Old friends still ask autumn swans to bring word to me;

The bygones like spring dreams have left no traces here.

Three cups of strong wine by riverside keep us late;

A smile of the grey-haired countryman warms my heart.

Each year we will meet here on an appointed date,It's useless for my friends to hasten my depart.

By Su Shi

· Pre： The Moon on the West River
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.

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