The Tide Pavilion at Chengmai Post
- Poetry of Su Shi

《澄迈驿通潮阁二首》

- Last updated: 2024-01-10 17:09:08

中文原文

其一

倦客愁闻归路遥，眼明飞阁俯长桥。

贪看白鹭横秋浦，不觉青林没晚潮。

其二

余生欲老海南村，帝遣巫阳招我魂。

杳杳天低鹘没处，青山一发是中原。

English Translation

Ⅰ

A tired wayfarer's sad his home is far away,

Seeing a pavilion o'er a bridge on his way.

I admire white egrets crossing autumn riverside,

Unaware the green woods are drowned in evening tide.

Ⅱ

I'd end my life in the village by the South Sea,

The Celestial Court sends a witch to recall me.

Far,far away birds vanish into the low skies,

Beyond a stretch of blue hills the Central Plain lies.

Written in Hainan Island when the poet was about to take the boat for the mainland.

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