Seeing Secretary Chao Back to Japan
- Poetry of Wang Wei
The sea is far and wide.
Who knows the other side?
How far is it away?
A thousand miles, you say.
Look at the sun, O please!
Your sail should trust the breeze.
Turtles bear the dark sky;
Giant fish raise waves high.
When you are in your isle,
There're trees from mile to mile.
Though we're separated for long,
Would you send me your song?
Composed during the High Tang period when frequent diplomatic exchanges occurred between Tang China and Japan, this poem bids farewell to the Japanese scholar Abe no Nakamaro (Chinese name Chao Heng), who studied in Chang'an during the Taika era. Unlike conventional parting poems dwelling on sorrow, this work emphasizes an imagined perilous journey across vast seas, constructing a breathtaking exotic tableau that embodies the profound cultural bond between the two nations.
积水不可极，安知沧海东。
九州何处远，万里若乘空。
向国唯看日，归帆但信风。
鳌身映天黑，鱼眼射波红。
乡树扶桑外，主人孤岛中。
别离方异域，音信若为通。
- 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.
- The Pepper Garden
- Mengcheng Mound
- A Boat in Spring on Jo-Ya Lake
- Night at Longxing Temple
- The Abbot’s Hut
- Passing by Monk Rong’s Hermitage
- Farewell to Magistrate Jia Heng
- Winter Night at My Lodging: To Imperial Archivist Chu
- Night in the Taoist Cosmos
- The Temple in Crimson Mist