Buddhist Dancers-Written on the Wall at Zaokou,Jiangxi
- Poetry of Xin Qiji

《菩萨蛮·书江西造口壁》

- Last updated: 2024-03-23 10:32:20

Buddhist Dancers-Written on the Wall at Zaokou,Jiangxi by Xin Qiji
中文原文

郁孤台下清江水，中间多少行人泪？

西北望长安，可怜无数山。

青山遮不住，毕竟东流去。

江晚正愁余，山深闻鹧鸪。

English Translation

Below the Gloomy Terrace flow two rivers clear,

The tears of refugees were shed when they were here!

I gaze afar on land long lost in the northwest,

Alas!I see but hill on hill and crest on crest.


But blue hills can't stop water flowing,

Eastward the river keeps on going.

At dusk the river grieves me still,

The partridges call in the hill.

in 1129,the Jurcheh invaders drove southwerd as far as Zaokou. Jiangxi,and massacred many refugees near the Gloomy Terrace in Ganzhou where united Rivers Zhang and Gong.In 1176,the poet passing by Zaokou was grieved at the sight of the tearful river and at the call of the partridge which seemed to say in Chinese:"Why not go home?"

· Pre： Water Dragon Chant-On Riverside Tower at Jiankang
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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