Dream and No Dream
- Poetry of Yuan Zhen
《酬乐天频梦微之》
English Translation
Letters can't pass over thousands of mountains and streams.
How much I thank you for you have sent me your dreams.
I'm sorry that in illness I can't tell old friends from new;
I dream of indifferent people, but not you.
Composed in 817 CE during Emperor Xianzong's Yuanhe era, this work responds to Bai Juyi's poem sent while both poets endured political exile—Yuan Zhen to Tongzhou, Bai Juyi to Jiangzhou. Separated by vast distances and severed communication, they turned to poetry as lifelines. Yuan Zhen's reply not only reciprocates his friend's longing but also voices his own suffering—illness, displacement, and quiet resilience.
中文原文( Chinese )
山水万重书断绝，念君怜我梦相闻。
我今因病魂颠倒，唯梦闲人不梦君。
Pre： Chrysanthemums
- 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.