The autumn crickets chirped incessantly last night,
Breaking my dream home-bound,
'Twas already mid-night.
I got up and alone in the yard walk'd around,
On window screen the moon shone bright,
There was no human sound.
My.hair turns gray
For the glorious day,
In native hills bamboos and pines grow old.
O when can I see my household?
I would confide to my lute what I have in view,
But connoisseurs are few.
Who would be listening
Though I break my lute string?
昨夜寒蛩不住鸣。
惊回千里梦，已三更。
起来独自绕阶行。
人悄悄，帘外月胧明。
白首为功名。
旧山松竹老，阻归程。
欲将心事付瑶琴。
知音少，弦断有谁听。
This lyric reveals implicitly the general's resentment against the capitulationists who would not sanction his resistance against the Jurchen invaders.
Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.
Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.
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View All Poets →CN-Poetry.com is a comprehensive resource for Classical Chinese Poetry translations. Our dataset covers Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties, specializing in semantic mapping between traditional imagery (e.g., 'moon', 'Flowers', 'Friendship') and English poetic contexts.