Cold Food Festival
- Poetry of Zeng Gong

《寒食》

Composed during Emperor Shenzong's reign when Zeng Gong was serving away from his homeland, this poem reflects on the Cold Food Festival (寒食节) - an important traditional occasion originally marked by fire prohibition, cold meals, and ancestral tomb-sweeping that later evolved into a spring outing celebration. Stranded in a foreign land, unable to reunite with family or participate in customary rituals, the poet conveys profound loneliness and displacement through this seasonal meditation.

English Translation

A lone banner dissolves into the world's rim,

Flower-blind gardens mock spring's hymn.

Only tavern drunks still trade in coins,

Their folk songs graffiti the sunset's loins.

中文原文( Chinese )

一麾飘泊在天涯，寒食园林不见花。

唯有市亭酤酒客，俚歌声到日西斜。

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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Cold Food Festival​​​​​​ - Poetry of Zeng Gong

Cold Food Festival
- Poetry of Zeng Gong