Frontier Lament

萬里江水東流長 Waters from the Ten-Thousand Mile River flow eternally east,
千雲山雪北飛霜 Frost from the Thousand Cloud Mountains flies into the north.
路遙家香胡味重 The long road to home sweet home reeks of barbaric smells,
關外落雁塞外陽 Even the descending ansers and the sun beyond the frontier fortress look foreign.

In the old days, ansers were used to send messages, like using homing pigeons.

Saturday, January 23, 2021

Seeking Immortality?

Although this poem was inspired the gorgeous sunset of the Islands, what started off was something very mundane and contrite.  By the I got back from the stroll, as if my mind was on hashish and imbuing an opiate dream during this pandemic restriction...  Words just came flowing out of the brush while listening to the 葬心 (Buried Heart) instrumental over and over again... Even now, as I am posting it on this blog, I am still clueless what I had written then. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzMHv0r9dAY

陣陣無限向山尋 Gust after gust, endlessly towards the mountain sought, 

層層不絕對岸吟 Rank after rank, unceasingly to the shore in sighs. 

海道陽斜海道浮 A sea lane of the sun aslant, a sea lane afloat, 
一波浪銀一波沉 One wave crested, another sunk. 

蓬萊遠近將鎖恨 The length and breadth of paradise will soon be enshrouded in regret 

紅塵高低未銷淫 Rights or wrongs of this mortal world, not yet fully indulged. 
借問長短人世何 To ask whether the world of living be long or short? 
還答多少苦海深 The answer lies in how many oceans of bitterness be shallow or deep. 

Originally, it was just about the wind blowing at the mountains on the island and waves crashing onto its shore...  

The character for an immortal is a man beside a mountain - 仙.  

So perhaps, the person seeking immortality is like the waves forever touching the foot the Blessed Isles, but never set foot upon the place because of worldly ties still tethered?

遠近, 高低, 長短 and 多少 have multiple meanings and thus subject to many creative interpretations and translations. This translation is only just one of them. 

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

Temptations

Ever since I stopped playing Rise of Kingdoms, on the last day of 2020, my literary output had increased.  I just need to have new material to practise my calligraphy during this pandemic boredom...  At least now, I have something productive to show till the end of the internet!

1 水滴芳盡巷花靜 Water a dripping, fragrance gone, quiet are the flowers of the lane,
2 一幕濛朧心鎖寧 A canopy of haziness but my heart stands vigilant with guarded tranquility.
3 隔壁忽撲酒香濃 When suddenly, from the walls a bouquet of heavy wine comes pouncing by,
4 絲竹歌舞何夜停 Music of song and dance – but which night would they be silent? 

5 春時柳月觸夢冷 The springtime crescent moon turning my dreams into bitterness,
6 雨後東風掃心清 But the after rain East wind swept my heart pure.
7 波平銀湖紅塵幻 The silvery lake in rippling calm is merely an illusion of the mortal world,
8 土濕石滑赴空明 The ground is wet and the stones slippery as I meet the brightness in the sky.

1 花巷, the flowery lane – euphemism for the street where brothel houses stand. Thus 巷花, flower of the lane is a courtesan. The first line describes a rainy night and all quiet on the western front.

2 The mists are a metaphor of things that cloud one’s judgement. In Tang times, entertainment in the form of drinking, dancing and music are done before midnight. Courtesans will take their leave at the break of dawn from the arms of their paramours.

3 Alas, it was not meant to be, as another form of sensuality comes affronting.

4 Literally, strings and reeds. The sensuality of the world never stops assaulting our senses.

5 Literally, willow-leaf shaped moon made me remember my broken dreams.

7 Literally, red dust – Buddhist term for the mortal world. The calmness of the lake is alluding to “still water runs deep”.

8 This is done on purpose and let the reader decide what空明 means. 空 means sky, heaven, emptiness or vacuity. 明 means bright, clear, understanding, or enlightenment. Thus, it can mean the moon itself (since we know it was night and not in the day) or “he who understands vacuity”, a name for a Buddhist monk. Since all the lines in the second verse has something to do with nature, I chose the interpretation of “moon/moonlight reflected on a watery surface”. Temptations in the world and things are not what they seem to be in order to prevent one from reaching enlightenment. Truth is the brightness of the moon piercing through darkness. Even when it wanes, it does so ever slowly and openly and surprises no one. Truth cannot be destroyed, though it may be hidden – the duality principle of Ying and Yang.

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

A Winter's Doodle

One Winter's Evening and nothing else to do during a self-imposed pandemic imprisonment...

1 斜陽力倦掃花黄 Flowers in yellow swept by the tired rays of the setting sun,
2 淡月情虛映菊寒 Cold looking chrysanthemums reflecting in the nonchalant moonlight.
3 鶯去寂寞空庭語 Gone is the mockingbird. Loneliness is the language of the courtyard,
4 莫愁無歡夢裡藏 Fret not that there is no joy. Just look for them hidden in dreams.

1 Actually, the flowers themselves are yellow and not made to look like so by the sunlight. This is not known until we find out in the second line that the flowers are chrysanthemums.

2 淡月情虛 translated literally as “pale moon empty feelings”

Wednesday, December 16, 2020

龍鼔灘晚霞餘暉 - Sunset At Dragon Drums Beach

My friend, Dominic posted this photo on FB and it inspired me to write this poem. The second photo, though gorgeous is not as dramatic as the first. 

1餘暉霞暗蓬萊嵿 The remaining red clouds of sunset are darkening the mountain tops of Paradise, 

2枯枝前頭寒冬時 It’s the time when boughs of winter had withered in the cold.
3何意獨步龍鼓灘 Of what reason had made thee walk alone on Dragon Drums Beach?
4牽引君手再莫辭 Refuse me not again to take thy hand and lead thee away.

5緣何自明默相對 Why is it too self-evident that we face each other in silence?
6春花秋人兩岸異 Difference is in the riverbanks of spring blooms and the autumnal man.
7此世來生未了情 In this life or the next, this love nary a blossom be.
8夢渡鵲橋非瑤池 Crossing the Magpie Bridge in dreams is no Jasper Pool dipping.

1 One of the three Blessed Isles in the Eastern Ocean, the abode of immortals

3 The name of the beach in Hong Kong where this photo was taken. It was part of the caption on his posting in Facebook.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lung_Kwu_Tan

5 緣 as a noun mean “the reason” and as a verb, “why”.

6-7 Separated by the river of time, the banks (worlds) in their respective periods are different. Even in reincarnation, there is a lag time difference in which they are reborn - their ages will forever be separated by this chasm.

8 A bridge formed by magpies on the seventh night of seventh lunar month so that the lovers of the cowherd and the celestial spinning maid can cross for their yearly reunion. The Jasper Pool is not a mere decorative addition in the realm of the Queen Mother of the West. It serves a purpose whereby human beings, demons etc. are transformed into fairy beings. 脱胎換骨 – “shed the embryo and change the bones” cleanses one’s former desires and filth of the mortal world before entering the world of immortals – A Chinese version of the fountain of youth.

Sunday, January 17, 2021

Another Weltschmerz

A longer ago Weltschmerz...

https://jeffinous.blogspot.com/2018/10/weltschmerz.html

莫道青山總是翠 Speak not of green mountains forever be verdant,
有朝火來燒盡去 For one day, fire will burn all that there is.
東風力倦難重復 The East wind in languish to regain what was lost,
何似雨後野花蕊 Unlike the vigor of wild flowers after the rain.

Friday, January 15, 2021

Coming of the Year of the Metal Ox - 2021

Just a mental exercise for the coming of the Chinese New Year, 2021.

鼠離瘟疫去 The Rat is leaving and pandemic begone!
牛來健康到 Let there be health with the approaching Ox!
春滿人間富 Springtime fills the mortal world with happiness.
出入平安路 A road of peaceful incomings and outgoings ahead.

Wednesday, January 13, 2021

More Sayonara Inspirations

More inspiration from the theme song of “Sayonara”, a movie of a long time ago, starring Marlon Brando. I listened to the song unceasingly until I got what I wanted to express into words.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7BO5AEPFEQ&fbclid=IwAR149X4cwTQFP1MlXgQAPK7XQF38mNafXZiJrpYR8lFY2-h3i1AWLuewvcU

1 魂遊飛霞水月渡 High into the fiery clouds of sunset my soul had wandered and watched the moon crossing the river,

2 花淚徑繞雲烟路 Dew upon the on flowers, a meandering path journeying into enshrouded mists of forever.
3 曲盡琵琶仍未罷 The lute still in grasp but the melodies had ended,
4 秋去春來待朝暮 Autumn goeth, spring cometh, waiting from dawn till dusk of never.

5 嬋娟初起銀河絕 When the moon begins to rise, it will be the end of the Milky Way,
6 紅梅怒放青山老 Just as red plum blossoms raging burst forth in bloom, the green mountains had grown old.
7 雪落人間一遍寒 Snow descending on this mortal world and all is but a swath of cold,
8 無情東流顏色盜 Heartless is the river flowing east, stealing all colors away.

1 Another interpretation is crossing into the river towards the watery moon. However, this might be construed as a suicide by drowning.

2 Tears of flowers – dew. The first two lines talks of a journey, a new beginning of certainty and yet of uncertainty.

3-4 These last two lines speak of reluctance to say goodbye to things of old and longing of what the heart desired. The seasons come and go quickly but the hours of day seemed so slow.

5 嫦娥 can also be used but not as great for tonal effect.

6 Winter plum blossoms blooms best in the harshest cold. These lines speak of wrong timing; of being born in different eras etc.

7 This line ties with the first line since the author is already up in the heavens looking down

8 All Chinese rivers flow towards the east due to land geography.

Sunday, January 10, 2021

Sayonara - 辭別

 

Jogging on a cloudy and gloomy morning, I saw a gust of wind swirling up a bunch of leaves in dance… This poem was the result. 

春光花蝶盡無窮, Flowers and butterflies, endless in time of spring,
宴席徘徊酒香濃  Pacing up and down, in amidst of banquet's aroma of wine.
忽見燈下闌珊處  Suddenly, espied under the quiet of the lights,
從此與君朝暮紅  From then onwards with thee, every dawn to dusk, a rosy time.

門前突來一陣風 A sudden wind came blowing at the doorstep,
吹散舊日雲烟夢 Dispersing all my dreams of yesteryears.
徑路不見行踪影 The garden path, nary a trace of footprints,
聲去無人難再逢 The sounds are gone, no one around, reuniting an impossibility.

However, two days later, at the same spot, the sun this time was shining warmly and the sky was blue. My spirit was very different and on thinking of the original poem, I felt that it was too sad. I wanted to have hope in the end. I tried to change the poem but could not find the inspiration to lift that dreary mood in the poem in that format. 

Perhaps it’s about time I should try my hand at lyrical format; of which I know nothing. In the end, whether I succeed or not, this poem is for myself, to challenge my brain to express what my heart wanted to say even if all the lyrical rules are broken. With the help of the song, “Sayonara”, I was happy with the result. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7BO5AEPFEQ&list=RDCziVmYd3TJE&index=6

春光蝶,                Springtime butterflies,
花艷盡無窮.        In endless exquisite blooms.
宴席徘徊酒香濃 Sludging through and through a party’s heavy bouquet of wine.

闌珊處,                 In a quiet place,
燈下影,                A shadow under the light,
欲語遲.                Hesitant. Words came too late.

飛來烏紗隔月矓. Along came a blustery thin silk black, hazily obscuring the moon.
緣近份無暗恨生. Propinquity fated but bonds never connect, a hidden regret grew.

門前風,                 Doorstep wind,
掃清舊日夢.         Sweeping utterly all dreams of old.
陰差陽錯與眠同  Wandering in a slumberous daze.
微聲語,                 A murmuring heard.
看無跡,                 Saw no trace,
遂徑入.                 Into a path led.
朗停轉望見故人  Doven stopped. Body turned. Saw a face of old.
心興又恐在幻重 A heart leapt and yet… Afraid that once more in fantasy met.

Thursday, January 7, 2021

An Evening Walk on the Marina

The sunset was gorgeous.  I had to compose something but the theme eluded me until what I saw next - fire dancing in the ocean...

雲鎖西山紫霞烟 Clouds engulfing the Western Hills in fiery hues,
微波火海紅一遍 A sea of fire rippling in red all over.
夜漸熄滅林風到 The night slowly extinguishes, forest winds begin to rise,
莫待銀河水中天 Wait not for the Milky Way appearing in a watery world.

Thursday, January 7, 2021

First Poem of A Hopeful New Year - 2021

 
1 月落深谷五更時 When the moon descends into the valley deep, dawn will be breaking,
2 星稀沉醉誰欲醒 Sparse are the stars and drunkards chose not to wake.
3 昨夜春宵復今朝 Last night’s spring revelry to continue into the morning,
4 只在夢中未了情 For only in dreams, affairs yet to end. 

1 Literally, at the hour of the 5th watch.  Midnight is the third watch and a Chinese hour is equivalent to two western hours.  The time could thus be anywhere from 4am to 5am.

Sunday, January 3, 2021

Last Poem For a Pandemic Year of 2020

 

Doodling with my brush, eager to write something on the last day of a pandemic year.  Hopefully, next year will bring an end to all these madness.  

1月冷風寒寂寞齊 The cold moon, the frigid winds and loneliness are all here,
2燭影徘徊夜鶯啼 And the Candle flame pacing to and fro as the nightingale sang.
3沉香瀰漫孤雁語 Fragrance diffusing amidst the words of a lonely anser,
4莫負春夜此無題 Waste not this spring night and thus this untitled poem.

3 If translated as “goose” the thing conjured in an English reader’s mind is “a silly goose”. Ansers are flock migratory birds. Therefore, a single one flying means that it is lost from its flock and have to face all difficulties and hardships alone.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

One Rainy Night

 

It was raining heavily and after a flurry of messages from friends that set me on the theme of this poem.  Also I had taken liberties from the Po Chu-i's Ballad of the Wandering Lute.

1 嘈切雨聲酒一壺 Loud pitter, soft pattering rain and a jug of wine,
2 殘光剪燭殷勤顧 Waning candlelight, the wick gingerly cut.
3 金屋無人守寂寥 Empty House of Gold, but loneliness to look after,
4 只是有朝顏色故 Only that one day, my colors would turn old.

5 影下重見舊日春 Under the shadows, springs bygone once more seen,
6 神武威凛昆明湖 Divine awe-inspired prowess on the Lake of Enlightened Descendants.
7 百鳥朝拜昭陽鳳 And a hundred birds swayed in respect to the Phoenix in the Palace of the Brilliant Sun,
8 可憐千金長門賦 Alas pity the Gate of Eternity Ballad of a thousand gold pieces.

3 – The House of Gold – Story of how Emperor Han Wu Ti was coached in answering his aunt when she asked if he would like to marry her daughter. He replied that if he is able to wed her, he would build her a house. This paved the way for the aunt – the favorite of the Empress Dowager to set him on the road to the throne.

4 – literally "face color" – the youthful bloom

6 – Not the lake in Yunnan. It is the largest artificial lake in China built for military purposes. The Emperor’s troops were defeated by the naval forces in Yunnan and so he had one to train his naval troops. Its size is triple of West Lake. In later times, it was used for imperial leisure and as a reservoir. However, it dried up during the Sung Dynasty. Now it had become a tourist area after the lake was refilled.

7 – The palace where the Empress lived.

8 – Empress Chen, the house of gold for whom it was built, was deposed and she tried to regain favour with the emperor by asking Sima Hsiang Ru to write a poem for her to move the emperor’s heart. For this she paid 100 pounds of gold. I am taking poetic licence here to use a thousand pieces instead. However, it was not officially recorded that any reconciliation took place. This story is also taken with a grain of salt as it is believed that it is a work of later times because in the preface, the Emperor’s temple name was used which could be known at the time of Sima’s composition.

Monday, December 28, 2020

One Winter Night's Doodling

While doodling on a winter’s evening…

1斜陽力倦掃花黄 Flowers in yellow swept by the tired rays of the setting sun,
2淡月情虛映菊寒 Chrysanthemums looking cold reflecting in the nonchalant moonlight.
3鶯去寂寞空庭語 Gone is the mockingbird. Loneliness is the language of the courtyard,
4莫愁無歡夢裡藏 Fret not that there is no joy. Just look for them hidden in dreams.

1 Actually, the flowers themselves are yellow and not made to look like so by the sunlight. This is not known until we find out in the second line that the flowers are chrysanthemums.

2 淡月情虛 translated literally as “pale moon empty feelings”

Wednesday, December 16, 2020