Eternal Regrets

The first line just came into my mind and could not complete the poem until I thought of presenting another angle from Li Shang Yin’s, “… 嫦娥應悔偷靈藥, 碧海青天夜夜心”

1 隱若蓬萊隱若夢 To and fro, came the Blessed Isles wafting like a dream drifting in and out,
2 昔日仙子昔日逢 Once upon a fairy maid, once upon met.
3 劉郎應悔賢逆聽 Liu Lang ought to be remorseful for rejecting the words of wise,
4 燭影深動夜夜重 Heavy are the nights as candle shadows flickered.

3 Liu Lang was a woodcutter who was lost in a forest. He came upon a cave and met a fairy maid. They fell in love. After six months into the marriage, he became homesick and begged to take leave but his fairy wife talked him out of it. Another year passed and he could bear no more. Off he went back to his hometown to find that everything had changed and a few generations had passed.

4 Depending on how重 is pronounce, it can mean either be heavy or recurring. Both meanings are applicable. Also, 深 is used as a pun for 心 since both have the same pronunciation.

Saturday, August 13, 2022