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This poem came about when I answered this Quora question about can a foreigner with knowledgeable modern mandarin can understand literary Chinese. The last line of the poem came into my mind. The poem was completed while I was jogging in the day.
1 後庭月明夜寒風 The night wind is cold as moon bright hangs over the inner courtyard,
2 前殿臘燈十里紅 But candlelight from the front outer palace is bright for ten miles.
3 一滴珠淚池影醉 One teardrop of a drunken face reflected in the pond,
4 長門曾經金屋夢 When once upon a dream, the Gate of Eternity was a house of gold.
1 Implies loneliness, sadness and hope by the imagery of the singular moon that is bright and yet the winds are cold.
2 There can be two interpretations for this line, the new favorite was being lavishly entertained in the front palace where important occasions or ceremonies were held. So many red candles were used that the place could be seen for ten miles. Red candles are used because the color is considered auspicious. White candles are only used for funerals. The second interpretation is that the protagonist was thinking of her old wedding ceremony and that red silk was used for ten miles, an exaggeration, of the procession route to welcome her to the palace. The only person we know of having this luxury for her marriage was the first empress of Han Wu Ti.
4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Jiao
Friday, September 15, 2023
Forcing a mental exercise on my brain to elevate boredom during my jog…
慷慷激昂醉桃花 So fervent are the passions that peach blossoms become inebriated,
微微暗笑引年華 With half hidden smiles to encourage the young men to continue.
葉下鴛鴦雨露恩 Under the leaves are mandarin ducks in love,
寂寞仙子淚滴灑 Lonesome fairies in shedding tears.
I was not satisfied and so this version came during a trip to Costco…
1 桃花含笑醉春風 Smiling peach blossoms intoxicate the spring wind,
2 年華無處不染紅 Nary a place where youth is, not tinged with red.
3 寂寞高樓低望人 Lonely high tower looking at people down below,
4 曾似昨夜一短夢 As if they were like short dreams from last night.
1 Flowers anthropomorphized by pretty young girls and the guys, the spring wind. This line implies flirtation from both sides of the aisle.
2 Red, the color of youth in bloom.
3 Envious old men in their lonely positions of power leering at the young crowd on the street, wishing that they can be part of vibrancy of youth again.
4 Resigning to the fact that no matter, dreams are just dreams.
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
During a jog…
1 越更高向群星散 The higher the ascendency is, more stars will disperse,
2 獨霸九霄照人間 Alone in hegemony over the Nine Heavens, shining over humankind.
3 浮世笑容醉樂夢 Smiling faces exist only in drunken dreams of the floating world,
4 何須醒後對塵煩Why then be bothered to wake up and vexed by the mundane world?
1 越 is used as a pun for 月. The moon glows brighter as time passes since total darkness engulfs the world. All weaker celestial lights are dimmed out.
2 There are nine heavens in Chinese mythology.
3 “floating world” means the transient nature of the pleasure world. Everyone is smiling with you because of your high position.
4 “dust” or “red dust”, 紅塵 is a Buddhist term for the mortal world.
Friday, July 28, 2023
This was created as I was in the stage when my dreams were fading away and on the threshold of awakening. Realized that 鳥 rhymes with 飃. Completed during my jog…
同林樹雙鳥 In the forest, two birds dwell in one tree,
風動枝葉搖 The winds came and when the boughs and leaves began to sway.
南北各自分 One flew away to the north, the other to the south.
情空恩䀆寥 Lonesome it is when love is gone.
A common saying, “Husband and wife are actually two birds in the same forest. When adversity comes along, each would fly away on its own” - 夫妻本是同林鳥, 大難臨頭各自飛.
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
During my evening jog… 伏and 遐 were suggested by ChatGPT
1 天涯日息夜海霧 At the edge of the world where Day rests and ocean fog of night sets in,
2 船泊浮伏聽波濤 Bobbing anchored boats listening to the sound of waves.
3 鷗鳴一聲破遐念 Cry of the gull broke my thoughts of distant past,
4 莫見星河向月訴 I see no stars of the Milky Way, I told my tale to the moon.
Monday, September 11, 2023
The first four characters were formed in the night but during my jog the next morning, the poem was completed…
1 湖水烟霧鎖舟前 The fog and mists of the lake engulf the path of the boat,
2 於心難捨別殘眠 My heart could not bear to leave my crumbling slumber.
3 醒見素衣紅塵蓋 Now awake, the red dust of the earth is clothed in white.
4 寧可夢裡醉千年 I rather be drunk for a thousand years in my dreams.
1 The mists and fog represents life’s obstacles that blocks one’s future
2 Taking refuge in sleep.
3 White clothing implies the color of the fog and mists and is also a color for mourning.
4 Escapism
Sunday, September 10, 2023
During my evening jog, I looked up into the sky. There were a group of clouds like floating islands in the sky. The top parts were white and at the bottom, dark as night. A few minutes later, they became totally black…
1 半邊白雲半邊黑 Half a white cloud, half in black,
2 夜臨無聲迎誰客 Night quietly approaches, welcoming any traveling guest.
3 華燈初上胭脂紅 Brightly lanterns just put up and the rouge is fresh,
4 唯有銀光不相隔 Only the silvery light will not separate us from being apart.
3 Nightlife comes alive with brothels in full swing.
4 The silver light comes from the ingots of silver used as currency in ancient China.
Friday, September 8, 2023
