八聲甘州 柳永

八聲甘州           柳永 (宋)  

對瀟瀟暮雨灑江天，一番洗清秋。

漸霜風凄緊，關河冷落，殘照當樓。
是處紅衰翠減，苒苒物華休。
惟有長江水，無語東流。

不忍登高臨遠，望故鄉渺邈，歸思難收。
歎年來蹤跡，何事苦淹留。
想佳人妝樓顒望，誤幾回、天際識歸舟。
爭知我、倚闌干處，正恁凝愁。

Ba Sheng Gan Zhou         Liu Yong (Song Poet)

On the river gusty rains flush in the vesper,
A world of autumnal cool emerges hither and thither,
Frosty winds rave more scathingly with everything quivers,
Desolation reigns over mountains and rivers,
The setting sun flushes over the high tower,
Wilting away are the verdancy of the grasses and the glamour of the flowers,
Fading away is a world of splendour’
Leaving only the Great River incessantly and speechlessly to the east roars,

Daring not to espy afar from a high tower,
My homeland seems beyond touch thither,
Most tormenting will be my sorrows of nostalgia,
For what do I have to forlornly drift everywhere all these years,
The one I love keeps gazing afar in her high chamber,
How many times has she mistaken the dots of sails in the horizon vista
To be the boat I ride in to come home hither,
How would she know, leaning on the balustrade, I am frozen with her in my sorrows of sunder.

     

江南春 杜牧

江南春         杜牧 (803-852)

十里鶯啼綠映紅，水村山郭酒旗風。  

南朝四百八十寺，多少樓臺煙雨中。  

Spring South of the River      Du Mu (803-852)

Along these ten miles of reds setting off by greens orioles twitter,
Amid villages by the water and city walls against the hills inn signs flutter,
The four hundred and eighty temples built by the South Dynasty Emperor,
Still stand salient amidst the mizzles and vapours.

 

曲江對酒(其二 ) 杜甫

曲江對酒(其二)    杜甫  (712-770)

朝回日日典春衣，每日江頭盡醉歸。  

酒債尋常行處有，人生七十古來稀。
穿花蛺蝶深深見，點水蜻蜓款款飛。  
傳與風光共流轉，暫時相賞莫相違。  

Drinking to the Vista of Qujiang (Poem No.2)    Du Fu (712-770)

In the morning I have my spring clothes pawned after an audience with the Emperor,

With the money I’ll drink to my fill by the river,
Wine debts are nothing unusual and peculiar,
From of old people living up to seventy years are really rare,
Butterflies shuttling amidst the flowers have me deeply deeply allured,
Dragonflies daintily daintily on the waters cutting capers,
Such enthralling scenic delights should be widely shared,
So it's everybody's carpe diem to join me to savour.

 

 

鞦韆 洪覺範

鞦韆       洪覺範 (宋) 

畫架雙裁翠絡偏，佳人春戲小樓前。  

飄揚血色裙拖地，斷送玉容人上天。  
花板潤霑紅杏雨，綵繩斜挂綠楊煙。
下來閒處從容立，疑是蟾宮謫降仙。  

The Swing        Hong Juefan (Song Poet)

Slightly slanting is the paddle hanging from the green silk ropes of the decorated swing grille,

Enjoying themselves on the swing in front of the small chamber are some lovely jills,
Their long sanguine dresses on the ground swill,
Offering their beauties up to the heavens as they enjoy the fun with thrills,
The painted paddle is a bit slippery with the red apricot blossom mizzle spilled,
The green ropes amidst green willows and mists hang askew,
Dismounting from the swing after playing their fill,
In the open areas they stand elegantly at ease in still,
I suspect they are fays from the moon demoted to the earth against their will.

 

 

 

 

 

秋夜寄丘員外 韋應物

秋夜寄丘員外      韋應物 (737-792)

懷君屬秋夜， 散步詠涼天。

山空松子落， 幽人應未眠。      

A Poem to Councillor Qiu in an Autumn Night     

Wei Yingwu (737-792)

This autumn night, with you on my mind I desiderate,

I intone poems while sauntering in the courtyard with all the crisp coolness of the season to savour,
In the desolate hills, fallen pine cones are all over the place,
A refined recluse like you, I presume you are still staying up late.

 

曲江對酒(其一) 杜甫

曲江對酒(其一)    杜甫  (712-770)

 一片花飛減卻春，風飄萬點正愁人。  

且看欲盡花經眼，莫厭傷多酒入唇。  
江上小堂巢翡翠，苑邊高塚臥麒麟。  
細推物理須行樂，何用浮名絆此身。  

Drinking to the Vista of Qujiang (Poem No.1)    Du Fu (712-770)

Amidst flying flower petals spring fades,

How bruising is the myriad petals flittering with the gale,
All I can see are flowers coming to the end of their days,
Mind not the wine that will sap your fettle with it you getting gay,
Behold the small hall on the river that nestled the delicate kingfishers with good grace,
And the majestic stone kirins crouching on the garden along the tall graves,
On careful musing, to pursue gaieties with the times is only man’s spontaneous way,
Earthly fame and acclaim are only vanity that spoils one’s day.

 

 

 

 

秋日 耿湋

秋日        耿湋(唐)

返照入閭巷， 憂來誰共語。

古道少人行， 秋風動禾黍。   

An Autumn Day         Geng Wei (Tang Poet)

The setting sun flushes through the village gate onto the alley,

Who can I talk to placate my melancholy,
Passengers are scarce on the ancient trail,
Crops in the fields sway in the autumnal gale.

 

 

醉垂鞭 張先

醉垂鞭        張先 (990-1078)

雙蝶繡羅裙，東池宴，初相見。
朱粉不深勻，閒花淡淡春。 　
細看諸處好，人人道，柳腰身。
昨日亂山昏，來時衣上雲。

Zui Chui Bian        Zhang Xian (990-1078)

A pair of butterflies on her skirt embroidered,

In a garden party at the east pond she first appears,
Without heavy make-up she looks just like an ordinary insouciant spring flower,
Everybody says she is enchanting, gracile and willowy slender,
Taking a careful look, I find her charms come from nowhere but everywhere,
Maybe from the misty clouds enshrouding the multidinous mountains last night she emerges.

次北固山下 王灣

次北固山下    王灣 (693-751)

客路青山外，行舟綠水前，

潮平兩岸闊，風正一帆懸。   
海日生殘夜，江春入舊年，   
鄉書何處達，歸雁洛陽邊。

Mooring Beneath Mt Beigu       Wang Wan (693-751)

Beyond the green mountain runs the passage trail,

In the azure waters boats sail,
When the tide floods the river is broad and amply unfurls,
On the fair wind the boat fleets with upreared sail,
As the night dwindles the sun beams over the horizon bringing dawn’s call,
With the old year fading away, vernal splendour along the river stealthily unveils,
When will letters from home reach my abode?
The wayfaring wild geese bringing my message home to Luoyang I‘d avail.

沁園春 辛棄疾

沁園春 靈山齊庵賦，時築偃湖未成     (1140-1207)

疊嶂西馳，萬馬回旋，眾山欲東。

正驚湍直下，跳珠倒濺；小橋橫截，缺月初弓。
老合投閒，天教多事，檢校長身十萬松。
吾廬小，在龍蛇影外，風雨聲中。
爭先見面重重，看爽氣朝來三數峰。
似謝家子弟，衣冠磊落；相如庭戶，車騎雍容。
我覺其間，雄深雅健，如對文章太史公。
新堤路，問偃湖何日，煙水濛濛？ 

　

Qin Yuan Chun            Xin Qiji (1140-1207)

Written in my Integral Bower on Ling Shan (Deific Mountain) while the construction of the Embankment Lake is yet to complete.

To the west galloping peak ranges whicker,

Presently wheeling back the ten thousand spanking horses,
To the east the mountains hanker,
Appallingly, rapids plunkingly pour,
With water splashing all over,
A small bridge flies like a sickle moon fair,
This renounced gaffer,
On Providence order,
Ten thousand tall pine trees to administer,
Small is my bower,
Far from where shadows of dragons and serpents cast over,
Amidst wind and rain roars,
As mists disperse, mountains eventually emerge at daybreak to greet me with refreshed elan and flair,
As elegant as the scions of the Xies of Jin to compare,
And as majestic as Sima Shuangru’s entourage,
Virile, robust, sublime and gracious as the great historian Sima Qian‘s works’ verve,
When will the Embankment Lake with mists enshrouded splendour be ready to savour?

 

 

琵琶行(四之四) 白居易

琵琶行(四之四)　   白居易(772-846)

我聞琵琶已嘆息，又聞此語重唧唧。
同是天涯淪落人，相逢何必曾相識！
我從去年辭帝京，謫居臥病潯陽城。
潯陽地僻無音樂，終歲不聞絲竹聲。
住近湓城地低濕，黃蘆苦竹繞宅生。
其間日暮聞何物？杜鵑啼血猿哀鳴。
春江花朝秋月夜，往往取酒還獨傾。
豈無山歌與村笛，嘔啞嘲晰難為聽。
今夜聞君琵琶語，如聽仙樂耳暫明。
莫辭更坐彈一曲，為君翻作琵琶行。
感我此言良久立，卻坐促弦弦轉急。
凄凄不似向前聲，滿座重聞皆掩泣。
座中泣下誰最多？江州司馬青衫濕。(全文完)

 

Ballad of the Pipa (pt 4 of 4)          Bai Juyi (772-846)

When I first heard the pipa I’d already sighed with sorrow,

On hearing all these I doubly aggrieved in echo,

We are both wretched people struggling at end of the world,

What matters if each other we already know,

Since last year I left the Capital,

Demoted and ailing in the City of Xunyang I dwell,

This place is far flung and remote,

No music here is available,

A year goes by without any music palatable,

Drenched and low, there are only reeds and bamboos around my household,

All I hear is the whimpers of cuckoos and ape wails,

In flowering spring and the autumnal full moon I avail,

The time to bring a bottle and drink alone out in the cold,

The folk songs and native flutes are all unpalatable,

To me they are just baby snarls,

Tonight your pipa has me greatly enthralled,

It is simply celestial,

Please sit and play us one more song before you go,

I’ll write you a Pipa Ballad on this scenario,

On this she stood quite a while,

Again she straddled,

Tightly she turned her pegs and ready to buckle,

Rapidly she stroke the strings as in an allegro,

Sobbing grievously in a completely different tempo,

Everybody present wept with their face hand shielded,

Who do you think wept the most,

This official of Jiangzhou had his blue gown soaked with tears thorough.

 (End)

 

 

 

琵琶行(四之三) 白居易

琵琶行(四之三)　   白居易(772-846)

沉吟放撥插弦中，整頓衣裳起斂容。
自言本是京城女，家在蝦蟆陵下住。
十三學得琵琶成，名屬教坊第一部。
曲罷曾教善才服，妝成每被秋娘妒。
五陵年少爭纏頭，一曲紅綃不知數。
鈿頭銀篦擊節碎，血色羅裙翻酒污。
今年歡笑復明年，秋月春風等閒度。
弟走從軍阿姨死，暮去朝來顏色故。
門前冷落鞍馬稀，老大嫁作商人婦。
商人重利輕別離，前月浮梁買茶去。
去來江口守空船，繞船月明江水寒。
夜深忽夢少年事，夢啼妝淚紅闌干。(待續)

Ballad of the Pipa (pt 3 of 4)          Bai Juyi (772-846)

She put the pick back behind the strings after brooding for a while,
Tending her dress, she stood up in a solemn style,
She said she came from the Capital,
In the famous Xia Ma Ling she first dwelled,
She mastered the pipa when she was only thirteen years old,
Belonged to the First Class of the Music Academy Imperial,
Whenever she finished playing a melody, she won even the masters’ approval,
After dressing up she was the envy of all pretty girls,
Rich suitors of the Capital all vied in praising her with money in piles,
Every song played brought in silk and brocade in countless rolls,
She even broke her precious hair jewellery while in a singing and dancing spree with abandon she revelled,
Her red skirt was thoroughly wine soiled,
A life of gaiety and luxury to her was only normal and usual,
Until her brother into the army was haled
And her aunt left this world,
Days passed with her beauty fading pale,
The number of her patrons dwindled,
She had no choice but to marry down to a merchant as a couple,
But profits are what all merchants look for after all,
Last month her husband has gone to Fuliang for tea procural,
Leaving her alone in this empty boat to idle,
With her was only the desolate moon and the river chills,
Deep in the night as she awoke from dreams of her days of old,
Running tears soured her face to a messy pale;
 (To be continued)