春雨 李商隱

春雨   李商隱 (813-858)

悵臥新春白袷衣，白門寥落意多違。

紅樓隔雨相望冷，珠箔飄燈獨自歸。

遠路應悲春晼晚，殘宵猶得夢依稀。

玉璫緘札何由達，萬里雲羅一雁飛。

Spring Rain     Li Shangyin (813-858)

Lying in glum in my white early spring mantle,
Living desolately in Jinling I find everything in life running against my will,
Looking through the rain over to the red chamber shrouded in chills,
Through the pearl portiere I find her back by herself under the flickering lamp glow,
The long distance between us heaps the fading of the vernal glamour with sorrows,
In the depth of the night I still seem to be able to see her in my dream cameos,
Enclosing a pair of jade earrings in my billet-doux but how can they to you be posted,
I can only entrust it to the wild geese in the clouds to bringing them over to you through ten thousand miles.

宮詞 薛逢

宮詞         薛逢(唐)

十二樓中盡曉妝，望仙樓上望君王。

鎖銜金獸連環冷，水滴銅龍晝漏長。

雲髻罷梳還對鏡，羅衣欲換更添香。

遙窺正殿簾開處，袍袴宮人掃御床。

A Palatial Verse     Xue Feng (Tang Poet)

Seraglio ladies in the Twelve Towers all have themselves spruced up as dawn unfolds,
They gather on the Heavenly Lord Tower hoping to have a view of His Lord Regal,
The golden animated gate locks dangle in the chills,
The water clock tinkling on dragon heads marks the length of day seems interminable,
After sprucing their velvety hair buns they again face the mirror to see if they are readily presentable,
Putting on their exquisite clothes they again have themselves fragrantly perfumed,
Espying through the rolled up portieres on the palace hall,
Stewardesses in embroidered robes are tidying up His Majesty’s throne of absolute awe.

 

江城子 別徐州 蘇軾

江城子  別徐州    蘇軾(1037-1101)

天涯流落思無窮。
既相逢，卻匆匆。
攜手佳人，和淚折殘紅。
為問東風餘如許？春縱在，與誰同？

隋堤三月水溶溶。
背歸鴻，去吳中。
回首彭城，清泗與淮通。
欲寄相思千點淚，流不到，楚江東。

Jiang Cheng Zi   Saying Goodbye to Xu Zhou        Su Shi (1037-1101)

Gadding on the tramp at end of world my muses are unstoppable,

Here across we fall,
But in what haste our parting be hustled,
With your hands in hold,
Tears running for our farewell I earnestly pick for you a surviving vernal blow,
Oh! Spring for how much longer will you stay over?
Even if you really hold,
Who can be my boon partner to revel?

Waters remain tepid in the third month within river’s embankment mole,

Will goose back to the north recoil?
Contrarily to Huzhou I have to go,
Looking back at my place of old,
The limpid and shallow River Si beneath the City wall and the River Huai are interlinkable,
To River Si My pining tears I’d like to post,
But the River is beyond my purlieu.

 

西江月 遣興 辛棄疾

西江月 遣興       辛棄疾 (1140-1207)
醉裡且貪歡笑，要愁那得工夫。 近来始觉古人书，信著全无是处。
近來始覺古人書，信著全無是處。 昨夜松边醉倒，问松我醉何如？
昨夜松邊醉倒，問松我醉何如？ 只疑松动要来扶，以手推松曰去！
只疑松動要來扶，以手推曰去！

Xi Jiang Yue    For Pleasure      Xin Qiji (1140-1207)

Just burst in guffaw if you are sozzled,
There leaves no room for dismals,
Recently I find the books passing down from of old,
In them you’ll find nothing reliable,
Last night by the pine tree I got sozzled,
I asked it “How bad I am loaded?”
It seemed it’s trying to grab me on hold,
I pushed it away and said “Just go”.

 

玉樓春 宋祁

玉樓春   宋祁(998-1061)
東城漸覺風光好，縠皱①波纹迎客棹②。縠皺波紋迎客棹。
綠楊煙外曉寒輕，红杏枝头春意闹。紅杏枝頭春意鬧。
浮生長恨歡娛少，肯爱千金轻一笑？肯愛千金輕一笑？
為君持酒勸斜陽，且向花间留晚照。且向花間留晚照。 ^[2]

Yu Lou Chun            Song Qi (998-1061)

The east city is gradually gathering its glamorous appeal,
The azure waters are paved with rippling sparkling gauze rolls hospitably welcoming incoming guest boats,
Light chilly dawn zephyr shrouds the verdant willows,
Trees are boasting their bustling crimson apricot blows,
I am long chagrined at in my vicissitudinous life I have only found few things joyful and pleasurable,
Saving money and give up the chance to relish the sparkling vernal glamour is at odds with carpe diem of joie de vivre I ought to have pursued,
Here I offer a cup of wine to the fading sun before it goes,
Pray for my friends amidst the blooming blossoms leave flushes of your adieu glow

 

貧女 秦韜玉

貧女    秦韜玉(唐)

蓬門未識綺羅香，擬託良媒亦自傷。
誰愛風流高格調，共憐時世儉梳妝。
敢將十指誇針巧，不把雙眉鬥畫長。
苦恨年年壓金線，為他人作嫁衣裳。

A Girl of Poor Descent      Qin Taoyu (Tang Poet)

Living behind wicket doors of a poor household, she never knows the scent of expensive apparels,

She would like to enlist a match maker but fears she could not live up to the call and dumped in dole,

Who would like to marry a liberal lofty soul?

And for the turbulent times scrimp on the trousseau?  

She always has her delicate needlework to toot,

But she shies from vying she brushes her eyebrows longer than her rivals,

To her deep chagrin year in and year out her deftness in arraying the gold filigree,

Is only for others bridal apparel. 

 

獨不見 沈佺期

獨不見          沈佺期 (656-719)　
盧家少婦鬱金香，海燕雙棲玳瑁梁。

九月寒砧催木葉，十年征戍憶遼陽。

白狼河北音書斷，丹鳳城南秋夜長。

誰為含愁獨不見，更教明月照流黃。

The Only One Missing       Shen Quanqi (656-719)

A couple of devoted sea swallows roosting on the tortoise shell tinseled balk,

The young lady of the Lo household living lovingly with her spouse in the zedoary scented boudoir,
In the chilly ninth month the laundry hustle and bustle hasten leaves to fall,
For the last ten years her husband has been sent on expeditionary duties to Liaoyang she recalls,
From the north of River White Wolf where he is stranded there has been no letters at all,
In the south of the Phoenix City where she stays autumnal nights are long and miserable,
Plagued by abysmal dismals she finds her husband is the only one missing after all,
It’s even more gnawing when she sees the bright moon shines on the yellow silk portieres.

 

浪淘沙 辛棄疾

浪淘沙 山寺夜半闻鐘  辛棄疾(1140-1207)

身世酒杯中，萬事皆空。古來三五個英雄。

雨打風吹何處是，漢殿秦宮。
夢入少年叢，歌舞匆匆。老僧夜半誤鳴鐘。
驚志西窗眠不得，卷地西風。

Lang Tao Sha    Mountain Temple Bell Tolls at Midnight      

Xin Qiji (1140-1207)

Sorrows and dismals, all the miseries of my life through the wine cup I’ve guzzled,

All my life patriotic endeavours for nation and country proved futile,
From of old there have only been just a few heroes,
Drown by the turbulences of the times leaving only a few remain extolled,
The founding Emperor of Han and the First Emperor of Qin just to name a couple,
Reliving my youthful dreams ambitiouly grand and fanciful,
In singing and dancing sprees I reveled,
Presently at midnight an old monk had the temple bell mistolled,
From my grand youthful dreams I am boggled,
Anon up a sweeping west wind hurls,
Shattering all my fond dreams sleeplessly I lie shaken up as if my life ambitions are all foiled.