Drinking on Dragon Hill on the Ninth of the Ninth Month
- Poetry of Li Bai (Li Po)

《九日龙山饮》

- Last updated: 2024-06-26 10:48:46

Drinking on Dragon Hill on the Ninth of the Ninth Month by Li Bai (Li Po)
中文原文

九日龙山饮，黄花笑逐臣。

醉看风落帽，舞爱月留人。

English Translation

Drinking on Dragon Hill on this Autumn day,

Golden blossoms laugh at the exiled vassal –

Drunkenness watches his cap blown off by the wind;

Dance loves the moon for keeping the swaying man.

Double Ninth is the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, as autumn festival in China when people, men of letters in particular, ascend heights to take in the autumn sights, while remembering the parted loved ones and contemplating on the inevitable advent of winter in life.

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Why Chinese poems is so special?
The most distinctive features of Chinese poetry are: concision- many poems are only four lines, and few are much longer than eight; ambiguity- number, tense and parts of speech are often undetermined, creating particularly rich interpretative possibilities; and structure- most poems follow quite strict formal patterns which have beauty in themselves as well as highlighting meaningful contrasts.
How to read a Chinese poem?
Like an English poem, but more so. Everything is there for a reason, so try to find that reason. Think about all the possible connotations, and be aware of the different possibilities of number and tense. Look for contrasts: within lines, between the lines of each couplet and between successive couplets. Above all, don't worry about what the poet meant- find your meaning.

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