English Rendering
So bright a gleam on the foot of my bed --
Could there have been a frost already?
Lifting myself to look, I found that it was moonlight.
Sinking back again, I thought suddenly of home.
Thoughts in the Silent Night
- Poetry of Li Bai (Li Po)
《静夜思》#Loneliness #Pensiveness #Homesickness
Original Text (中文原文)
Simplified Chinese Version
床前明月光，疑是地上霜。
举头望明月，低头思故乡。
Traditional Chinese Version
床前明月光， 疑是地上霜。
舉頭望明月， 低頭思故鄉。
Analysis & Context
Five-character-quatrain
This popular Chinese poem was penned by one of the most famous Tang dynasty poets of all time – Li Bai (701-762). The poem expresses the poet’s loneliness, pensiveness, and homesickness as he gazes up at the bright moon.
This poem was written in 744 AD by Li Bai after he left Chang'an and was living away from home. In the stillness of the night, seeing the moonlight like frost, he was overwhelmed by homesickness and composed this poem. With concise strokes, the poem depicts a quiet night of longing for home, expressing the poet's deep nostalgia.
Reader's Companion
The Essence of the Verse
Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.
Reading Between the Lines
Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.
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