Spring God is about to leave the Song capital
- Poetry of Li Qingzhao

《怨王孙·春暮》
Spring God is about to leave the Song capital by Li Qingzhao
中文原文( Chinese )

帝里春晚，重门深院。

草绿阶前，暮天雁断。

楼上远信谁传，恨绵绵。

多情自是多沾惹，难拚舍，又是寒食也。

秋千巷陌，人静皎月初斜，浸梨花。

English Translation

Spring God is about to leave the Song capital,

taking the vibes of romance wasted behind walls.

The doors to my chamber find grass grown long.

By dusk, all messenger geese are quiet and gone.

My wandering eye beholds within a restless gloom

stirred by his absent presence in our upstairs room.


Love appeals even more when it is so painful,

making it even harder to forget and let go.

Another year, another Cold Food Festival,

a forgotten swing and a forgotten road

are covered in the rain of falling pear blooms

in an empty home under the rising full-moon.

"-  to the tune of Yuanwangsun"

This is a good example of sentimental boudoir ci poems very popular among the gentle class in the Song dynasty. Many of the writers could be gentlemen who wrote there and then for entertainment on the occasion. The singing girls would sing them to the old tune as defined and played by the gentleman himself or a musician over Gu Qin, a 7-stringed musical board popular even today.

- Last updated: 2024-12-05 21:02:07
· Pre： The messenger of Spring just ended December
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.

List of Chinese poets

© 2024 CN-Poetry.com Chinese Poems in English