Moonshiny night
- Poetry of Li Yu

《菩萨蛮》

- Last updated: 2024-03-16 15:28:40

中文原文

花明月暗笼轻雾，今宵好向郎边去。

刬袜步香阶，手提金缕鞋。

画堂南畔见，一向偎人颤。

奴为出来难，教君恣意怜。

English Translation

In the incense,little flowers grow.

it's a good time to go to a tryst with you.

lightly i sneak into your bedroom like moonshine.

silk shoes i carry,kiss me tenderly in this night.

Cuddle up to you in the Southern boudoir,

spoiling me like i'm the queen of this world.

So wishful to be your mistress,baby,touch me,

groan like a kitten,my heart only fires for you.

Li Yu: 李煜(AD937-978),he's the last emperor of Southern Tang( 南唐,AD937-975),he makes the Ci(Chinese ancient lyric) become a elegant and beautiful art.

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