Upon Arriving at Huangzhou
- Poetry of Su Shi

《初到黄州》
Upon Arriving at Huangzhou by Su Shi
中文原文( Chinese )

自笑平生为口忙，老来事业转荒唐。

长江绕郭知鱼美，好竹连山觉笋香。

逐客不妨员外置，诗人例做水曹郎。

只惭无补丝毫事，尚费官家压酒囊。

English Translation

My whole world’s like an eventful stage

Getting strangely funny now I’ve aged.

A busy life with the mouth, for the mouths,

And a lousy outcome by my big silly mouth.

Oh well, the Yangtse embraces the town in a loop,

Where the river fish should taste just as good.

There are also bamboo groves over the hills,

Where I should find many sweet and earthy shoots.

An attendant role cannot do much harm anyway.

Banished poets are seen to do great on waterways.

And the work I do can hardly touch the pay I get.

The bag of wine grain my Lord gave is such a waste!

It was February 1080 when Su Shi and his family arrived in exile at the remote town Huangzhou, a long trip from the capital after being released from his 130 days in prison. It was a new birth for him and his family, just like the promising spring landscape as they went further south from the Yellow River to the Yangtse River, the land of fish and rice. You would think he might have become a different person of a more docile and obedient nature, which would have disappointed us. No, the near-death experience actually built up his stoicism and fortitude with a sense of dark humour, the rich source for his heroic vibes played in many romantic poems yet to come, actually a frenzy and the peak of his writings both in poetry and prose. From my many visits to the Red Cliff where his calligraphy is carved in stones, I’d say his calligraphy shows a liberated spirit from his previous works.

- Last updated: 2024-11-09 22:00:46
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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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