Cicadas complain of thin mulberry-trees
In the Eighth-month chill at the frontier pass.
Through the gate and back again, all along the road,
There is nothing anywhere but yellow reeds and grasses
And the bones of soldiers from You and from Bing
Who have buried their lives in the dusty sand.
...Let never a cavalier stir you to envy
With boasts of his horse and his horsemanship
蝉鸣空桑林，八月萧关道。
出塞入塞寒，处处黄芦草。
从来幽并客，皆共尘沙老。
莫学游侠儿，矜夸紫骝好。
Folk-song-styled-verse
This is a five-character ancient poem composed by Wang Changling, a poet of the Tang Dynasty. Adopting a restrained yet impassioned poetic tone, the work depicts the bitter cold of autumn in the borderlands, the hardships endured by the isolated garrison troops fighting successive campaigns, and the unjust phenomenon where soldiers who have rendered outstanding meritorious service are instead wrongfully accused and punished. It embodies the poet’s profound sympathy for the patriotic soldiers stationed on the frontier and his intense resentment toward the imperial court that confounds right and wrong.
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.
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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