The River All Red
- Poetry of Yue Fei

《满江红》

English Rendering

By the railing I stand,

Showers have stopped,

I bristle with wrath, my hair uncaging.

My eyes towards the sky,

To arms! Long I cry,

To war, for a heavenly cause! I’m raging.

My decade of deeds, as dust I deem, short of the final victory,

O’er thousands of miles, day or night, been in battle engaging.

So take it to heart, get set!

Lest, in vain, we’ll regret,

Turned grey, our youthful heads, on aging.


Held captive still, our sovereigns,

Unavenged, this burning shame;

When? Why now is the hour

To burn out our vengeful flame.

O charge, you columns of chariots!

Crash that gap at Helan-Shan! Crush it in heaven’s name!

In hunger we eat their body, in thirst, drink their blood!

We’ll so boast of our bravery, as if them tartars were game.

All over again, in rally we stand:

Our homeland of old, to recapture,

Our emperor, “All hail!” to acclaim.

The River All Red by Yue Fei
The River All Red by Yue Fei

Original Text (中文原文)

怒发冲冠,凭栏处、潇潇雨歇。

抬望眼、仰天长啸,壮怀激烈。

三十功名尘与土,八千里路云和月。

莫等闲,白了少年头,空悲切。


靖康耻,犹未雪;臣子恨,何时灭。

驾长车,踏破贺兰山缺。

壮志饥餐胡虏肉,笑谈渴饮匈奴血。

待从头、收拾旧山河,朝天阙。

Analysis & Context

Yue Fei (1103-1141)was a famous patriotic general who repelled the Jurchen invasion in order to recapture the lost thousand-mile land.

This well-known lyric has an inspiriting and invigorating influence on the Chinese people.

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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