Ten years honing this fine blade,
And it has not drawn blood.
Now, you'll see of what we're made:
Who, wronged, is owed in blood?
The Original: 劍客: 十年磨一劍, 霜刃未曾試. 今日把示君, 誰有不平事.
“Swordsman” by Jia Dao [w/ Audio]
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Tag Archives: Chinese Poetry
“Slender” [Poetry Style #3] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
Picking, picking where water flows
From a distant fountainhead.
Moving up the narrow valley,
One may see a stunning beaut.
Peachtrees laden with ripe fruit
As breezes blow by the water
And willows wind along the stream,
While warblers consult with branch-mates.
The more one walks, the more Truth joins,
And more Truth may reveal the Way.
If this world is without end,
The old must be made new again.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the third of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 纤秾. Giles translated the title as “Slim — Stout” and it’s also been translated as “Delicate – Rich.”
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BOOK: “Twenty-Nine Goodbyes” by Timothy Billings
Twenty-Nine Goodbyes: An Introduction to Chinese Poetry by Timothy BillingsMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher website
The premise of this book is simple, Billings presents twenty-nine different translations of a famous farewell poem by the Tang Dynasty poetic genius, Li Bai, and compares, contrasts, and critiques them in detail. The included translations weren’t all crafted in the English language, but English translations (of the translations) are presented as needed. There are translations from French, Spanish, Japanese, and even modern Mandarin Chinese — among others.
Despite how that may sound, it is a tremendously readable book. Billings writes with engaging prose, employs humor (especially when critiquing his own contribution in the final chapter,) and uses complicated jargon only when necessary and with comprehensible explanations.
Still, it does take a certain level of passion to read because one is repeatedly examining the same poem, and one has to have an interest in the minutiae of said poem and – more importantly — an interest in the broader lessons conveyed about translation. If whether a color is translated as green or blue (or what symbolic object tumbles on the ground, or what sound a horse makes) doesn’t seem change the emotional experience of the poem for you, then you’ll probably have a hard time getting into this book. That said, the ability to take a longitudinal view –seeing same points in a given poem through the lens of different poets and translators cross time and cultures, does offer insight that one would be unlikely to get from reading any of the twenty-nine translations in isolation as part of a single translator’s collection of translations.
The most useful thing the book did for me was to increase my understanding of the nature of translation and its tradeoffs, as well as to elucidate how easy it is to miss the mark when one is translating from a perspective so different in time and worldview.
I’d highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Tang Dynasty poetry, translation, and the interface of culture and language.
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“Absolute” [Poetry Style #1] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
With wear you will decay outside,
But inside resides the vital force.
Approach the Absolute through the Void:
One's strength will grow, and vim will course.
You can know the world and its Way,
Across space and time -- to the Source.
To desolation range hang dark clouds,
Air still as latitudes of the horse,
Move beyond all one knows by sight,
And gain the Center -- but not by force --
Hold onto this strength by hook or crook,
And flow the Endless by watercourse.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the first of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 雄浑, and its translated titles include: “Energy – Absolute” [Giles] and “Vigorous.”
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“Picking Mulberries” by Ouyang Xiu [w/ Audio]
Adrift on West Lake in a wine-laden, colorful skiff:
As flutes play fast and lutes, deftly
And a jade cup circuits swiftly,
The boat's calm rocking lulls the drunk into sleep.
Thin clouds seem to float right under the rudderless boat.
The water's blue matches the sky's,
As lake to sky and back move eyes,
"Do the clouds above match those that in the water float?"
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“Fluid” [Poetry Style #24] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
Like water spilling over rocks?
Like a bead's roll across the floor?
Cliches, they fail to tell the story,
As no doll shows life's splendor.
But the Earth' unsupported spin through space,
As the heaven's pivot and sprawl for more...
If you could find how it all began,
You'd see it'll be as it was before.
The high and bright realm of the gods
Returns to nothing and nevermore.
And if you lived ten-thousand years,
You might find yourself in days of yore.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a translation of the twenty-fourth of the twenty-four poems. This poem has been alternately titled “The Flowing Style,” “Fluid,” “Motion,” etc. by varied translators from its Chinese title of 流动.
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“Goose Chant” by Luo Binwang [w/ Audio]
Goose, Goose, Goose,
Look skyward and let your song loose.
White feathers float on the green lake
As red feet paddle through clear waves.
NOTE: This poem’s title is often translated as “An Ode to the Goose” but the Chinese title 咏鹅 (Yǒng é) is “Chant[ing] Goose.”
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“Feeling for the Farmers” by Li Shen [w/ Audio]
Hoeing farmer, as heat haze roils,
His flowing sweat waters the soil.
All those who know food on a plate
Should feel each grain comes of that toil.
NOTE: The title of this poem (悯农, or Mǐn Nóng) is often translated as “Toiling Farmers,” though “Compassion for Farmers” or “Pity Farmers” would be closer to the literal translation.
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“Abstract” [Poetry Style #22] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
Lonely and longing to travel;
All alone and lacking a tribe.
Like the crane up on the mountain,
Or the cloud that enshrouds its peak.
Like the portraits painted by past
Masters, of souls you couldn't have known.
Like a leaf drifting on swift winds,
Bounding through the boundless spaces.
You'll never be able to hold it,
But can hear the song it dances to,
Those who accept this can tune in,
And the signal will only get stronger.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a translation of the twenty-second of the twenty-four poems. This poem has been alternately titled “Abstraction,” “Elegance,” and “Drifting Aloof” by varied translators, but its original title is 飘逸.
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“Ascending Happiness Plateau” by Li Shangyin [w/ Audio]
At day's end, feeling ill-at-ease,
Riding a cart to the plateau.
The setting sun fires glorious skies,
But a yellow dusk is coming.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 