In Imitation of Old Poems
拟古九首
The orchids blossom lush beneath the windows;
Before my parlor grow so dense the willows.
When you departed from me, my dear friend,
1 did not know how many years you’d spend.
Travelling far and wide from day to day,
You must have met companions on the way.
You were at once attracted to each other
Before you started toasts like brother to brother.
When willows wane and orchids wither as days flow.
You break your word you made not long ago.
I’d like to warn the people in their youth
That “time proves friendship” is a simple truth.
When youthful people utter vowing words,
They may forget their promise afterwards.
其一
荣荣窗下兰，密密堂前柳。
初与君别时，不谓行当久。
出门万里客，中道逢嘉友。
未言心未醉，不在接杯酒。
兰枯柳亦衰，遂令此言负。
多谢诸少年，相知不忠厚。
意气倾人命，离隔复何有？
II
At dawn I mount my horse and go headlong
Toward the distant county of Wuzhong.
When people ask me what I am to do，
I say I have no wealth or arms in view.
In Wuzhong lived a man named Tian Zitai,
Whose noble name is ringing far and nigh.
Although this upright man has long been dead,
Men carry on the way of life he led.
He cherished high fame when he was alive;
For years and years this fame will e’er survive.
I’ll never in my life seek fame and gain;
When I am dead, neither will remain.
其二
辞家夙严驾，当往至无终。
问君今何行？非商复非戎。
闻有田子泰，节义为士雄。
斯人久已死，乡里习其风。
生有高世名，既没传无穷。
不学狂驰子，直在百年中。
In mid-spring, season’s rain begins to pour
While in the east, first peals of thunder roar.
When worms awaken from their winter sleep,
The plants begin to grow and vines to creep.
The swallows, back again with buoyant airs,
Fly into my humble hut in pairs.
As their former nest stays on the dome,
Together they return to their old home.
Since the swallows left my house last year,
My yard has daily been much wilder here.
My heart is not a stone that rolls around,
But may I ask if you maintain your ground?
其三
仲春遘时雨，始雷发东隅。
众蛰各潜骇，草木纵横舒。
翩翩新来燕，双双入我庐。
先巢故尚在，相将还旧居。
自从分别来，门庭日荒芜；
我心固匪石，君情定何如？
IV
The building rises high up like a spear,
Commanding views of wild fields far and near.
At dusk the clouds encircle it abreast;
At dawn the birds have found it as a nest.
At a glance the hills and rills are seen
While stretching plains provide a splendid scene.
The fortune-seekers in the ancient days
Here battle after battle fought their ways.
As soon as dead and gone were those renowned,
One by one was piled the tomb and mound.
Felled are the graveyard pine and cypress trees,
With rolling bare mounds lying in the breeze.
Now that the tombs are left without repair,
Where are the roaming ghosts? Where? Where?
Although they cherished from worldly strife,
A pitiable scene they’ve left in afterlife!
其四
迢迢百尺楼，分明望四荒，
暮作归云宅，朝为飞鸟堂。
山河满目中，平原独茫茫。
古时功名士，慷慨争此场。
一旦百岁後，相与还北邙。
松柏为人伐，高坟互低昂。
颓基无遗主，游魂在何方！
荣华诚足贵，亦复可怜伤。
V
There lives a wretched hermit in the east,
Whose ragged coats are often torn and pieced.
In thirty days he eats nine meals on mat;
In ten long years he wears the same old hat.
He takes the greatest pains in human race,
And yet he always keeps a cheerful face.
As 1 would like to see this saint forlorn,
I went o’er hills and rivers in the mom.
Along the road were lined pines with lush leaves,
And white clouds coiled upon his cottage eaves.
To be aware of what I’d like to see,
He fetched his lute and played a tune for me.
He first played woeful tunes of Parting Cranes，
Then Lonely Phoenix in exalted strains.
I long to stay and dwell with you together,
To stand the test of freezing weather.
其五
东方有一士，被服常不完；
三旬九遇食，十年著一冠。
辛勤无此比，常有好容颜。
我欲观其人，晨去越河关。
青松夹路生，白云宿簷端。
知我故来意，取琴为我弹。
上弦惊别鹤，下弦操孤鸾。
愿留就君住，从令至岁寒。
VI
Lush and verdant stand the valley trees，
Having witnessed frost and snow each year,
They know full well the changing seasons here.
As I am tired of worldly telltale trends,
I’ll go to Linzi, there to find new friends.
The sophists gather at Linzi’s city gate，
And so I hope they’ll justify my fate.
I've got things ready for the trip some day，
And said good-bye before I go away.
About to leave, I start to hesitate,
Then come back to my seat and meditate.
Not that I fear the hardship I foresee,
But that I fear they might bewilder me.
In case I disagree with their ideas,
I might confront the worldly jeers and sneers.
It’s hard to bare my thoughts of every kind.
This poem is just to show a piece of mind.
其六
苍苍谷中树，冬夏常如兹；
年年见霜雪，谁谓不知时。
厌闻世上语，结友到临淄。
稷下多谈士，指彼决吾疑。
装束既有日，已与家人辞。
行行停出门，还坐更自思。
不怨道里长，但畏人我欺。
万一不合意，永为世笑嗤。
伊怀难具道，为君作此诗。
VII
Not a cloud floats in the evening skies;
Gently blows the spring breeze from sunrise.
Throughout the night so silent and forlorn,
A lovely maiden drinks and sings till dawn.
Meanwhile, she sighs and sighs when her song ends,
At the thought of pretty night she spends.
Through the flimsy clouds the moon shines bright;
Amid the leaves the blooms provide a sight.
Although each of them may have their time，
What will happen once they lose their prime?
Both in winter winds and summer breeze.
其七
日暮天无云，春风扇微和。
佳人美清夜，达曙酣且歌。
歌竟长太息，持此感人多。
皎皎云间月，灼灼月中华。
岂无一时好，不久当如何。
In my youth, I was strong and full of vigour;
I held my sword and roamed, a lonely figure.
I wandered on and on, by night, by day,
From Zhangye to Youzhou—a long, long way!
On Mount Shou-yang, I eat the herbs that grow;
By Yishui Stream，I drink the waters that flow.
With no one I could chatter heart to heart,
I saw just tombs of heroes long apart.
Gone is Bo-ya，who played the zither for his friend;
Gone is Zhuangzi, who talked truth with his friend.
Since there's no man with such a noble mind,
Where should I roam and what am i to find!
其八
少时壮且厉，抚剑独行游。
谁言行游近？张掖至幽州。
饥食首阳薇，渴饮易水流。
不见相知人，惟见古时丘。
路边两高坟，伯牙与庄周。
此士难再得，吾行欲何求！
IX
Mulberry trees by the Yangtze River grow,
Which people planted for silkworms three years ago
At the time when twigs and boughs would sprout,
It happened that a serious flood broke out.
The twigs and leaves were torn from the tree
While roots and trunks were floating on the sea.
If silkworms were not fed in the spring day，
Where’s your dress when winter holds its sway?
It’s on the highland that mulberries grow;
What’s the use of your regret and woe?
其九
种桑长江边，三年望当采。
枝条始欲茂，忽值山河改。
柯叶自摧折，根株浮沧海。
春蚕既无食，寒衣欲谁待！
本不植高原，今日复何悔。