lnhammer: the Chinese character for poetry, red on white background (Default)
[personal profile] lnhammer
A moonlit scene within Chang’an:
All houses, sounding with beating clothes.
Autumn winds blow endlessly—
Always longings for Jade Gate Pass.
When will they defeat the barbarian Hu
And, husband, you finish your tour of duty?

子夜四时歌秋歌
长安一片月,
万户擣衣声;
秋风吹不尽,
总是玉关情。
何日平胡虏?
良人罢远征。

Summer clothes were washed in the first cold days of autumn before putting them away for winter—the sound of the beating is a poetic symbol of autumn. We previously met the frontier posting of Jade Gate Pass (where the Silk Road passed through the Great Wall in western Gansu) in #277. The Hu were a people northwest of the central empire, and the name was also used for any non-Han peoples to the north or west.

(Textual note: This was the only one of the four included in the original 310-poem edition of 300 Tang Poems -- the others were added later by other editors.)

---L.

Date: 19 March 2020 17:27 (UTC)
sartorias: (Default)
From: [personal profile] sartorias
It's the details with the human longing that makes it so nifty. That sound of beating clothes.

About

Warning: contents contain line-breaks.

As language practice, I like to translate poetry. My current project is Chinese, with practice focused on Tang Dynasty poetry. Previously this was classical Japanese, most recently working through the Kokinshu anthology (archived here). Suggestions, corrections, and questions always welcome.

There's also original pomes in the journal archives.

April 2025

S M T W T F S
  12345
678910 1112
13141516171819
20212223242526
27282930   

Page Summary

Style Credit

Powered by Dreamwidth Studios
Page generated Saturday, 31 January 2026 05:35

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags