The Mother of Heaven, in her window b y the Jade Pool,
Hears The Yellow Bamboo Song shaking the whole earth
Where is Emperor Mu, with his eight horses running
Ten thousand miles a day ? Why has he never come back?
Original Poem:
「瑶池」
李商隐
瑶池阿母绮窗开，黄竹歌声动地哀。
八骏日行三万里，穆王何事不重来？
Interpretation:
This is a poem written in the context of a mythological story. King Mu of Zhou had a three-year appointment with Queen Mother of the West. Three years have passed, but King Mu of Zhou has not come, and Queen Mother of the West guesses why King Mu of Zhou has not come.
In the first line, she writes that the Queen Mother of the West has opened the gorgeous doors and windows of the beautiful Yaochi Fairyland, waiting for the arrival of King Mu of Zhou. The myths and legends are visualised and concretised, and the characters are vividly portrayed in just seven words. Although only “open” “window”, but it seems to see the people standing in the window, the gods also like mortals look forward to the same, eagerly looking forward to. But did not see the figure of King Mu of Zhou, only heard on earth “yellow bamboo” mournful song shaking the sky and earth. Today, the song is still echoing sadly, but the person who made the song is nowhere to be found.
The Queen Mother of the West is still waiting by the Yaochi Pond. The third and fourth lines are about the psychological activities of the Queen Mother of the West: his eight steeds can run 30,000 miles a day, so it shouldn’t be a problem of traffic, so what is the reason why King Mu didn’t come back again? There are all sorts of speculations in the mind of the person who waits about the reason why the person who breaks the appointment does not fulfil it. When they parted, the Queen Mother of the West said to King Mu of Zhou, “I hope that you won’t die, and that you can come back again.” Zhou Mu Wang also promised to come back after three years. If she didn’t come today, Xi Wangmu must have been anxious in her heart, and Xi Wangmu’s conjecture shows her worry about Zhou Mu Wang.
The poem ends with a question, and the thoughts drift away, leaving the reader with a lot of space for imagination.
It is widely believed that the poem is a satire on the delusion of seeking immortality in the late Tang Dynasty, when it was common for rulers to ask for immortality. Some people also think that this is a love poem, expressing the sadness that the two places are separated from each other as if they were on earth and in heaven, and that it is difficult to meet again even though there are eight steeds.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Li Shangyin (李商隐), 813-858 AD, was a great poet of the late Tang Dynasty. His poems were on a par with those of Du Mu, and he was known as “Little Li Du”. Li Shangyin was a native of Qinyang, Jiaozuo City, Henan Province. When he was a teenager, he lost his father at the age of nine, and was called “Zheshui East and West, half a century of wandering”.
