Though a country be sundered, hills and rivers endure;
And spring comes green again to trees and grasses
Where petals have been shed like tears
And lonely birds have sung their grief.
...After the war-fires of three months,
One message from home is worth a ton of gold.
...I stroke my white hair. It has grown too thin
To hold the hairpins any more.
Original Poem:
「春望」
杜甫
国破山河在，城春草木深。
感时花溅泪，恨别鸟惊心。
烽火连三月，家书抵万金。
白头搔更短，浑欲不胜簪。
Interpretation:
In July, 756 AD, Du Fu settled his family in Qiang village in Shanshan Prefecture and went to join Su Zong, on his way he was captured by rebels and brought back to Chang’an. Because of his humble official position, he was not imprisoned. In March of the following year, he was trapped in Chang’an, and seeing his country broken and his family separated, he felt the time and wept, and thus came up with this poem.
The first and second stanzas are about what he saw in the spring: the capital of the country had fallen and the city was in ruins; although the mountains and rivers were still the same and the city was full of colors in spring, the grass and trees were deep and no one had repaired them, which made the city a scene of desolation.
The third and fourth lines are about the feeling of separation. Spring flowers, birds are entertaining things, but the thought of the country is broken, the sadness of the family, flowers are also for the tears, birds are also for the heart, their own more sadness and tears! This is touching the scene, moved to the flowers and birds, the scene blends the realm of grief.
The fifth and sixth sentences then write about wanting to see his family, he has been away from home for more than half a year, the letters are slim, no news at all. Therefore, he lamented that in this period of war, a letter from home is really better than “ten thousand gold” ah!
The last two sentences write the tragic situation. Seeing the beacon all over the world, the letter can not be, worried about the country, thinking of home, heavy sadness attacked the heart, sadness gray hair.
The whole poem is nostalgic for the family, sad about the country, earnest, sincere and touching. Emotions are born from the scene, and the scene is blended with strong but not shallow feelings, and the vein of meaning is through but not straight.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Du Fu (杜甫), 712 – 770 AD, was a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, known as the “Sage of Poetry”. Born into a declining bureaucratic family, Du Fu had a rough life, and his turbulent and dislocated life made him keenly aware of the plight of the masses. Therefore, his poems were always closely related to the current affairs, reflecting the social life of that era in a more comprehensive way, with profound thoughts and a broad realm. In his poetic art, he was able to combine many styles, forming a unique style of “profound and thick”, and becoming a great realist poet in the history of China.
