For miles and miles I sail and float;
High famed mountains are hard to seek.
By riverside I moor my boat,
Then I perceive the Censer Peak.
Knowing the hermit's life and way,
I love his solitary dell.
His hermitage not far away,
I hear at sunset but the bell.
Original Poem
「晚泊浔阳望庐山」
孟浩然
挂席几千里，名山都未逢。
泊舟浔阳郭，始见香炉峰。
尝读远公传，永怀尘外踪。
东林精舍近，日暮空闻钟。
Interpretation
Composed in 733 CE during Meng Haoran's return journey through Wu-Yue, this poem reflects the forty-year-old poet's gradual detachment from political aspirations and deepening immersion in natural landscapes. Mooring at Xunyang (modern Jiujiang), he gazes at Mount Lu's Incense Burner Peak, recalling the renowned monk Huiyuan's reclusive practices, thereby expressing his own yearning for spiritual retreat and reverence for mountainous sanctity.
First Couplet: "挂席几千里，名山都未逢。"
Guà xí jǐ qiān lǐ, míng shān dōu wèi féng.
Thousands of miles sailed under my mat-roof, Yet no famous mountain truly encountered.
The opening conveys vast riverine travel through minimalist imagery, with "mat-roof" suggesting humble journeying. The negation ("no famous mountain") builds anticipation for spiritual revelation.
Second Couplet: "泊舟浔阳郭，始见香炉峰。"
Bó zhōu Xúnyáng guō, shǐ jiàn Xiānglú fēng.
Mooring by Xunyang's walls, At last I see the Incense Burner Peak.
The sudden appearance of the sacred peak (香炉峰) after long seeking delivers visual and spiritual epiphany, with "at last" (始) resonating with religious awakening.
Third Couplet: "尝读远公传，永怀尘外踪。"
Cháng dú Yuǎn gōng zhuàn, yǒng huái chén wài zōng.
Having read Master Huiyuan's chronicles, I eternally cherish his world-transcending traces.
The physical peak triggers remembrance of the fourth-century monk Huiyuan, bridging geographical sight and spiritual insight through literary memory.
Fourth Couplet: "东林精舍近，日暮空闻钟。"
Dōnglín jīngshè jìn, rì mù kōng wén zhōng.
The Eastern Forest Temple stands near - At dusk I hear its void-permeating bell.
The conclusion's auditory image transforms the temple bell into a metaphysical presence, where "void" (空) operates on multiple levels - physical absence, Buddhist emptiness, and emotional resonance.
Holistic Appreciation
The poem progresses through four perceptual stages: exhaustive travel (couplet 1), visual revelation (2), intellectual recollection (3), and spiritual audition (4). This structure mirrors Buddhist practice - from worldly journeying through sudden enlightenment to sacred remembrance and final meditative absorption. The "void-permeating bell" becomes both physical sound and symbol of transcendent wisdom echoing across centuries.
Artistic Merits
- Pilgrimage structure: Embodies spiritual quest in geographical terms
- Intertextual depth: Invokes Huiyuan's legacy without explicit didacticism
- Sensory alchemy: Transforms visual experience into auditory transcendence
- Philosophical resonance: "Void" (空) encapsulates Buddhist ontology and poetic melancholy
Insights
This riverside epiphany demonstrates how sacred geography can collapse historical time - the poet simultaneously sees a mountain, remembers a monk, and hears ancient wisdom. Meng teaches that profound destinations often appear when we cease frantic searching, and that true understanding emerges through layered perception (seeing, reading, hearing). The bell's enduring sound suggests spiritual truths persist beyond individual lives, offering consolation to all who feel belated in their seeking.
Poem translator
Xu Yuanchong (许渊冲)
About the poet
Meng Haoran (孟浩然), 689 - 740 AD, a native of Xiangyang, Hubei, was a famous poet of the Sheng Tang Dynasty. With the exception of one trip to the north when he was in his forties, when he was seeking fame in Chang'an and Luoyang, he spent most of his life in seclusion in his hometown of Lumenshan or roaming around.
