Returning to the Xiang River​​ by Liu Zongyuan

O Xiang River, still you flow,​​
​​Today I come, as long ago.​​
​​But when I leave this time, who knows​​
​​How many years before repose?​

Original Poem

「再上湘江」
好在湘江水，今朝又上来。
不知从此去，更遣几年回。

柳宗元

Interpretation

Composed in 815 during Liu Zongyuan's forced migration from Yongzhou to the even remoter Liuzhou prefecture, this twenty-character quatrain encapsulates a decade of political exile in two deceptively simple couplets. Written while boating on the Xiang River—the same route he had taken ten years earlier during his initial banishment—the poem's surface tranquility belies its seismic emotional subtext: the realization that imperial recall was never true redemption, only deeper exile.

First Couplet: "好在湘江水，今朝又上来。"
Hǎozài Xiāngjiāng shuǐ, jīnzhāo yòu shàng lái.
River Xiang, you remain unchanged—
Today I climb your currents again.

The greeting "you remain unchanged" (好在) carries devastating irony: while nature persists unaltered, the poet returns diminished—a recycled exile. The verb "climb" (上来) suggests laborious against-the-current struggle, mirroring his thwarted political ascent.

Second Couplet: "不知从此去，更遣几年回。"
Bùzhī cóngcǐ qù, gèng qiǎn jǐ nián huí.
Who knows how many years must pass
Before they permit my return?

The rhetorical question ("who knows?") acknowledges bureaucratic time as an arbitrary torment. "They permit" (遣) reduces the poet to an object of court whim. Tragically prophetic, these lines anticipated Liu's fate—he would die in Liuzhou four years later, never returning to Chang'an.

Holistic Appreciation

This five-character quatrain, with its deceptively simple language, conveys profound inner emotion. Without elaborate scenery or overt expressions of sorrow, every word resonates with unspoken grief. Standing by the Xiang River, the poet’s seemingly casual remark—"still here" (好在)—belies a torrent of unvoiced sorrow. A decade ago, he was exiled from the capital; a decade later, he sails the same river, still on a road of no return. Now embarking once more, he asks: "How many years until I come back?" (更遣几年回). The poem’s restrained tone and understated anguish strike deeper than any loud lament, evoking profound empathy and melancholy.

The closing question—"How many years until I come back?"—is both plea and prophecy. Liu Zongyuan never returned to Chang’an, dying in exile in Liuzhou. This poem thus stands as a testament to his tragic political fate and bitter life journey, becoming one of Chinese literature’s most poignant historical laments.

Artistic Merits

• Minimalist Language, Maximal Emotion
  Twenty characters, unadorned yet devastatingly sincere, build emotional tension from "still here" to "do not know" and finally to the unanswered question, creating a powerful inner turmoil.
• Implied Meaning, Unspoken Grief
  Without directly describing sorrow, the poem uses place names ("Xiang River," "capital"), movement ("sailing"), and time ("ten years") to convey the weight of fate. The rhetorical question at the end epitomizes the art of subtlety—saying more by saying less.
• Condensed Imagery, Tight Structure
  Centered on the Xiang River, the poem traces a decade of political exile. The two couplets mirror each other: the first on physical journey, the second on spiritual longing. Though a quatrain, it achieves monumental depth.

Insights

This poem teaches that truly moving words need no embellishment—only genuine feeling, deep reflection, and sincere intent. Liu Zongyuan, exiled yet never forsaking his ideals, captures the plight of a loyal scholar with heartbreaking economy. His life reminds us that some journeys lead not to hope but to hardship; yet even then, one may face the road with quiet dignity, recording the heart’s truth in subdued verse. This is the poetry Liu wrote with his life—a resilience and grandeur born of sorrow.

About the Poet

Liu Zongyuan (柳宗元, 773 - 819), a native of Yuncheng in Shanxi province, was a pioneering advocate of the Classical Prose Movement during China's Tang Dynasty. Awarded the prestigious jinshi degree in 793 during the Zhenyuan era, this distinguished scholar-official revolutionized Chinese literature with his groundbreaking essays. His prose works, remarkable for their incisive vigor and crystalline purity, established the canonical model for landscape travel writing that would influence generations. As a poet, Liu mastered a distinctive style of luminous clarity and solitary grandeur, securing his place among the legendary "Eight Great Masters of Tang-Song Prose" - an honor reflecting his enduring impact on Chinese literary history.