There lived years ago the beautiful Gongsun,
Who, dancing with her dagger, drew from all four quarters
An audience like mountains lost among themselves.
Heaven and earth moved back and forth, following her motions,
Which were bright as when the Archer shot the nine suns down the sky
And rapid as angels before the wings of dragons.
She began like a thunderbolt, venting its anger,
And ended like the shining calm of rivers and the sea...
But vanished are those red lips and those pearly sleeves;
And none but this one pupil bears the perfume of her fame,
This beauty from Lingying, at the Town of the White God,
Dancing still and singing in the old blithe way.
And while we reply to each other's questions,
We sigh together, saddened by changes that have come.
There were eight thousand ladies in the late Emperor's court,
But none could dance the dagger-dance like Lady Gongsun.
...Fifty years have passed, like the turning of a palm;
Wind and dust, filling the world, obscure the Imperial House.
Instead of the Pear-Garden Players, who have blown by like a mist,
There are one or two girl-musicians now-trying to charm the cold Sun.
There are man-size trees by the Emperor's Golden Tomb
I seem to hear dead grasses rattling on the cliffs of Qutang.
...The song is done, the slow string and quick pipe have ceased.
At the height of joy, sorrow comes with the eastern moon rising.
And I, a poor old man, not knowing where to go,
Must harden my feet on the lone hills, toward sickness and despair.
Original Poem:
「观公孙大娘弟子舞剑器行」
杜甫
昔有佳人公孙氏， 一舞剑器动四方。
观者如山色沮丧， 天地为之久低昂。
霍如羿射九日落， 矫如群帝骖龙翔，
来如雷霆收震怒， 罢如江海凝清光。
绛唇珠袖两寂寞， 晚有弟子传芬芳。
临颍美人在白帝， 妙舞此曲神扬扬。
与余问答既有以， 感时抚事增惋伤。
先帝侍女八千人， 公孙剑器初第一。
五十年间似反掌， 风尘澒洞昏王室。
梨园子弟散如烟， 女乐余姿映寒日。
金粟堆前木已拱， 瞿塘石城草萧瑟。
玳筵急管曲复终， 乐极哀来月东出。
老夫不知其所往？ 足茧荒山转愁疾。
Interpretation:
The poet watched the sword dance performed by Gongsun Daniang’s disciple, Li Duiniang, in the residence of Yuan Zhi, the governor of Kui Zhou, and then thought of his childhood when he witnessed Gongsun Daniang’s dance of “Sword Vessel” in the placebo, as well as the grand scenes of the flourishing days of the Kaiyuan era, which indicated that Gongsun Daniang’s dance was already famous at that time. Now that the war has not yet subsided, Li XII Niang is stranded in the deserted mountains, recalling the past and feeling a lot of emotions, so she wrote “Sword Instrument Line”. This “preface” explains the poet’s purpose of writing, reflecting the inner vicissitudes of feeling.
The poem is divided into four sections.
In the first paragraph, Gongsun Daniang’s beautiful dance is recounted. Her dance of “Sword Instrument” not only shocked people and stirred up the four directions, but also made heaven and earth undulate and move heaven and earth. Her dance flashes like Houyi shooting the sun, full of light; leaping like a group of immortals flying on the dragon, fluttering and light; dancing like thunder to collect the anger, still leaving the sound; dance stops like the river and the sea condensation wave, the water light is quiet. Its dance is really drenching and sound, and the trend of the moment.
In the second paragraph, it is written that after the death of Gongsun Daniang, the dance of “Sword Instrument” was silent, and her disciple, Li Duiniang, was in exile in Baidi, the sadness of the wonderful dance.
In the third paragraph, it is written about the personnel changes in the past fifty years and the sadness of the past. I remember that in the early years of the new century, the country was strong, and among the 8,000 female musicians in the court, Gongsun Daniang’s “Sword Instrument” dance was the first one. But fifty years of rapid change, the Anshi Rebellion in the Tang Empire into the wind and smoke, the sky and the earth. That thousands of excellent pear orchard disciples, singing and dancing talents are in this catastrophe “scattered as smoke”, and now only the survivor of the female music Li twelve mother’s dance reflected in this mountainous area in the afterglow of the cold sun.
In the fourth paragraph, I sigh at the desolation of the world and hurt myself for having no way out. You see, Emperor Xuanzong has been dead for six years, and on the tomb of Jinsu Mountain, the trees have grown up and closed in, but he himself has been stranded in this Qutang stone city where the grass and trees are desolate. After the feast and song and dance, the moon came out of the east mountain, and I was so happy and sad that I didn’t know where I was going. The poet dragged a long time sick body foot cocoon deserted mountains, walking alone. The sadness of the world, can be seen without words.
The whole poem thought ups and downs, wide open and closed, depressed and sad, touching and deep.
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.
