High in the faint moonlight, wildgeese are soaring.
Tartar chieftains are fleeing through the dark -
And we chase them, with horses lightly burdened
And a burden of snow on our bows and our swords.
Original Poem:
「塞下曲 · 其三」
卢纶
月黑雁飞高，单于夜遁逃。
欲将轻骑逐，大雪满弓刀。
Interpretation:
This is the third poem of the whole group, portraying the scene of generals rushing to the battlefield despite the hardships.
The first two lines: On a dead silent night, dark clouds cover the moon. A flock of geese rises in the sky. It turns out that the leader of the enemy army took advantage of the night to escape quietly.
The cold night of the borderland is written out. The snowy sky is covered with clouds, obscuring the moonlight, and a line of geese, not knowing what disturbed them, flew through the night sky in a hurry. Who startled the already quiet flock of geese, it turned out to be taking advantage of such a dark and silent night, the enemy fled.
The last two lines: I want to lead the light cavalry all the way to chase and kill, the snow has been sprinkled all over the generals’ bows and knives.
Write the situation of our army preparing for the pursuit, showing the generals’ majestic demeanor. A cavalry whole group want to go out, marching at night, do not recognize the people and horses, but can see the bow and knife flashing, the snow by the wind flying all over the sky, stained with weapons. This is a tense and heart-wrenching scene!
This poem writes about the heroism of defeating the enemy, but does not depict the battle positively, but only writes about the scene of hearing the alarm and preparing to attack in the snowy night.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Lu Lun (卢纶), 748 – 798 A.D., was a native of Yongji, Shanxi Province, and was one of the “Ten Scholarly Men of the Dali Dynasty”. Lu Lun was a judge of the Marshal’s Office in Hezhong, and he served as the inspector of the Ministry of Revenue. His poems were more eloquent and liberal, with many works of farewells and rewards, as well as works reflecting the life of soldiers. Five volumes of his poems are recorded in Quan Tang Shi (All Tang Poems).
