The monk from Shu with his green silk lute-case,
Wal king west down O-mei Mountain,
Has brought me by one touch of the strings
The breath of pines in a thousand valleys.
I hear him in the cleansing brook,
I hear him in the icy bells;
And I feel no change though the mountain darkens
And cloudy autumn heaps the sky.
Original Poem:
「听蜀僧浚弹琴」
李白
蜀僧抱绿绮，西下峨眉峰。
为我一挥手，如听万壑松。
客心洗流水，馀响入霜钟。
不觉碧山暮，秋云暗几重。
Interpretation:
This poem was written in a place far away from Sichuan, the poet wrote to listen to a monk playing the qin in Sichuan, highly praised the sound of the qin is beautiful and moving, but also has a life is rare a soulmate of the sentiment and the hometown of attachment.
The first two lines of a monk in Sichuan hold playing the famous green qin, he came from his hometown of Emei Peak in Sichuan.
The third and fourth lines describe the playing of the qin: he waved his hand and played the famous song for me, and I seemed to hear the majestic wind of the ten thousand ravines and pines. Poet with the wind as the sky surging, ten thousand horses and thousands of troops, enough to move the heart of the magnificent sound of ten thousand ravines and pines is a metaphor for the sound of the qin, will be played by the superb skills and outstanding musical talent are vividly demonstrated, and give the reader a rich gallop imagination space, the flavor of a long time.
The fifth and sixth lines write that the sound of the piano cleanses the mind and makes one’s heart relaxed and happy, with a long aftertaste. Alpine water tone washed away the poet’s feelings in the guest, curling sound into the fall frost bell. The poet has written about the touching musical power of the Shu monk, but also used to express the good feelings of each other as confidants.
The last two lines are written to concentrate on listening to the piano, without realizing that the green hills have been draped in twilight, and the autumn clouds also seem to be darkened a few times! The last two lines are about listening to the zither without realizing that the green hills are already covered with twilight, and the autumn clouds seem to have dimmed several times!
Poet to the nature of the sound of thousands of ravines and pines as a comparison, the abstract sound of the piano depicted extremely graphic, and then through their own feelings, write it is this kind of strong surging sound, washed away the sadness of the countryside, thus further rendering the sound of the piano of the extraordinary sound. The whole poem is in a single breath, clear and unimpeded.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Li Bai (李白), 701 ~ 762 A.D., whose ancestral home was in Gansu, was preceded by Li Guang, a general of the Han Dynasty. Tang poetry is one of the brightest constellations in the history of Chinese literature, and one of the brightest stars is Li Bai.
