An old fisherman spent the night here, under the western cliff;
He dipped up water from the pure Hsiang and made a bamboo fire;
And then, at sunrise, he went his way through the cloven mist,
With only the creak of his paddle left, in the greenness of mountain and river.
...I turn and see the waves moving as from heaven,
And clouds above the cliffs coming idly, one by one.
Original Poem:
「渔翁」
柳宗元
渔翁夜傍西岩宿， 晓汲清湘燃楚烛。
烟销日出不见人， 欸乃一声山水绿。
回看天际下中流， 岩上无心云相逐。
Interpretation:
This is a lyrical poem written in Yongzhou, like a miniature painting, taking a few shots of a fisherman’s life and expressing a yearning for leisure and fun.
It is written about the life of a fisherman, who lives on the west hill above the Xiangshui River at night, and at dawn, he draws water and makes fire to cook rice. This adds to the breadth and depth of the poem, as if the character in the poem has an ancient and lonely character. When the smoke disappears and the sun rises, the fisherman should be seen, but “I don’t see anyone”, where did he go? Suddenly, there was a sound that resounded through the green mountains and waters. This kind of “hear the sound but not see people” writing style, is really a wonderful and interesting, showing a picture of the mountains and water, deep and lonely mysterious realm. The last two lines are about the writer’s feelings. Looking back at the sky, “Hey Nai” sound is still there, but the boat has passed away on the river, only the white clouds on the rock float freely, as if chasing the boat. Here, the poem expands, free and broad.
The whole poem not only writes out the beauty of Yongzhou’s profound and ethereal landscape, but also expresses the author’s longing for such a free and leisurely life. In fact, this yearning is another form of expression of the author’s bitterness after he suffered a blow politically, that is, to write sadness with happiness.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
About the poet:
Liu Zongyuan (柳宗元), 773-819 A.D., a native of Yongji, Shanxi, was a progressive thinker, brilliant writer, and revolutionary statesman of the Tang Dynasty. Nineteen years before he was born, the An Shi Rebellion broke out, which dramatically changed the Tang Dynasty from prosperity to decline. The subsequent failure of the Yongzhen Reform was a historical tragedy that cut short Liu Zongyuan’s political future, but made him one of the leading thinkers and literary figures of the Tang Dynasty.
