I still remember in my prime
I could be happy in sad time.
Over the four seas I aimed high;
Spreading my wing I dreamed to fly.
But youthful days passed and grew old,
My zeal for life as soon turned cold.
Delightful things were not enjoyed;
Worries and cares often annoyed.
I feel my youthful strength no more,
Each day not as the day before.
Time like a stream will pass away;
And leads me on without delay.
How far ahead should I still float?
I know not where to moor my boat.
The ancients had no time to waste.
How can late-comers make no haste?
Original Poem
「杂诗 · 其五」
陶渊明
忆我少壮时，无乐自欣豫。
猛志逸四海，骞翮思远翥。
荏苒岁月颓，此心稍已去。
值欢无复娱，每每多忧虑。
气力渐衰损，转觉日不如。
壑舟无须臾，引我不得住。
前涂当几许，未知止泊处。
古人惜寸阴，念此使人惧。
Interpretation
Miscellaneous Poems V was composed around 414 AD as Tao Yuanming's introspective reflection on his life's aspirations and evolving mindset in later years. Though having retreated from worldly turmoil to rural seclusion, the poet frequently contemplated his unfulfilled ambitions and life's fleeting years. Through contrasting youthful vigor with aged circumstances, the poem reveals profound insights into time's passage and life's impermanence, reflecting intermittent anxieties and striving spirit within his generally naturalistic philosophy.
First Stanza: "忆我少壮时，无乐自欣豫。"
Yì wǒ shào zhuàng shí, wú lè zì xīn yù.
Recalling my youthful days,
Joy arose without cause or praise.
Depicts youthful vitality when the heart brimmed with spontaneous delight and hope.
Second Stanza: "猛志逸四海，骞翮思远翥。"
Měng zhì yì sì hǎi, qiān hé sī yuǎn zhù.
Fierce will spanned four seas,
Like wings yearning to ride the breeze.
Expresses youthful ambition to achieve greatness and soar beyond limitations.
Third Stanza: "荏苒岁月颓，此心稍已去。"
Rěn rǎn suì yuè tuí, cǐ xīn shāo yǐ qù.
Years slipped by unnoticed,
This fervor gradually depleted.
Laments how time eroded his once indomitable spirit.
Fourth Stanza: "值欢无复娱，每每多忧虑。"
Zhí huān wú fù yú, měi měi duō yōu lǜ.
Even joys bring no delight,
Often clouded by worry's blight.
Shows transformed mentality where lightness gives way to constant unease.
Fifth Stanza: "气力渐衰损，转觉日不如。"
Qì lì jiàn shuāi sǔn, zhuǎn jué rì bù rú.
Vitality fades away,
Each day weaker than yesterday.
Directly addresses physical decline's relentless progression.
Sixth Stanza: "壑舟无须臾，引我不得住。"
Hè zhōu wú xū yú, yǐn wǒ bù dé zhù.
Like canyon boats never pausing,
Dragging me without halting.
Vivid metaphor for life's uncontrollable drift toward its end.
Seventh Stanza: "前途当几许？未知止泊处。"
Qián tú dāng jǐ xǔ? Wèi zhī zhǐ bó chù.
How far must this course run?
Where it ends remains unknown.
Ponders life's uncertain destination with quiet apprehension.
Eighth Stanza: "古人惜寸阴，念此使人惧。"
Gǔ rén xī cùn yīn, niàn cǐ shǐ rén jù.
Ancients treasured each hour,
This thought awakens fearful power.
Concludes with urgent awareness of time's value, revealing undiminished resolve.
Holistic Appreciation
"Miscellaneous Poems V" contrasts youthful ambition with aged reality, presenting profound understanding of life's transitions. The first half radiates natural youthful vitality and determination, while the latter mourns time's erosion of aspirations and life's uncontrollable flow. Tao Yuanming interweaves nature's patterns with human impermanence, blending melancholy over unfulfilled potential into deceptively simple verses. Despite the elegiac tone, the concluding reference to ancient time-consciousness reveals resilient self-discipline amidst decline, creating complex emotional depth.
Artistic Merits
The poem's apparent simplicity belies profound meaning, progressing through natural narrative structure from joy and ambition to loss and anxiety with compelling emotional cadence. Masterful metaphors like "canyon boats" for life's passage demonstrate vivid imagery with philosophical depth. Characteristically Tao Yuanming, the style blends melancholy with awakening, worry with resolve, perfectly integrating life philosophy with natural observation, embodying his continuous self-reflection during reclusion.
Insights
This poem enlightens us that while youth may brim with passion, time's irreversible flow inevitably brings decline. Life's brevity demands cherishing each moment without squandering potential. As Tao Yuanming shows, human existence resembles ceaselessly drifting boats - though we cannot stop its course, maintaining vigilant self-discipline allows finding meaning within impermanence. It teaches us to face time's passage with clear-eyed awareness, valuing the present while seizing every opportunity for self-realization.
Poem translator
Xu Yuanchong (许渊冲)
About the poet
Tao Yuanming(陶渊明), 365 – 427 CE, was a poet, literary figure, fu writer, and essayist active during the late Eastern Jin and early Liu Song dynasties. Born in Chaisang (near present-day Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province), he pioneered a new genre of pastoral-themed literature, expressing profound philosophical insights through simple language. His poetic style became an enduring aesthetic standard in classical Chinese poetry.
