[updated September 2022]
Newlyweds Departure
新 婚 别
兔 丝 附 蓬 麻
引 蔓 故 不 长。
嫁 女 与 征 夫
不 如 弃 路 旁。
结 发 为 妻 子
席 不 暖 君 床。
暮 婚 晨 告 别
无 乃 太 匆 忙？
君 行 虽 不 远
守 边 赴 河 阳
妾 身 未 分 明
何 以 拜 姑 嫜 ？
父 母 养 我 时
日 夜 令 我 藏。
生 奴 有 所 归
鸡 狗 亦 得 将。
君 今 往 死 地
沉 痛 迫 中 肠。
誓 欲 随 君 去
形 势 反 苍 黄。
勿 为 新 婚 念
努 力 事 戎 行
妇 人 在 军 中
兵 气 恐 不 扬。
自 嗟 贫 家 奴
久 致 罗 襦 裳。
罗 襦 不 复 施
对 君 洗 红 妆。
仰 视 百 鸟 飞
大 小 必 双 翔。
人 事 多 错 迕
与 君 永 相 望！
Xin Hun Bie
Tu si fu peng ma
Yin wan gu bu chang
Jia nu yu zheng fu
Bu ru qi u pang
Jie fa wei qi zi
Xi bu nuan jun chuang.
Mu hun chen gao bie
Wu nai tai cong mang?
Jun xing sui bu yuan
Shou bian fu he yang
Qie shen wei fen ming
He yi bai gu zhang?
Fu mu yang wo shi
Ri ye ling wo cang.
Sheng nu you suo gui
Ji gou yi dei jiang
Jun jin wang si di
Chen tong po zhong chang
Shi yu sui jun qu
Xing shi fan cang huang.
Wu wei xin hun nian
Nu li shi rong xing
Fu ren zai jun zhong
Bing qi kong bu yang.
Ai jie pin jia nu
Jiu zhi luo ru chang
Luo ru bu fu shi
Dui jun xi hong zhuang
Yang shi bai niao fei
Da xiao bi shuang xiang
Ren shi duo cuo wu
Yu jun yong xiang wang!
Newlyweds Departure
Attached to each other like the intertwined Tusi and Pengma plants
Weak, short vines because not very long alive or married.
Newly married sends off her man on a long journey
She wondered why she married this man and then so soon abandoned
along the roadside.
Her hairstyle changed from a single to that of a wife and mother
Her bed and mat not warm and conjugal.
First morning of married life had to see him off
Why did you have to leave in such haste?
Although he went to a place not so remote
Sent to guard the frontier at Heyang.
Did not even have time for the introductions to her in-laws
How can she visit and pay respects to her husband’s family?
Her parents spent a lot of time with her after she was born
Every night never went out into public.
Being born female, her parents looked forward to her marriage
Even if she had to marry a dog or chicken, this new family’s support needed.
Now she knows her man is good, yet he is off to the killing fields
Deep feelings of remorse tears her apart.
She vows and hopes to follow him wherever he goes
But the current state of affairs has been transformed into chaos and danger.
As newlyweds we think of each other, but we each have separate
roles to play
Exert yourself to achieve military success.
There are married women embedded within the army
But it would be bad for military morale.
Now I can be a poor family’s wife
Collect fancy skirts and blouses to store them away for a long time.
Gathered silk blouses also out of use
Tell you all of my red make-up washed away.
Look up at the hundreds of birds flying
Big ones and small ones certainly travel in pairs.
Many human affairs interlocked, yet erroneous
In the future, and perhaps forever, we will not be able to see each other again.
Notes:
Tusi and pengma plants: Chinese vine-growing plants
Commentary:
Part way through the poem I have switched from a third person narration to a first person account. This was intentional. Actually the poem could be written in either first or third person. And so it goes.
One of Du Fu’s many poems revealing his compassion for the common people and the human condition. He definitely understands human pathos and pains.