[updated September 2022]
Lower Gan River Rapids
下 赣 石
赣 石 三 百 里
沿 洄 千 嶂 间。
沸 声 常 浩 浩
溅 势 亦 潺 潺。
跳 沫 鱼 龙 沸
垂 藤 猿 貁 攀。
榜 人 苦 奔 峭
而 我 忘 险 艰。
放 溜 情 深 惬
登 舻 目 自 闲。
瞑 帆 何 处 宿？
遥 指 落 星 湾。
Xia Gan Shi
Gan shi san bai li
Yan hui qian zhang jian.
Fei sheng chang hao hao
Jian shi yi chan chan.
Tiao mo yu long fei
Chui teng yuan you pan.
Bang ren ku ben qiao
Er wo wang xian jian.
Fang liu qing shen qie
Deng lu mu zi xian.
Ming fan he chu su?
Yao zhi luo xing wan.
Lower Gan River Rapids
Within the Gan River there is a three hundred mile stretch of boulders
Among a thousand mountain peaks, water flows rapidly into swirling
eddies and whirlpools.
Bubble sounds often extensive and vast
Continuous sound of powerful and fast flowing water.
Fish chase leaping foam like dragons their pearls
Monkeys cling to drooping vines.
Boatmen fearfully move quickly from massive rock falls
Yet when I travel here, the danger, and their difficulties are forgotten.
A place of deep gratification, these feelings also slip away
I ride at boat’s bow, watching all of this at leisure.
Where are we going to spend the night?
In the distance he points to the river bend at Luoxing Temple.
Notes:
The Gan River: Located in Jiangxi Province, it is famous in Han Dynasty history books for having twenty-four sets of rapids along a three hundred mile stretch. In June the river can rise twenty to thirty feet, obscuring the rocks.
Dragons and their pearls: The pearl which accompanies the dragon in art and stories from ancient times, is common to the spiritual traditions of the East. From the Daoist perspective, this motif stands for truth and the immortal life of sages. It is also a symbol of universal qi energy, the flow of yang, as it moves to it’s complement, yin. The pearl, as a miniature full moon has power over all of the waters. Celestial dragons, as an expressions of clouds, play the game of hide and seek, delusion and enlightenment, a motif common to Buddhist lore.
Monkeys cling to drooping vines: When monkeys are mentioned in Meng Haoren’s poems, this is alluding to the remoteness and isolation of a particular place
Luoxing: Literally means the place of fallen stars. The wet river rocks look like fallen stars when reflecting the sunlight or moonlight.