[updated September 2022]
From the Capital Go to Fengxian, Express Sentiments In a Five Hundred Word Poetic Form: (Part 3)
Part 3:
北 辕 就 泾 渭
官 渡 又 改 辙。
群 冰 从 西 下
极 目 高 崒 兀。
疑 是 崆 峒 来
恐 触 天 柱 折。
河 梁 幸 未 坼
枝 撑 声 窸 窣。
行 游 相 攀 援
川 广 不 可 越。
老 妻 寄 异 县
十 口 隔 风 雪。
谁 能 久 不 顾
庶 往 共 饥 渴。
入 门 闻 号 啕
幼 子 饿 已 卒。
吾 宁 舍 一 哀
里 巷 亦 呜 咽。
所 愧 为 人 父
无 食 致 夭 折。
岂 知 秋 禾 登
贫 窭 有 仓 卒。
生 常 免 租 税
名 不 隶 征 伐。
抚 迹 犹 酸 辛
平 人 固 骚 屑。
默 思 失 业 徒
因 念 远 戍 卒。
忧 端 齐 终 南
澒 洞 不 可 掇。
Zi Jing Fu Feng Xian Xian Yong Huai Wu Bai Zi
Bei yuan jiu jing wei
Guan du you gai zhe.
Qun bing cong xi xia
Ji mu gao zu wu.
Yi shi kong dong lai
Kong chu tian zhu she.
He liang xing wei che
Zhi cheng sheng xi su.
Xing lu xiang pan yuan
Chuan guang bu ke yue
Lao qi ji yi xian
Shi kou ge feng xue
Shei neng jiu bu gu
Shu wang gong ji ke.
Ru men wen hao tao
You zi e yi zu.
Wu ning she yi ai.
Li xiang yi wu yan
Suo kui wei en fu
Wu shi zhi yao she.
Qi zhi qiu he deng
Pin ju you cang zu.
Sheng chang mian zu shui
Ming bu li zheng fa.
Fu ji you suan xin
Ping ren gu sao xie.
Mo si shi ye tu
Yin nian yuan shu zu.
You duan qi zhong nan
Hong dong bu ke duo.
From the Capital Go to Fengxian, Express Sentiments in a Five Hundred Word Poem
Part 3:
Out of the northern gate by way of the Wei River
Government officials cannot go across, have to change onto
carts and carriages.
Chunks of ice from the west joins the river
As far as the eye can see towering chunks of ice.
Maybe Mt. Kongdong has moved a little closer
Afraid that we have broken the pillar supporting the sky.
Our good fortune, the river bridges have yet to crack and split open
Supporting tree branches emit rustling sounds.
Travelers cling to one another to hold themselves up
Vast and broad rivers become impassable.
Long-time wife relocated to this outside region
Ten family members huddle under the wind and snow.
Who can go for a long time not seeing their family
All of them together, yet hungry and thirsty.
Enter the front door, hear wailing and howls
My youngest has already starved to death.
We quickly and quietly abandon our sorrows (bury him without the rites)
Down narrow alleys people wail and cry.
Shame falls upon the local officials and myself
Without enough food the young people have died.
Who knows when the autumn millet will be ripe
Now the storehouses and silos have been emptied.
Officials often free from rent and taxes
These people not drafted or required to fight in the army.
Yet with these advantages our family sad and grieved
Ordinary peasants scramble for the crumbs.
In solitude think of my fate and how I had to follow it
Had to accept a position in a distant border garrison.
I am afraid that together we will never reach the south
Anger and regrets vast as an ocean, cannot hold with both hands.
Notes:
Wei River: Largest tributary to the Yellow River, running through the capital city Chang’an and the provinces of Gansu and Shaanxi.
Mt. Kongdong: Located in Gansu Province and considered one of the holy mountains for Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism.