[updated October 2022]
Mid-Autumn Holiday to Climb High on Mt. Qi
九 日 齐 山 登 高
江 涵 秋 影 雁 初 飞
与 客 携 壶 上 翠 微。
尘 世 难 逢 开 口 笑
菊 花 须 插 满 头 归。
但 将 酩 酊 酬 佳 节
不 用 登 临 恨 落 晖。
古 往 今 来 只 如 此
牛 山 何 必 独 沾 衣。
Jiu Ri Qi Shan Deng Gao
Jiang han qiu ying yan chu fei
Yu ke xie hu shang cui wei.
Chen shi nan feng kai kou xiao
Ju hua xu cha man tou gui.
Dan jiang ming ding chou jia jie
Bu yong deng lin hen luo hui.
Gu wang jin lai zhi ru ci
Niu shan he bi du zhan yi.
Mid-Autumn Holiday to Climb High on Mt. Qi
River enveloped by autumn shadows, wild geese beginning to fly
Visitors need to bring along their wine pots on their way to Cui Wei temple.
In this mortal world, difficult to meet mouths opened with laughter
Should insert many chrysanthemum flowers into our hair.
Happy festival time urges us to toast and get drunk
Setting sun, do not need to regret lost abilities to climb.
Since the beginning of time, things have always been like this
Do not have to moisten our clothes with tears, missing home from Mt. Niu.
Notes:
Mid-Autumn festival: Celebrated all over China by drinking chrysanthemum wine, climbing local hills and mountains, and wearing cornel (dogwood) flowers.
Mt. Qi: Located in Gansu Province, it was the site of a large battle in 231 AD between the states of Shu and Wei.
Opened with laughter: Refers to a story by Zhuangzi.
Mt. Niu: Perhaps a mountain range in southern Shanxi Province.