Before Dawn at the Baxia Gorge
晓 行 巴 峡
晓 际 投 巴 峡
余 春 忆 帝 京。
晴 江 一 女 浣。
水 国 舟 中 市
山 桥 树 杪 行。
登 高 万 井 出
眺 迥 二 流 明。
人 作 殊 方 语
莺 为 故 国 声。
赖 多 山 水 趣
稍 解 别 离 情。
Xiao Xing Ba Xia
Xiao ji tou ba xia
Yu chun yi di jing.
Qing jiang yi nu huan
Zhao ri zhong ju ming.
Shui guo zhou zhong shi
Shan qiao shu miao xing.
Deng gao wan jing chu
Tiao jiong er liu ming.
Ren zuo shu fang yu
Ying wei gu guo sheng.
Lai duo shan shui qu
Shao jie bie li qing.
Before Dawn at the Baxia Gorge
Dawn flung into the Baxia Gorge
At the end of spring, remembering the emperor’s capital.
One woman washing clothes in the clear river
Numerous chickens cheep in the morning light.
River country cities full of boats
Mountain bridge spans to the tree tops.
Climbing on high, many villages emerge
Far away peach trees in a secondary light.
The people here speak a regional dialect
Orioles perform the country tunes from the past.
Relying on the delights of many mountain rivers
To provide a little bit of relief from these feelings of departure.
Notes:
Secondary light: A term used by an artist of Wang Wei’s caliber. Could also be related to the Dharmakaya Light.