Highest Southern Mountain at Xu Yujun: No. 2
题 盱 眙 军 南 第 一 山
建 隆 家 业 大 于 天
庆 历 春 风 一 万 年。
廊 庙 谋 谋 出 童 蔡
笑 谈 京 洛 博 幽 燕。
白 沟 旧 在 鸿 沟 外
易 水 今 移 淮 水 前。
川 后 年 来 世 情 了
一 波 分 护 两 涯 船。
Ti Xu Chi Jun Nan Di Yi Shan
Jian long jia ye da yu tian
Qing li chun feng yi wan nian.
Lang miao mou mou chu tong cai
Xiao tan jing luo bo you yan.
Bai gou jiu zai hong gou wai
Yi shui jin yi huai shui qian.
Chuan hou nian lai shi qing liao
Yi bo fen hu liang ya chuan.
Highest Southern Mountain at Xu Yujun: No. 2
Early Northern Song emperors ruled under very large skies
Later monarchs to enjoy springtime winds for perhaps a thousand years.
Imperial court advisors Tong Guan and Caijing put this to doubt
Abundantly rich parties in the Luoyang capital do not pay heed to the decay.
Baigou rivers for a longtime migrating geese waterways
Our borders moved closer and closer to the Huai River.
The river spirits are aware of our society’s demise
Yet they continue to flow downstream along a division of two riverbanks.
Notes:
Tong Guan (1054-1126): Court eunuch, army general and political advisor to Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) emperor Huizong. He was the general who was leading the army that lost the northern territories that led to the government retreating and moving it’s capital city from Kaifeng to Hangzhou. Later his name was used as a metaphor for a corrupt government official.
Cai Jing (1047-1126): Calligrapher and government official and minister during the Northern Song. He collaborated with Tong Guan during the end times of their government. Cai was also a supporter of Wang Anshi and his “New Policies”.
Commentary: Human history seems full of dynasties and empires that end and go away from the rot and decay inside.