[updated September 2022]
Morning Audience in the Daming Palace With Imperial Scribe Jia
和 贾 舍 人 早 朝 大 明 之 作
绛 帻 鸣 人 送 晓 筹
尚 衣 方 进 翠 云 裘。
九 天 阊 阖 开 宫 殿
万 国 衣 冠 拜 冕 旒。
日 色 才 临 仙 掌 动
香 烟 欲 傍 衮 龙 浮。
朝 罢 须 裁 五 色 诏
佩 声 归 向 风 池 头 。
He Jia Shi Ren Zao Zhao Da Ming Zhi Zuo
Jiang ze ji ren song xiao chou
Shang yi fang jin cui yun qiu
Jiu tian chang he kai gong dian
Wan guo yi guan bai mian liu
Ri se cai lin xian zhang dong
Xiang yan yu bang gun long fu
Zhao ba xu cai wu se zhao
Pei sheng gui xiang feng chi tou.
Morning Audience in the Daming Palace Poem With Imperial Scribe Jia
With crimson headdresses, palace time keepers deliver counters at daybreak
Everyone wearing the imperial audience clothes, emerald-green bird feather coats.
Door after door, ascending to the last one, big door to a large room
From all over the empire to pay respect to the emperor’s crown.
Sun arrives, shadows from the candle holders moving
Fragrant incense, all desire to be close to his ceremonial robe, a dragon that appears to emerge as he walks.
Court dismissed, we now have to make the rainbow-colored imperial documents
The sounds from our jade, while walking back to the work table in our office.
Notes:
Daming Palace: A large and important palace within the overall palace complex in Chang’an (present day Xi’an)
Emperor’s crown: The Chinese word is mian: The traditional Chinese crown, and the liu: stringed jade pieces attached to the imperial crown
Candle holders (xiang zhang) They were shaped like the hand of an immortal.
Commentary:
This is a good description of what it must have been like to be a senior palace official during this period of the Tang Dynasty. The emperor was obliged to hold morning audiences with his close advisors, and others who wanted to petition the court. A multi-sensory experience of the inner palace: sounds, sights, and aromas.