Meng Haoran: Going to the Capital, On the Way Have Snow

 

[updated September 2022]

 

Going to the Capital, On the Way Have Snow

 

赴 京 途 中 遇 雪
迢 递 秦 京 道
苍 茫 岁 暮 天。
穷 阴 连 晦 朔
积 雪 满 山 川。
落 雁 迷 沙 渚
饥 鹰 集 野 田。
客 愁 空 仁 立
不 见 有 人 烟。
Fu Jing Tu Zhong Yu Xue

Tiao di qin jing dao
Cang mang sui mu tian.
Qiong yin lian hui shuo
Ji xue man shan chuan.

Luo yan mi sha zhu
Ji ying ji ye tian.
Ke chou kong ren li
Bu jian you ren yan.

 

Going to the Capital, On the Way Have Snow

From far away, follow the Qin highway
Boundless, vast countryside at the end of the year.
Deep overcast, last day of the lunar month before the new moon
Snowdrifts fill the mountains and rivers.

Grounded wild geese cannot find food around the sandbars
Starving hawks assemble down in the open fields.
This melancholy visitor remains still for a long time
Do not see any signs of a human presence.

 

Notes:

Qin highway: Qin nation was in the lands in western China, and existed from (897-207 BC).