[updated October 2022]
Send Off Friends to Sichuan
送 友 人 入 蜀
见 说 蚕 丛 路
崎 岖 不 易 行。
山 从 人 面 起
云 傍 马 头 生。
芳 树 笼 秦 栈
春 流 绕 蜀 城。
升 沉 应 已 定
不 必 访 君 平。
Song You Ren Ru Shu
Jian shuo can cong lu
Qi qu bu yi xing.
Shan cong ren mian qi
Yun bang ma tou sheng.
Fang shu long qin zhan
Chun liu rao shu cheng.
Sheng chen ying yi ding
Bu bi fang jun ping.
Send Off Friends to Sichuan
Heard about the Cancong region
Rugged and rough, not easy to travel through.
Passing into these mountains, people have their faces next to stone
Horse’s heads emerge from summit-hugging clouds.
Fragrant trees hold guardrails from Qin times
River coils around Sichuan cities.
Already established this place to be an official’s last promotion
Do not need to consult the fortune teller Jun Ping.
Notes:
Cancong: Semi-legendary king of Shu (ca. 12th-3rd century BC) in the area of Sichuan Province.
Qin times: The Qin kingdom (ca. 900-207 BC) was during the Zhou Dynasty, and the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) in the west during ancient times.