[updated October 2022]
Difficult Roads to Travel: Three Poems: No. 3
行 路 难： 三 首
有 耳 莫 洗 颖 川 水
有 口 莫 食 首 阳 蕨。
含 光 混 世 贵 无 名
何 用 孤 高 比 云 月？
吾 观 自 古 贤 达 人
功 成 不 退 皆 殒 身。
子 胥 既 弃 吴 江 上
屈 原 终 投 湘 水 滨。
陆 机 雄 才 岂 自 保？
李 斯 税 驾 苦 不 早。
华 亭 鹤 唳 讵 可 闻？
上 蔡 苍 鹰 何 足 道！
君 不 见 吴 中
张 翰 称 达 生
秋 风 忽 忆 江 东 行。
且 乐 生 前 一 杯 酒
何 须 身 后 千 载 名！
Xing Lu Nan: San Shou
(3)
You er mo xi ying chuan shui
You kou mo shi shou yang jue.
Han guang hun shi gui wu ming
He yong gu gao bi yun yue?
Wu guan zi gu xian da ren
Gong cheng bu tui jie yun shen.
Zi xu ji qi wu jiang shang
Qu yuan zhong tou xiang shui bin.
Liu ji xiong cai qi zi bao?
Li si shui jia ku bu zao.
Hua ting he li ju ke wen?
Shang cai cang ying he zu dao !
Ju bu jian wu zhong
Zhang han chen da sheng
Qiu feng hu yi jiang dong xing.
Qie le sheng qian yi bei jiu
Ke xu shen hou qian zai ming !
Difficult Roads to Travel: Three Poems: No. 3
If one has ears, do not have to wash them in the Ying River water
Having no mouth, cannot eat the ferns of Mt. Shouyang.
In a confused society, contain your light, one’s obscurity is valuable
Why tower alone above clouds and moon?
By myself I see the ancients were able, virtuous achievers
Too much overt success leads to an early death.
Wu Zixi abandoned the Wu rivers and waters
Qu Yuan died throwing himself from the Xiang River shoreline.
Did the bold and powerful Liu Ji protect himself?
Pity Li Si did not go home earlier.
Are the crane’s cries heard at the Hua pavilion?
In Shangcai, Li Si no longer follows the flights of eagles!
You do not see Zhang Han outside central Wu
He understood thoroughly how to harmonize life.
Autumn winds made him recall and go to his hometown and river to the east
For now, such happiness before even one cup of wine.
Do not care if anyone remembers his name a thousand years from now!
Notes:
Ying River: Largest tributary to the Huai River, source is in Henan Province.
Mt. Shouyang: Located in Shaanxi Province.
Wu rivers: Located in Zhejiang Province.
Liu Ji: (185-233 AD) A government minister during the Eastern Wu.
Li Si: (ca. 280-208 BC) Famous writer and calligrapher during the Qin Dynasty. He served as prime minister (246-208 BC). He is credited with unifying China’s laws, weight and measures, written characters, and several others.
Shangcai: A county in southern Henan Province.
Zhang Han: (?- 205 BC) A Qin Dynasty army general.