Bird by Bai Juyi
Who says all kinds of animals' lives are of no value?
Also bones and flesh, also skin.
Please, don't shoot birds in trees.
Baby in the nest waits for mother's return.
We, as people, need to think about hunting from the bird's point of view.
Looking From Yangming Mountain Towards Taipei City
Yangming Mountain's color is too irregular:
Early morning clouds; evening foggy steam.
Far away, down in the valley, hazy Taipei City:
Ten-thousand parcels of smoky water, ten-thousand household's lights.
Ten years before this poem was written, Taipei City still had many rice paddies. Now, all these fields have disappeared, replaced by high rise apartments and hotels. There are neon lights at night. So, looking from Yangming Mountain toward the city, one has a very different scene.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Why the fuss
Minding the Swimming Fish by Bai Juyi
Circling the pond at a leisurely pace, watching the fish swim.
Just then, meet children preparing their fishing boat.
Though we share a love for fish, our hearts' intents don't match:
I came to feed, you came to drop your hook.
Bai Juyi had a reputation for composing very simple poems. After writing a new poem, he would recite it to some illiterate old lady and ask if she understood. If she didn't understand any part of the poem, he would edit it until she did.
Dedication: Late-coming Dove Small Home
Living on a mountain, how can one be late?
Quietly waiting for the peace dove.
Asking when the dove will arrive,
The master smiles and does not reply.
Spring warmth, flowers compete in bloom.
Summer lengthens, take in the coolness.
On the sea, wind and waves abound.
At mountain top, clouds and fog mix.
The small home's doors are often closed,
Outside the doors, the grass is colored wild.
My friend built a house on Yangming Mountain. I wrote this poem to congratulate him on the new building.
Circling the pond at a leisurely pace, watching the fish swim.
Just then, meet children preparing their fishing boat.
Though we share a love for fish, our hearts' intents don't match:
I came to feed, you came to drop your hook.
Bai Juyi had a reputation for composing very simple poems. After writing a new poem, he would recite it to some illiterate old lady and ask if she understood. If she didn't understand any part of the poem, he would edit it until she did.
Dedication: Late-coming Dove Small Home
Living on a mountain, how can one be late?
Quietly waiting for the peace dove.
Asking when the dove will arrive,
The master smiles and does not reply.
Spring warmth, flowers compete in bloom.
Summer lengthens, take in the coolness.
On the sea, wind and waves abound.
At mountain top, clouds and fog mix.
The small home's doors are often closed,
Outside the doors, the grass is colored wild.
My friend built a house on Yangming Mountain. I wrote this poem to congratulate him on the new building.
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Look west
Tiaoxiaoling* (A Lost Horse) by Wei Yingwu
Mongolian horse, Mongolian horse,
Far and free beneath Yenzi mountain.
Running on sand, running on snow, alone panting.
Look east, look west, the way is lost.
Lost the way, lost the way,
Grasses edge without end, as the sun sets.
A Tang poet. There were many foreign invaders during this dynasty and therefore lots of battles along the borders. Many poets described the border areas because most people lived in the middle of the country, far away. This poet usually described Yenzi Mountain in Inner Mongolia, a fortress area to block invaders.
The poet probably feels lost, afraid, and lonely; even though enjoying the freedom of border living.
*a form of one of two words repeated, three lines of six, another line of two words repeated, a final line of six
Taizhong Flood
Remembering the horrible catastrophe of last fall:
After the devastation, the people begged for relief.
In analyzing the events, never heard Mr. Tang take responsibility.
Who will have compassion and tell Mr. Fan to consider their plight foremost?*
In the Capital, crown-wearers boast about their building projects.
While all around, dams and levees wait for repair.
Try to look west from Jade Mountain,
Ten-thousand acres of good fields, washed away by flood waters.
Around 1961, a friend wrote a series of poems about the poor people who lived in a area that had survived several years of frequent disaster, one of which had been published in the newspaper. I am writing in response to his poem.
*a famous Song dynasty scholar wrote:
When it comes to concerns, you are the first to address.
When it comes to pleasures, you are the last to partake.
He was employed by the emperor to help defeat the Mongols. He was so successful that the Mongolians had a saying about him that he had 10,000 soldiers in his bosom.
Mongolian horse, Mongolian horse,
Far and free beneath Yenzi mountain.
Running on sand, running on snow, alone panting.
Look east, look west, the way is lost.
Lost the way, lost the way,
Grasses edge without end, as the sun sets.
A Tang poet. There were many foreign invaders during this dynasty and therefore lots of battles along the borders. Many poets described the border areas because most people lived in the middle of the country, far away. This poet usually described Yenzi Mountain in Inner Mongolia, a fortress area to block invaders.
The poet probably feels lost, afraid, and lonely; even though enjoying the freedom of border living.
*a form of one of two words repeated, three lines of six, another line of two words repeated, a final line of six
Taizhong Flood
Remembering the horrible catastrophe of last fall:
After the devastation, the people begged for relief.
In analyzing the events, never heard Mr. Tang take responsibility.
Who will have compassion and tell Mr. Fan to consider their plight foremost?*
In the Capital, crown-wearers boast about their building projects.
While all around, dams and levees wait for repair.
Try to look west from Jade Mountain,
Ten-thousand acres of good fields, washed away by flood waters.
Around 1961, a friend wrote a series of poems about the poor people who lived in a area that had survived several years of frequent disaster, one of which had been published in the newspaper. I am writing in response to his poem.
*a famous Song dynasty scholar wrote:
When it comes to concerns, you are the first to address.
When it comes to pleasures, you are the last to partake.
He was employed by the emperor to help defeat the Mongols. He was so successful that the Mongolians had a saying about him that he had 10,000 soldiers in his bosom.
Sunday, March 08, 2015
Like snow, like jade
Egret by Li Bai
An egret dives toward the autumnal water.
Solo flyer like falling snow
Heart at ease, no hurry to leave.
Standing alone by the shallow edge.
Egrets were endangered by poachers. Their flight majestic and peaceful. When in the water, they are very still and you don't want to disturb them. The commentary says Li Bai was probably writing about himself, since he never attained any great status aside from his literary fame. He is expressing his identification with this independent, carefree bird.
Southeast Alkaline Factory
Located in Yilan county, Luodong city, one my of my friends built it and the facility was excellent and the technology cutting edge. It met international standards. My friend asked me to tour his facility and afterwards I wrote this poem to remember this event.
People say innovation and good work is difficult,
Happy to climb these high stacks that nearly touch the sky.
Iron containers and steel pipes connect all over,
Oxygen, carbon, and ammonia flowing this way and that.
From this factory, underground passage runs all the way to Su'ao port,
Smoke streams from all the furnaces, enveloping Taiping mountain.
Salt, halogens, and cement powder enter coarse and raw,
The final pure alkaline product precipitates into something like jade.
An egret dives toward the autumnal water.
Solo flyer like falling snow
Heart at ease, no hurry to leave.
Standing alone by the shallow edge.
Egrets were endangered by poachers. Their flight majestic and peaceful. When in the water, they are very still and you don't want to disturb them. The commentary says Li Bai was probably writing about himself, since he never attained any great status aside from his literary fame. He is expressing his identification with this independent, carefree bird.
Southeast Alkaline Factory
Located in Yilan county, Luodong city, one my of my friends built it and the facility was excellent and the technology cutting edge. It met international standards. My friend asked me to tour his facility and afterwards I wrote this poem to remember this event.
People say innovation and good work is difficult,
Happy to climb these high stacks that nearly touch the sky.
Iron containers and steel pipes connect all over,
Oxygen, carbon, and ammonia flowing this way and that.
From this factory, underground passage runs all the way to Su'ao port,
Smoke streams from all the furnaces, enveloping Taiping mountain.
Salt, halogens, and cement powder enter coarse and raw,
The final pure alkaline product precipitates into something like jade.
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