A couple of years ago I came across a series of mystery
novels by Chinese writer Qiu Xiaolong. They’re set in Shanghai of the 90s and
the hero is Chief Inspector Chen Cao, who apparently never met an 8th
Century Tang poem he didn’t find necessary to quote.
In fact, my comment in my reading log is “All that fricking Tang poetry”. After that, I stopped reading the books.
In fact, my comment in my reading log is “All that fricking Tang poetry”. After that, I stopped reading the books.
However, it turns out that one of the most acclaimed Tang
poets was Li Bai (also known as Li Po), who wrote a whole lot of poems about
drinking. Now, this I can get into.
So here are three examples.
“Wine Song”
If High Heaven had no love for wine,
There would not be a Wine Star in the
sky.
If Earth herself had no love for wine,
Since Heaven and Earth both love wine,
I can love wine, without shame before
God.
Clear wine was once called “a Saint;”
Of Saint and Sage I have long quaffed
deep,
At the third cup I penetrate the Great
Way;
A full gallon—Nature and I are one....
But the things I feel when wine
possesses my soul
I will never tell to those who are not
drunk.
“Drinking Alone”
I
take my wine jug out among the flowers
To
drink alone, without friends.
I
raise my cup to entice the moon.
That,
and my shadow, makes us three.
But
the moon doesn't drink,
And
my shadow silently follows.
I
will travel with moon and shadow,
happy
to the end of spring.
When
I sing, the moon dances.
When
I dance, my shadow dances, too.
We
share life's joys when sober.
Drunk,
each goes a separate way.
Constant
friends, although we wander,
we'll
meet again in the Milky Way.
“Mountain Drinking Song”
To
drown the ancient sorrows,
We
drank a hundred jugs of wine
There
in the beautiful night.
We
couldn't go to bed with the moon so bright.
The
finally the wine overcame us
And
we lay down on the empty mountain—
The
earth for a pillow,
And
a blanket made of heaven.
No comments:
Post a Comment