Okay,
even though a
little Tang poetry goes a long way, once a year is manageable. And I’ll
revisit Du
Fu, the writer who had intended to be a courtier and administrator, but
ended up giving us some spectacular word images.
For
example, “Night in the Pavilion”, where in the pre-dawn hour the Milky Way is
waning, and two heroes come to naught. A lot of Du Fu’s poems evoke the
elements of awaiting news of fighting at varying distances; a mark of the
times, I guess.
“Night
in the Pavilion”
At
year’s end, yin and yang hurry the shortened day,
At sky’s
end, frost and snow clear the frozen night.
Fifth
watch: the drum and horn sound out mournful and strong,
Three
gorges: the river of stars casts its trembling shadow.
Countryside
cries from a thousand homes hearing news of the fighting.
Barbaric
songs here and there rise from fishers and woodsmen.
Sleeping
Dragon and Leaping Horse both ended in yellow dirt;
Waiting
for news of worldly affairs brings me useless grief.
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