Galleries and Translations > Recent Works / Poetry and Others > An Inscription Regarding the Yuquan Temple《題玉泉寺》
An Inscription Regarding the Yuquan Temple
(《題玉泉寺》)
69 X 37 cm in Standard Script (楷書)
Translation
English Translation
Original Chinese
The rich (湛湛, 1) Yuquan's surroundings (色, 2),
1. 湛湛玉泉色,
The carefree (悠悠, 3) bodies of clouds hovering;
2. 悠悠浮雲身;
An easeful mind meets still waters,
3. 閒心對定水,
Both are tranquil, void of dusty matters.
4. 清淨兩無塵.
My hand holding a bamboo staff (青筇杖, 4),
5. 手把青筇杖,
Head wearing a white silk scarf (白綸巾, 5);
6. 頭戴白綸巾;
Overflowed with joy, off the mountain I descend,
7. 興盡下山去,
Who cares (知) who I am! (6)
8. 知我是誰人.
(translated by KS Vincent POON, Nov 2023)
Remarks
(I)
An Inscription Regarding the Yuquan Temple was composed by the renowned poet Bai Juyi (白居易,772-846 AD) in 815AD (7). That year, Bai became a casualty of a power struggle and was demoted from the capital to be the Vice Prefect of Jiangzhou (江州司馬) (8).
(II)
During that depressing time, Bai turned to Nature for enlightenment (9). He found relief by letting go of his social identity and the public eye, as expressed in this poem. Indeed, all things in Nature do not care what others think about them. So then, why must one seek social recognition?
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(1) "湛湛" here means "rich and intense (濃重深厚的樣子)", as in the Book of Odes - Minor Odes of the Kingdom – Zhan Lu (《詩經∙小雅∙湛露》)： "湛湛露斯, 匪陽不晞." See 《漢語大詞典》Vol.5. Shanghai: 上海辭書出版社, 2008, p.1442.
(2) "色" here means "surroundings (景象)", as in Zhuangzi - The Robber Zhi (《莊子∙盜蹠》)： "車馬有行色, 得微往見蹠耶?" See 《漢語大字典》. Wuhan: 崇文書局, 2010, p.3274.
(3) "悠悠" here means "carefree (安閒暇適的樣子)", as in 高適《封丘作》： "我本漁樵孟諸野, 一生自是悠悠者." See 《漢語大詞典》Vol.7. Shanghai: 上海辭書出版社, 2008, p.532.
(4) "青筇杖" refers to "a staff that is made out of Qiong bamboo". See 《漢語大字典》. Wuhan: 崇文書局, 2010, p.3150.
(5) "白綸巾" refers to "a white silk scarf" that was often worn by gentries. See 《漢語大詞典》Vol.9. Shanghai: 上海辭書出版社, 2008, pp.903-904.
(6) "知" here means "care/bother (管/理得)", as in 吳潛《八聲甘州∙和魏鶴山韻》: "如何是, 一尊相屬, 萬事休知." See 《漢語大字典》. Wuhan: 崇文書局, 2010, p.2764. "誰人" here means "who (甚麼人)". See 《漢語大詞典》Vol.11. Shanghai: 上海辭書出版社, 2008, p.285. Thus, "知我是誰人" in this poem means "who cares who I am (管我是甚麼人)".
(7) 朱金城,《白居易集箋校》. Shanghai: 上海古籍出版社, 1988, p.355.
(8) 劉昫,《舊唐書》 Vol.166, 白居易傳. Taiwan: 臺灣中華書局, 1971, pp.10-11.
(9) Ibid..
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