Han Yu Liu Zongyuan Poetry Selection - Classical Poetry Masters

Author: Meng Erdong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: Meng's Poetry
Meng, the scholar of rivers and seas,
With ancient features and an ancient heart.
He once read the books of the ancients,
Saying that the old is as relevant as the new.
He composed three hundred poems,
Silently in his room, listening to the music of Xianchi.
He rode a donkey to the capital,
Desiring to harmonize with the gentle breeze like a zither.
Yet he did not recognize the emperor's residence,
Nine layers of deep and somber halls.
A hundred guards guarded the gate,
Without a name, he could not find his way.
The brilliance shimmered and reflected,
Flags and spears fluttered in solemnity.
He hesitated and suddenly turned back,
Startled and amazed, unable to restrain himself.
He looked up at the white sun,
Tears soaked his robes.
The scorpions came to visit the officials,
Yet none lowered their elegant hairpins.
He surely did not belong to the noble class,
His responses were often out of place.
The lotus and duckweed faced fierce waves,
The mulberry and plum were invaded by the sun and moon.
How could he bear to follow the imperial candidates,
This path was rugged and uneven.
Different qualities fear to be in a crowd,
A solitary fragrance finds it hard to be in a forest.
Who would pity the nature of pine and cypress,
While everyone loves the shade of peach and plum.
In the morning, he mourned the falling leaves,
In the evening, he felt the returning birds to their nests.
He looked at himself, full of generosity,
Often seen in the poor roof.
In the quiet night, he quietly faced each other,
His hair turned white as he listened to his bitter songs.
Picking orchids, he was filled with longing,
Gazing faintly towards the southeast.
The journey from Qin to Wu was long and blocked,
Between the two places, countless gold.
I speak of Xu Fang's governor,
A lover of ancient things, admired by all under heaven.
The bamboo shoots are what the phoenix eats,
A fragrant virtue that the gods delight in.
To see the great mountains, one must climb the peaks of Mount Tai;
To see the vast rivers, one must sail the deeps of the vast ocean.
Listen to my words, child,
They can serve as your guide.
Once you have achieved, think of returning,
Do not linger too long.
Bian He offered three sacrifices,
Waiting for the autumn hammer.
Title Explanation
Meng, the scholar, is Meng Jiao (751-814), styled Dongye, from Wukang, Huizhou (now Deqing, Zhejiang). In his youth, he lived in seclusion on Mount Song. At nearly fifty, he passed the imperial examination and became a county magistrate of Lixiang. He has the "Collected Poems of Meng Dongye." This poem was written around the ninth year of the Zhenyuan reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang (793), when Meng Jiao wanted to go to Xuzhou to pay a visit to Zhang Jianfeng. Han Yu wrote this poem to recommend him. The poem highly praises Meng Jiao's character and poetry, reflecting the depth of their friendship and the author's concern for him.