This poem is a reflection Li Bai wrote sometime after he was unsuccessful in government. He complains that the “royal winds” appoint only “twine and thorn” rather than more beautiful plants (such as himself). This is further reflected later in the poem when he writes “Beautiful things / have been valued little” since the Jian An reign (196 – 219 AD) and thus government has been run by the wrong people.
He compares the leadership of the government to that of the states during the Warring States period (475 – 221 BC), such as Zhan and Qin, when China was broken into many different states fighting each other, and the violence and death that ensued. The name “China” comes from the Qin Dynasty of that period.
After failing in government, Li Bai pursued poetry, becoming one of China’s greatest poets. The end of the poem is an argument both for the government picking better men to run it and for returning to the cultural brilliance of antiquity, as reflected in the classic Book of Songs.
59 Poems of Antiquity | 古風五十九首 |
#1 | 其一 |
The Book of Songs took long to compose | 大雅 久不 作 |
But I’ve fallen so far— and who could’ve known? | 吾衰 竟 誰陳 |
Royal winds appoint the twine and thorns | 王風 委 蔓草 |
As when the Warring States spread over many a thicket and thorn | 戰國 多 荊榛 |
Great men tore at each other like tigers and dragons | 龍虎 相啖食 |
And soldiers’ spears caught the violent Qin | 兵戈 逮 狂秦 |
The sound of justice— how hazy and blurred it was | 正聲 何微茫 |
Grief and hatred began to trouble the human race | 哀怨 起 騷人 |
Mounted warhorses came inciting the waves of decay | 揚馬 激 頹波 |
And opened a flow that washed away a boundless horizon | 開流 蕩 無垠 |
Ending prosperity— while changing a thousand things | 廢興 雖 萬變 |
Law and order sunk, losing its way | 憲章 亦 已淪 |
And ever since the Jian An came | 自從 建安來 |
Beautiful things have been valued little. | 綺麗 不足珍 |
That sacred era— there we should return, our ancient origins | 聖代 復 元古 |
They were dangling silks, noble and clear, real and genuine | 垂衣 貴清 真 |
Our ability to join together in brightness has ceased | 群才 屬 休明 |
Let us ride our fortune together, leaping the scales | 乘運 共 躍鱗 |
Culture brings us together in shining brilliance | 文質 相 炳煥 |
Many stars collect each year in heaven | 眾星 羅秋 旻 |
And my hope is to collect them and tell their story | 我志 在刪 述 |
Bequeathing the brilliance reflected in a thousand springs: | 垂輝 映 千春 |
This sacred striving I have established | 希聖 如有立 |
As my final work— to catch the mythical unicorn | 絕筆 於 獲麟 |
Original Chinese
Traditional | Simplified | Pronunciation |
古風五十九首 | 古风五十九首 | Gǔ fēng wǔ shí jiǔ shǒu |
其一 | 其一 | Qí yī |
大雅久不作。 | 大雅久不作。 | Dà yǎ // jiǔ bùzuò. |
吾衰竟誰陳。 | 吾衰竟谁陈。 | Wú shuāi // jìng shuí chén. |
王風委蔓草。 | 王风委蔓草。 | Wáng fēng // wěi màn cǎo. |
戰國多荊榛。 | 战国多荆榛。 | Zhàn guó // duō jīng zhēn. |
龍虎相啖食。 | 龙虎相啖食。 | Lóng hǔ // xiāng dàn shí. |
兵戈逮狂秦。 | 兵戈逮狂秦。 | Bīng gē // dǎi kuáng qín. |
正聲何微茫。 | 正声何微茫。 | Zhèng shēng // hé wēi máng. |
哀怨起騷人。 | 哀怨起骚人。 | Āi yuàn // qǐ sāo rén. |
揚馬激頹波。 | 扬马激颓波。 | Yáng mǎ // jī tuí bō. |
開流蕩無垠。 | 开流荡无垠。 | Kāi liú // dàng wúyín. |
廢興雖萬變。 | 废兴虽万变。 | Fèi xìng // suī wàn biàn. |
憲章亦已淪。 | 宪章亦已沦。 | Xiàn zhāng // yì yǐ lún. |
自從建安來。 | 自从建安来。 | Zì cóng // jiàn'ān lái. |
綺麗不足珍。 | 绮丽不足珍。 | Qǐ lì // bùzú zhēn. |
聖代復元古。 | 圣代复元古。 | Shèng dài // fù yuán gǔ. |
垂衣貴清真。 | 垂衣贵清真。 | Chuí yī // guì qīng zhēn. |
群才屬休明。 | 群才属休明。 | Qún cái // zhǔ xiū míng. |
乘運共躍鱗。 | 乘运共跃鳞。 | Chéng yùn // gòng yuè lín. |
文質相炳煥。 | 文质相炳焕。 | Wén zhì // xiāng bǐng huàn. |
眾星羅秋旻。 | 众星罗秋旻。 | Zhòng xīng // luó qiū mín. |
我志在刪述。 | 我志在删述。 | Wǒ zhì // zài shān shù. |
垂輝映千春。 | 垂辉映千春。 | Chuí huī // yìng qiān chūn. |
希聖如有立。 | 希圣如有立。 | Xī shèng // rú yǒu lì. |
絕筆於獲麟。 | 绝笔于获麟。 | Jué bǐ // yú huò lín. |
Literal
Ancient Wind 59 Poems [ancient wind = antiquity] |
#1 |
· Great elegant (1) long-ago/long-time no compose |
· My decline to-go-so-far-as who? explain |
· Royal wind appoints creeping-plants grass (2) |
· Warring States (3) over/many thorns/brambles/chaste-tree thicket/hazel-tree |
· Dragon tiger (4) each-other eat/bite/chew food/meal |
· Soldiers spears (5) seize/catch wild/mad/violent Qin (6) |
· Just sound/tune how small/trifling widespread (7) |
· Sad/mournful hatred (8) rise/begin trouble mankind |
· Scatter/hoist horse arouse/incite/quickly ruined/decayed/crumbling waves/ripples |
· Open/begin flow pond/wash-away (9) no boundary (10) |
· Abolish flourish even-though ten-thousand change |
· Law composition (11) also finished lost/sunk |
· Self through (12) build peaceful (13) come |
· Beautiful enchanting not sufficient valuable |
· Sacred era return origin ancient |
· Dangle clothes valuable/noble clear/peaceful real/genuine |
· Group ability concentrate/join-together stop bright/brilliant/understand |
· Ride/take-advantage-of fortune together leap scales |
· Literature/culture quality mutual bright brilliant |
· Numerous stars net/collect/catch autumn/year heaven |
· My purpose/aspiration consists edit narrate/tell |
· Bequeath brilliance reflect (14) thousand spring |
· Rare/strive-for sacred if/as/like have/exist establish/set |
· Cut writing-brush (15) to catch female-unicorn |
1. “Great elegant” = one of the three main divisions of the Book of Songs
2. “Creeping-plants grass” = climbing plant, twine
3. Warring States period (475 – 221 BC)
4. “Dragon tiger” = outstanding people, water and fire (in Daoist writing)
5. “Soldier spears” = weapons/arms/fighting/war
6. Feudal state of Qin; the Qin dynasty (from which the name 'China' comes)
7. “Small/trifling widespread” = hazy / blurred
8. “Sad/mournful hatred” = grief, resentment
9. “Flow pond/wash-away” = to float, tramp, rove
10. “No boundary” = boundless, vast
11. “Law composition” = charter, constitution
12. “Self through” = ever since
13. “Build Peaceful” = Jiàn'ān, reign name (196-219) at the end of the Han dynasty
14. “Brilliance reflect” = to reflect, shine
15. Words written on deathbed, an artist’s final work
Year:
2011
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