dankodes | The Works of Li Qingzhao, poems 1.6 to 1.12

曉夢

曉夢隨疏鐘
飄然躡雲霞。
因緣安期生
邂逅萼綠華。
秋風正無賴
吹盡玉井花。
共看藕如船
同食棗如瓜。
翩翩座上客
意妙語亦佳。
嘲辭鬬詭辨
活火分新茶。
雖非助帝功
其樂莫可涯。
人生能如此
何必歸故家。
起來斂衣坐
掩耳厭喧嘩。
心知不可見
念念猶咨嗟。

Dawn Dream

A dawn dream follows the fleeting drumbeats,
soaring it treads upon the colored clouds.
It is my fate to meet the immortal An Qisheng
by chance I encounter goddess Green Blossom too.
The autumn winds truly cannot be withstood,
they blow all the flowers from Jade Well.
Together we view lotus pods the size of boats
and nibble on dates as large as melons.
How graceful, the guests at the banquet,
marvellous their thoughts, excellent their words too.
Teasing each other, they vie in witty debate,
with rekindled fire we brew fresh tea.
Although we do not assist the emperor doing good deeds,
the joy of this gathering knows no bounds.
If a person could truly live like this,
what need would there be of returning home?
Awakening, I sit up and straighten my robe,
then cover my ears, annoyed by raucous shouting.
Those who know me can no longer be seen;
sighing, my thoughts dwell on my dream.

I don’t get a lot out of this first stanza. What are the drumbeats? Is she, half asleep, dreaming, and curiously dreaming of being these grand male figures (or in their positions) receiving marks of divine favour? Is it a sort of power fantasy?

“The autumn winds truly cannot be withstood, they blow all the flowers from Jade Well.” ?

And then we’ve got some imagery of fantastic plenty.

“then cover my ears, annoyed by raucous shouting. Those who know me can no longer be seen;” so again she’s interrupted by mundane bullshit, and I guess her zhiji/the companions of her heart were the compatriots at this banquet, who really Got her

So is this a sense of belonging, truly, with like--the immortals? The dead?

Baike says she's yearning for the "free and at leisure" (idiom) world of the immortals. I think it's basically like, wow dreamt my ideal world, too bad the real world sucks.

Gloss for the autumn winds line gives the last bit as "without reason, not pleasing others, play a practical joke" -- kind of like, the autumn winds being unruly.

The immortals in this sense are more like lesser gods than the dead.

咏史

兩漢本繼紹
新室如贅疣。
所以嵇中散
至死薄殷周。

On History

The two Hans were the true dynastic lineage,
the New Reign was like a blister.
That is why Courtier Ji
to his dying day disparaged the Yin and Zhou.

[see footnote]

Wang Mang was kinda cool tho, kinda progressive

Okay, so we’re insulting Liu Yu for being a turncoat and getting rewarded for it (with a kind of empty reward, fake king of a puppet state).

Or is it ultimately, in re the footnote, about the ephemerality of all such claims to authority and the vacuity of taking any of them all that seriously?

I think a reading that isn't 'borrowing from the past to disparage the present' would be non-standard?

偶成

十五年前花月底
相從曾賦賞花詩。
今看花月渾相似
安得情懷似往時。

Written on Impulse

Fifteen years ago, beneath blossoms in the moonlight,
I sat with friends writing poems on enjoying the blossoms.
Today, blossoms in the moonlight look much the same,
but how could my feelings ever be the same?

Oh, this one kinda slaps actually? Relatable.

Per Baike, "beneath blossoms in the moonlight" is a reference to 花前月下, which is an idiom about the ideal romantic setting. Baike seems convinced this is her thinking about her husband after his death anyway.

烏江

生當作人傑
死亦為鬼雄。
至今思項羽
不肯過江東。

Wu River

In life be a hero among men,
in death be a champion among ghosts.
Down to today we still remember Xiang Yu,
who refused to cross east of the river.

[see footnote]

“in death be a champion among ghosts.” Metal.

This is one of my favourites. The language is plain, stark, unadorned, which makes it even more effective.

Seems to have the alternative title of 咏项羽

上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公(二首)

紹興癸丑六月，樞密韓公，工部尚書胡公使虜，通兩宮
也。有易安室者，父祖皆出韓公門下，今家世淪替，子姓
寒微，不敢望公之車塵。又貧病，但神明未衰落，見此大
號令，不能忘言，作古、律各一章，以寄區區之意，以待
採詩者云。

第一

三年夏六月
天子視朝久。
凝旒望南雲
垂衣思北狩。
如聞帝若曰
岳牧與群后。
賢寧無半千
運已遇陽九。
勿勒燕然銘
勿種金城柳。
豈無純孝臣
識此霜露悲。
何必羹捨肉
便可車載脂。
土地非所惜
玉帛如塵泥。
誰當可將命
幣厚辭益卑。
四岳僉曰俞
臣下帝所知。
中朝第一人
春官有昌黎。
身為百夫特
行足萬人師。
嘉祐與建中
為政有臯夔。
匈奴畏王商
吐蕃尊子儀。
夷狄已破膽
將命公所宜。
公拜手稽首
受命白玉墀。
曰臣敢辭難
此亦何等時。
家人安足謀
妻子不必辭。
願奉天地靈
願奉宗廟威。
徑持紫泥詔
直入黃龍城。
單于定稽顙
侍子當來迎。
仁君方恃信
狂生休請纓。
或取犬馬血
與結天日盟。
胡公清德人所難
謀同德協必志安。
脫衣已被漢恩暖
離歌不道易水寒。
皇天久陰后土濕
雨勢未回風勢急。
車聲轔轔馬蕭蕭
壯士懦夫俱感泣。
閭閻嫠婦亦何知
瀝血投書干記室。
夷虜從來性虎狼
不虞預備庸何傷。
衷甲昔時聞楚幕
乘城前日記平凉。
葵丘踐土非荒城
勿輕談士棄儒生。
露布詞成馬猶倚
崤函關出雞未鳴。
巧匠何曾棄樗櫟
芻蕘之言或有益。
不乞隋珠與和璧
只乞鄉關新消息。
靈光雖在應蕭蕭
草中翁仲今何若。
遺氓豈尚種桑麻
殘虜如聞保城郭。
嫠家父祖生齊魯
位下名高人比數。
當年稷下縱談時
猶記人揮汗成雨。
子孫南渡今幾年
飄流遂與流人伍。
欲將血淚寄山河
去灑東山一抔土。

Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Bureau and Lord Hu of the Ministry of Works (Two Poems)

In the sixth month of the guichou year of the Shaoxing reign [1133], Military Commissioner Han and Minister Hu of the Bureau of Works were sent as emissaries to the northern barbarians, where they were to carry messages to the Two Palaces. Here is the woman Yi’an, whose father and grandfather were disciples of Lord Han’s ancestors. Their family is in decline, and she as its younger member is lowly and insignificant. She would not presume even to look upon the dust from their lordships’ carriages. Yi’an suffers, moreover, from poverty and ill health, yet her spirit and understanding are not the least bit diminished. Hearing of this august imperial commission and command, she could not fail to speak out. She has composed two poems, one each in the ancient and regulated styles, to convey her humble views, awaiting, now, the official Poetry Collector.

I

In the summer, the third year, the sixth month,
the Son of Heaven examined his court carefully.
He gazed at southern clouds through jade cap tassels that did not sway,
thought of the northern excursion, his robes hanging down.
It seemed that His Majesty spoke these words:
“Titled lords, governors, and myriad officials:
A worthy man appears every five hundred years,
Our time has witnessed calamities for an eon.
Let us not celebrate victories with a Yanran Mountain stele,
Nor need we plant willows at Golden City.
Is there no perfectly filial subject,
who understands this frost-and-dew grief ?
Why must I set meat aside from the broth?
Let us grease the carriage axles to quicken them.
Our lands, we do not cherish them;
jade and silk are like dirt to us.
Who is fit to convey our message?
Gifts increase as our words become more humble.”
The feudal lords together said, “Yes,
Your Majesty knows his subjects well.
The best man in the central court,
is a Han Yu among the rites officials.
His person stands out among one hundred,
his conduct makes him teacher to ten thousand.
During the Jiayou and Jianzhong periods
his ancestors managed policy as did Gao Tao and Kui.
The Xiongnu fear this Wang Shang,
the Turfan revere this Guo Ziyi.
The barbarians have already lost their courage,
he is the one to receive the command.”
The lord made obeisance with hands and head,
he accepted the appointment below the white jade steps,
Saying, “How dare I shrink from hardship
when we live in a time like this?
What thought do I have of my family?
I need not take leave of wife and children.
I yearn to hold the spiritual power of Heaven and Earth
I yearn to hold the majesty of the ancestral shrine.
Grasping the decree sealed with purple powder
I shall proceed straight into Yellow Dragon City.
The Khan will kowtow in receiving me,
his hostage sons will come to welcome me.
Our benevolent ruler relies on trust,
hot-blooded men need not ask for ropes.
Perhaps we shall use the blood of horse and dog,
to sign a treaty bound by an oath to the sun in the sky.”
Lord Hu’s pure goodness is rare among men,
of shared aim and virtue, his resolve is firm.
Having shed his jacket, he is warmed by Han’s beneficence,
his farewell song complains not of the Yi River’s chill.
Lord Heaven has long been clouded over and Consort Earth wet,
the driving rain does not abate, the wind increases.
Carriage wheels creak and horses whinny sadly,
men of valor and cowards are both reduced to tears.
As a widow of the inner apartments, what do I know?
I write this in blood to submit to the Imperial Archives.
Barbarians have long had the nature of tiger and wolf,
what harm is there in preparing for the unexpected?
Armor was concealed under clothing in the ancient tent of Chu,
we know about defending the wall at Pingliang in days of old.
Aren’t Kuiqiu and Jiantu no more than ruins?
Do not belittle advising gentlemen or reject scholars.
A victory report was written leaning against a horse,
Xiaohan Pass was left behind before the cock crowed.
A skillful carpenter does not reject even inferior timber,
kindling gatherers sometimes supply sage counsel.
We do not seek Sui’s pearl or He’s jade disk,4
all we want is fresh tidings of our homeland.
Lingguang Palace still stands but must be desolate,
how fares the stone statuary, engulfed by weeds?
Do our abandoned subjects still plant mulberry and hemp?
Do the routed barbarians still guard the city walls?

This widow’s father and grandfather were born in Qi and Lu, they counted men of renown among their followers.

In animated discussions at the Jixia Academy,
perspiration wiped from brows fell like rain, I still can recall.
Their descendant crossed the river south years ago
to drift aimlessly now as a refugee.
Take my blood-stained tears to those hills and rivers,
and sprinkle them on a clod of East Mountain soil.

[see footnote]

So what does the poem’s being addressed to them mean? Is it circulated, or simply about them? Do they have any opportunity to hear it?

‘awaiting, now, the official Poetry Collector’ ?

Don’t these beads get super fucking annoying?

Why ‘it seemed’? Bc she’s giving him dialogue and not quoting him?

“Gifts increase as our words become more humble.” ?

Is she discussing HER OWN EMPEROR without pretending it’s about the Han??

Oh no it seems we’re nominally discussing the Tang, phew!

“this Guo Ziyi” ?

“Perhaps we shall use the blood of horse and dog,” ?

“and Consort Earth wet,” …ah

What are 57&58 doing? [this is discussed in the footnote]

She seems to use a lot of rhetorical questions

What are 63 and 64 about?

(Wow, finding this poem on Baike was a hassle, as it's indexed under 上枢密韩肖胄诗二首 and any variant of the full title doesn't bring it up)

Maybe the 'seemed' is bc she's attributing thoughts to him that he might not have felt?

I think she's trying to say that 'as we give more money, our position gets lower' -- that they should stand up and be more forceful?

Guo Ziyi is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guo_Ziyi. Also nothing like 'this' is in the original poem =.=

After reading back the poem twice, I realized that Baike simply does not have the dog and horse blood sentence in the original poem, but its vernacular tl specifies "dog and horse blood applied on the lip" (original does not have we, obviously). But-but then the next line about the sun in the sky is missing in the vernacular! I suppose this is what happens with a community edited wiki...

第二

想見皇華過二京
壺漿夾道萬人迎。
連昌宮裏桃應在
華萼樓前鵲定驚。
但說帝心憐赤子
須知天意念蒼生。
聖君大信明如日
長亂何須在屢盟。

II

We imagine the envoys’ splendor as they pass the two capitals:
vats of liquor line the highway as thousands rush to welcome them.
Peach trees must still blossom in Lianchang Palace,
magpies are startled before Flower Calyx Tower.
Say only that our emperor cherishes his little children,
heaven is mindful, they must know, of our commoners.
His Majesty’s great trust is as bright as the sun—
why must it be that frequent treaties prolong the strife?

Kind of interesting that she does draw the Du Fu comparison when he seems to have a similar poetic career to her, in historical terms

What does trust bright as the sun mean?

Baike's vernacular tl of that line reads like "His Majesty, a master brilliant as the sun", with 'brilliant master' being a specific term used to flatter the emperor.

夜發嚴灘

巨艦只緣因利往
扁舟亦是為名來。
往來有愧先生德
特地通宵過釣臺。

Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids

Large merchant barges go forth in search of profit,
small boats drift by in a quest for worldly fame.
Coming and going, all are humbled by this gentleman’s example,
they deliberately pass close by his Fishing Pier all night long.

[see footnote: TYPOGRAPHICAL ERROR, footnote 1.13 pertains to these small boats and not 1.13]

Man, they could really stand to have copy edited this.

Why would you set out at NIGHT from rapids? I guess maybe if they’re really pressed by the potential invasion? But then everyone does it—can that be safe?

“small boats drift by in a quest for worldly fame” any reason they’re small? If you say small boats to me, I think fishing boats. [discussed in footnote to 1.13]

What footnote do you mean? I see the Yan Rapids one, but the 1.13 The Tower of Eight Odes seems correct?

No Baike entry for this one (unless I'm missing it)

“1.13
l. 4: One original touch in Li Qingzhao’s poem is that she expands the contrast with the recluse to include not only those still in officialdom (who ride the small boats in line two, on their way to new provincial assignments) to include merchants as well. At least one modern commentator (Wang Yingzhi) finds irony in Li Qingzhao’s poem, suggesting she intends to remind us that reclusion is not a respectable choice during times of dynastic crisis, and that those literati who clung to the traditional respect for recluses like Yan Ziling were misguided.”

^this bit about small boats

Ohhh I missed all the endnotes!

The Works of Li Qingzhao, poems 1.6 to 1.12

1.6 曉夢 Dawn Dream

Re: 1.6 曉夢 Dawn Dream

Re: 1.6 曉夢 Dawn Dream

1.7 咏史 On History

Re: 1.7 咏史 On History

Re: 1.7 咏史 On History

1.8 偶成 Written on Impulse

Re: 1.8 偶成 Written on Impulse

Re: 1.8 偶成 Written on Impulse

1.9 烏江 Wu River

Re: 1.9 烏江 Wu River

Re: 1.9 烏江 Wu River

1.10 上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (一) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Bureau I

Re: 1.10 上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (一) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Burea

Re: 1.10 上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (一) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Burea

10.11上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (二) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Bureau II

Re: 10.11上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (二) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Burea

Re: 10.11上樞密韓公工部尚書胡公 (二) Presented to Lord Han of the Military Affairs Burea

1.12 夜發嚴灘 Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids

Re: 1.12 夜發嚴灘 Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids

Re: 1.12 夜發嚴灘 Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids

Re: 1.12 夜發嚴灘 Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids

Re: 1.12 夜發嚴灘 Setting Out at Night from Yan Rapids