Shi Jing, The Book of Odes: Lessons from the States, Odes of Qi

[x_los]

 Some notes:

* Every week I search the poems' English results to see if I can find any scholarship or neat bits and pop the results in Resources. Here is this week's collection. 

* I believe the reminder emails have stopped, so I'll seek a new service to run that. I forgot to get to it this week--will make a note.

When the second batch of these is up and running, if you would like not to be on the list and there isn't an unsubscribe option in the email itself, please just respond 'unsubscribe' or something and I'll take you off the reminder roster.

* IF YOU HAVE FRIENDS WHO MIGHT LIKE TO JOIN or have other ideas, please let me know on this post.

* If you haven't read it yet, chapter one, on tetrasyllabic shi poetry, in How to Read Chinese Poetry is hugely useful for the Book of Odes, imo.

**NEXT BATCH FEB 8.**

Comments

100. 東方未明 - Dong Fang Wei Ming

[x_los]

東方未明、顛倒衣裳。
顛之倒之、自公召之。

Before the east was bright,
I was putting on my clothes upside down;
I was putting them on upside down,
And there was one from the court calling me.

東方未晞、顛倒裳衣。
倒之顛之、自公令之。

Before there was a streak of dawn in the east,
I was putting on my clothes upside down;
I was putting them on upside down,
And there was one from the court with orders for me.

折柳樊圃、狂夫瞿瞿。
不能辰夜、不夙則莫。

You fence your garden with branches of willow,
And the reckless fellows stand in awe.
He, [however], cannot fix the time of night;
If he be not too early, he is sure to be late.

Re: 100. 東方未明 - Dong Fang Wei Ming

[x_los]

What's the final section got to do with the straightforward 'called too early for work, fucking work' opener?

Re: 100. 東方未明 - Dong Fang Wei Ming

[x_los]

V

The Tung Fang Wei Ming; narrative and metaphorical. The irregularity and disorder of the court of Ch‘i; as seen especially in the time of giving the morning audience.

1I was putting my clothes on upside down,
Before the eastern sky was clear.
I was putting my clothes on upside down,
When a call to the court came here.

2I was putting my clothes on upside down,
Ere showed the east the rising flame.
I was putting my clothes on upside down,
When from the court an order came.

3On garden fence, made but of willow wands,
E’en reckless fellows look with fear.
Our prince can't tell the night from dawn;—
Too soon, or late, his calls appear!

https://www.sacred-texts.com/cfu/bop/bop103.htm

Re: 100. 東方未明 - Dong Fang Wei Ming

[superborb]

Baike: the reckless fellows means the foreman/overseer. One source says an egotistical, ignorant person. [Another source] says the husband is at home, returned from all night duty too late, the wife calls him a crazy husband; indicating this source believes the poem is from the pov of a married woman.