白居易 自問 (黑花滿眼絲滿頭) translation: Self Questioning, by Bai Juyi

This is a rough translation and annotation of the poem 自問 (黑花滿眼絲滿頭) Zì Wèn (Hēi Huā Mǎn Yǎn Sī Mǎn Tóu), ‘Self Questioning’, by the Tang Dynasty Chinese poet 白居易 (Bái Jūyì).

自問 Zì Wèn [self] [question] Self Questioning

黑花滿眼絲滿頭， hēi huā mǎn yǎn sī mǎn tóu [black] [flower] [fill] [eye] [silk] [fill] [head] Dark flowers fill the eyes, threads cover the head;

早衰因病病因愁。 zǎo shuāi yīn bìng bìng yīn chóu [early] [decline] [because] [illness] [illness] [because] [worry] Early decline due to illness, illness due to worry.

宦途氣味已諳盡， huàn tú qì wèi yǐ ān jìn [officialdom] [way] [air] [taste] [already] [versed in] [exhaust] The circumstances of an official career, one knows them well;

五十不休何日休。 wǔ shí bù xīu hé rì xīu [five] [ten] [no] [rest] [what] [day] [rest] Fifty without rest, on what day does one rest?

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• 自問 黑花滿眼絲滿頭 - WikiSource