青青陵上柏 translation - Green, Green, Cypress on the Mound

This is a translation of the poem 青青陵上柏 from 古詩十九首 (Nineteen Old Poems).

青青陵上柏 qīng qīng líng shàng bǎi [green] [green] [mound] [on] [cypress] Green is the cypress on the mound,

磊磊澗中石 lěi lěi jiàn zhōng shí [rock pile] [rock pile] [stream] [in] [stone] heaped are the stones in the stream.

人生天地間 rén shēng tiān dì jiān [man] [live] [Heaven] [Earth] [between] Man lives between Heaven and Earth,

忽如遠行客 hū rú yuǎn xíng kè [suddenly] [like] [far] [travel] [guest] suddenly like a guest travelling from afar.

斗酒相娛樂 dǒu jiǔ xiāng yú lè [measure] [wine] [mutually] [amuse] [cheerful] Let us enjoy a measure of wine together;

聊厚不為薄 liáo hòu bù wéi báo [chat] [generous] [not] [be] [thin] our friendship is rife, let it not be sparse.

驅車策怒馬 qū chē cè nù mǎ [urge] [chariot] [control] [stubborn] [horse] Yoke the chariot and whip the stubborn horses,

遊戲宛與洛 yóu xì wǎn yǔ luò [roam] [play] [_Wan_] [and] [_Luo_] travelling to to have fun in Wan and Luo.

洛中何鬱鬱 luò zhōng hé yùyù [_Luo_] [in] [how] [dense] [dense] How full of life it is in Luoyang;

冠帶自相索 guān dài zì xiāng suǒ [hat] [lead] [each other][] [search] officials rush around together,

長衢羅夾巷 zhǎng qú luó jiā xiàng [long] [street] [gauze] [intersperse] [alley] long boulevards intertwine with narrow alleys,

王候多第宅 wáng hou duō dì zhái [royal] [noble] [many] [count] [residence] the mansions of aristocrats are many,

兩宮遙相望 liǎng gōng yáo xiāng wàng [two] [palace] [far away] [each other gaze] and the two royal palaces gaze at each other from afar.

雙闕百餘尺 shuāng què bǎi yú chǐ [pair] [tower] [hundred] [excess] [foot] The pair of towers in excess of a hundred feet high.

極宴娛心意 jí yàn yú xīn yì [utmost] [feast] [amuse] [heart] [intention] let us delight in the pleasures of our hearts.

戚戚何所迫 qi qi hé suǒ pò [sorrowful] [sorrowful] [what] [that which is] [force] As for gloominess - what could make us unhappy?

青青陵上柏 from the Nineteen Old Poems (Han dynasty 207BCE – 220CE)