'李白 夢遊天姥吟留別 translation: A Departing Song of Travelling to Tianmu in a Dream, by Li Bai'
This is a very rough annotation / translation of the poem 夢遊天姥吟留別 (Mèngyóu Tiānmǔ Yín Liúbié), ‘A Departing Song of Travelling to Tianmu in a Dream’, by the Tang Dynasty Chinese poet 李白 (Lǐ Bái).
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夢遊天姥吟留別 Mèngyóu Tiānmǔ Yín Liúbié [dream] [roam] [Tian] [Mu] [hum] [leave behind] [depart] A Departing Song of Travelling to Tianmu in a Dream
海客談瀛洲， Hǎi kè tán Yíngzhōu, [sea] [traveller] [speak] [Ying] [Zhou] Ocean travellers talk of Yingzhou,
煙濤微茫信難求； yān tāo wēimáng xìn nán qiú; [smoke] [wave] [profound] [hazy] [trust] [hard] [seek] yet its mist and waves are hazy - belief in it is hard to find;
越人語天姥， Yuè rén yǔ Tiānmǔ, [Yue] [person] [speech] [Tian] [Mu] The people of Yue speak of Tianmu;
雲霓明滅或可覩。 yún ní míng miè huò kě dǔ. [cloud] [rainbow] [bright] [extinguish] [or] [can] [see] its red clouds in bright light or darkness might be seen.
天姥連天向天橫， Tiānmǔ lián tiān xiàng tiān héng, [Tian] [Mu] [link] [sky] [towards] [sky] [across] Tianmu pierces the sky and stretches to the horizon,
勢拔五嶽掩赤城； shì bá Wǔ Yuè yǎn chìchéng; [power] [surpass] [five] [peak] [cover] [Chi] [Cheng] its power surpasses the Five Peaks and eclipses Chicheng Mountain.
天臺四萬八千丈， tiāntái sì wàn bāqiān zhàng, [Tian] [Tai] [four] [ten thousand] [eight] [thousand] [ten feet] Tiantai mountain is forty-eight thousand _zhang_ high,
對此欲倒東南傾。 duì cǐ yù dào dōngnán qīng. [face] [this] [want] [collapse] [east] [south] [collapse] yet compared to this it will collapse to the south-east.
我欲因之夢吳越， Wǒ yù yīn zhī mèng Wú Yuè, [I] [want] [because] [it] [dream] [Wu] [Yue] Because of this I wish to dream of Wu and Yue,
一夜飛渡鏡湖月。 yīyè fēi dù Jìnghú yuè. [one] [night] [fly] [cross] [mirror] [lake] [moon] and in one night fly over the moon in Mirror Lake.
湖月照我影， Hú yuè zhào wǒ yǐng, [lake] [moon] [shine] [my] [shadow] The moon in the lake illuminates my shadow,
送我至剡溪； sòng wǒ zhì Shàn xī; [send] [me] [to] [Shan] [creek] and sends me to the creeks of Shan;
謝公宿處今尚在， xiè gōng sù chù jīn shàng zài, [Xie] [master] [reside] [place] [today] [still] [at] Master Xie's residence is today still there,
淥水蕩漾清猿啼。 lù shuǐ dàngyàng qīng yuán tí. [clear] [water] [ripple] [ripple] [clear] [ape] [hoot] among clear water rippling, and the clear calls of apes.
腳著謝公屐， Jiǎo zhuó xiè gōng jī, [foot] [wear] [Xie] [master] [clogs] On one's feet one wears clogs like Master Xie;
身登青雲梯； shēn dēng qīngyún tī; [personally] [ascend] [blue] [cloud] [stair] one ascends the Blue Cloud Stair. (This is a standard metaphor for rising to an official position.)
半壁見海日， bànbì jiàn hǎi rì, [half] [wall] [see] [ocean] [sun] From halfway up the cliff one sees the ocean sunrise,
空中聞天雞。 kōngzhōng wén tiān jī. [empty] [in] [hear] [heaven] [rooster] and in the air hears heavenly roosters.
千巖萬壑路不定， Qiān yán wàn hè lù bùdìng, [thousand] [precipice] [ten thousand] [gully] [road] [not] [set] On a thousand precipices and in ten thousand valleys, the path is not clear;
迷花倚石忽已暝。 mí huā yǐ shí hū yǐ míng. [bewilder] [flower] [rely] [stone] [suddenly] [already] [dark] infatuated by flowers, one leans on a rock; suddenly it is dark.
熊咆龍吟殷巖泉， Xióng páo lóng yín yǐn yán quán, [bear] [roar] [dragon] [hum] [rumble] [precipice] [spring] Bears roar and dragons hum, rumbling over precipices and springs;
慄深林兮驚層巔。 lì shēnlín xī jīng céng diān. [trembling] [deep] [woods] [oh] [frighten] [layer] [summit] trembling, the deep forests; frightened, the layered summits.
雲青青兮欲雨， Yún qīngqīng xī yù yǔ, [cloud] [black] [black] [oh] [want] [rain] Clouds, blackest black, are going to rain;
水澹澹兮生煙。 shuǐ dàn dàn xī shēng yān. [water] [placid] [placid] [oh] [grow] [mist] from water most placid, mist rises.
列缺霹靂， Liè quē pīlì, [lightning][] [thunder] Thunder and lightning -
邱巒崩摧； qiū luán bēng cuī; [hill] [mountain range] [collapse] [destroy] hills and mountain ranges are shattered;
洞天石扇， dòngtiān shí shàn, [paradise][] [stone] [fan] the stone doors of paradise
訇然中開； hōng rán zhōng kāi; [crash] [-ly] [in] [open] open with a crash;
青冥浩蕩不見底， qīng míng hàodàng bù jiàn dǐ, [deep blue] [dark] [grand] [vast] [not] [see] [end] the dark blue sky is vast and mighty, one cannot see its end;
日月照耀金銀台。 rì yuè zhàoyào jīnyín tái. [sun] [moon] [shine] [brilliant] [gold] [silver] [platform] the sun and moon shine brilliantly on gold and silver terraces.
霓為衣兮風為馬， ní wèi yī xī fēng wéi mǎ, [rainbow] [as] [clothes] [oh] [wind] [as] [horse] A rainbow for clothes, wind for a horse,
雲之君兮紛紛而來下； yún zhī jūn xī fēnfēn ér lái xià; [cloud] ['s] [lord] [oh] [in succession] [and] [come] [down] the Cloud Immortals come down one after another;
虎鼓瑟兮鸞回車， hǔ gǔ sè xī luán huí chē, [tiger] [strike] [harp] [oh] [phoenix] [return] [chariot] a tiger strikes the harp, a phoenix rides a chariot;
仙之人兮列如麻。 xian zhī rén xī liè rú má. [immortal] ['s] [person] [oh] [line up] [like] [hemp] the immortals line up like hemp.
忽魂悸以魄動， Hū hún jì yǐ pò dòng, [suddenly] [spirit] [palpitate] [as] [soul] [move] Suddenly one's spirit palpitates and one's soul shakes;
怳驚起而長嗟！ huǎng jīng qǐ ér zhǎng jiē! [frighten] [startle] [rise] [and] [long] [gasp] startled one wakes and takes a deep breath!
惟覺時之枕席， Wéi jué shí zhī zhěnxí, [only] [awake] [time] ['s] [pillow] [mat] There is only the pillow and mat when I am awake;
失向來之煙霞。 shī xiànglái zhī yānxiá. [lose] [previously][] ['s] [mist] [red cloud] gone are the mist and red clouds from before.
世間行樂亦如此， Shìjiān xínglè yì rúcǐ, [earth][] [go] [pleasure] [likewise] [like] [this] All earthly pleasures are like this;
古來萬事東流水。 gǔlái wànshì dōng liúshuǐ. [ancient] [since] [myriad] [thing] [east] [flow] [water] since ancient times, the myriad things all like water flowing east.
別君去兮何時還？ Bié jūn qù xī héshí huán? [leave] [sir] [go] [oh] [what] [time] [return] One leaves you, sirs - when will one return?
且放白鹿青崖間， Qiě fàng bái lù qīng yá jiān, [for now] [put] [white] [deer] [green] [cliff] [among] For now put me among white deer in green valleys;
須行即騎訪名山； xū xíng jí qí fǎng míngshān; [must] [travel] [ride] [visit] [famous] [mountain] one must ride to visit famous mountains;
安能摧眉折腰事權貴， Ān néng cuī méi zhéyāo shì quánguì, [why] [let] [lower] [eyebrow] [bend] [waist] [thing] [authority] [noble] Why should I lower my face and bow for the influential and the rich,
使我不得開心顏？ shǐ wǒ bùdé kāixīn yán? [make] [me] [not] [get] [open] [heart] [countenance] and take away my joyous smile?
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