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Classical Chinese

歐陽脩 畫船載酒西湖好 translation: A Painted Boat Carrying Wine, by Ouyang Xiu (采桑子)

This is a very rough translation and annotation of the poem 畫船載酒西湖好 (Huà Chuán Zài Jiǔ Xīhú Hǎo), ‘A Painted Boat Carrying Wine, West Lake is Good’, by the Song Dynasty Chinese poet 歐陽脩 (Oūyáng Xiū). This poem is part of the series 采桑子 (Cǎi Sāngzi) - ‘Picking Mulberries’.

Stump and Reflected Clouds

采桑子

Cǎi Sāngzi [pick] [mulberry][] Picking Mulberries

畫船載酒西湖好 Huà Chuán Zài Jiǔ Xīhú Hǎo [paint] [boat] [carry] [wine] [West] [Lake] [good] A Painted Boat Carrying Wine, West Lake is Good

畫船載酒西湖好, Huà chuán zài jiǔ xīhú hǎo, [paint] [boat] [carry] [wine] [West] [Lake] [good] A painted boat carrying Wine; West Lake is good;

急管繁弦, jí guǎn fán xián, [urgent] [pipe] [complex] [string] urgent woodwind and complex strings;

玉盞催傳, yù zhǎn cuī chuán, [jade] [cup] [hasten] [pass on] a jade cup is hastily passed on;

穩泛平波任醉眠。 wěn fàn píng bō rènzuìmián. [steady] [float] [calm] [wave] [allow] [drunk] [sleep] floating steadily on calm waves lets one drunkenly fall asleep.

行雲卻在行舟下, Xíng yún què zài xíng zhōu xià, [travel] [cloud] [yet] [at] [travel] [boat] [below] The travelling clouds are actually under the travelling boat;

空水澄鮮, kōng shuǐ chéng xiān, [empty] [water] clear] [fresh] the empty water is clear and fresh;

俯仰留連, fǔyǎng liúlián, [lower] [raise] [leave] [link] looking down and looking up, one lingers on;

疑是湖中別有天。 yí shì hú zhōng bié yǒu tiān. [suspect] [this] [lake] [in] [other] [have] [Heaven] one believes in this lake there is another Heaven.

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