'蘇軾 月夜與客飲酒杏花下 translation: On a Moonlit Night Drinking Wine with a Guest Below the Apricot Blossoms, by Su Shi'

This is a very rough translation and annotation of the poem 月夜與客飲酒杏花下 (Yuèyè Yǔ Kè Yǐnjiǔ Xìnghuā Xià), ‘Presented as a Gift to Di Chongban’s Youngest Son’, by the Song Dynasty Chinese poet 蘇軾 (Sū Shì).

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月夜與客飲酒杏花下 Yuèyè Yǔ Kè Yǐnjiǔ Xìnghuā Xià [moon] [night] [guest] [drink] [wine] [apricot] [flower] [below] On a Moonlit Night Drinking Wine with a Guest Below the Apricot Blossoms

杏花飛簾散馀春， Xìng huā fēi lián sàn yú chūn, [apricot] [flower] [fly] [curtain] [come loose] [remain] [spring] The apricot blossom flies on to the curtain, scattering the remains of spring;

明月入戶尋幽人。 míngyuè rù hù xún yōu rén. [bright] [moon] [enter] [door] [seek] [remote] [person] bright moonlight enters through the door, seeking one who has left.

褰衣步月踏花影， Qiān yī bù yuè tà huā yǐng, [lift clothes] [clothes] [step] [moon] [step on] [flower] [shadow] One lifts one's clothes to stroll under the moon, stepping in the shadow of the blossom;

炯如流水涵青蘋。 jiǒng rú liúshuǐ hán qīng píng. [bright] [like] [flow] [water] [contain] [green] [fern] the light is like flowing water containing green duckweed.

花間置酒清香發， Huā jiān zhì jiǔ qīngxiāng fā, [flower] [between] [place] [wine] [clear] [fragrant] [emit] Amongst the blossom one places one's wine, a clear fragrance spreads;

爭挽長條落香雪。 zhēng wǎn cháng tiáo luò xiāng xuě. [strive] [pull] [long] [strip] [fall] [fragrant] [snow] one strives to pull down a long branch, and the blossom falls like fragrant snow.

山城薄酒​​不堪飲， Shānchéng bójiǔ​​ bùkān yǐn, [mountain] [city wall] [thin] [wine] [not] [bear] [drink] One cannot bear to drink the weak wine from the mountain villages,

勸君且吸杯中月。 quàn jūn qiě xī bēi zhōng yuè. [urge] [lord] [further] [drink] [cup] [in] [moon] I urge you, sir, to drink another cup in the moonlight.

洞簫聲斷月明中， Dòngxiāo shēng duàn yuè míng zhōng, [hole] [flute] [sound] [break] [moon] [bright] [in] The sound of the hollow flute stops in the moonlight;

惟憂月落酒杯空。 wéi yōu yuè luò jiǔbēi kōng. [only] [concern] [moon] [drop] [wine] [cup] [empty] one only worries that the moon will set or one's cup will be empty.

明朝卷地春風惡， Míng cháo juǎn de chūnfēng è, [bright] [morning] [sweep] [earth] [spring] [wind] [vicious] In the bright morning they sweep the ground - the spring winds are vicious;

但見綠葉棲殘紅。 dàn jiàn lǜ yè qī cán hóng. [only] [see] [green] [leaf] [dwell] [remaining] [red] one only sees the green leaves and remaining patches of red.

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