楊萬里 皂角林 translation: Honey Locust Forest, by Yang Wanli

This is a very rough annotation / translation of the poem 皂角林 (Zàojiǎo Lín), ‘Honey Locust Forest’, by the Song Dynasty Chinese poet 楊萬里 (Yáng Wànlǐ).

This is completely my guesswork, and could be way off the actual meaning of this poem. If you have any suggestions, please share them in the comments at the end of the page.

皂角林 Zàojiǎo Lín [honey locust][] [forest] Honey Locust Forest

水漾霜風冷客襟， Shuǐ yàng shuāng fēng lěng kè jīn, [water] [ripple] [frost] [wind] [cold] [guest] [bosom] Water ripples in the frosty wind, chilling this traveller's bosom;

苔封戰骨動人心。 tái fēng zhàn gǔ dòng rénxīn. [moss] [cover] [war] [bone] [move] [person] [heart] moss covers the bones of a battle, moving one's heart.

河邊獨樹知何木， Hé biān dú shù zhī hé mù, [river] [side] [lone] [tree] [know] [what] [wood] By the riverside, a lone tree - one knows what wood it is;

今古相傅皂角林。 jīn gǔ xiāng fù zàojiǎo lín. [today] [old] [it] [???] [honey locust][] [forest] Now as in the past, one comes to Honey Locust Forest. *[???]*

If you have any suggestions, please share them in the comments below.