A Farewell Toast to the Spring Season 南乡子. 集句

A Farewell Toast to the Spring Season

(a poem with borrowed verses)

--to the tune of Nanxiangzi

Chinese original: Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Zizhan', art name 'Dongpo')

English translation & annotation: Julia Min (Feb. 2025)

A farewell toast to the spring season,

An ancient grief on fallen crimsons. 

In a poor sap invisible on the margin,

A heart drains away, not to mention

the sorrows coupled at a Chu town

by a tune chasing on the flute and Qin!

On the Homeview stage, all music ends.

The vibe lingers, stirring homesick longing.

For an outcast forgotten, not yet pardoned,

The view is more evident in the distance;

Every inch of his burning expectation

Has now turned into cold ash of incense..

from Bilibili (哔哩哔哩）

For appreciation:

This poem reveals Dongpo's despairing moments as an outcast in Huangzhou. The longer he stayed here, the less hope he felt of being called back to the Court. The first stanza concerns his career, while the second stanza concerns his family's return to his hometown.

A unique way of intellectual entertainment at social gatherings in the Song Dynasty where a gentleman composed a poem with each line borrowed from a famous verse in history. It requires a good memory of many poems before you can spontaneously retailer them into a new poem serving a new theme. It is a very sophisticated effort that can be more difficult than creating a new piece in your own words.  Every line in this poem was borrowed except two linking words in the 1st stanza and two in the 2nd. The reader is tricked over familiar lines, but the rich association feels cleverly intertwined for a good laugh.

The original lines came from eight poems by famous Tang Dynasty poets: Du Mu, Du Fu, Xu Hui, and Li Shangyin.

南乡子. 集句

原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋）

怅望送春怀，渐老逢春能几回？花落楚城愁远别，伤怀 ；何况清丝急管吹！

吟断望乡台，万里归心独上来。景物登临闲时见，徘徊；一寸相思一寸灰！

reference:

1.baike.baidu.com