念奴娇.中秋 A Blissful Night on the Moon Festival

念奴娇.中秋

原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋）

英译及赏析: 闵晓红(2023)

凭高眺远，见长空万里，云无留迹。

桂魄飞来，光射处，冷浸一天秋碧。

玉宇琼楼，乘鸾来去，人在清凉国。

江山如画，望中烟树历历。

我醉拍手狂歌，举杯邀月，对影成三客。

起舞徘徊风露下，今夕不知何夕？

便欲乘风，幡然归去，何用骑鹏翼！

水晶宫里，一声吹断横笛。

A Blissful Night on the Moon Festival

-to the tune of Niannujiao

written by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo')

En. trans.+ annot. by Julia Min ( 2023)

This pavilion on the hill enjoys a splendid view:

The Moon, a serene company in a clear clime,

bathes the autumn world with refreshing light.

On the phoenix wings, the deities take flight

to gather in her honour at the Jade Palace high.

She’s at her best of the year, a fulfilled delight.

I almost spot the big laurel tree veiled in haze,

above the smooth river and the dreamy hillsides.

I start to sing to this tune, clapping to beat time.

And dance a twisted satire to a twisting shadow.

A toast to Goddess Luna! I hold my wine cup high,

It’s no solo but a trio, with Her Grace in the sky.

The tipsy mind feels no cold wind, no creeping frost,

asking the ageless moon: what year up there tonight?

Could I return to heaven riding the wind sans wings?

I’d play my flute to make the celestials dewy-eyed.

Notes:

1. on phoenix wings: Chinese legend holds that the deities travel on a phoenix in the Moon world.

2. Jade Palace: According to Chinese legend, the Moon is a crystal world. Many Chinese stories describe mansions on the Moon built of jade; the Chinese have always believed the calendar in Heaven differs from the one on Earth.

3. laurel tree: Again, from Chinese legend, there’s a huge bay laurel on the Moon; its symbolism is associated with purity, glory and success in both the East and the West.

4. the smooth river: refers here to the Yangtze River, the 2nd longest river in the world.

5. no solo but a trio: a sentimental scene borrowed from the famous Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai’s verse, as I translated, “I raised my cup high to the full moon for a toast. / It’s a reunion of Three including my shadow.” (李白“举杯邀明月,对影成三人。”)

6. what year up there: The Chinese have always believed the calendar in Heaven is different from the one on Earth, hence the question. A sense of humour is evident here, implying the big gap between these two worlds.

Appreciation:

Only a few years earlier, in 1076, Su Shi wrote what was considered the best poem for the Moon Festival – “When was the Moon ever so Bright”《水调歌头.明月几时有》. It was a moment of loneliness after his wife’s death and the absence of a family reunion with his brother Ziyou for the past seven years. Although there was a touch of longing to leave the hustle and bustle of his official world, away from his social and political attachments, he was led to believe that earthly joy was much cosier than the cold life of Heaven. Back then, a thread of hope for earthly happiness still ran through his grief.

Now, in this poem, his new chapter is painted with a near-death experience of 3-month imprisonment after a political setup by his opponent, followed by an exile life in the remote town of Huangzhou. He didn’t know then that this was just the first of three banishments meant to marginalise him and his followers from the dominant political circle. This year, 1082, saw him with his 2nd wife and kids in Huangzhou, where they had to farm to have food on the table, but at least he was with his family on the Moon Festival, a time of family reunion. The utter loneliness and melancholy clearly came out of his disappointment with the New Law, which brought more hazards for the country, and he didn’t get a chance to do anything about it.

His mind was led by imagery of life in Heaven, with little said about life on Earth compared with his previous poem for the Festival. The connotation is to completely let go of his worldly attachments and fly to an ever-widening world of Heaven, the jade palace of the Moon, and tell the celestials about his stories on Earth. The poem culminates in a surge of transcendent release—the fantasy of riding the wind without wings, of playing a flute note that would move the crystal world to tears. It is a powerful open ending: not a resolution, but an emotional wave suspended at its peak, leaving the reader’s heart suspended with it. Dramatic, romantic and inspiring……

Reference:

1. baike.baidu.com 百度

2. pictures from Google

3. other versions for your reference：

https://y.qq.com/n/ryqq/mv/000IRvEY2jlLMH

喜马拉雅 https://m.ximalaya.com/waiyu/32890715/261743329