水调歌头·明月几时有
丙辰中秋，欢饮达旦，大醉，作此篇。兼怀子由。
原作：【宋】苏轼
英译：戈登.奥赛茵、闵晓红
明月几时有，把酒问青天。
不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年？
我欲乘风归去，又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒。
起舞弄清影，何似在人间！
转朱阁，低绮户，照无眠。
不应有恨，何事长向别时圆？
人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全。
但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。
When was the moon ever so bright?
- to the tune of Shuidiaogetou
(written for the Moon Festival as well as for my brother Ziyou
in 1076 after my drinking through the night)
translated by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990)
revised by Julia Min (2022)
When was the moon ever so bright?
With a wine cup in hand，
I ask the black-blue Empyrean
What year is it in Heaven tonight?
And could I be taken there on the wind!
But I fear it must be icy cold being so high
in the riches of the jade moon's mansions.
To my shadow in the world of humans
instead, I'll dance a satire with wine,
finding some fun in the moonlight.
Shifting from the red pavilion, the full moon
threads through the crafted windows,
keeping me awake and I can’t complain.
Give up hating realities, my Brother;
The spell is ancient, beyond men seeking perfection.
The moon is fuller n brighter in one’s desolation.
What else but joys and sorrows, partings and reunions,
like the moon, clouded or brilliant, empty or brimming.
Now and always, peace to our hearts, we may
share the same far-away Goddess in the One Heaven.
（Other versions ( 许渊冲/林语堂)for your reference）
Analysis
This is a masterpiece written by Su Shi in Mizhou in 1076, a time of adversity for our poet as he held different views on the New Laws (proposed by Wang Anshi) which was approved and enacted. Feeling himself out of the Emperor’s favor, he asked to be sent away from the Royal Court to the post of Mizhou’s Mayor. His wife had left him and he hadn't seen his brother in seven years. Here his inclination is to wish himself into the legendary jade palace of the Goddess on the moon, of romantic art and beauty, and above all, a life of seclusion from the chaos of social life. Still, he is led to fear the cold perfections of her empire. After all, Su Shi is more a man of the world than a Daoist of fairy lands.
Notes:
1. “bing chen”: the year 1076.
2. Legend has it that there is a palace called Guang Han on the moon.
3. The Chinese believe three days in Heaven are equal to three years on Earth, so the dates on Heaven and Earth differ.
4. “Chanjuan” refers to the goddess Chang E, who is said to inhabit the moon palace.
Pinying and Word-For-Word Translation:
shuǐ diào gē tóu - to the tune of Shuidiaogetou
(bǐng chén zhōng qiū ，huān yǐn dá dàn ，dà zuì ，zuò cǐ piān 。jiān huái zǐ yóu ) - Bingchen year Mid-Autumn Festival, enjoy drinking to the next morning; heavily drunk, compose this ci, also miss Ziyou;
míng yuè jǐ shí yǒu - bright moon when have;
bǎ jiǔ wèn qīng tiān - hold a cup of wine and ask the dark-blue sky;
bú zhī tiān shàng gōng què - not know in Heaven Palace;
jīn xī shì hé nián - this evening is what year;
wǒ yù chéng fēng guī qù – I wish to fly on wind to return;
yòu kǒng qióng lóu yù yǔ - but afraid jade towers jade mansions;
gāo chù bú shèng hán - high place not bear the cold;
qǐ wǔ nòng qīng yǐng - start dancing, make fun with my shadows;
hé sì zài rén jiān - what like in human world;
zhuǎn zhū gé - the moon turns around red pavilion;
dī qǐ hù - lowers light into the crafted doors and windows;
zhào wú mián – so much light, no sleep;
bú yīng yǒu hèn – should not have hatred;
hé shì zhǎng xiàng bié shí yuan – why is it often full and bright when we are parted;
rén yǒu bēi huān lí hé – humans have sorrows joys departures reunions;
yuè yǒu yīn qíng yuán quē – the moon is cloudy clear wax or wane;
cǐ shì gǔ nán quán – such has been difficult for perfection since ancient times;
dàn yuàn rén zhǎng jiǔ – only wish we have each other for a long time;
qiān lǐ gòng chán juān -thousand li share Chanjuan;
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