东栏梨花（和孔密州五绝之一） 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版修改及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 梨花淡白柳深青， 柳絮飞时花满城。 惆怅东栏一株雪， 人生看得几清明！ The Blooming Pear Tree by East Fence -an echo poem to one of Kong Mizhou’s five poems Chinese original by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ annot. by Julia Min (2023) Snow white are the blossoming pears, And liquid are the willows’ dark green. The catkins are floating like snowing; The town’s glowing with vibrant spring. At the east fence I find a lonely man, By a lonely tree like pure snow, sighing: How few are such a view of Qingming! How few can really see life’s meaning! Appreciation: Su Shi wrote this short poem in 1077 at the age of 41 in Suzhou. It’s a good example of the popular poetic form called ‘one stanza poem in 7-character’. Like Housman’s “Loveliest of Trees”, Su Shi’s poem on pear blossoms strain the heart to breaking with the beauty of a vibrant spring, and the certainty of winter and of our aging. The elegance of this poem is the manner in which it moves from scenic clarity through the fusing of sensation and emotion to the final line, a pure lyrical expression. Adding more melancholy to the vibes is the mind reaction of the Chinese readers as the pear blossoms and the flying catkins in China represent separation between loved ones, a sense of loss and loneliness. You may find many Chinese poems use the flowers for the sentimental theme, which in turn has had an impact on all artistic works. And they shed flowers during Qingming Festival, a time of mourning over the departed friends and relatives. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min, and Huang Haipeng, published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“The Blossoming Pear by the East Fence” – “ Snow-white the blossoming pears and liquid the willow’s green./the catkins are snowing; the town glows with spring./I find myself, sadly, at the east fence by the one snowy tree/ That teaches how few in a lifetime Qing Mings there’ll be.” 2. “Loveliest of Trees” by A.E. Housman (1859 –1936): “Loveliest of trees, the cherry now/Is hung with bloom along the bough,/And stands about the woodland ride/Wearing white for Eastertide.//Now, of my threescore years and ten,/Twenty will not come again,/And take from seventy springs a score,/It only leaves me fifty more.//And since to look at things in bloom/Fifty springs are little room,/About the woodlands I will go/To see the cherry hung with snow.” 2. picture from Google

赠刘景文 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版修改及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 荷尽已无擎雨盖， 菊残犹有傲霜枝。 一年好景君须记， 最是橙黄橘绿时。 To Liu Jingwen Chinese original by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ analysis by Julia Min (2023) It’s a new winter when the lotus shed no rain; - Fading chrysanths still stand braving the frosty wind. Let ur eye go: just nearby draws a year’s best scene, Where oranges are golden, and tangerines green. Appreciation: This poem was written in Hangzhou in 1090 by our 55- year-old poet for his stressed friend Liu Jingwen who was 58 years old then. It was said Su Shi appreciated his talent and moral qualities, so he highly recommended him to the Royal Court. It could be Jingwen’s old age that he only got a minor promotion. And he died just two years later with his life dream unfulfilled, a rather sad ending of a loyal family with his father died as a famous general who fought the Huns in the west borders and all his other siblings gone before him. The landscape, represented here with the withered flowers and the trees laden with fruits, could be right there and then in front of the two friends, or more, while they were catching up at a pavilion by a pond, a meeting with food and drinks served and enriched with poems, paintings, and music, as being often the case with social gathering in the Song’s gentry class. The symbolic message is clearly revealed by carefully choosing lotus and Chrysanthemum which suggest purity, courage and noble spirit, while oranges and tangerines are often associated with good luck and prosperity. We can feel the poet’s optimistic vibes towards the ups and downs in life and his efforts to inspire his friend through hard times, encouraging him to maintain his pure and noble spirit like lotus and chrysanthemum. The gist of the poem connotes a deeper philosophical understanding that by changing your perspective, you may dramatically find a positive outlook even at a most stressful time. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min, and Huang Haipeng, published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“To Liu Jingwen”—“It’s new winter and the lotus sheds no rains; / Chrysanthemum brave the frost with withered blooms./So much the nearer draws another perfect scene,/Where oranges are yellow and the tangerine are green.”) 2. picture from Google

江上看山 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版修改及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 船上看山如走马，倏忽过去数百群： 前山槎牙忽变态，后岭杂沓如惊奔。 仰看微径斜缭绕，上有行人高飘渺。 舟中举手欲与言，孤帆南去如飞鸟。 Looking at Mountains from the River Boat Chinese original by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ analysis by Julia Min (2023) From our boat the mountains run like horses, Galloping past, by hundreds, on both shores. Ahead, they change forms in all directions; Behind, they herd wildly towards heavens. The paths and trails mark a maze of webbing, Where the travellers in the mist are drifting. I try to wave, to make myself understood, But I’m off southward like a bird on high wind. Appreciation: It was a time of success. It was a time of loss. In 1057, Su Shi actually came out first in the Imperial Examination at a young age of 21, an immediate success well-known throughout the country. His younger brother Su Zhe (aged 19) was on the top list as well. Emperor Renzong had an exceptional favour for the two brothers, ready to offer them good posts in the Royal Court. As if things went too well for them, they received the sad news of their mother’s death in April. The recognized morale etiquettes and rules since the Han Dynasty require every gentleman to stay close to the parent’s tomb, finishing a mourning period of 27 months, during which no wedding, no official commitment, and no entertainment allowed. This tradition was very strict in the Song, later fading away in the Ming and Qing. So we have very little record of the Su family for this period, at Meizhou in Sichuan mountains, till July 1059 when the two brothers all moved to the Capital with their father. This poem was written on their boat down the Yangtse leaving their hometown, believed then, at the source of the river towards the capital Kaifeng in the northeast. The well-known scenery is in the rough, upper reaches along the Wu Mountain ranges where many poems had been written before him. There’s a famous one by Li Bai with verses: “The cries of the monkeys linger behind while the boat flies past a thousand mountains.”(两岸猿声啼不住，轻舟已过万重山). Su Shi’s lines borrow not only the sense of a flying boat passed thousands of mountains, he also has a remarkable touch in creating a misplaced illusion of mountains in fast motion and humans drifting when your very self is of a seemingly static position in the comfort of a boat on the river. Such perspective of a peculiar interchanging illusion of the dynamic and static, the evolving of ying and yang appear a few more times in his later works with deeper philosophical understanding -- Life could be just a dream but you don’t know cos your very self is in it. For example his poem “Inscribed on a wall of Xilin Temple” (《题西林壁》)concludes with a couplet that goes: “How can you hope to view Mt. Lu from every side/When your body is dwelling in her very eye?”. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min, and Huang Haipeng, published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“Looking at the Mountains from the River” – “From my little boat the mountains run like horses, /Pass by hundreds of head at a time./Ahead they change in all aspects continuously;/ Behind they herd wildly against the heavens./Suddenly on the path turning and slanting on the mountain,/I see travellers floating in high mists;/I try to wave, to make myself understood, saying good-bye,/But I’m off helplessly southward, myself a wild wing. ”) 2. baike.baidu.com 3. picture from Google

满庭芳 . 蜗角虚名 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 英译: 闵晓红(2023.12) 蜗角虚名，蝇头微利，算来著甚干忙。 事皆前定，谁弱又谁强。 且趁闲身未老，尽放我、些子疏狂。 百年里，浑教是醉，三万六千场。 思量，能几许？忧愁风雨，一半相妨。 又何须抵死，说短论长。 幸对清风皓月，苔茵展、云幕高张。 江南好，千钟美酒，一曲满庭芳。 Why this Hustle and Bustle for a Bubble Fame --to the musical tune of “Vibrant Garden” Chinese original: Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') English translation: Julia Min (Dec. 2023) Why this hustle and bustle for a bubble fame That’s mighty like a fly’s eyes, tiny as snail’s brain? Your fate had been already set before you came. Why are you still so obsessed with loss or success? For a life span of one hundred years, if I may, I’d set free this soul, let it be, breezy and gay, With thirty six thousand rounds of nice wines, and thirty six thousand nights of sweet dreams. Just think again, list out all the good, and bad days, You’ll find half shadowed in sorrow, in wind and rain. It’s such a wonderful place at River South here, So why should I spend my life to complain for pain? I’d party with friends at the moss lawn with flowers, Gleaming moon as the light, white clouds as the cover. Together we’d share countless cups of fine drinks. Together we’d sing to the tune the Vibrant Garden. Notes: 1. ‘A life span of one hundred years’: Chinese people believed that a standard life span is one hundred years, and an age over 80 is already regarded as a good ending, or in another way of saying it, a reward for a blessed person. 2. ‘River South’: here it refers to Hangzhou; Appreciation: It is unknown what year Su Shi composed this poem. It could either be around 1073 or around 1089 when he was governor of Hangzhou. Judging from the deep philosophical understanding about fame and fate, critics concluded that it could be likely the latter when he had experienced the banishment to Huangzhou, the series of promotion up to the post of Secretary General to the Emperor, and taking a post away from the Royal Court. A remarkable feature here is the structure and style. It’s like an critical essay tapped into the form of a poem. Poems generally usher you in via a scene or some introductory description before the theme subject, but this one points to the topic right from the first line, a rather unusual arrangement, which triggers my wild guess that it could be an immediate reaction towards another poem, or essay, or a story. The chemistry colours dramatically from being cynical on a society that’s just hunting for power and money to a transcended mind state of spiritual freedom. The message under the line refers to the fierce cold war going on between the old party he was leading, and the new party that was implementing the New Law. The sharp tone reads like the style in the essays by his father Su Xun. And the subject reminds me of Shakespeare’s sonnet “Life’s a Stage”. It was well received right in the gentlemen’s society, often recited during an intellectual gathering, and also embraced by Daoists and Buddists alike who seek awakening from the social attachments. It was carved in stones in many places in China too. Some idioms have been derived from this poem enriching the Chinese dictionary. Reference: 1. baike.baidu.com 2. picture from Google

百步洪 (王定国访余于彭城，一日，棹小舟与颜长道携盼、英、卿三子，游泗水，北上圣女山，南下百步洪，吹笛饮酒，乘月而归。余时以事不得往，夜著羽衣，伫立于黄楼上，相视而笑。以为李太白死，世间无此乐三百余年矣。定国既去逾月，复与参寥师放舟洪下，追怀曩游，以为陈迹，岿然而叹。故作二诗，一以遗参寥，一以寄定国，且示颜长道、舒尧文邀同赋云。) 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 长洪斗落生跳波，轻舟南下如投梭， 水师绝叫凫雁起，乱石一线争搓磨。 有如兔走鹰隼落，骏马下注千丈坡。 断弦离柱箭脱手，飞电过隙珠翻荷。 四山眩转风掠耳，但见流沫生千涡。 险中得乐虽一快，何异水伯夸秋河。 我生乘化日夜逝，坐觉一念愈新罗。 纷纷争夺醉梦里，岂信荆棘埋铜驼。 觉来俯仰失千劫，回视此水殊委蛇。 君看岸边苍石上，古来篙眼如蜂窠。 但应此心无所住，造物虽驶如吾何。 回船上马各归去，多言饶饶师所呵。 The 100-Step River Rapids’ Ride written by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ annot. by Julia Min (2023) (Background：My friend Wang Dingguo visited me here in Peng City, Xuzhou. As I was tied up with work, I arranged him a trip to the 100-Step Rapids Ride accompanied by Yan Changdao, together with three courtesans (Pan, Ying and Qing) for entertainment. Taking a boat in River Si they first paid homage to Mount Saint in the north and sailed down to the rapids for the thrilling joy, a happy day of flute music and wine drinking till returning in the moonlight. Standing in a light robe for the evening, I greeted them on the Yellow Pavilion, embracing their happy moments with more drinks. It seemed such a free and pure joy just like Li Bai’s spirit that has been missed for over 300 years, and how could I have missed it! With Dingguo gone for a month now, the yearning grows untamed in me, so I invited my monk friend Can Liao for the Rapids Ride. What an experience! Here’s the outcome -- two poems, one for Can Liao, and one sent to Dingguo. Also, I shared with other friends Yan Changdao, Shu Raowen for their comments.) The river suddenly rushed down between steep rocks, A small boat, like a shuttle in a loom, dashed through,- Like a falcon diving for the rabbit that breaks off, Like a stallion galloping down a stony slope， Like a string snapped on the qin, lightning in a bottle, Like waterdrops rolled off lotus, the flight of an arrow. Her crew cried out orders as wild geese took wing. To the south they zig-zagged, leaping down the stream， The surrounding hills spinning, ears filled with wind Till the rapids’ end, whirlpools of white foam swirling. The thrill of danger was pure joy, the swifter the better, But, it’s just like River Lord exulting in his river. My own life is swept away with nights and days. A flash thought may get me to a place far away. We squeeze for fame in a big sea of drunken dreams. A palace can end in thistles and thorns, who’d foresee? Many lifetimes seem like whirlpools till awakening, - A narrow escape, if blessed, from frenzy to easy stream. You can see both banks lined with dark green stones Riddled, like a honeycomb, with many punting holes. I’d free this self from an earthly being to a beingless, To outwit the Creator’s design to navigate mankind. We’d better stop for the shore, each to his own horse. My monk friend Master Can won’t stand my blabby talk. Notes: 1.‘the qin’: a Chinese musical instrument with 7 strings, very popular in the Song dynasty. In fact it was a must for the gentlemen’s society. Yes, it was played by men as music and art were considered as two main qualities in a gentleman’s taste for life. 2.‘River Lord’: referring to the book Rivers in Autumn by the Daoist saint figure Zhuang Zi, a story about the Lord of Yellow River who was very proud of His destructive power when his river was flooded in Autumn, until he reached the sea where he realized his river was nothing compared with the broad sea. The implication here is associated with our limited senses as humans in a short lifetime, like a frog at the bottom of a well, not being able to see beyond the bigger picture of mankind and of the universe. 3.‘flash thought’: or ‘a flash of thought’, as against this physical body of this life, an invisible thought can travel far and wide, and much quicker than the rapids. 4.‘being…beingless’: same implication as above, a free soul detached from the physical world, the earthly joy and glory, to become an awakened spirit. Appreciation: Have you ever tried rafting down a river rapids for the thrilling joy? If yes, any hindsight gained about life and death? The 100-Step Rapids Ride was a popular tourist destination in the southeast of Peng City. If every experience in this world is meant for us to learn and grow, then perhaps, no one has gained a better insight into life than Su Shi in a rafting ride. This poem was written in 1078 when Su Shi was the governor of Xuzhou. We all know the philosophy of Daoism has painted his life like the yellow colour in the great artist Van Gogh’s works, a feeling closer to nature, a cosy oyster cove. The conflicting ideas between the returning to the mountains and the pursuit of glory has been a lifelong battle for Su Shi, a theme throughout his artistic works. Actually he is just an example of many, ancient and modern, like the everlasting conflict between physical pursuit and spiritual aspiration, being in play every day. This world of Earth is perhaps, as some say, a school to help us transcend from physical to spiritual, so the presence of the duality was born, in the Creator’s work, as the essence of every phenomenon. The theme reminds me of another poem by Su Shi “To Zhang Woquan, at the Bracing Pavilion of Huangzhou”(《水调歌头 黄州快哉亭赠张偓佺》), which was written just a couple of years later. Again, the poem is structured with a shift from the scene to his theme, with the first stanza on what he experienced followed by what he thought in the 2nd stanza. The rapids ride was highlighted with his wild imagination as in a stream of consciousness jumping from a falcon over a rabbit to lightning in a bottle. Vivid pictures flashed one after another responding with the chasing pace of the leaping boat – a clever arrangement for a stronger artistic play on the heartbeats of the readership. Another feature is the Zen humour on quietude sensed in the concluding couplet about Master Can Liao, a poet and essayist among many of his Daoist monk friends. There’s a whole chapter about Can Liao visiting him at Huangzhou followed by interesting and touching stories that I’d share at another time. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min and Huang Haipeng，published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (““Baibuhong” --The great river falls suddenly to a tumult of waters,/ Southward a light boat flies, hurled like a shuttle, / Her crew crying out orders and excitements, the wild ducks rising,/ Scarcely missing the rocks scattered everywhere in their flying./ Like a rabbit breaks when the falcon dives for him,/ Like a stallion gallops down into a boundless valley,/ Like a string snapped on a qin, like an arrow shot from the hand,/ Like lightning they zig-zag, they drop, like a pearl off a lotus. / Between four walls of mountains they spin with wind-filled ears,/ Seeing nothing but swirling foam and countless whirlpools;/ But the danger is pure joy to them, the swifter the better./ What difference is it if the Autumn God exults in his river?// My own life is swept away with nights and days disappearing;/ I see now one thought may end in a far-away land./ We strain and squeeze for fame and power in a drunken dream,/ Who don’t foresee thorns and thistles will bury the palace doors./ When they wake up, they’ll have lost a thousand years./ Behind me here the river has never ceased winding./ You can see both banks lined with dark green stones/ Riddled with punting holes from way back, honeycombed./ Out there somewhere’s “the crowd”; why should I worry about changes?/ Did the creator, who sails the whole thing, aim my heart?/ Let’s leave the boat to her fate and return to the horses;/ My monk-friend won’t stand for long lessons on which world is home. ”) 2. picture from 无犀之谈 via Google；

渔家傲 原作：李清照 （宋） 旧版英译：戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏 新版修改：闵晓红 雪里已知春信至， 寒梅点缀琼枝腻。 香脸半开娇旖旎， 当庭际， 玉人浴出新妆洗。 造化可能偏有意， 故教明月玲珑地。 共赏金尊沈绿蚁， 莫辞醉， 此花不与群花比。 In the snowy yard the Spring messenger arrived --to the tune of Yujia’ao 1st edition of trans. by Gordon Osing and Julia Min 2nd edition with revision by Julia Min In the snowy yard the Spring messenger arrived: There, fresh from bath, mirrors a jade fairy being. Her sleeky plum boughs are sprouting, blossoming,- so delicate, lips opening, a sweetness personified. Her, the Creator must favour above all her like, so let the vivid moon shine the brightest tonight. Let’s fill our golden cups, all with the new wine. A toast to this unusual beauty, till morning light. For appreciation: Scholars associate the exuberance of this ci with the earlier phase of Li Qingzhao's life, before she and her kind began fleeing to the south from the sudden foreign encroachments. Western readers would do well to imagine the absolute unity she pictured, between the plum blossoms in the snowy yard, the moon and herself, and her beautiful eloquence on the plum blossoms. The flower has been a symbol of the desired qualities valued in the Chinese culture -- the brave, proud, and enduring spirit. her kind began fleeing from foreign encroachments. Western readers would do well to imagine the absolute unity she pictured, between the snowy yard, the moon, herself, and, of course, the special, beautiful eloquence on the plum blossoms – a symbol of the brave, the proud, the enduring, the noble and the traditional qualities of a gentleman/gentlewoman in China still today. Notes: 1. "the Spring messenger": the plum tree blossoms before all other flowers, starting in late January through to March. 2. "jade fairy being": the imagery constructs the plum blossoms as a beautiful and elegant lady, fresh from her bath and dressing table, as of Li Qingzhao's own class and taste. Reference： Our old version: “To the Tune of Yujia’ao” – “In the snowy yard I see Spring’s messenger arrived,/cold plum blossoms on branches of sleek jade,/there, fresh from her bath and mirror, a lady/ so delicate, lips opening, sweetness personified.//Her the creation favors above all her like,/so let the vivid moon shine all brighter!/A toast! And fill the gold cups with wine tonight!/Exquisite blossoms, why not toast you till morning light!” 2. picture from Google； Pinying and Word -For-Word Translation: yú jiā ào . xuě lǐ yǐ zhī chūn xìn zhì yuán zuò ：lǐ qīng zhào yīng yì ：mǐn xiǎo hóng xuě lǐ yǐ zhī chūn xìn zhì ， hán méi diǎn zhuì qióng zhī nì 。 xiāng liǎn bàn kāi jiāo yǐ nǐ ， dāng tíng jì ， yù rén yù chū xīn zhuāng xǐ 。 zào huà kě néng piān yǒu yì ， gù jiāo míng yuè líng lóng dì 。 gòng shǎng jīn zūn shěn lǜ yǐ ， mò cí zuì ， cǐ huā bú yǔ qún huā bǐ 。

念奴娇.赤壁怀古 原作: 苏轼（11世纪北宋） 中英旧版: 戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 英版修改: 闵晓红(2023) 大江东去浪淘尽， 千古风流人物。 故垒西边人道是， 三国周郎赤壁。 乱石崩云， 惊涛裂岸， 卷起千堆雪。 江山如画， 一时多少豪杰！ 遥想公瑾当年， 小乔初嫁了， 雄姿英发。 羽扇纶巾谈笑间， 樯橹灰飞烟灭。 故国神游， 多情应笑我， 早生华发。 人生如梦， 一樽还酹江月。 Meditating on the Past at the Red Cliff - to the tune of Niannujiao written by: Su Shi (11th Century) First En. trans. by: G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) En. revision by: Julia Min (2023) To the East Sea flows the Yangtze River, washing away forever, in tides of times, all the heroes of the past we remember. On the west side of this slopy stronghold, some say, in Three Kingdoms’ chaotic era, Zhou Yu won his Red Cliff Battle on water. What a splendid picture was unfolded across -- walls of rolled waves crashing on craggy rocks, great bursts of snowy foam pervading the shore. So many noted warriors came forth and fought. Long before, the younger Qiao, a girl of virtues, married Gongjin, a youth of valour and values. With silk bonnet on head, a feather fan in hand, he chatted at ease while achieving his daring feat. The tides had turned, sailed his burning boats over, Cao Cao’s fleet jammed in smoke, doomed in fire… Where am I standing amid the streaming heroes?-- just an old man, simpering in his sick humour. It’s such a dream, life or death, loss or success. I’d pour out wine to honour the Moon, the River. Notes: 1. ‘some say’: the poet’s playful pretending that the original battle took place at this Red Nose Rock at Huangzhou while attributing the belief to the local people. This is not the first time Su Shi did it. If you know his stories, he did it during the Imperial Exam too. It’s a narrow escape with his naughty humour that only a character like his has the privilege of doing it without being misunderstood. 2. ‘Zhou Yu’: the registered official name, his social name being ‘Gongjin’; He was a famous general commanding a troop of 20 thousands during the Red Cliff Battle. 3. ‘the younger Qiao’: one of the two sisters from a local gentry family. The older sister was married to Sun Quan, the king of the Wu State. 4. ‘a silk bonnet on head, a feather fan in hand’: a popular image of learned scholars of the time, particularly associated with the wise man Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Han State; Appreciation: If you ever read English poetry on the times of glory and duty, you could have likely tasted the heroic poem “Battle of Malden” on the fierce battle ( 991 AD, England). It’s about the Saxons against the Vikings, and there’re lines like: “ Thought shall be the harder, heart the keener,/courage the greater, as our might lessens.” Well, similar pictures are shown in Chinese poetry, with The Red Cliff Battle being one of the most remembered. Interestingly, whenever people mention the famous battle on the Yangtze River, the first association coming to the mind of the Chinese readership could be Dongpo’ s Red Cliff in this heroic poem “ Meditating on the Past at the Red Cliff” (《念奴娇.赤壁怀古》). This celebrated poem was written in 1082, the 3rd year of Su Shi’s exile life at Huangzhou (in today’s Hubei Province). His famous meditation site was the Red Nose Rock overlooking the Yangtze River then. The battlefield was deliberately conjured for associating thoughts supporting his theme. It actually took place in 208 AD at Red Cliff in Puqi (today’s Red Cliff County of Xianling on Yangtze River, also in Hubei Province) where Sun Quan and Liu Bei joined forces together having merely 50 thousands of warriors to fight against the mighty Cao Cao’s 200 thousands at Red Cliff on the Yangtze River. It was a huge win thanks to General Zhou Yu’s profound experience in river battles over the ignorance of Cao whose troops were more familiar with battles on land. The battle witnessed the most important turning point in remapping the military forces, starting a new era -- the Three Kingdoms. Again, Su Shi was on his cup in the moment of composing, grieving that he was nothing before the heroes in the historical epics, hinting he was unappreciated by the Throne. This had been a common theme of his works throughout his downturn periods. His works at Huangzhou have been regarded as of the highest artistic value of his whole collection, including his narrative prose, calligraphy and paintings, greatly admired even by the emperors of the Song and of later dynasties. So it’s not hard to understand why Huangzhou’s Red Nose Rock was changed to ‘Red Cliff’ after this poem was released. Later generations have called it ‘Dongpo’s Red Cliff’. This Ci poem has been regarded as the representative of the heroic school in ci poetry. It’s actually the very first and best ever written, and could be the most quoted. The critics of his time and later times including Li Qingzhao commented that Su Shi was writing ci for his poem theme, implying he misplaced his poem in the ci form, and he was not good at ci’s musical patterns and metres – the elements of prosody. Li insisted that heroic style should be only for poems, while ci should focus on the elegant, the clever, the pretty and delicate sentiments for the saloons and drawing rooms of the gentry class. Her works can indeed stand as the best evidence of her theory. It’s like what the English would define song lyrics and poetry where the main difference is that the lyrics are set to music. “Once words have begun to be accommodated to music, they display … not only lilt and balance, but tone and quality … They are more carefully chosen than other words” ( C.M. Bowra, Primitive Song) Nonetheless, a great mind like Su Shi can’t be expected to be controlled by contemporary rules and etiquettes, as the then Prime Minister Wang Anshi once said: “ Rules and etiquettes are not meant for you or me.”(“礼岂为我辈设哉”). For him, the theme was his primary concern, everything else served only as supporting devices; And if an existing one didn’t serve the purpose, he’d create one that did, hence the birth of the heroic school of ci poetry, or you may understand it as the heroic school as against the sentimental school. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min and Huang Haipeng published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏)（"Eastward flows the River, washing away in waves /Forever all the Heroes of the past. /On the west side of this old fortress, some people say, /General Zhou fought his Red Cliff Battle, in the time of Three Kingdoms./Roiling clouds are cut by savage cliffs, walls of water destroy the shore,/Throw up mist thick as a blizzard. /The River and the mountains make a magnificent scene! /How many heroes from the past are lost to us! // Long ago, when Gongjin was young, /And had just taken Little Qiao to wife… /Heroic, brilliant, with feathered fan and black silk, striped kerchief, /He laughed and talked on as the enemy’s warships’ smoke and ashes flew windward. /Visiting this old world now, how Zhou would laugh at my simpering, /Me, with grey hair far too soon from thinking. /It is such a dream. /I pour out my cup to honour the moon in the river. "） 2. The original calligraphy by Su Dongpo himself; 3. painting by Luo Zhenxian (罗振贤）from Google；

河传 .香包素质 原作：李清照/无名氏 英译：闵晓红 香苞素质。 天赋与、倾城标格。 应是晓来，暗传东君消息。 把孤芳、回暖律。 寿阳粉面增妆饰。 说与高楼，休更吹羌笛。 花下醉赏，留取时倚阑干， 斗清香、添酒力。 So Blessed with the Purest Complexion - to the tune of Hechuan written by: Li Qingzhao / Anonymous translated by: Julia Min So blessed with the purest complexion, And a modest sweetness in her buddings, She is first to echo the secret call of Spring, Alone in a quiet land, at dawn this morning. It’s time to wear the flower on my brow, and No more the flute tune “The Falling Blossoms”! Let’s enjoy good wine under the trees blooming, and play the game on perfumes by the railings. Appreciation: This is likely a piece by Li Qingzhao judging from the language style and the sentiment. She could have written it after her trip to Jiangning ( today’s Nanjing ) when her husband was the mayor, or Head of Jiangning prefecture. Again she has left the flower subject to the readers for a fun game of guessing based on the description. It would be an easy one if you had read some of her poems of the same nature. Well, it’s the first bloom of the year during the Spring Festival braving frost and snow. Regarded as one of the four noble characters in Chinese culture. … Yes, it’s the plum tree, the most written flower by Yi’an. This one, however, takes a different perspective on her fleeing journey with the Royal team to the South. Instead of celebrating in the big tower over the river, she had to do it secretly and quietly amid the fear of invaders’ horses galloping down from the North. We have to appreciate her huge effort in making the best of the moment, a strong desire for her lost home, and the cultural values of the customary lifestyle doomed in the flute tune of the Jin. No word of melancholy or patriotism is used, no word of the flower name is mentioned, yet the vibes penetrate through the whole poem achieving a powerful impact on the readers’ mind. Notes： 1. ‘wear the flower on my brow’: a traditional Chinese forehead make-up with a five-petal plum flower, called Shouyang Make-up named after Princess Shouyang (Southern Dynasty) who, according to the legend, had the flower on her forehead while taking a nap on the veranda under big plum trees. She couldn’t wash it off, and thus had to wear it ever since. It’s also called Huadian, or Huazi, or ‘plum blossom make-up or ‘plum make-up’, very popular later in the Tang and the Song. 2. ‘the flute tune “The Falling Blossoms”: a sad music of the Jin on the plum blossoms falling, the invading state from the North. 3. ‘the game on perfumes’: a guessing game over the scents of flowers, one of the many games the Song people play for entertainment such as the game on the names of different plants, the game on the tune/authors of poems, … a socializing activity in the drawing rooms or outside in their home garden. Reference: 1. 李清照文集 作者：（北宋）李清照著，刘振鹏https://books.google.com.au/ 2 《李清照集笺注》李清照撰，徐培均笺注； 2002年上海古籍出版社

菩萨蛮.归鸿声断残云碧 原作：李清照(宋） 英译：闵晓红 归鸿声断残云碧， 背窗雪落炉烟直。 烛底凤钗明， 钗头人胜轻。 角声催晓漏， 曙色回牛斗。 春意看花难， 西风留旧寒。 The Honking Geese Are Gone to the North - to the tune of Pusaman written by Li Qingzhao (Song Dynasty) E. trans. by Julia Min The honking geese are gone to the north, Just a boundless sky, puffy clouds torn. Outside the north sills find yet some snow, From the censer, long and still, a thin smoke. The candlelight sees a puppet in gold paper, nestled by my phoenix hairpin, shining in vain. The dripping of water clock is often broken by the Jin army horn blaring from beyond. The stars are gone, nothing in the sky at dawn, just the west wind to greet a foreign spring. It’s not yet for the darling buds and bells. My heart feels like water, in winter chill. Appreciation: A strong sense of rootless and alienated sentiment is felt here as it was written in the early days of her settlement in Hangzhou soon after her loss of home, husband, and ten households of artistic collections. The scene starts at twilight through her sleepless night to the next morning. Not a word of loneliness or teardrops used in the work but hidden in every line. The wild geese are often mentioned in Li Qingzhao’s poems to symbolize her nostalgic and homesick feelings towards her husband and home at Qingzhou up north. Though she had some social life in this new land, but her heart stayed in the homeland of her dreams. Gradually, she withdrew to her small circle of friends, living the life of the Recluse Yi’an. An associating piece could be from Anne Bronte (1820-1849): “I love the silent hour of night, for blissful dreams may then arise, revealing to my charmed sight what may not bless my waking eyes.” Notes: 1. geese (鸿hóng): The wild geese returned to the North when spring started in the South where Li Qingzhao lived after her home in the North was conquered. Wild geese are regarded as the highest among birds in moral standards of benevolence, faithfulness, ceremony, wisdom, and honesty. The geese team is like a family taking care of each other no matter how small or how old you are. The sick and the dying are been attended to as well. So they are respected and loved by the Chinese. 2. puppet in golden paper: a figure made of golden paper used as an ornament on hairdo or room screens during People’s Day (the 7th day of Chinese New Year). The family meal was supposed to have seven dishes. 3. horn: the sound of a military horn, hinting the war between the Song and the Jin invaders from the North. Pinying and Word -For-Word Translation: pú sà mán – the music for this song poem; guī hóng shēng duàn cán yún bì – returning geese sound no more few clouds in the sky bèi chuāng xuě luò lú yān zhí – northside windows snowfall incense burner smoke straight; zhú dǐ fèng chāi míng – under the candles phoenix pin shines; chāi tóu rén shèng qīng – the figure on hair is very light; jiǎo shēng cuī xiǎo lòu – horn sound chases morning water-clock; shǔ sè huí niú dòu – daylight at dawn returns the Zodiac and Dipper stars; chūn yì kàn huā nán – spring early look at flowers difficult; xī fēng liú jiù hán – west wind holds still the cold; Reference：baike.baidu.com（百度百科）

初到黄州 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 自笑平生为口忙， 老来事业转荒唐。 长江绕郭知鱼美， 好竹连山觉笋香。 逐客不妨员外置， 诗人例做水曹郎。 只惭无补丝毫事， 尚费官家压酒囊。 Upon Arriving at Huangzhou written by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ annot. by Julia Min (2023) My whole world’s like an eventful stage Getting strangely funny now I’ve aged. A busy life with the mouth, for the mouths, And a lousy outcome by my big silly mouth. Oh well, the Yangtse embraces the town in a loop, Where the river fish should taste just as good. There are also bamboo groves over the hills, Where I should find many sweet and earthy shoots. An attendant role cannot do much harm anyway. Banished poets are seen to do great on waterways. And the work I do can hardly touch the pay I get. The bag of wine grain my Lord gave is such a waste! Notes: 1. In a loop: the town of Huangzhou was then surrounded on three sides by the Yangtse River, like a peninsular in a river loop. Today, after a thousand years of change, the river has become much narrower, and its route must have changed as it is about a mile away from the ancient town wall and the Red Cliff. 2. That bag of wine grain: referring to Su Shi’s wage as a banished official, usually 2/3 paid in materials and only 1/3 in cash. The material he received was just a bag of grain for making wine. Appreciation: It was February 1080 when Su Shi and his family arrived in exile at the remote town Huangzhou, a long trip from the capital after being released from his 130 days in prison. It was a new birth for him and his family, just like the promising spring landscape as they went further south from the Yellow River to the Yangtse River, the land of fish and rice. You would think he might have become a different person of a more docile and obedient nature, which would have disappointed us. No, the near-death experience actually built up his stoicism and fortitude with a sense of dark humour, the rich source for his heroic vibes played in many romantic poems yet to come, actually a frenzy and the peak of his writings both in poetry and prose. From my many visits to the Red Cliff where his calligraphy is carved in stones, I’d say his calligraphy shows a liberated spirit from his previous works. He has always been so much loved for his optimistic character. Yes, he was bright and breezy again dreaming about the tasty fish and the sweet bamboo shoots despite the dramatic changes in his political career and financial status. The underlining satire is so obvious that you could even wish he could hold his tongue to avoid future misfortune by the mouth, as we all know he was later banished, twice, further away from the Central Kingdom, even to “the end of the world” (Hainan Island), the furthest border the emperor could find in the Song map to keep Su Shi’s mouth shut. Imagine how influential he was at the time. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min, and Huang Haipeng， published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“Upon Arriving at Huangzhou -- My mouth’s always busy -- eating, composing, or speaking out, / And now I’ve aged and my position turned ridiculous. / Oh well, the fish taste just as good on the edge of town, / Where the bamboo groves and the sweet shoots are the earthiest. / It matters little that I’m useless, banished, barely a guest; / Poets are known to make great inspectors of waterways. / And the work I do can’t touch the pay I get. / That bag of wine they send is surely wasted.”) 2. picture from Google

陈季常所蓄《朱陈村嫁娶图》 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 我是朱陈旧使君， 劝农曾入杏花村。 而今风物哪堪画， 县吏催钱夜打门！ “A Wedding Ceremony in Zhu Chen Village” - a painting collected by my friend Chen Jichang written by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ annot. by Julia Min (2023) It was a village nestled in blooming apricot trees. As their governor I cheered on the men in their fields. Today, nothing there is the same as in this painting, Officers pound on the doors, hounding for tax money. Appreciation: On his way to Huangzhou after being released from prison, Su Shi passed Meicheng County and was lodged in the house of his friend Chen Jichang. There he was caught by the painting as alluded to in the poem. The country life was painted in the beautiful village dotted with apricot trees in full bloom - - a cozy memory he shared as he once inspected the village as their governor of Xuzhou. Unfortunately, such a joyous scene was no longer seen ever since the New Law was enacted, where the demanding officers would now take only cash not a share of crops for tax payment. Su Shi couldn’t help but sigh over the contrast, an obvious implication of his political stand with the common people. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min, and Huang Haipeng， published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“n the Painting “Wedding Ceremony in Zhu Chen Village” --“I am Zhu Chen’s old local governor;/ I cheered on the peasants of Apricot-flower village in their fields.”/But today’s scene: how could it be the same painting?/Officials want only money, beat night into farmers’ doors. ”) 2. picture from Google

出狱（二首） （十二月二十八日蒙恩责授检校水部员外郎黄州团练副使, 复用前韵二首） 原作: 苏轼（字子瞻, 号东坡居士; 11世纪北宋） 旧版英译:戈登.奥赛茵, 闵晓红, 黄海鹏(1990) 新版及赏析: 闵晓红(2023) 其二： 平生文字为吾累， 此去声名不厌低。 塞上纵归他日马， 城东不斗少年鸡。 休官彭泽贫无酒， 隐几维摩病有妻。 堪笑睢阳老从事， 为予投檄到江西。 （子由闻余下狱，乞以官爵赎余罪，贬筠州监酒。） Released from Prison (Poem Two) (I’m saved by the Emperor’s grace and granted to be relegated to the role of an assistant in the water section of Engineering Department in the town of Huangzhou, hence these two poems upon the release.) written by Su Shi (11th AC, social name 'Dongpo') old En. trans. by G. Osing, J. Min & H. Huang (1990) Revision+ annot. by Julia Min (2023) It’s writing that’s been my problem all my life. Better be away, and let my fame decline. A lost horse returned with her Hun mate may be a poisoned chalice, a misfortune in disguise. What bothers me most is my craving for wine. I’m not the Tang cockfight boy at the town east, Too poor like Tao Yuanmin who left Pengze Squire, Too sick like Wang Mojie, the poet with one wife. My silly brother gave up Suiyang for my sin, taking a menial job in the sticks of Jiangxi Shire. (Notes: My brother Ziyou pleaded for mercy before the Throne upon the news of my imprisonment. He petitioned to be punished on my behalf, thus being banished to a minor job as a wine supervisor at Junzhou, Jiangxi.) Notes: 1.A lost horse returned with her Hun mate: the well-known story of a man at a village bordered with the Huns. He had a horse gone astray across the border (塞翁失马，焉知非福)，and his neighbours came to comfort him only to hear him saying: it looks so unfortunate that I lost a mare. Who knows? It could bring a good outcome. Before long, the mare returned with a stallion from the Hun land. Everyone in the village came to celebrate but the old man responded: it is such a blessing I could have my horse back with another horse, but who knows, it could be the starting of a coming misfortune. The deeper philosophy behind the fable reveals the universal rules of change --- the rising and the falling are each other’s company, a constant phenomenon of duality. 2.the Tang cockfight boy: referring to the story of Tang Dynasty Emperor Xuanzong whose favorite game was cockfighting, thus the capital city Chang’an saw a boom in cockfighting business. There was one boy very talented for the game and soon won the favour of the Majesty. So the saying went popular – “You don’t have to study hard to succeed. A few cockfighting tricks can get you close to the supreme power.” 3. Tao Yuanmin: a famous poet celebrated for his personality. Born to a family of civil servants to the Royal Court, he had been a government official but his love for a carefree secluded Daoist life in the country finally led to his quitting Pengze, the county for his last post for some 80 days as the Head of the prefecture. 4.Wang Mojie, more likely refers to the famous poet Wang Wei (social name: Mojie, an influence of his mother who was a Buddhist and held Monk Weimojie in high regard.) as he had the same experience of being put into prison and his brother pleaded for mercy on his brother’s ‘sin’, willing to take a minor post as a punishment on Mojie’s behalf. Wang Wei only had one wife, and never remarried after his wife’s death, which was unusual but respected as a rare quality in ancient China. Appreciation: Just like an exquisite art piece with crafted flowers and figures, this short poem is enriched with four legendary stories. The first one ‘A lost horse…’ tells his deeper and self-possessed insight about the rules of change governing the ups and downs in life. The second one ‘the Tang cockfight boy’ conveys his choice to remain truthful instead of being a courtier trying to please the emperor. The following two figures Yuanmin and Mojie show the personality he’s to maintain despite poverty and poor health. A noble man of integrity and courage indeed! No wonder he had so many followers throughout the centuries. Again, the poem is structured with a shift from the scene to his theme, with the first stanza on what he experienced followed by what he thought in the 2nd stanza. The rapids ride was highlighted with his wild imagination as in a stream of consciousness jumping from a falcon over a rabbit to lightning in a bottle. Vivid pictures flashed one after another responding with the chasing pace of the leaping boat – a clever arrangement for a stronger artistic play on the heartbeats of the readership. Another feature is the Zen humour on quietude sensed in the concluding couplet about Master Can Liao, a poet and essayist among many of his Daoist monk friends. There’s a whole chapter about Can Liao visiting him at Huangzhou followed by interesting and touching stories that I’d share at another time. Reference: 1. Blooming Alone in Winter by Gordon Osing, Julia Min and Huang Haipeng，published by the People's Publication House Henan Province in 1990 (《寒心未肯随春态》戈登.奥赛茵，闵晓红，黄海鹏) (“Relegated to the Position of Assistant Inspector of Canals -- It’s writing that’s been my problem all my life./ I’m out of the capital; who cares if my fame declines!/ The horse returning to the fort brings bad luck to the old man./ I’m not the boy who pleases the king with cockfights in olden times.// Tao Yuanmin resigned and ended up too broke to buy wine./Wei Mo, the Buddhist, too ill to let go of his table, had yet a wife./ My brother’s quit post at Suiyang (for my shame) makes me laugh;/ He took a minor job in the sticks in Jiangxi, on my behalf. ”) 2. 其一： 百日归期恰及春，余年乐事最关身。 出门便旋风吹面，走马联翩鹊啅人。 却对酒杯浑是梦，试拈诗笔已如神。 此灾何必深追咎，窃禄从来岂有因。 3. 百度百科 4.木石文苏轼诗文品鉴 5. picture from Google；