Bai Juyi: Watching the Wheat Harvest

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Watching the Wheat Harvest

观 刈 麦
田 家 少 闲 月
五 月 人 倍 忙。
夜 来 南 风 起
小 麦 覆 陇 黄。
妇 姑 荷 箪 食
童 稚 携 壶 桨。
相 随 饷 田 去
丁 壮 在 南 宫。
足 蒸 署 土 气
背 灼 炎 天 光。
力 尽 不 知 热
但 惜 夏 日 长。
复 有 贫 妇 人
抱 子 在 其 旁。
右 手 秉 遗 穗
左 臂 悬 敝 筐。
听 其 相 顾 言
闻 者 为 悲 伤。
家 田 输 税 尽
拾 此 充 饥 肠。
今 我 何 功 德
曾 不 事 农 桑。
吏 禄 三 白 石
岁 晏 有 余 粮。
念 此 私 自 愧
尽 日 不 能 忘。

 

Guan Yi Mai

Tian jia shao xian yue
Wu yue ren bei mang.
Ye lai nan feng qi
Xiao mai fu long huang.

Fu gu he dan shi
Tong zhi xie hu jiang.
Xiang sui siang tian qu
Ding zhuang zai nan gong.

Zu zheng shu tu qi
Bei zhuo yan tian guang.
Li jin bu zhi re
Dan xi xia ri chang.

Fu you pin fu ren
Bao zi zai qi pang.
You shou bing yi sui
Zuo bi xuan bi kuang.

Ting qi xiang gu yan
Wen zhe wei bei shang.
Jia tian shu shui jin
Shi ci chong ji chang.

Jin wo he gong de
Ceng bu shi nong sang.
Li lu san bai dan
Sui yan you yu liang.
Nian ci si zi kui
Jin ri bu neng wang.

 

Watching the Wheat Harvest

Farm families have few leisurely months
The fifth lunar month they are twice as busy.
Evening southern breezes arise and arrive
Covered fields of wheat now turning yellow.

Married women and unmarried girls carry the round bamboo containers
on poles full of food
Smaller children follow with pots of gruel and water.
Following each other into the fields to serve food and drink
Strong able-bodied men in the hills and lands with southern exposures.

Feet sweating in the moist, summer heat
Under clear skies, exposed backs burned in the scorching bright sun.
Working such hard physical labor, they do not notice the heat
But still value those early and long summer days.

Poor married women work in the fields too
And carry their infants strapped to their backs.
They can help by using their right hands to pick up a few dropped wheat berries.
On their left arms hang the bamboo baskets.

Hear families all talking to one another
Listen to them make sorrowful sounds.
Most of their work will go to satisfy the tax collector
Gleaning what is left on the fields of others to satisfy their hunger.

Today wonder how can I display any kind of merit and virtue.
Not once had thought about the struggles of these farmers.
My petty official salary includes three hundred dan
At the end of the year I still have a surplus of grain.
Thinking of this I naturally feel some shame
Most days I could not keep up with these hard-working people.

 

Notes:

Dan: A unit of dry measure of about 2.8 bushels.

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