Cen Shen Poem: Song of White Snow in Farewell to Secretary Wu Going Back to the Capital – 岑参《白雪歌送武判官归京》

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白雪歌送武判官归京

岑参

北风卷地白草折[1],胡天八月即飞雪。

忽如一夜春风来,千树万树梨花开。

散入珠帘湿罗幕[2],狐裘不暖锦衾薄[3]

将军角弓不得控[4],都护铁衣冷犹着[5]

瀚海阑干百丈冰[6],愁云惨淡万里凝[7]

中军置酒饮归客[8],胡琴琵琶与羌笛。

纷纷暮雪下辕门[9],风掣红旗冻不翻[10]

轮台[11]东门送君去,去时雪满天山路。

山回路转不见君,雪上空留马行处[12]

注释:

[1] “白草”句:白草,西北之地所长,牛马所嗜,干枯时,成白色。折,断。

[2] “散入”句:珠帘,缀有珠子的门帘。罗幕,用绫罗制作的帷幕。

[3] “狐裘”句:狐裘,用狐狸皮做的皮袄。锦衾(qīn),用锦缎做的被子。

[4] “将军”句:角弓,用兽角装饰的弓。控,引、拉。

[5] “都护”句:都护,镇守边疆的长官。唐代设六都护府,各设大都护一人。著,穿。

[6] “瀚海”句:瀚海,沙漠。阑干,纵横的样子。

[7] “愁云”句:惨淡,昏暗的样子。凝,凝结。

[8] “中军”句:中军,古代分兵为左、中、右三军。中军为主帅亲自统率的军队,这里指主帅的营帐。饮归客,招待归客饮酒。归客这里指将归京都的武判官。

[9] 辕门:军营门。古代军营前将两车车辕交叉作为门。

[10] “风掣”句:掣,拉、牵拽。翻,这里是飘扬的意思。

[11] 轮台:在今新疆乌鲁本齐市西南。

[12] 马行处:指雪地上马蹄的痕迹。

Song of White Snow in Farewell to Secretary Wu Going Back to the Capital

Cen Shen

Snapping the pallid grass, the northern wind whirls low;

In the eighth moon the Tartar sky is filled with snow.

As if the vernal breeze had come back overnight,

Adorning thousands of pear trees with blossoms white.

Flakes enter pearled blinds and wet the silken screen;

No furs of fox can warm us nor brocade quilts green.

The general cannot draw his rigid bow with ease;

E’en the commissioner in coat of mail would freeze.

A thousand feet o’er cracked wilderness ice piles,

And gloomy clouds hang sad and drear for miles and miles.

We drink in headquarters to our guest homeward bound;

With Tartar lutes, pipas and pipes the camps resound.

Snow in huge flakes at dusk falls heavy on camp gate;

The frozen red flag in the wind won’t undulate.

At eastern gate of Wheel Tower we bid goodbye

On the snow-covered road to Heaven’s Mountain high.

I watch his horse go past a bend and, lost to sight,

His track will soon be buried up by snow in flight.

The poet describes the biting cold on the frontier.

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