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Sù Jiàn Dé JiāngMooring on the Jiande River 宿建德江
Meng Haoran finds companionship in the moon's reflection.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
移舟泊烟渚
yí zhōu bó yān zhǔ
日暮客愁新
rì mù kè chóu xīn
野旷天低树
yě kuàng tiān dī shù
江清月近人
jiāng qīng yuè jìn rén
Simplified characters; traditional title: 宿建德江.
English translation
My boat is moored by mist-veiled rivershore;
I'm grieved to see the setting sun no more.
On boundless plain clouds hang atop the tree;
In water clear the moon seems near to me.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
The third line is a famous perspective trick: on a flat, open plain, the horizon seems lower than the trees. The fourth line answers with closeness — in the clear water, the moon's reflection is right beside the boat. The two lines make the world feel huge and empty, yet the moon comes near like a friend, softening the traveler's sorrow.
Background
Written in about 730 while Meng Haoran traveled in Zhejiang after failing to gain office in Chang'an.
Key words
- 烟渚 yān zhǔ
- a mist-covered islet
- 野旷 yě kuàng
- a broad, open plain
- 月近人 yuè jìn rén
- the moon close to me
About the poet: Meng Haoran
Meng Haoran spent most of his life as a recluse near his home of Xiangyang, never holding high office. A friend of Li Bai and Wang Wei, he is a leading voice of the Tang "landscape and pastoral" school, admired for plain words and quiet feeling.
Lifetime: 689–740. Other famous works: Spring Dawn (春晓); Visiting an Old Friend's Farm (过故人庄); Mooring on the Jiande River (宿建德江); Looking at Dongting Lake (望洞庭湖赠张丞相).