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Xíng Lù NánThe Road Is Hard 行路难
Li Bai's defiant song of frustration and hope.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
金樽清酒斗十千
jīn zūn qīng jiǔ dǒu shí qiān
玉盘珍羞直万钱
yù pán zhēn xiū zhí wàn qián
停杯投箸不能食
tíng bēi tóu zhù bù néng shí
拔剑四顾心茫然
bá jiàn sì gù xīn máng rán
欲渡黄河冰塞川
yù dù huáng hé bīng sè chuān
将登太行雪满山
jiāng dēng tài háng xuě mǎn shān
闲来垂钓碧溪上
xián lái chuí diào bì xī shàng
忽复乘舟梦日边
hū fù chéng zhōu mèng rì biān
行路难，行路难
xíng lù nán, xíng lù nán
多岐路，今安在
duō qí lù, jīn ān zài
长风破浪会有时
cháng fēng pò làng huì yǒu shí
直挂云帆济沧海
zhí guà yún fān jì cāng hǎi
Simplified characters; traditional title: 行路難.
English translation
Clear wine in golden cups, ten thousand coins a measure;
rare delicacies on jade plates, worth ten thousand cash.
I stop my cup, throw down my chopsticks, cannot eat;
I draw my sword and look around, my heart bewildered.
I would cross the Yellow River, but ice blocks the stream;
I would climb the Taihang, but snow fills the mountains.
At leisure I drop a fishing line by a jade-green stream;
suddenly I sail in a boat, dreaming of the sun's side.
The road is hard! The road is hard!
So many forks — where am I now?
A time will come to ride the wind and cleave the waves;
I'll set my cloud-like sail to cross the sea which raves.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
A feast fit for a king, and he cannot eat. The poem moves from luxury to despair to fantasy: river and mountain are blocked by ice and snow, then he recalls legendary statesmen who were fishermen or dreamed of the sun (the emperor) before rising to power. The broken cry "The road is hard!" erupts in short lines. Then comes the final surge of confidence, wind and waves and a sail across the sea — a line still quoted for perseverance.
Background
The first of three poems with this title, written in 744 after Li Bai left the court in Chang'an.
Key words
- 珍羞 zhēn xiū
- rare delicacies
- 箸 zhù
- chopsticks
- 岐路 qí lù
- forked roads
- 济沧海 jì cāng hǎi
- to cross the vast sea
About the poet: Li Bai
Li Bai (also romanized Li Po; courtesy name Taibai) is celebrated as the "Immortal of Poetry." Raised in Sichuan, he spent much of his life wandering, briefly served at the court of Emperor Xuanzong in Chang'an, and is remembered for his love of wine, the moon and untamed nature. He and Du Fu are regarded as the two greatest poets of the Tang dynasty.
Lifetime: 701–762. Other famous works: Farewell to a Friend (送友人); Song of Qiupu (White Hair) (秋浦歌); Midnight Song of Wu (Autumn) (子夜吴歌); Question and Answer in the Mountains (山中问答); For Wang Lun (赠汪伦); The Road Is Hard (行路难); Sitting Alone Facing Jingting Mountain (独坐敬亭山); Written as a Traveler (客中作); Song of the Moon over Mount Emei (峨眉山月歌); Resentment (怨情); Farewell to Meng Haoran at Yellow Crane Tower (黄鹤楼送孟浩然之广陵); Quiet Night Thoughts (静夜思); Bring In the Wine (将进酒); Drinking Alone Under the Moon (月下独酌); Viewing the Waterfall at Mount Lu (望庐山瀑布); Leaving Baidi City at Dawn (早发白帝城); The Hard Road to Shu (蜀道难).
Names from this poem
More by Li Bai
- Quiet Night Thoughts静夜思
- Farewell to Meng Haoran at Yellow Crane Tower黄鹤楼送孟浩然之广陵
- Leaving Baidi City at Dawn早发白帝城
- Viewing the Waterfall at Mount Lu望庐山瀑布
- Drinking Alone Under the Moon月下独酌
- Midnight Song of Wu (Autumn)子夜吴歌
- Song of the Moon over Mount Emei峨眉山月歌
- Song of Qiupu (White Hair)秋浦歌