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Wàng Lú Shān Pù BùViewing the Waterfall at Mount Lu 望庐山瀑布
Li Bai's waterfall falls like the Milky Way from heaven.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
日照香炉生紫烟
rì zhào xiāng lú shēng zǐ yān
遥看瀑布挂前川
yáo kàn pù bù guà qián chuān
飞流直下三千尺
fēi liú zhí xià sān qiān chǐ
疑是银河落九天
yí shì yín hé luò jiǔ tiān
Simplified characters; traditional title: 望廬山瀑布.
English translation
The sunlit Censer Peak exhales a wreath of cloud;
Like an upended stream the cataract sounds loud.
Its torrent dashes down three thousand feet from high
As if the Silver River fell from azure sky.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
The poem builds from a soft, colored haze to a violent vertical rush. "Hanging" makes the distant waterfall look still, like a scroll on a wall; then "flying" and "straight down" set it in motion. "Three thousand feet" is deliberate exaggeration, and the final comparison to the Milky Way pushes the scene from earth into the cosmos. It is Li Bai at his most characteristic: bold, visual and limitless.
Background
Written when Li Bai visited Mount Lu in Jiangxi, probably around 725, early in his travels. Incense Burner Peak (香炉峰) is named for its shape and the mist that curls around it.
Key words
- 香炉 xiāng lú
- Incense Burner Peak on Mount Lu
- 紫烟 zǐ yān
- purple mist lit by the sun
- 三千尺 sān qiān chǐ
- "three thousand chi," hyperbole for immense height
- 银河 yín hé
- the Milky Way, "silver river"
- 九天 jiǔ tiān
- the highest heaven
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
- 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
- Farewell to a Friend送友人