5 Tang Poems

The following poems were written during the Tang Dynasty (618-906 AD). They are from a well known collection call the "Tang 300 Poems", or TangShi SanBaiShou. The pronunciations given in the second column are all in Mandarin Chinese. Some of them still rhyme, and all can be read even though its has been around 1200 years or more since they were written.

The translations are my own, and therefore, not very poetic and act as a guide to understanding only.

The form of the Chinese character poems are as follows.


Chun Xiao
Meng HaoRen

Chun min bu jiao hao
Chu chu wen ti niao
Ye lai yu shui sheng
Hua le zhi duo xiao

Spring Morning
by Meng HaoRen

Spring, a night's restless sleep, awakened
Everywhere the songs of birds
In the night the wind and rain
I wonder, how many flowers have fallen?

Jing Ye Si
Li Bai

Chuang qian ming ye guang
Yi shi di shang shuang
Ju tou wang ming yue
Di tou si gu xiang

Quiet Night Thoughts
by Li Bai

Before the bed I lie on, the moon is shining
The moonlight cast upon the floor like frost
While I raise my head to gaze at the moon
I lower it to think of village home

Hui Xiang Ou Shu
He Zhizhang

Shao xiao li jia lao da hui
Xiang yin wu hai bin mao cui
Er tong xiang jian bu xiang shi
Xiao wen ke cong he chu lai

Returning Home
by He Zhizhang

I left this village in my youth, returning, now I'm old
The village accent hasn't changed, my fringe grown grey
The youngsters see me but they don't know me
Half laughing, they who am I and where I come from

Yue Ye
Liu Fangping

Geng shen yue se ban ren jia
Bei dou lan gan nan dou xia
Jin ye pian zhi chun qi nuan
Cong sheng xin tou lu chuang sha

Moonlit Night
by Liu Fangping

In the deep of the night, the moon lights up half the room
The Plough and southern stars and beginning to descend
This night I feel the coming of spring from the warm breeze
Insects are newly calling through the window's drapes

Xin Yin Zhe Bu Yu
Jia Dao

Song xia wen tong zi
Yan shi cai yue qu
Zhi zai ci shan zhong
Yun shen bu zhi chu

Seeking the Sage but not meeting
by Jia Dao

Beneath a pine tree I asked a boy
He says his master has gone to collect herbs
"He's somewhere on this mountain here,
But because of the cloudy mists, I don't know where he is!"


Dylan's Homepage : Site Map

(c) Copyright Dylan W.H. Sung 2001 onwards

This page and images were created on Wednesday 7th February 2001.