Lotus Flower Peak, Huashan Mountain

In January of 756, General An Lushan and his barbarian forces captured Luoyang, the eastern Tang capital. An Lushan proclaimed himself emperor. The capital of Chang’an was threatened. China was in an uproar. Nearby, Li Bai, from his lofty platform on Lotus Mountain, watched the advancing death and destruction. On Lotus Mountain’s western peakFar and…

River Snow, 江雪

Liu Zongyuan, 柳宗元 was just 46 when he died. A champion of political reform, he lead a life that consisted of exile and isolation. The poem Winter Snow expresses his loneliness.  江雪千山鳥飛絕萬徑人蹤滅 孤舟蓑笠翁 獨釣寒江雪 柳宗元 River SnowA thousand mountains, not a bird in sightTen thousand paths, not a human trackAlone in a boat, wearing a…

Wangchuan

whistling rain, gurgling water on a rocky shore, egrets rising and falling in crashing waves

Memories of Early Winter – Meng Haoran

Memories of Early Winter The leaves are falling, the wild geese flying south The water is cold here, the wind from the North. I remember my home, where the Xiang River bends Hidden by the clouds of Chu. I weep for my village, ’til my tears are spent I spy a lonely sail that stares…

Meeting Li Guinian at Jiangnan, (South of the River) – Du Fu

Meeting Li Guinian at Jiangnan Often we met at Prince Qi’s Palace and Many times I heard you at Lord Cui’s home and Just now, at Jiangnan, when the earth is its finest When blossoms are falling, we meet again, by chance Notes Poetry, calligraphy, music and art all flourished in the Tang dynasty. But…

River Snow

I confess to being fascinated by the imagery in Liu Zongyuan poem River Snow (elsewhere I and others have used the translation Sn0w Covered River, but now I question its accuracy).   A thousand mountains and not a bird to be seen. The wintry landscape is smooth and pristine. And there in a boat on…