𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗲𝗺 ⸙༉

5. Sighs of Autumn Rain (1) - Du Fu

About poet: Du Fu (also known as Tu Fu) wrote in the High Tang period. His work is very diverse, but his most characteristic poems are autobiographical and historical, recording the effects of war on his own life.

Time period: Chang'an (pre-rebellion: 750-755)

秋雨叹三首 (一)

雨中百草秋烂死
阶下决明颜色鲜
著叶满枝翠羽盖
开花无数黄金钱
凉风萧萧吹汝急
恐汝后时难独立
堂上书生空白头
临风三嗅馨香泣

qiū yǔ tàn sān shǒu (yī)

yǔ zhōng bǎi cǎo qiū làn sǐ
jiē xià jué míng yán sè xiān
zhù yè mǎn zhī cuì yǔ gài
kāi huā wú shù huáng jīn qián
liáng fēng xiāo xiāo chuī rǔ jí
kǒng rǔ hòu shí nán dú lì
táng shàng shū shēng kòng bái tóu
lín fēng sān xiù xīn xiāng qì

Literal english:

Rain in small plants autumn rot die
Steps under jueming colour fresh
Branch leaf full stem green feather canopy
Blossom innumerable yellow gold money
Cool wind sough and sigh blow you hard
Fear you after now hard stand alone
Hall above scholar free white head
Face wind three smell fragrance weep

Meaning in simple english:

In autumn rain, the grasses rot and die,
Below the steps, the jueming's colour is fresh.
Full green leaves cover the stems like feathers,
And countless flowers bloom like golden coins.
The cold wind, moaning, blows against you fiercely,
I fear that soon you'll find it hard to stand.
Upstairs the scholar lets down his white hair,
He faces the wind, breathes the fragrance, and weeps.

Notes: This poem dates from 754 (Watson p. 22). The jueming is Chinese senna (cassia obtusifolia or cassia tora)- a plant with small yellow flowers.

This poem is volume (juàn) 216, no. 15 in the Complete Tang Poems (quán táng shī).