A visit to the temple of the God of Mercy, on a rainy day
Su Tung-P’o
1037-1101 CE
(translated by William P. Coleman)
The silkworms have grown old;
the wheat has become half yellow;
around the mountain the rain falls unhindered.
Farmers halt their plows;
women set aside their baskets;
in the high hall white robes clothe the immortals.
I found the Chinese text and an English translation of this poem — along with the word-by-word literal translation I used to create this one — at Chinese Poems.
The grammar of Chinese allows poets to leave interpretive choices open, and it’s an unattainable ideal of translating to bring out possibilities without closing others. I try to use my sense of English to at least intrigue you. If I’ve succeeded, it’s best — even if you don’t know Chinese, which I don’t either — to follow up at the source I cite above and see the original word-by-word translation from which I worked. It’ll be richer than what I’ve given you. To understand the poem best, try to construct your own translation.
See the FAQ and the external links at Chinese Poems, a beautiful resource with many poems.
More Chinese poetry translations in this blog.
Home page for Su Tung P’o translations.
William P. Coleman 