— by Tao Yuanming (Jin Dynasty)
Disheartened and resentful, I walk home alone with my staff,
Traversing rugged paths through tangled thickets.
The mountain stream is clear and shallow –
Enough to wash my feet.
I filter my newly brewed wine,
And invite my close neighbors with a single chicken.
When the sun sets, the room grows dark;
I light brushwood in place of bright candles.
Joy comes, but I lament that the evening is too short;
Before I know it, the sky has turned to dawn.
Note
The Allusion to the Song of the Canglang Waters
The line “The mountain stream is clear and shallow – / Enough to wash my feet” is a direct allusion to a famous ancient folk song recorded in the Mencius: “When the waters of Canglang are clear, I can wash the tassels of my hat; when the waters of Canglang are muddy, I can wash my feet.”
In Chinese literary tradition, this song (沧浪歌) carries a profound political metaphor: clear water symbolizes a just and enlightened era, in which a worthy man should step forward to serve in government (washing the hat tassels, a mark of official status); muddy water symbolizes a corrupt and chaotic world, in which a wise man should withdraw from public life and live in seclusion (washing only the feet).
When Qu Yuan, the loyal minister‑poet of Chu, fell into despair over his homeland’s misfortune, he met an old fisherman by the Canglang River. The fisherman sang the Song of Canglang to persuade him: if the water is clean, wash your official hat ribbons; if the water is muddy, wash your feet. He advised Qu Yuan to adapt to the corrupt world instead of clinging to his lofty principles since he has not third option even reclusion. Yet Qu Yuan refused to compromise and later drowned himself in the Miluo River. This story is also recorded in the Biographies of Noble Scholars.
In the poem above, by choosing to “wash his feet” in the mountain stream, Tao is making a quiet but powerful declaration: he has deliberately chosen to retreat from a corrupt world and embrace the simple life of a farmer. The allusion also implies his judgment that the society of his time was “muddy” – morally polluted and unfit for an upright man.
The Simple Rural Feast
Tao describes filtering his newly brewed wine and inviting his nearby neighbors over with just a single chicken as a treat. This scene captures the essence of rural communal life in ancient China. In farming villages, neighbors were bound together by shared labor and mutual dependence. Gatherings like these were not grand banquets but intimate, heartfelt occasions where simple food and homemade wine were shared among friends. For Tao, who had left behind the elaborate rituals and political intrigues of official life, these modest gatherings represented genuine human connection – warm, unpretentious, and free from hypocrisy.
Brushwood in Place of Candles
In the homes of ordinary farmers, candles were a luxury. Instead, Tao lights dried brushwood to illuminate his room after dark. This detail is significant: it underscores the genuine poverty of his rural life, yet he presents it without complaint or self-pity. The brushwood fire creates a warm, rustic atmosphere that stands in stark contrast to the polished candles and ornate lamps of aristocratic households. For Tao, this humble light is not a symbol of deprivation but of authenticity – a life lived close to nature, unburdened by material excess.
The Fleeting Joy of the Evening
The poem’s closing sentiment – “Joy comes, but I lament that the evening is too short; / Before I know it, the sky has turned to dawn” – captures a universal human experience: the way time seems to accelerate when one is truly happy. Tao and his neighbors drink, talk, and laugh through the night, so absorbed in their simple pleasures that they are startled to find the sun already rising. This passage from darkness to dawn also carries a subtle philosophical undertone: it mirrors the Daoist acceptance of the natural cycle of time. The evening passes, the morning comes, and Tao greets each with equal serenity.
Walking Home Alone with a Staff
The poem opens with Tao walking home alone, staff in hand, feeling “disheartened and resentful”. This mood suggests that something has troubled him before this evening’s gathering – perhaps the frustrations of rural life, the memory of a world he left behind, or the loneliness that sometimes accompanies his chosen solitude. Yet by the end of the poem, that melancholy has been entirely dissolved by wine, friendship, and the warmth of community. The emotional arc from sorrow to joy is what gives this poem its depth: Tao does not pretend that his life is without hardship, but he shows that genuine contentment can be found even in the simplest of circumstances.
归园田居·其五
陶渊明 〔魏晋〕
怅恨独策还，崎岖历榛曲。
山涧清且浅，可以濯吾足。
漉我新熟酒，只鸡招近局。
日入室中暗，荆薪代明烛。
欢来苦夕短，已复至天旭。
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