Tang dynasty poetry

  • Farewell to Du Fu at Stone Gate [Tang Poems]

    — Li Bai Before we part we’ve drunk for many days And visited all the scenic spots and ways. When at the Stone Gate shall we meet and drain Our brimming golden cups of wine again? The autumn waves of River Si still flow; The seaside mountains stand in morning glow. You’ll go away…

  • To Wang Lun [Tang Poems]

    — Li Bai I, Li Bai, sit in a boat about to go, When suddenly on shore your farewell songs overflow. However deep the Lake of Peach Blossoms may be, It’s not so deep, O Wang Lun, as your love for me.

  • The War Chariots

    by Du Fu (Tang Dynasty) Carts rumble, horses neigh –Soldiers march with bows and arrows at their waists.Fathers, mothers, wives, and children run to see them off;Dust swirls so thick the Xianyang Bridge disappears from sight.They clutch garments, stamp feet, block the road, and wail –Their cries pierce straight through to the clouds.

  • The Hard Road to Shu

    by Li Bai (Tang Dynasty) Ah! Alas! How perilous, how towering!The road to Shu is harder than scaling the blue sky! 

  • Lamenting the Peony Blossoms [Tang Poems]

    — Bai Juyi I’m saddened by the courtyard peonies brilliant red, At dusk only two of them are left on their bed. I am afraid they can’t survive the morning blast, By lantern light I take a look at the long, long last.

  • White Cloud Fountain [Tang Poems]

    — Bai Juyi Behold the White Cloud Fountain on the Tianping Mountain! White clouds enjoy pleasure while water enjoys leisure. Why should the torrent dash down from the mountain high And overflow the human world with waves far and nigh?

  • The Violet Inkstand of Master Yang [Tang Poems]

    — Li He The mason of Duanzhou has marvel-doing hands, Whetting his knife to carve blue clouds, aloft he stands. He grinds the stone in order to make an inkwell; Violet flowers look dim like cold blood shed pell-mell. Black flowers seem like spring at noon behind the screen; The pine-soot ink steeped in…

  • The Returning Wild Geese [Tang Poems]

    — Qian Qi Why won’t you stay on Southern River any more? Why leave its water clear, sand bright and mossy shore? You cannot bear the grief revealed in the moonlight By the Princess’ twenty-five strings, so you take flight.

  • Verses on Willow Branches [Tang Poems]

    — Bai Juyi A tree of million branches sways in breeze of spring, More tender, more soft than golden silk string by string. But in west corner of a garden in decay, Who would come to admire its beauty all the day?