Home › Poems › The Gold-Threaded Robe
Jīn Lǚ YīThe Gold-Threaded Robe 金缕衣
Make the most of youth: "pick the flower when it can be picked".
Original Chinese text with pinyin
劝君莫惜金缕衣
quàn jūn mò xī jīn lǚ yī
劝君惜取少年时
quàn jūn xī qǔ shào nián shí
花开堪折直须折
huā kāi kān zhé zhí xū zhé
莫待无花空折枝
mò dài wú huā kōng zhé zhī
Simplified characters; traditional title: 金縷衣.
English translation
I urge you, don't treasure your gold-threaded robe;
I urge you, treasure the days of your youth.
When flowers bloom and can be picked, pick them straight away —
don't wait till the flowers are gone and break off empty twigs.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
Do not prize the gold-thread coat—prize the years of youth. If the flower is ready to pick, pick it now; do not wait to break an empty branch. The song's urgency still cuts cleanly.
Background
Make the most of youth: "pick the flower when it can be picked".
Key words
- 金缕衣 jīn lǚ yī
- key word in the poem
- 少年时 shào nián shí
- key word in the poem
- 堪折 kān zhé
- key word in the poem
About the poet: Du Qiuniang
Du Qiuniang is credited with The Gold-Thread Coat.
Lifetime: Mid Tang. Other famous works: The Gold-Threaded Robe (金缕衣).