Qiū XīAutumn Evening 秋夕
Du Mu on a palace maid catching fireflies and watching the Qixi stars.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
银烛秋光冷画屏
yín zhú qiū guāng lěng huà píng
轻罗小扇扑流萤
qīng luó xiǎo shàn pū liú yíng
天阶夜色凉如水
tiān jiē yè sè liáng rú shuǐ
坐看牵牛织女星
zuò kàn qiān niú zhī nǚ xīng
Simplified characters; traditional title: 秋夕.
English translation
Silver candles, autumn light, cold on the painted screen;
with a light silk fan she swats at the fireflies.
On the palace steps the night is cool as water;
she sits and gazes at the Cowherd and the Weaver stars.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
Du Mu on a palace maid catching fireflies and watching the Qixi stars. The scene stays with you.
Background
Du Mu on a palace maid catching fireflies and watching the Qixi stars.
Key words
- 银烛 yín zhú
- silver candles
- 秋光 qiū guāng
- autumn light; the look of autumn
- 冷画 lěng huà
- a cold painting; chill in the picture
About the poet: Du Mu
Du Mu, grandson of a chief minister, was an official and a stylish writer of quatrains. With Li Shangyin he is known as one of the "Little Li and Du" of the late Tang, prized for vivid scenes tinged with history and melancholy.
Lifetime: 803–852. Other famous works: Written at the Wujiang Pavilion (题乌江亭); Passing Huaqing Palace (过华清宫); Qingming (清明); Spring in Jiangnan (江南春); Mooring on the Qinhuai River (泊秦淮); Mountain Walk (山行); Autumn View in Chang'an (长安秋望); For Han Chuo in Yangzhou (寄扬州韩绰判官); The Pond Behind Qi'an (齐安郡后池绝句); Autumn Evening (秋夕).
More by Du Mu
- Mountain Walk山行
- Qingming清明
- Spring in Jiangnan江南春
- Mooring on the Qinhuai River泊秦淮
- Written at the Wujiang Pavilion题乌江亭
- Passing Huaqing Palace过华清宫
- Autumn View in Chang'an长安秋望
- For Han Chuo in Yangzhou寄扬州韩绰判官