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Jué Jù Màn XīngCasual Quatrain 绝句漫兴
Du Fu on early summer: willow fluff, lotus leaves, bamboo shoots, ducklings.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
糁径杨花铺白毡
sǎn jìng yáng huā pù bái zhān
点溪荷叶叠青钱
diǎn xī hé yè dié qīng qián
笋根稚子无人见
sǔn gēn zhì zi wú rén jiàn
沙上凫雏傍母眠
shā shàng fú chú bàng mǔ mián
Simplified characters; traditional title: 絕句漫興.
English translation
Willow fluff strewn on the path, a white felt rug;
lotus leaves dotting the stream, stacked green coins.
Among the bamboo roots, the baby shoots no one sees;
on the sand, ducklings sleep beside their mother.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
Du Fu on early summer: willow fluff, lotus leaves, bamboo shoots, ducklings. The scene stays with you.
Background
Du Fu on early summer: willow fluff, lotus leaves, bamboo shoots, ducklings.
Key words
- 白毡 bái zhān
- white felt — snow like felt
- 凫雏 fú chú
- duckling; young wild duck
About the poet: Du Fu
Du Fu (also romanized Tu Fu) lived through the An Lushan Rebellion, which tore apart the Tang empire and his own family life. His precise, compassionate poems record war, poverty and loyalty, earning him the titles "Sage of Poetry" and "poet-historian."
Lifetime: 712–770. Other famous works: Happy Rain on a Spring Night (春夜喜雨); The Prime Minister of Shu (蜀相); The Officer at Shihao Village (石壕吏); Thoughts While Traveling at Night (旅夜书怀); Qujiang (曲江); Meeting Li Guinian in Jiangnan (江南逢李龟年); Ballad of the Army Carts (兵车行); Moonlit Night (月夜); Spring View (春望); Climbing High (登高); Quatrain: Two Orioles (绝句·两个黄鹂鸣翠柳); On Yueyang Tower (登岳阳楼); My Thatched Hut Torn by the Autumn Wind (茅屋为秋风所破歌); Gazing at Mount Tai (望岳); A Guest Arrives (客至); Strolling by the River V (江畔独步寻花 其五); Strolling Alone by the River in Search of Flowers (江畔独步寻花); River Village (江村); Winter Solstice Eve (小至); Thinking of Li Bai on a Spring Day (春日忆李白); Easing the Heart by the Water Rail (水槛遣心); Quatrain (绝句); Casual Quatrain (绝句漫兴); For General Hua (赠花卿).
More by Du Fu
- Spring View春望
- Quatrain (The River Blue)绝句
- Climbing High登高
- On Yueyang Tower登岳阳楼
- Moonlit Night月夜
- Happy Rain on a Spring Night春夜喜雨
- Meeting Li Guinian in Jiangnan江南逢李龟年
- Qujiang曲江