Thoughts in the Cold

My guests have all gone,
the river rises to my doorstep,
cicadas cease whirring,
branches fill with dew:
a time when you fill my heart,
the time that passes while I stand
still beneath the Big Dipper,
as distant as spring.
Here beyond the edge
of your Nanjing sky
no messenger comes.
I am left with only
my dreams to divine
if you've found a new friend.
--Li Shangyin, my tr.

Alone in My Cups

Drinking wine, unaware
of nightfall. Fallen flowers
fill the folds of my clothes.
Getting up and walking
to the moonlit river,
where no birds and few men
remain.
--Li Bai, my tr.

An Alternate Translation of "Deer Fence"

Empty Mountain.
Seeing no one.
Hearing someone's
echoing voice.
The late day sun
enters again
the deep forest,
shining once more
on the green moss.
--Wang Wei, my tr.

The life-affirming spirit of dangdut overcomes the glowering spectre of rap.

Deer Fence

Empty mountain.
No one is seen.
But, echoing,
someone is heard.
Afternoon sun
enters again
the deep forest,
shining once more
on the green moss.
--Wang Wei, my tr.

Autumn Song of Lady Night

Opening the window
to the autumn moon,
she puts out the candle,
slipping off her silk skirt.

And suppressing a smile
within the curtained bed,
she arches her body,
spreading orchid fragrance.
--Anon., my tr.

Another by Du Fu

Birds are whiter on the blue river.

Flowers flame up on the green mountain.

Spring, I see, has come and gone again.

What day--what year--will I return home?

--my tr.