P e n ta s y l l a biC Sh i P oe t ry : l anD s C a P e anD Fa rm s t e aD P oe m s 135
C 6. 7
Climbing the Lakeside Tower 登池上樓 (dēng chí shàng lóu)A submerged dragon entices with mysterious charms, 潛虯媚幽姿 (qián qiú mèi yōu zī)
2 The flying goose echoes its far-off cries. 飛鴻響遠音 (fēi hóng xiăng yuăn yīn)
Reaching toward the sky, I am humbled by the floater
in the clouds, 薄霄愧雲浮 (bó xiāo kuì yún fú)
4 Resting by the river, I am shamed by the dweller in the
depths. 棲川怍淵沉 (qī chuān zuò yuān chén)
My stupidity made me unfit to advance in virtue, 進德智所拙 (jìn dé zhì suŏ zhuō)
6 My weakness made me unable to retire to the plow. 退耕力不任 (tuì gēng lì bù rèn)
In pursuing a salary, I came to this ocean frontier,1^7 徇祿反窮海 (xún lù făn qióng hăi)
8 Now ill, I lie facing the empty forest. 臥痾對空林 (wò ē duì kōng lín)
With quilt and pillow, I was blind to the season’s signs, 衾枕昧節候 (qīn zhĕn mèi jié hòu)
10 I raised my curtain, and peered out for a while. 褰開暫窺臨 (qiān kāi zàn kuī lín)
I tilt my ears to listen to the billowing waves, 傾耳聆波瀾 (qīng ĕr líng bō lán)
12 I lift my eyes to gaze at the steep mountains. 舉目眺嶇嶔 (jŭ mù tiào qū qīn)
Early spring transforms the lingering winds, 初景革緒風 (chū jĭng gé xù fēng)
14 New sunlight transfigures the shadows of old. 新陽改故陰 (xīn yáng găi gù yīn)
The pond’s banks grow spring grasses, 池塘生春草 (chí táng shēng chūn căo)
16 And garden willows have transformed the singing birds. 園柳變鳴禽 (yuán liŭ biàn míng qín)
So dense! I am grieved by the song of Bin, 祁祁傷豳歌 (qí qí shāng bīn gē)
18 So luxuriant! I am stirred by the tune of Chu. 萋萋感楚吟 (qī qī găn chŭ yín)
In living apart, one easily feels the length of time, 索居易永久 (suŏ jū yì yŏng jiŭ)
20 Away from the crowd, it is hard to settle the mind. 離群難處心 (lí qún nán chŭ xīn)
Holding on to principle is not only of old, 持操豈獨古 (chí cāo qĭ dú gŭ)
22 That I am without regret is proven today. 無悶徵在今 (wú mèn zhēng zài jīn)
[XLYJJZ, 63–64]
This poem contains two types of landscape: a symbolic one of lines 1–6 and a
perceived one of lines 11–16. In the first part of the poem, the poet reflects on the
issue of service versus withdrawal, without apparent resolution. This introspec-
tion is soon replaced by outward observation of the early-spring scene. The poet’s
engagement with nature brings about new reflections and a resolution. Lines 17–
20 reveal the uneasy feelings of the poet regarding his exile from court. The poet
is grieved by the song of Bin (Shijing, Mao no. 154), in which a girl longs to find a
mate and go home with him, just as Xie longs to return home; he is also moved
by the song of Chu that summons the recluse from the mountains. Although the
poet admits the difficulty of steadying the mind in seclusion, he finally decides to
maintain his principle and embrace quietude.
Three allusions to the Yijing develop the main theme of the poem. These allu-
sions do not occupy a pivotal position in the poem, bridging the passage from natu-
ral scenes to inner transformation, as in “Climbing Yongjia’s Green Crag Moun-
tain,” or preceding a transformed landscape and subsequent inner meditations, as