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Zǐ Yè Wú GēMidnight Song of Wu (Autumn) 子夜吴歌

Li Bai (李白, also known as Li Po, Li Taibai)｜High Tang｜five-character ancient-style poem

Li Bai's autumn night of women longing for soldiers at the frontier.

Original Chinese text with pinyin

长安一片月
cháng ān yī piàn yuè

万户捣衣声
wàn hù dǎo yī shēng

秋风吹不尽
qiū fēng chuī bù jìn

总是玉关情
zǒng shì yù guān qíng

何日平胡虏
hé rì píng hú lǔ

良人罢远征
liáng rén bà yuǎn zhēng

Simplified characters; traditional title: 子夜吳歌.

English translation

Over Chang'an a sheet of moonlight falls;

From ten thousand homes comes the sound of pounding clothes.

The autumn wind blows on and will not cease—

Always it is longing for the Jade Pass.

When will the northern barbarians be quelled,

So my good man may end his far campaign?

Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.

Line by line

长安一片月 · cháng ān yī piàn yuè — Over Chang'an a sheet of moonlight falls;

万户捣衣声 · wàn hù dǎo yī shēng — From ten thousand homes comes the sound of pounding clothes.

秋风吹不尽 · qiū fēng chuī bù jìn — The autumn wind blows on and will not cease—

总是玉关情 · zǒng shì yù guān qíng — Always it is longing for the Jade Pass.

何日平胡虏 · hé rì píng hú lǔ — When will the northern barbarians be quelled,

良人罢远征 · liáng rén bà yuǎn zhēng — So my good man may end his far campaign?

Meaning and imagery

The opening joins one moon and ten thousand households, the whole city united in the same task and the same longing. The autumn wind carries their feelings toward the Jade Gate Pass. The final couplet drops into the plain voice of a single wife asking when the war will end. Li Bai combines vast scale with a simple personal wish.

Background

The autumn poem of a set of four seasonal "Midnight Songs," an old southern folk-song form. Women pounded cloth to make winter clothes for husbands at the frontier.

Key words

捣衣 dǎo yī: pounding cloth
玉关 Yùguān: the Jade Gate Pass
良人 liáng rén: husband

About the poet: Li Bai

Li Bai (also romanized Li Po; courtesy name Taibai) is celebrated as the "Immortal of Poetry." Raised in Sichuan, he spent much of his life wandering, briefly served at the court of Emperor Xuanzong in Chang'an, and is remembered for his love of wine, the moon and untamed nature. He and Du Fu are regarded as the two greatest poets of the Tang dynasty.

Lifetime: 701–762. Other famous works: Farewell to a Friend (送友人); Song of Qiupu (White Hair) (秋浦歌); Midnight Song of Wu (Autumn) (子夜吴歌); Question and Answer in the Mountains (山中问答); For Wang Lun (赠汪伦); The Road Is Hard (行路难); Sitting Alone Facing Jingting Mountain (独坐敬亭山); Written as a Traveler (客中作); Song of the Moon over Mount Emei (峨眉山月歌); Resentment (怨情); Farewell to Meng Haoran at Yellow Crane Tower (黄鹤楼送孟浩然之广陵); Quiet Night Thoughts (静夜思); Bring In the Wine (将进酒); Drinking Alone Under the Moon (月下独酌); Viewing the Waterfall at Mount Lu (望庐山瀑布); Leaving Baidi City at Dawn (早发白帝城); The Hard Road to Shu (蜀道难); Gazing at Tianmen Mountain (望天门山); Song of Changgan (长干行); Boating on Dongting Lake (陪族叔刑部侍郞晔及中书贾舎人至游洞庭); Song of the Yue Girl (越女词); Visiting a Taoist on Mount Daitian (访戴天山道士不遇); Easing My Heart (自遣); A Summer Day in the Mountains (夏日山中); Farewell at a Jinling Tavern (金陵酒肆留别); Song of the Bright Moon (古朗月行); Drinking on Dragon Mountain on the Ninth (九日龙山饮); Drinking with a Hermit in the Mountains (山中与幽人对酌); Song of Pure Peace (清平调其一); Song of Pure Peace III (清平调其三); Song of Youth (少年行); Down Through Jingmen in Autumn (秋下荆门); Crossing Jingmen (渡荆门送别); Staying the Night at a Mountain Temple (夜宿山寺); For Meng Haoran (赠孟浩然).