Zhōng Shān Jí ShìAt Zhongshan 钟山即事
Wang Anshi on the stillness of Zhongshan: "not one bird calls; the hill is quieter still".
Original Chinese text with pinyin
涧水无声绕竹流
jiàn shuǐ wú shēng rào zhú liú
竹西花草弄春柔
zhú xī huā cǎo nòng chūn róu
茅檐相对坐终日
máo yán xiāng duì zuò zhōng rì
一鸟不鸣山更幽
yī niǎo bù míng shān gèng yōu
Simplified characters; traditional title: 鐘山即事.
English translation
The stream flows silently around the bamboo;
west of the bamboo, flowers and grass play with spring's softness.
Under the thatched eaves, sitting face to face all day,
not a single bird calls — the mountain is even quieter.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
Wang Anshi on the stillness of Zhongshan: "not one bird calls; the hill is quieter still". The scene stays with you.
Background
Wang Anshi on the stillness of Zhongshan: "not one bird calls; the hill is quieter still".
Key words
- 茅檐 máo yán
- thatch eaves; a thatched roof
- 涧水 jiàn shuǐ
- brook water; mountain stream
- 无声 wú shēng
- without a sound; silent
About the poet: Wang Anshi
Wang Anshi was a chief minister of the Northern Song who pushed through the sweeping "New Policies" reforms. Out of office he retired to Nanjing and wrote compact, finely polished quatrains. He is one of the "Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song."
Lifetime: 1021–1086. Other famous works: Mooring at Guazhou (泊船瓜洲); Plum Blossoms (梅花); Climbing Feilai Peak (登飞来峰); New Year's Day (元日); Apricot Blossom by the North Pond (北陂杏花); Written on the Wall of Mr Huyin (书湖阴先生壁); Early Summer (初夏即事); At Zhongshan (钟山即事); Night Duty (夜直).
More by Wang Anshi
- Climbing Feilai Peak登飞来峰
- Mooring at Guazhou泊船瓜洲
- Plum Blossoms梅花
- New Year's Day元日
- Apricot Blossom by the North Pond北陂杏花
- Written on the Wall of Mr Huyin书湖阴先生壁
- Early Summer初夏即事
- Night Duty夜直