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Cūn WǎnVillage Evening 村晚

Lei Zhen (雷震, also known as Lei Chen)｜Southern Song｜seven-character quatrain

Lei Zhen on a herd boy at dusk, sitting sideways on an ox and playing a flute.

Original Chinese text with pinyin

草满池塘水满陂
cǎo mǎn chí táng shuǐ mǎn bēi

山衔落日浸寒漪
shān xián luò rì jìn hán yī

牧童归去横牛背
mù tóng guī qù héng niú bèi

短笛无腔信口吹
duǎn dí wú qiāng xìn kǒu chuī

Simplified characters; traditional title: 村晚.

Grass fills the pond, water fills the bank;

the hills hold the setting sun, dipping in cold ripples.

The cowherd goes home, lying sideways on the ox's back,

playing a short flute, no tune, just what comes out.

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

草满池塘水满陂 · cǎo mǎn chí táng shuǐ mǎn bēi — Grass fills the pond, water fills the bank;

山衔落日浸寒漪 · shān xián luò rì jìn hán yī — the hills hold the setting sun, dipping in cold ripples.

牧童归去横牛背 · mù tóng guī qù héng niú bèi — The cowherd goes home, lying sideways on the ox's back,

短笛无腔信口吹 · duǎn dí wú qiāng xìn kǒu chuī — playing a short flute, no tune, just what comes out.

Lei Zhen on a herd boy at dusk, sitting sideways on an ox and playing a flute. The scene stays with you.

Lei Zhen on a herd boy at dusk, sitting sideways on an ox and playing a flute.

Lei Zhen left pastoral evening scenes such as Village Evening.

Lifetime: Southern Song. Other famous works: Village Evening (村晚).