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Niǎo Míng JiànBirdsong in the Ravine 鸟鸣涧
Wang Wei on a quiet spring night in the hills; the rising moon startles the birds.
Original Chinese text with pinyin
人闲桂花落
rén xián guì huā luò
夜静春山空
yè jìng chūn shān kōng
月出惊山鸟
yuè chū jīng shān niǎo
时鸣春涧中
shí míng chūn jiàn zhōng
Simplified characters; traditional title: 鳥鳴澗.
English translation
At ease, I watch the osmanthus flowers fall;
the night is still, the spring mountain empty.
The rising moon startles the mountain birds,
who call now and then in the spring ravine.
Original translation by Poetune — literal but poetic, written for this site.
Line by line
Meaning and imagery
Wang Wei on a quiet spring night in the hills; the rising moon startles the birds. The scene stays with you.
Background
Wang Wei on a quiet spring night in the hills; the rising moon startles the birds.
Key words
- 鸟鸣涧 niǎo míng jiàn
- birds calling in the stream valley — a poem title
- 桂花 guì huā
- osmanthus blossom
- 人闲 rén xián
- people at leisure; a quiet mind
About the poet: Wang Wei
Wang Wei was a poet, painter, musician and court official. A devout Buddhist, he wrote spare, luminous landscape verse; later critics said there is "a painting in his poems and a poem in his paintings." He is sometimes called the "Buddha of Poetry."
Lifetime: c. 699–761. Other famous works: Miscellaneous Poem (You Have Come from Home) (杂诗); Farewell (Dismounting to Drink) (送别); Autumn Evening in the Mountains (山居秋暝); Longing (相思); Deer Park (鹿柴); Bamboo Grove Retreat (竹里馆); Farewell to Yuan the Second on His Mission to Anxi (送元二使安西); Thinking of My Brothers on the Double Ninth (九月九日忆山东兄弟); Birdsong in the Ravine (鸟鸣涧); Joys of the Countryside (田园乐); Floating on the Han River (汉江临泛); In the Mountains (山中); Farewell in the Mountains (山中送别); Long Rain at Wangchuan (积雨辋川庄作); Magnolia Bank (辛夷坞); Seeing Off Shen Zifu (送沈子福之江东); Reply to Vice-Prefect Zhang (酬张少府); A Quiet Matter (书事); Song of Youth (少年行); My Retreat at Zhongnan (终南别业); Seeing Off Prefect Li of Zizhou (送梓州李使君).
More by Wang Wei
- Farewell to Yuan Er on His Mission to Anxi送元二使安西
- Deer Park鹿柴
- Bamboo Grove Retreat竹里馆
- Thinking of My Brothers on the Double Ninth九月九日忆山东兄弟
- Farewell (Dismounting to Drink)送别
- Autumn Evening in the Mountains山居秋暝
- Longing相思
- Miscellaneous Poem (You Have Come from Home)杂诗