A Song to Be Played on the Green Jade Flute

Author: Guan Hanqing (1220—1300)

The autumn scenery is worth describing.

Red leaves cover the creek in the valley.

The pine-tree-lined path slants to please the eye.

Yellow chrysanthemums zigzag along the east fence gracefully.

For wine being poured into my clear glass, I hold it upright without movement.

Someone in white urges me to drink it up at this moment.

My ambition for the highest post in the government,

What good does it do to me?

Resign!

I will learn from the example of Yuanming to drink heartily.

Guan is sometimes referred to as “Shakespeare of the East.” His plays vividly portray people in all walks of life during the Yuan Dynasty (1271—1368).

“Yuanming” mentioned in the poem above was Tao Yuanming (365-427) who distinguished himself by taking a less trodden path. Many educated Chinese men of later generations envied his choice of freedom.

Copyright: A POETIC PORTAL TO CHINESE CULTURE, China Pictorial Press