Category: Poems by – 元稹 (779-831)

曾經滄海難為水   除却巫山不是雲
取次花叢懶回顧   半缘修道半缘君

To My Lover                                      江紹倫譯

I’ve crossed many seas to devote myself to water
In my heart no cloud can compare with the cloud of Mt. Mu
Among flowers in profusion I’ve been tardy to pursue
Partly for my devotion to Dao partly because I love you

To My Departed Wife                    translated by Paul Lee (1962) 2009/12/22

Having crossed the Cang Sea makes it hard to call anything else water
Nothing qualifies as cloud once I have seen those at Wu Mountain
I walked passed a bevy of beauties and did not care to look back
Partly because I am cultivating discipline and partly because of you.