CHINESE POETRY READING #1
Quiet Night Thought - Jìng yè sī (静夜思)
By Li Bai
床前明月光
疑是地上霜
举头望明月
低头思故乡
Chuáng qián míngyuè guāng
Yí shì dìshang shuāng
Jǔtóu wàng míngyuè
Dītóu sī gùxiāng
Moonlight before my bed
Perhaps frost on the ground.
Lift my head and see the moon
Lower my head and I miss my home.
About the Poem
‘Quiet Night’s Thought’ is vague yet reflective. It is one of the most famous Chinese poems, and is often taught in Chinese schools. It expresses the melancholic yearning for family when you are far away from home, this is reflected through its night-time imagery and sparse form. It begins as the narrator is going to sleep but he catches the sight of “moonlight before his bed”, at first he thinks it is “frost on the ground”, so he lifts his head and looks out the window. He sees the moon. Then he lowers his head, a melancholic gesture showing that he is thinking about and “misses home”. The moon is symbolic here as in Chinese culture the full moon represents union, the whole family being together at home, hence the meaning of the poem.About the Poet
One of China’s most famous and most important poets, Li Bai (701 – 762AD) lived and flourished during the Tang Dynasty and along with Dufu was chief of what historians call China’s golden age of poetry.
