Year
Sima Qian (~145/135 B.C. - 86 B.C.)
Dejected wind,
The water is cold;
Our hero is gone
And will not return.
Original Chinese
| Traditional | Simplified | Pronunciation |
| | | |
| 易水歌 | 易水歌 | |
| | | |
| 風蕭蕭兮易水寒， | 风萧萧兮易水寒， | |
| 壯士一去兮不復還。 | 壮士一去兮不复还。 |
Translation Notes
From Sima Qian’s (~145/135 – 86 B.C.) verse classic, Records of the Grand Historian. In one of the chapters, it tells a story about Jing Ke’s assassination of Ying Zheng, King of the Qin State, who later became China’s first emperor, reigning from 221 B.C. to 210 B.C. Incidentally, this story was later celebrated in the Chinese movie Hero, starring Jet Li.
| 易水歌 | Change water song |
| | |
| 風蕭蕭兮易水寒， | Wind dejected dreary [exclamatory] change water cold |
| 壯士一去兮不復還。 | Big gentleman one depart [exclamatory] not return yet [Big gentleman = hero or warrior] |