Du Fu's "Gazing at the Mountain Peak"

Year

Fri, 2011-12-02 12:00

Du Fu wrote this when he was young. The mountain he is referring to, Mt. Dai, is one of the five Sacred Mountains of China and considered the biggest, most important one. The poem can also be read symbolically of Du Fu's ambitions to rise to power in government (which he was ultimately unsuccessful at doing).

My Translation

By Du Fu (712-770 AD)	杜甫
Gazing at the Mountain Peak	望嶽

What of this Sacred Mountain?	岱宗夫如何
Between the Qi and Lu provinces lays a youthful green, unfinished	齊魯青未了
Mother of all things— your cup is flowering, luxuriant	造化鍾神秀
Yin and yang part the dusk and dawn	陰陽割昏曉
And my heart is tossed by living layers of clouds	盪胸生層雲
Straining out the corner of my eyes I see the incoming birds	決眥入歸鳥
And I'm determined to rise and approach the vanishing peak	會當凌絕頂
And see below the numerous array of tiny mountains	一覽眾山小

Original Chinese

Traditional	Simplified	Pronunciation

杜甫	杜甫	Dù Fu
望嶽	望嶽	Wàng Yuè

岱宗夫如何？	岱宗夫如何，	Dài zōng // fu rú hé?
齊魯青未了。	齐鲁青未了。	Qí lǔ // qīng wèi liǎo.
造化鍾神秀，	造化钟神秀，	Zào huà // zhōng shén xiù,
陰陽割昏曉。	阴阳割昏晓。	Yīn yáng // gē hūn xiǎo.
盪胸生層雲，	荡胸生层云，	Dàng xiōng // shēng céng yún,
決眥入歸鳥。	决眦入归鸟。	Jué zì // rù guī niǎo.
會當凌絕頂，	会当凌绝顶，	Huì dāng // líng jué dǐng,
一覽眾山小。	一览众山小。	Yī lǎn // zhòng shān xiǎo.

Literal Translation

[Stop/prevent] [Man/great/begin] (Du Fu 712-770)

[Look at/look forward/gaze] [Mountain peak/summit]

Daishan lineage(1) those if/as what/where (2)

uniform foolish green not-yet finish (3)

Build change (4) cup/goblet god flowering/luxuriant

yin/dark yang/light (5) divides dusk dawn

toss-about bosom/heart living layer clouds (6)

determine corner-of-eyes enter return birds

possible undertake rise-high/approach vanish top/peak

alone perceive (7) numerous mountain small/tiny

1. Daishan + lineage = Mt. Dai, one of the Five Sacred Mountains in China

2. If/as + what/where = how/what way/what

3. Not-yet + finish = unfinished/unfulfilled/outstanding business

4. Build + change = Nature (as the mother of all things)

5. Dark/yin + light/yang = yin and yang

6. Layer + clouds = stratus clouds

7. Alone + perceive = an overview / at a glance

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