Translation
Meng Jiao (751-814) | 孟郊 |
Song of a Virtuous Woman | 烈女操 |
Sycamore trees grow together old | 梧桐 相待老 |
And mandarin ducks, both male and female, join together in death | 鴛鴦 會雙死 |
A virtuous, loyal woman, noble and precious, joins her husband in burial | 貞婦 貴 殉夫 |
Willingly giving her life too, to go like this | 捨生 亦如此 |
Rising waves cannot upend this promise: | 波瀾 誓不起 |
Her heart is water in a well | 妾心 井中水 |
Notes:
1. 1st verse (Wú tóng xiāng dài lǎo): Legend has it Wú is the male tree. Tóng is the female tree.
2. Verse 2: Mandarin ducks are often used as symbols for an affectionate couple in Chinese literature.
3. In feudal society, women relied on their husbands financially, so they were attached to the husbands. Thus martyrdom of the wife is highly expected after the husband die. Here, the poet may yearn for a perpectual love.
Original Chinese
Traditional | Simplified | Pronunciation |
孟郊 | 孟郊 | Mèng jiāo |
烈女操 | 烈女操 | Liè nǚ cāo |
梧桐相待老， | 梧桐相待老， | Wú tóng xiāng dài lǎo, |
鴛鴦會雙死； | 鸳鸯会双死; | Yuān yāng huì shuāng sǐ; |
貞婦貴殉夫， | 贞妇贵殉夫， | Zhēn fù guì xùn fū, |
捨生亦如此。 | 舍生亦如此。 | Shě shēng yì rú cǐ. |
波瀾誓不起， | 波澜誓不起， | Bō lán shì bù qǐ, |
妾心井中水。 | 妾心井中水。 | Qiè xīn jǐng zhōng shuǐ. |
Literal Translation
孟郊 | Eldest-brother Suburb=[Meng Jiao(751-814)] |
烈女操 | Ardent woman act |
[Ardent woman= a woman paragon with chastity; who dies fighting for her honor; who follows her husband in death], [act= Cao, a genre of music tunes] | |
梧桐相待老， | Sterculia-platanifolia Aleurites-cordata mutual treat/wait/receive old [Sterculia-platanifolia Aleurites-cordata=Wutong tree, sycamore, Chinese parasol tree, pawlonia] |
鴛鴦會雙死； | Male-mandarin-duck female-mandarin-duck can/possible/join/meet pair/couple die [Mandarin-duck mandarin-duck= Mandarin duck] [pair/couple die = die in pairs] |
貞婦貴殉夫， | Chaste/pure/virtuous/loyal woman noble/precious buried-with-dead/die-for-a-cause husband |
捨生亦如此。 | Abandon/give-up-willingly life also like this |
波瀾誓不起， | Wave swelling-water swear/promise not raise/up |
妾心井中水。 | Self-reference-for-women heart well inside water |
[well inside water= well water, no waves, allusion to express the heart will never change ] |
The notes, character table, and literal translation were prepared with the assistance of Liane Rui of Shanghai, China.
Year:
2012
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