Walking Alone by the River in Search of Flowers V
Eastward the river flows before Master Huang’s pagoda;
Drowsy in the spring light, I lean into the gentle breeze.
A cluster of peach blossoms opens, with no owner in sight:
Should I love the deep red, or the pale red?
Notes
Jiāngpàn is the riverside; dúbù means walking alone. Master Huang’s pagoda refers to a monk’s funerary pagoda. Lǎnkùn suggests springtime drowsiness. Wúzhǔ can suggest flowers with no one tending them.
Meaning
Walking beside the river, the speaker enjoys a spring breeze and finds peach blossoms. Their shades of red invite a playful question: which does one love more?
Appreciation
This is the fifth poem in Du Fu’s riverside flower-walk sequence. It follows a solitary walker to a cluster of peach blossoms.
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The eastward river and gentle breeze set the scene, while springtime drowsiness slows its pace.
The last question moves between deep and pale red. Its playful uncertainty conveys delight without demanding an answer.
Look for different shades of a color together; a child may like either shade or both.
About the poet
Du Fu (712–770), courtesy name Zimei, was a Tang poet born in the area of present-day Gongyi, Henan. War and official work took him through many places, including Chengdu.
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His surviving poems include Spring View and a number of quatrains, as well as works about everyday life and war.
Sources
Poem and reading reference: Shicile · Poet biography reference · poems-db
Translation and explanations by Poetry Buds; review ongoing.