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Poetry library / Looking up at mountains and rivers / A Night at the Mountain Temple
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A Night at the Mountain Temple

夜宿山寺 · Li Bai · 唐

Chinese · Pinyin · English
危wēi楼lóu高gāo百bǎi尺chǐ

The lofty tower rises a hundred feet;

手shǒu可kě摘zhāi星xīng辰chén

My hand could pluck the stars.

不bù敢gǎn高gāo声shēng语yǔ

I dare not speak aloud,

恐kǒng惊jīng天tiān上shàng人rén

For fear of waking the people in heaven.

Meaning

The mountain temple tower feels so high that the poet imagines picking stars. He speaks softly for fear of disturbing people in heaven. This is playful exaggeration, not a literal measurement.

About the poet

Li Bai was a Tang poet known for vivid imagination and poems about nature, friendship and longing.

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