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Thinking of Brothers at Double Ninth

九月九日忆山东兄弟 · Wang Wei · 唐

Chinese · Pinyin · English
独dú在zài异yì乡xiāng为wéi异yì客kè

Alone in another land, a stranger away from home,

每měi逢féng佳jiā节jié倍bèi思sī亲qīn

At every festival I miss my family all the more.

遥yáo知zhī兄xiōng弟dì登dēng高gāo处chù

Far away I imagine my brothers climbing the heights,

遍biàn插chā茱zhū萸yú少shǎo一yì人rén

Wearing dogwood sprigs, with one person missing.

Meaning

Away from home, the poet misses family especially at festival time. He imagines his brothers climbing with dogwood sprigs and noticing his absence. Shandong here means east of Mount Hua, not simply today's province.

About the poet

Wang Wei was a Tang poet. Far from home, he imagines family together at a festival, with his own place empty.

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