Frontier Song for Zhang: No. 4
A splendid feast opens beneath a field tent;
People of the frontier come to greet the returning troops.
Amid the drinking they join in an armored dance;
Thunderous drums move mountains and rivers.
Notes
A field tent hosts a splendid feast; the first line also has a variant. Qiang and Rong are historical terms for frontier peoples. Lao xuan describes greeting and comforting returning troops; the drums are compared to thunder.
Meaning
A field-tent feast welcomes returning troops. Dance and thunderous drums fill the scene.
Appreciation
This poem depicts a feast for returning troops, a different moment from the group’s military action scenes.
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The opening establishes the tent and the people offering congratulations; the first line has a variant.
Dance gives way to the sound of drums, exaggerated as moving mountains and rivers.
The names for frontier peoples are historical terms and should be read in context.
About the poet
Lu Lun, courtesy name Yunyan, was a Tang poet associated with the Ten Talents of the Dali era. Sources differ on his exact dates.
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Life: Lu served in official posts and wrote about travel, farewells and the frontier.
Works: This is the third poem in his Frontier Songs associated with Zhang Pushe.