Seeing Off Wei Wan to the Capital
English translation and interpretation are being reviewed.
昨夜微霜初渡河。
鸿雁不堪愁里听，
云山况是客中过。
关城树色催寒近，
御苑砧声向晚多。
莫见长安行乐处，
空令岁月易蹉跎。
English translation
At dawn I hear the traveler sing his parting song, last night the first light frost crossed the river.
The wild geese I cannot bear to hear in my sorrow, and clouded hills must be crossed as a stranger.
The trees at the pass hasten the coming cold, fulling blocks sound more toward evening in the imperial park.
Do not, seeing the pleasures of Chang'an, idly let the years slip away in wasted time.
Meaning
At dawn I hear the traveller singing his song of parting; last night thin frost had just crossed the Yellow River.
A heart full of sorrow cannot bear to hear the wild geese crying in grief; how much less he who is parted from his native place by a thousand hills and rivers, a stranger still upon the road.
At Tongguan the morning light grows colder and colder, the weather ever more chill; in the capital the sound of pounding clothes grows louder towards evening as autumn wears on.
Do not think of Chang'an as a place of pleasure, lest you squander your precious years in vain.
Background
Read the background
Wei Wan later changed his name to Wei Hao. He once sought immortality and studied the Dao, living as a recluse on Mount Wangwu. Wei Wan belonged to a generation of poets later than Li Qi, yet the two were like "friends beyond the difference in age," bound by deep affection. In his later years Li Qi made his home at Yingyang but often went to Luoyang, and this poem was probably written during those later years at Luoyang.