Mooring at Night in Ezhou
English translation and interpretation are being reviewed.
犹是孤帆一日程。
估客昼眠知浪静，
舟人夜语觉潮生。
三湘衰鬓逢秋色，
万里归心对月明。
旧业已随征战尽，
更堪江上鼓鼙声。
English translation
The clouds part, and far off I see the city of Hanyang, still a full day's journey for this lonely sail.
The merchants sleep by day, so I know the waves are calm, the boatmen talk at night, so I feel the tide rising.
My thinning temples meet the autumn hues of the three Xiang, my homeward heart, ten thousand li, faces the bright moon.
My old estate has gone with the wars, how much more can I bear the drums of war upon the river?
Meaning
The clouds part and I see Hanyang city far away, though my lonely sail has still a day's journey to go.
Merchants sleep by day, knowing the waves are calm; boatmen talk at night, sensing the tide is rising.
I gaze upon the autumn hues of the Three Xiang, and the hair at my temples grows white; I look upon the moon ten thousand li away, and my longing for home increases.
The old estate back home has been destroyed by war; how can I bear to hear once more the drums and horns upon the river?
Background
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In the Complete Tang Poems this piece is annotated under its title as "written during the Zhide era," which places it in the earlier phase of the An Lushan Rebellion. Because of the war the poet was forced to wander in alien parts, drifting without rest; he once stayed as a guest at Poyang, traveled south with the army, passed through Sanxiang, and lodged at Ezhou, where he wrote this poem.