Thoughts on Seeing the Moon
自河南经乱，关内阻饥，兄弟离散，各在一处。因望月有感，聊书所怀，寄上浮梁大兄、於潜七兄、乌江十五兄，兼示符离及下邽弟妹。
After disorder in Henan and hunger in the Guannei region, my brothers and I were scattered, each in a different place. Looking at the moon moved me to write a little of what I felt and send it to my elder brothers in Fuliang, Yuqian and Wujiang, and also to show it to my younger siblings in Fuli and Xiagui.
In troubled times and years of hunger, our inherited livelihood is gone;
Brothers travel far apart, some west and some east.
Fields lie desolate after war;
Family members wander on the roads.
We comfort our own shadows, like wild geese separated over a thousand li;
Leaving our roots, we scatter like autumn tumbleweed.
Seeing the same bright moon, we must each be moved to tears;
On one night, five places share the same longing for home.
Notes
The prose preface explains the family’s separation during disorder and hunger and names the recipients. Henan and Guannei were Tang regional names. Shìyè means inherited livelihood; gāngē, weapons, stands for war. “Flesh and bone” means family. Geese and autumn tumbleweed suggest separation and wandering; five places refers to the dispersed family.
Meaning
War and hunger have scattered the family and ruined their livelihood. Relatives wander far apart, like separated geese and uprooted autumn plants. Looking at the same moon, they may weep and share a longing for home across five places.
Appreciation
The preface explains where the family has scattered; the poem moves from hardship and wandering toward a shared moon.
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The opening names the damage to livelihood, fields and family life after war and hunger.
Separated geese and uprooted autumn plants give visible form to distance and the loss of a settled home.
At the end, the same moon connects relatives in different places. Read the preface first and find the places on a map.
About the poet
Bai Juyi (772–846), courtesy name Letian, was a Tang poet and official born near present-day Xinzheng, Henan.
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His works include Song of the Pipa Player, Song of Everlasting Sorrow and many poems about daily life.