Poetry Buds · 听古诗

OPEN POETRY LIBRARY · S01 / 094

Watching the Snow

对雪 · Gao Pian · Tang dynasty

六liù出chū飞fēi花huā入rù户hù时shí

Six-pointed flying flowers enter the doorway;

坐zuò看kàn青qīng竹zhú变biàn琼qióng枝zhī

I sit and watch green bamboo turn to jade-white branches.

如rú今jīn好hǎo上shàng高gāo楼lóu望wàng

Now is a fine time to look from a high tower,

盖gài尽jǐn人rén间jiān恶è路lù岐qí

With snow covering the world’s harsh, crooked roads.

What the poem means

Snow enters the doorway and turns green bamboo into white jade-like branches. The poet imagines viewing roads covered by snow, with a further thought about the world's wrongs. Children can begin with the change in color.

Meet the poet

Gao Pian was a Tang poet and general. Snow-covered bamboo leads into a reflection on the world’s wrongs.

Gao Pian · More poems →