#tyk quote

天问 (刘宇宁) Heavenly Questions (Liu Yuning)

问雨问晴心事多少

付明月暮暮与朝朝

asking the rain and the clear weather how many worries [1] there might be

every day and night I dedicate myself wholeheartedly to the bright moon [2]

[1] 心事 (xīn shì) literally means “heart matters” and refers to troubled thoughts and worries that weigh down on your mind. I’ve translated it here as “worries”.

[2] 付明月 (fù míng yuè) is from the phrase “我将真心付明月，明月缘何照沟渠” which is in turn derived from 《琵琶记》”Tale of the Pipa” by Gao Ming (1305-1370). The full sentence means something along the lines of: “I dedicate myself wholeheartedly and sincerely to someone (i.e. what the metaphor of the bright moon refers to), continuously working hard for them in the hopes that they would understand my innermost feelings. However, that person misunderstood all my efforts and did not treat me the way I hoped they would, causing me to feel hurt, sad, disappointed, and angry.”

天涯客 (张哲瀚&龚俊) Faraway Wanderer (Zhang Zhehan & Gong Jun)

西陵下凄秋凉雨吻我窗

任人憎任人谤未妨惆怅是清狂

down at the western mounds [3], the cold and desolate autumn rain kisses my window

I endure the hate and the slander, yet I might as well remain melancholic and stubborn in my blind infatuation [4]

[3] 陵 (líng) can mean a mound/ hill (yes this the same ling that is in “yiling”) but can also mean an emperor’s tomb.

[4] 未妨惆怅是清狂 (wèi fáng chóu chàng shì qīng kuáng) is from the phrase “直道相思了无意，未妨惆怅是清狂” which is part of a longer poem 《无题二首》 by Li Shangyin (813-858). The full phrase means that even though one knows that bitterly missing and pining for a loved one is completely futile, one still remains wracked with melancholy till the end of one’s life, stubbornly abiding by one’s blind infatuation.

无题 (胡夏) Nameless (Hu Xia)

两岸莺啼人无语 一川烟波淹没了眼睛

云万里无名无姓 也无风雨也无晴

on both shores the orioles cry [5] yet the people remain silent, a river of mist-covered waters [6] have drowned my eyes

the clouds stretch on for tens of thousands of miles without a name, and neither is there wind nor rain nor clear weather

[5] 莺啼 (yīng tí) literally means “oriole’s cry”, where 啼 refers to a bird’s cry, tweet, chirp, or song in general. I’ve stuck with “cry” in this translation because it sounds more sorrowful especially when personified.