In ancient Chinese poetry, homesickness is a recurring theme. Many of the ancient Chinese poets were also bureaucrats who embarked on long journeys for their official duties. These poets lived in a country with a robust central government that administered distant regions, yet the technology of the period didn’t allow easy travel. In this article, we’ve translated three Tang dynasty poems written by Wang Wei on homesickness.
杂诗三首 Three Pieces of Miscellaneous Poems
王维 (Author: Wang Wei, 8th century)
其一 Number One
家住孟津河，home reside meng jin river
门对孟津口。door face meng jin ferry
常有江南船，often have river south boat
寄书家中否？ mail letter home inside no
Translation:
My home is on the Meng Jin River
Where I look out at the ferry.
Boats often come from the South.
Have you never mailed me a letter?
其二 Number Two
君自故乡来，you from old village come
应知故乡事。should know old village affairs
来日绮窗前，come day gorgeous window before
寒梅著花未？cold plum flower open flower or not
Translation:
You’ve come from my home town
And must know what happens there.
Tell me, has the cold plum flower
Opened beneath the lattice window?
其三 Number Three
已见寒梅发，already see cold plum flower open
复闻啼鸟声。again hear crying bird sound
心心视春草，heart heart look at spring grass
畏向玉阶生。afraid of towards jade stairs grow
Translation:
Already I’ve seen the cold plum flower open
And heard the birds crying again.
Oh my heart, the sadness of looking at the spring grass
And feeling afraid when it grows toward the marble stairs.
Translation notes:
The three poems were all penned by Wang Wei after the An Lushan rebellion, when he lived as a recluse near the Meng Jin area, far from his hometown. The first poem reflects the strong desire of a wife to hear from her husband. She resides along the Meng Jin River in the north, while her husband travels to the south. She hoped that a boat from the south would carry her husband’s letter, but her hope remained unfulfilled.
In the second poem, Wang Wei employs the “cold plum flower” as a symbol. This flower represents objects familiar to him from his hometown and serves to express his homesickness. The third poem employs the image of growing spring grass to convey Wang Wei’s deepening sense of longing for home. In the final line, the literal translation of “玉阶” would be “jade stairs.” We translate it into “marble stairs” rather than “jade stairs” as we think Western readers would understand a marble staircase, but probably not a jade one.
On a separate note, my friend Vickie and I have established a Substack dedicated to classical Chinese poems. Our Substack offers a deep historical context for the poems and organizes related poems into groups. We invite you to subscribe to our Substack (with free subscription) for regular updates featuring new translations and commentary articles.