垓下歌(项羽)
力拔山兮气盖世,
时不利兮骓不逝.
骓不逝兮可奈何,
虞兮虞兮奈若何!

The Last Song
I could pull down a mountain with my might,
My fortune wanes and e'en my steed won't fight,
Whether my steed will fight, I do not care.
What can I do with you, my lady fair?

古诗十九首(Nineteen Old Poems)

之一
行行重行行，
与君生别离。
相去万余里，
各在天一涯。
道路阻且长，
会面安可知。
胡马依北风，
越鸟巢南枝。
相去日已远，
衣带日已缓。
浮云蔽白日，
游子不顾返。
思君令人老，
岁月忽已晚。
弃捐勿复道，
努力加餐饭。

(I)
You travel on and on
And leave me all alone.
Away ten thousand li,
At the end of the sea
Servered by hard, long way,
Oh, can we meet someday?
Northern steeds love cold breeze,
and southern birds warm trees.
The farther you are away,
The thinner I am each day.
The cloud has veiled the sun;
You won't come back, dear one.
Missing you makes me old;
Soon comes the winter cold.
Alas! Of me you're quit.
I hope you will keep fit.
 
之二
青青河畔草，
郁郁园中柳。
盈盈楼上女，
皎皎当窗牖。
娥娥红粉妆，
纤纤出素手。
昔为娼家女，
今为荡子夫。
荡子行不归，
空床难独守。
 (II)
Green, green, the riverside grass,
Fair, fair, the embowered lass.
White, white, from the windows she sees
Lush, lush, the garden's willow trees.
In rosy, rosy, dress she stands;
She puts forth slender, slender hands.
A singing girl in early life,
Now she is a deserted wift.
Her husband's gone far, far away.
How can she bear her lone, lone day!
 
之六
涉江采芙蓉，
兰泽多芳草。
采之欲遗谁，
所思在远道。
还顾望旧乡，
长路漫浩浩。
同心而离居，
忧伤以终老。

(VI)
I gather lotus blooms across the stream,
In orchid swamps the fragrant flowers teem.
To whom am I to send this sweet bouquet?
The one I love is living far away.
Towards our old abode I turned my eyes
To find a long, long way between us lies.
We have same heart but live still far apart;
This grief can't be consoled e'en when I'm old.

之十三
驱车上东门，
遥望郭北墓。
白杨何萧萧，
松柏夹广路。
下有陈死人，
杳杳即长暮。
潜寐黄泉下，
千载永不寤。
浩浩阴阳移，
年命如朝露。
人生忽如寄，
寿无金石固。
万岁更相送，
贤圣莫能度。
服食求神仙，
多为药所误。
不如饮美酒，
被服纨与素。

(XIII)
I drive my chariot up to astern Gate
And see the northern graveyard from afar.
It's shaded by rustling aspens antiquate;
Flanked with pines and yews the pathways are.
Beneath lie those who died long, long ago,
Buried in eternal darkness they remain.
They sleep beside the Yellow Spring below,
From year to year they never wake again.
How many days and nights have come and gone!
Like morning dew our fleeting life will pass.
Man is an ephemeral phenomenon,
While fore'er last metals, stone and brass.
Do you want to enjoy longevity?
But in the end e'en saints and sages die.
If you by food seek immortality,
There's no elixir on which you can rely.
It's better to drink good wine while you may
And dress in silk and satin every day.

之十五
生年不满百，
常怀千岁忧。
昼短苦夜长，
何不秉烛游！
为乐当及时，
何能待来兹？
愚者爱惜费，
但为後世嗤。
仙人王子乔，
难可与等期。

(XV)
Few live to a hundred years,
Their sorrow longer still appears.
Whey day grows short and long grows night,
Why not go out in candlelight?
njoy the present time with laughter!
Why worry about the hereafter?
If you won't spend the wealth you've got,
Posterity will call you sot.
We cannot hope to rise as high
As an immortal in the sky.

十五从军征

十五从军征,
八十始得归.
道逢乡里人,
家中有阿谁.
遥看是君家,
松柏冢垒垒.
兔从狗窦入,
雉从梁上飞.
中庭生旅谷,
井上生旅葵.
舂谷持作饭,
采葵持作羹.
羹饭一时熟,
不知贻阿谁.
出门东向看,
泪落沾我衣.

Homecoming After War
At fifteen I left home to fight the foe
And could not go back till I was four-score.
On the way I meet a countryman I know;
I ask him who remains within my door.
"Seen from afar, your house is over there,
'Mid graves where pine and cypress stand aloof."
Arrived, I see in dog hole run a hare
And a pheasant fly from beam of roof.
In middle courtyard grows only wild grain
And by the well grows mallow I can eat.
I pluck the grain and boil it as food plain
And put the mallow in the soup I heat.
When I have cooked the simple, homely fare,
Who will eat it with me? No one appears.
I go outdoors and eastwards fix my stare,
My furrowed face and clothes wet with tears.

上山采蘼芜

上山采蘼芜,
下山逢故夫.
长跪问故夫,
新人复如何.
新人虽言好,
未若故人姝.
颜色类相似,
手爪不相如.
新人从门入,
故人从阖去.
新人工织缣,
故人工织素.
织缣日以匹,
织素五丈余.
将缣来比素,
新人不如故.

The Old Wife And The New

She goes uphill where herbs appear;
Downhill, she meets her former husband dear.
She kneels and asks him, "How do you...
How do you find your young wife new?"
"Though my new wife is no less fair,
My old wife is beyond compare.
In looks by your side she may stand,
But she's less clever with her hand.
Since she came in through the front door,
At home I can find you no more.
She's good at embroidering skein,
While you are good at sewing plain.
She weaves one foot of silk a day;
You weave five feet without delay.
Her work compared with yours, all told,
The new is not up to the old."

陌上桑

日出动南隅,
照我秦氏楼.
秦氏有好女,
自名为罗敷.
罗敷喜蚕桑,
采桑城南隅.
青丝为笼系,
桂枝为笼钩.
头上倭堕髻,
耳中明月珠.
湘绮为下裙,
紫绮为上襦.

行者见罗敷,
下担捋髭须.
少年见罗敷,
脱帽著鞘头.
耕者忘绮犁,
锄者忘绮锄.
来归相怒怒,
但坐观罗敷.

使君从南来,
五马立踟蹰.
使君遣吏往,
问是谁家姝.

秦氏有好女,
自名为罗敷.
罗敷年几何.
二十尚不足,
十五颇有余.
使君谢罗敷,
宁可共载不.

罗敷前置词,
使君一何愚.
使君自有妇,
罗敷自有夫.
东千余骑,
夫婿居上头.

何用识夫婿,
白马从骊驹.
青丝系马尾,
黄金络马头.
腰中鹿卢剑,
可值千万余.

十五府小史,
二十朝大夫.
二十侍中郎,
四十专城居.

为人洁白皙,
鬑鬑颇有须.
盈盈公府步,
冉冉府中趋.
坐中数千人,
皆言夫婿殊.

The Roadside Mulberry

The rising sun from southeast nooks
Shines on the house of Qin, who
Has a daughter of lovely looks;
She calls herself Luo-fu.
She picks mulberry leaves still new
To feed silkworms in southern nook,
Her basket's bound with silk thread blue,
Of laurel bough is made a hook.
Her hair is dressed in pretty braid,
Like moonbeams her pearl earrings shine,
Of yellow silk her apron's made,
Her cloak of purple damask fine.

When she is seen by passers-by,
The stroke their beards and there take root;
When she appears in young men's eye,
They doff their caps and make salute.
The ploughman thinks not of his plough,
The hoer leaves in field his hoe.
Back, they find fault with their wives now,
For they have seen Luo-fu aglow.

From the south comes the governor,
Whose carriage and five stop and stay.
He sends men to inquire of her.
"Who are you, pretty maid?" ask they.

"I call my humble self Luo-fu."
"Pretty Luo-fu, how old are you?"
"My age is still less than a score,
But much more than fifteen, much more."
"Our lord bids us to ask Luo-fu,
Will you ride with our lord, will you?"

Luo-fu steps forth and makes reply:
"What nonsense you are talking! Why,
Your xcellency has his wife;
I have my husband dear for life.
There are more than a thousand steeds
In the east that my husband leads."

"But how can I your husband know?"
"Ah, by his horse as white as snow,
Whose tail is tied with a blue thread,
With golden halters round its head;
By the sword with its hilt of jade,
For which its weight in gold he paid.

"At fifteen he was a junior clerk;
At twenty he did a courtier's work;
At thirty he wore chamberlain's gown;
At forty he was lord of a town.

"His face and skin are white and fair,
A rather long beard he does wear.
In the court he walks to and fro,
And goes to the palace with steps slow.
Among the thousands in the hall,
He's deemed the most distinguished of all."

落叶哀蝉曲
(刘彻)

罗袂兮无声,
玉墀兮尘生
虚房冷而寂寞,
落叶依于重扃
望彼美之女兮安得,
感余心之未宁

The Fair Lady Li
Tune:"Fallen Leaves And Plaintive Cicada"

No Rustle of her silken sleeves,
On marble steps dust lies,
Her empty room is cold with sighs.
Against her locked door are heaped up fallen leaves.
In vain I'm longing for my lady fair,
My heart is aching, for she's gone for'er.

秋风辞

秋风起兮白云飞,
草木黄落兮雁南归.
兰有秀兮菊有芳,
怀佳人兮不能忘.
泛楼船兮济汾河,
横中流兮扬素波.
箫鼓鸣兮发棹歌,
欢乐极兮哀情多.
少壮几时兮奈老何

Song Of The Autumn Wind

The Autumn wind rises and white clouds fly,
when leaves turn yellow, wild geese head for southern sky.
The orchids and chrysanthemums still sweeten the air.
Oh, how can I forget my lady sweet and fair!
I go aboard a bark to cross the river long;
It reaches midstream when I see the waves rise white.
The flutes ad drums keep time to the rowers' song,
But sorrow comes when pleasure reaches its height.
How long will youth endure when old age is in sight!

秋扇怨(班婕妤)

新裂齐纨素,
鲜洁如霜雪.
裁为合欢扇,
团团似明月.
出入君怀袖,
动摇微风发.
常恐秋节至,
凉飙夺炎热.
弃捐箧笥中,
恩情中道绝.

Lament Of The Autumn Fan

Fresh from the weaver's loom, O silk so white,
As clear as frost, as winter snow as bright.
Fashioned into a fan, token of love,
You are as round as brilliant moon above.
In my lord's sleeve when in or out he goes,
You wave and shake and a light wind blows.
I fear when comes the autumn day,
And chilling wind drives summer heat away,
You'll be discarded to a lonely place,
And with my lord fall into disgrace.

别妻(苏武)

结发为夫妻,
恩爱两不疑.
欢娱在今夕,
燕婉及良时.

征夫怀往路,
起视夜何其.
参辰皆已没,
去去从此辞.

行役在战场,
相见未有期.
握手一长叹,
泪为生别滋.

努力爱春华,
莫忘欢乐时.
生当复来归,
死当长相思.

To My Wife

In wedlock we are man and wife,
Our love is never borken by doubt.
Let us enjoy once more such life,
Because tomorrow I'll set out.

Thinking of the long way I'll go,
I rise and see how old is night.
Dim in the sky all the stars grow;
I'll part from you before daylight.

Away to battlefield I'll hie,
I know not when we'll meet again.
Holding your hand, I give a sigh;
Letting it go, my teardrops rain.

Try to love spring's delightful view;
Do not forget our happy days!
Safe and sound, I'll come back to you;
'en dead, my soul with you e'er stays.

观沧海(曹操)

东临碣石，
以观沧海。
水何澹澹，
山岛竦峙。

树木丛生，
百草丰茂。
秋风萧瑟，
洪波涌起。

日月之行，
若出其中；
星汉灿烂，
若出其里。

幸甚至哉！
歌以咏志。

The Sea

I come to view the boundless ocean
From Stony Hill on eastern shore.
Its water rolls in rhythmic motion,
And islands stand amid its roar.

Tree on tree grows from peak to peak;
Grass on grass looks lush far and nigh.
The autumn wind blows drear and bleak;
The monstrous billows surge up high.

The sun by day, the moon by night
Appear to rise up from the deep.
The Milky Way with stars so bright
Sinks down into the sea in sleep.

How happy I feel at this sight!
I croon this poem in delight.

龟虽寿

神龟虽寿，
猷有竟时。
腾蛇乘雾，
终为土灰。

老骥伏枥，
志在千里；
烈士暮年，
壮心不已。

盈缩之期，
不但在天；
养怡之福，
可得永年。

幸甚至哉！
歌以咏志。

The Indomitable Soul

Although long lives the tortoise wise,
In the end he cannot but die.
The dragon in the mist may rise,
But in the dust he too shall lie.

Although the stabled steed is old,
He dreams to run a thousand li.
In life's December heroes bold
Indomitable still will be.

It is not up to Heaven alone
To lengthen or shorten our days.
Let's cultivate our minds and live on
Through long years, if we know the ways.

How happy I feel at this thought!
I croon this poem as I ought.

短歌行(曹丕)

仰瞻帷幕,
俯察几筵.
其物为故,
其人不存.
神灵倏忽,
弃我遐迁.
靡瞻靡恃,
泣涕涟涟.
呦呦游鹿,
衔草鸣麂.
翩翩飞鸟,
挟子巢栖.
我独孤焚,
怀此百离.
犹心孔疚,
莫我能知.
人变有言,忧令人老.
嗟我白发,生一何早.
长吟永叹,怀我对考.
曰仁考寿,胡不是保.

On The Death Of My Father

Raising my eyes, I see his screen;
Bending my head, his table clean.
These things are there just as before,
The man who owned them is no more.
Suddenly his spirit has flown
And left me fatherless, alone.
Who'd look to me? On whom rely?
Tear upon tear streams from my eyes.
The deer are bleating here and there,
They feed the young ones in their care.
The birds are flying east and west,
Feeding the nestlings in the nest.
Alone I'm desolate the drear,
Servered from the father I revere.
Deep in my heart grief overflows,
But no one knows, no one knows.
'Tis said that sorrow makes us old
And early grow white hair. Behold!
For the deceased I wail and sigh;
If the good live long, why should he die!

七步诗(曹植)

煮豆燃豆箕,
豆在釜中泣.
本是同根生,
相煎何太急.

Written While Taking Seven Paces

Pods burned to cook peas,
Peas weep in the pot:
"Grown from the same trees,
Why boil us so hot?"

七哀

明月照高楼,
流光徘徊.
上有愁思妇,
悲叹有余哀.

借问叹者谁,
云是宕子妻.
君行逾十年,
孤妾常独栖.

君若清路尘,
妾若浊水泥.
浮沉各异势,
会合何时谐.

愿为西南风,
长逝入君怀.
君怀良不开,
贱妾当何依.

Lament

Softly on the tower streams of light play;
It seems the moon is loath to move away.
For here is beauty wilting, tender sighs,
Telling of a tender heart in pain, which cries.

May we ask who is there so full of ruth?
A wife in name, a widow, ah, in truth!
"You are far, far away for o'er ten years;
I am alone, alone and oft in tears.

"You're like the dust drawn upward on the way;
Like mud in dirty water still I stay.
One sinking, the other swimming we remain.
If ever, when are we to meet again?

"Would that I were the wind from the southwest,
That I could rush across the land to your breast!
From your embrace, if you should shut me out,
Where should I go? Where should I roam about?"