January 2023

Poetry of Mao Zedong | MILITIA WOMEN INSCRIPTION ON A PHOTOGRAPH ~ 七绝·为女民兵题照

七绝·为女民兵题照 一九六一年二月 MILITIA WOMEN INSCRIPTION ON A PHOTOGRAPH –a chueh chu February 1961 飒爽英姿五尺枪, 曙光初照演兵场。 中华儿女多奇志, 不爱红装爱武装。 How bright and brave they look, shouldering five-foot rifles On the parade ground lit up by the first gleams of day. China’s daughters have high-aspiring minds, They love their battle array, not silks and satins.

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | ASCENT OF LUSHAN ~ 七律·登庐山

七律·登庐山 一九五九年七月一日 ASCENT OF LUSHAN –a lu shih July 1, 1959 一山飞峙大江边, 跃上葱茏四百旋。 冷眼向洋看世界, 热风吹雨洒江天。 云横九派浮黄鹤, 浪下三吴起白烟。 陶令不知何处去, 桃花园里可耕田? Perching as after flight, the mountain towers over the Yangtze; I have overleapt four hundred twists to its green crest. Cold-eyed I survey the world beyond the seas; A hot wind spatters raindrops on the sky-brooded

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | SHAOSHAN REVISITED ~ 七律·到韶山

七律·到韶山 一九五九年六月 SHAOSHAN REVISITED –a lu shih June 1959 一九五九年六月二十五日到韶山。离别这个地方已有三十二周年了。 I visited Shaoshan on June 25, 1959 after an absence of thirty-two years. 别梦依稀咒逝川, 故园三十二年前。 红旗卷起农奴戟, 黑手高悬霸主鞭。 为有牺牲多壮志, 敢叫日月换新天。 喜看稻菽千重浪, 遍地英雄下夕烟。 Like a dim dream recalled, I curse the long-fled past– My native soil two and thirty years gone by. The red flag roused the

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | FAREWELL TO THE GOD OF PLAGUE ~ 送瘟神

送瘟神 一九五八年七月一日 FAREWELL TO THE GOD OF PLAGUE –two lu shih poems July 1, 1958 读六月三十日《人民日报》,余江县消灭了血丝虫。浮想联翩,夜不能寐。微风拂晓,旭日临窗,遥望南天,欣然命笔。 When I read in the Renmin Ribao of June 30, 1958 that schistosomiasis had been wiped out in Yukiang County, thoughts thronged my mind and I could not sleep. In the warm morning breeze next day, as sunlight falls

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | REPLY TO LI SHU-YI ~ 蝶恋花•答李淑一

蝶恋花•答李淑一 REPLY TO LI SHU-YI – to the tune of Tieh Lien Htua 一九五七年五月十一日 May 11, 1957 我失骄杨君失柳, 杨柳轻飏直上重霄九。 问讯吴刚何所有, 吴刚捧出桂花酒。 I lost my proud Poplar and you your Willow, Poplar and Willow soar to the Ninth Heaven. Wu Kang, asked what he can give, Serves them a laurel brew. The lonely moon goddess spreads

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | SWIMMING ~ 水调歌头·游泳

水调歌头·游泳 一九五六年六月 SWIMMING –to the tune of Shui Tiao Keh Tou June 1956 才饮长沙水, 又食武昌鱼。 万里长江横渡, 极目楚天舒。 不管风吹浪打, 胜似闲庭信步。 今日得宽馀, 子在川上曰: 逝者如斯夫! I have just drunk the waters of Changsha And come to eat the fish of Wuchang. Now I am swimming across the great Yangtze, Looking afar to the open sky of Chu. Let

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | PEITAIHO –to the tune of Lang Tao Sha ~ 浪淘沙·北戴河

浪淘沙·北戴河 一九五四年夏 PEITAIHO –to the tune of Lang Tao Sha Summer 1954 大雨落幽燕, 白浪滔天, 秦皇岛外打鱼船, 一片汪洋都不见, 知向谁边? A rainstorm sweeps down on this northern land, White breakers leap to the sky. No fishing boats off Chinwangtao Are seen on the boundless ocean. Where are they gone? 往时越千年, 魏武挥鞭, 东临碣石有遗篇。 萧瑟秋风今又是, 换了人间。 Nearly two thousand years

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | REPLY TO MR. LIU YA-TZU ~ 浣溪沙《和柳亚子先生》

浣溪沙《和柳亚子先生》 一九五零年十月 REPLY TO MR. LIU YA-TZU –to the tune of Wan Hsi Sha October 1950 一九五零年国庆观剧,柳亚子先生即席赋浣溪沙,因步其韵奉和。 At a song and dance performance during the National Day celebrations of 1950, Mr. Liu Ya-tzu wrote an impromptu poem to the tune of Wan Hsi Sha, to which I replied, using the same rhyme sequence. 长夜难明赤县天, 百年魔怪舞翩跹。

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | REPLY TO MR. LIU YA-TZU ~ 七律·和柳亚子先生

七律·和柳亚子先生 一九四九年四月二十九日 REPLY TO MR. LIU YA-TZU –a lu shih April 29, 1949 饮茶粤海未能忘 索句渝州叶正黄 三十一年还旧国 落花时节读华章 牢骚太盛防肠断 风物长宜放眼量 莫道昆明池水浅 观鱼胜过富春江 I still remember our drinking tea in Kwangchow And your asking for verses in Chungking as the leaves yellowed. Back in the old capital after thirty-one years, At the season of falling flowers I

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Poetry of Mao Zedong | THE PEOPLE’S LIBERATION ARMY CAPTURES NANKING –a lu shih ~ 七律·人民解放军占领南京

七律·人民解放军占领南京 一九四九年四月 THE PEOPLE’S LIBERATION ARMY CAPTURES NANKING –a lu shih April 1949 钟山风雨起苍黄, 百万雄师过大江。 虎距龙盘今胜昔, 天翻地覆慨而慷。 宜将剩勇追穷寇, 不可沽名学霸王。 天若有情天亦老, 人间正道是沧桑。 Over Chungshan swept a storm, headlong, Our mighty army, a million strong, has crossed the Great River. The City, a tiger crouching, a dragon curling, outshines its ancient glories; In heroic triumph heaven and

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