A thousand miles of yellow clouds dim the daylight; the north wind drives geese through swirling snow.

无事小狗仙
2025-02-21 13:12
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Two Farewell Poems for Dong Da

Tang dynasty・Gao Shi

Yellow clouds stretch a thousand li, dimming the sun，the north wind drives the geese as snow falls thick。

Do not fear finding no kindred friend on the road ahead; who in all the world does not know you?

六翮飘飖私自怜，一离京洛十余年。— My six flight feathers drift in the wind, and I pity myself alone; more than ten years have passed since I left the capital.

A man should not let poverty and lowly station dishearten him; today we meet, yet have no money for wine.

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Translation

I: Dusky yellow clouds cover the vast earth and sky, dimming even the sun; the north wind drives flocks of geese as snowflakes fall thickly. Do not worry that the road ahead holds no friend who understands you—who in all the world does not know your talent and renown?

II: Like a bird beating its wings in wandering flight, I feel sorrow for myself; more than ten years have passed since I left the capital region. A man of resolve should not lose his ambition through poverty and low station, yet meeting you today, I cannot even afford wine.

Annotations

董大: Generally understood to be the celebrated qin player Dong Tinglan; 大 indicates his place as the eldest in the family ranking. 曛 (xūn): Dim sunlight. 知己: Someone who understands and appreciates you.

六翮（hé）: the major flight-feather shafts of a bird's wings; here used to signify flying birds and figuratively, a wandering life. 京洛: Chang'an and Luoyang, also referring more broadly to the capital.

未足: means that this is insufficient reason for self-pity or dejection, not that one is not yet poor enough. One of the two poems is vigorous and the other self-lamenting; they are best read together.

Introduction

Reading guide: Gao Shi left two seven-character quatrains on parting from Dong Da. This page includes both the widely recited poem of encouragement and the second poem, which describes the poet’s own poverty. The latter gives the former’s bold spirit a more concrete background in lived experience.

Commentary

The first half of the first poem is hemmed in by wind and snow, but the second suddenly brightens. Trust in the friend's talent sustains the resounding reassurance, while the bitter cold makes its words feel warmer.

The second poem acknowledges the hardships of wandering and having no money for wine; it does not portray friendship as carefree. Read together, the two poems show that boldness does not mean smooth fortunes, but an effort to give a friend strength even amid difficulty.

Comments

From a poem into a story

Fiction inspired by poetry

A Tale of Marvels in an Ancient Setting

Parted from the Flock

With the roads blocked by heavy snow, qin player Yan Chuan carries his instrument, missing a string, out of the pawnshop. He does not have enough money for even half a flatbread. His old friend Lu Zhao, now a music director, is willing to stake his life on recommending Yan Chuan’s return to the winter banquet. But the letter of guarantee contains one condition: he may play only the old piece that made him famous and must never mention another name again. The stove glows warmly indoors; beneath the eaves, a child is still learning the rhythm of that piece.

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A thousand miles of yellow clouds dim the daylight; the north wind drives geese through swirling snow.

Two Farewell Poems for Dong Da