Li Qingzhao (1084-1151)

To the Tune of Yu Jia Ao:
The lofty fisherman

by Li Qingzhao

When the sky, mist, and waved clouds mingle at dawn,
when a star-laden river, the Milky Way, wheels

in the dance of a thousand sails,

then my spirit, in a dream, drifts to the empyrean,
listening to heaven’s voice
gently asking me about a journey:

What is your desire?

I answer with a sigh:  The road is long at dusk;
I’ve studied poetry intently,

even written a few startling lines.

Yet the powerful peng bird

soars high for ninety thousand li

on pure wind, unceasing wind,

as I desire to send my little boat

three mythic mountains away.

translated from Chinese by Karen An-hwei Lee