by Sikong-Tu (834 - 903?8?)
Translation by Launcelot Alfred Cranmer-Byng (1872 - 1945)
Language: English  after the Chinese (中文)
A gale goes ruffling down the stream, The giants of the forest crack; My thoughts are bitter -- black as death -- For he, my lover, comes not back. A hundred years like water glide, Riches and rank are ashen cold, Daily the dream of peace recedes: By whom shall Sorrow be consoled? The soldier, dauntless, draws his sword, And there are tears and endless pain; The winds arise, leaves flutter down, And through the old thatch drips the rain.
Composition:
- Set to music by Granville Ransome Bantock, Sir (1868 - 1946), "Despair", published 1943, copyright © 1935 [ voice and piano ], from Songs from the Chinese Poets: Set IV, no. 4
Text Authorship:
- by Launcelot Alfred Cranmer-Byng (1872 - 1945), "Desondent", appears in A Lute of Jade, being selections from the classical poets of China, first published 1909
Based on:
- a text in Chinese (中文) by Sikong-Tu (834 - 903?8?) [text unavailable]
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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2011-01-18
Line count: 12
Word count: 80