An Elegy for Yi Changtao

Wending far from you, I long for you affectionately,
But my longing for you cannot invoke your soul.
Your friend, sharing with you the spring of life and
Overwhelmed with woeful affliction,
Is heartbroken with lingering dole.
All over Hengyang reverberates the honk of wild geese,
And along the Xiangjiang River sneaks in the water vernal.
Moved at the hearing and sight, I miss my beloved friend with bitterness,
And loiter around the southern corner of the city wall.
Around the corner of the wall is the grass luxuriant,
And down my cheeks the tears trickle.
In a stretch of exuberance there remains merely a sole shadow,
Among the clouds on the west of Hengyang sets the sun after all.
As we planned to have a sightseeing of great waters,
To my mind your passing away is exceptional.
There from ensues the eternal mutual separation,
And at midnight the crowing cock gives me a startle.
Upon the rooster crow, I rise,
And on the eastern hillock I ramble.
I visualized your advent in a gently way,
When I shake your hands, with tears my eyes are full.
Trudging over the perilous pass and mountain lames the steed,
And the mourning curtain is struck by the violent gale.
Melancholy smolders in my heart,
And leaning against the peaks I roar songs heart and soul.
Lush and verdant are the peaks,
With which testing my sword may be my goal.
There exist the alien islands in the east sea,
And the northern mountain is full of resentment and quarrel.
Who will wash away the filth?
Those who cannot shirk the duty are the humble.
It’s regrettable that Zi Qi takes an early departure,
And Bo Ya’s fingering harp stops forever.
The cessation of the fingering harp is the most dolorous of all,
And the red flower will never be vernal.
There are thousands of days ahead,
Who will be with me in my life of all?
I hereby offer a cup of wine to you in the mourning hall,
And the wan-looking streamer I behold with sadness.
Where can I repose my sorrows?
In the sky-kissing water of the vast river.