JIANG Jie: Listening to Rain

　　　Listening to Rain
　To the Tune of “The Beautiful Lady Yu”
　　　　　　　　　　　　by JIANG Jie

When I was a lad, I listened to rain on the pleasure quarters,
Red candles muddled the gauze curtains.
When I matured into my prime, I listened to rain in a faraway boat,
The water was broad, the clouds were low
While wild geese cried in the west wind.

And now I listened to rain under the roof of a monk’s cottage,
Hair on my temples gray like star-stained.
All the emotions of sorrow and joy are inevitably inconsiderate,
I can do nothing about the rain that drips on the doorsteps toward daybreak.

About the author:
JIANG Jie (ca. 1245-1301), style name 竹山zhushan (bamboo hill) was a Song Dynasty poet and a native of Yixing Jiangsu (now famous for the purple clay pottery). Although he passed the imperial examination of during Gong Emperor’s reign (1274-1276), he chose a recluse life. He was hailed as one of The Four Ci-poem Masters in Late Song Dynasty.

蒋捷（竹山）《虞美人》
少年听雨歌楼上，红烛昏罗帐。壮年听雨客舟中，江阔云低，断雁叫西风。
而今听雨僧庐下，鬓已星星也。悲欢离合总无情，一任阶前点滴到天明。


蒋JIANG捷Jie（号style name竹山zhushan—bamboo hill）
《虞美人》To the Tune of “The Beautiful Lady Yu”
少young　年year　听listen　雨rain　歌song　楼storied building　上on
红red　烛candle　昏muddle　罗gauze　帐bed-curtain
壮advancing　年year　听listen　雨rain　客guest　舟boat　中in
江river　阔wide　云cloud　低low
断broken　雁wild goose　叫shout　西west　风wind

而but　今now　听listen　雨rain　僧monk　庐cottage　下down
鬓temple hair/sideburns　已already　星星star　也alas
悲sad　欢happy　离separate　合unite　总always　无without　情emotion
一任let/allow　阶step　前front　点drip　滴drop　到to　天day　明bright