The Withered Lotus Poem by Perdita Young (Hanna Wang)
The Withered Lotus
Deep are the autumn tints a-growing,
fallen leaves drift like butterflies;
colored flowers already are in sleep,
all is silence, absolutely quiet.
Wild geese flying to the south
trill crackles into the distant sky,
break the seeming silence
of its eternal solitude.
A whole pond of clear water
disturbed by the drizzling rain
is at a loss in confusion,
a haze of gloom at dusk.
A withered Lotus in the pond
her large leaves are down drooped,
as if in meditation she falls,
haply dreaming like Chuangtse
of being a butterfly.
Thither an undying soul remains
in the bleak, cold wind,
gazing into the chilly evening
of its earthly life.
Mortal eyes could not well see
the touching shades of its glee:
a sad song to the desolate,
a lament to a poetic decay.
The fall-off of flowers
is but a matter of course,
an OTHER kind of beauty
in an incompleteness;
A mirror of the joys and sorrows
of EACH human life.
Oct.2nd,2007.
Mortal eyes could not well see the touching shades of its glee:
(cont.) ....the withered lotus was experiencing glee? ? i guess it would have its reasons. perhaps it is needing a rest. ....in last stanza, line 3 an other: i'm not sure if i've ever used an other when i would use another, but it is ok, it seems. // in poem's last line i would take out the a. :) but i like the poem, especially the first and last stanzas. bri ;)
The withering/ fading of life has always been tinted with sadness and sorrow, but the transformation from an earthly life to its spiritual one might be different? ? ? I do not know...Perhaps it resembles the process of an insect hibernating to prepare for its wings as a butterfly（? according to the Chuangtse mentalism）Thanks again for the great suggestions. I'll have to do some corrections here..
(cont.) ....AND Thither! ? ....adverb archaic literary adverb: to or toward that place; there ..... no wonder i didn't recognize it; it is an archaic word; i haven't spoken Archaic in many years! ! ! ;) (cont.)
i'm wondering how lines 1 & 2 of stanza #2 tie together. are you referring to the sounds of the geese? haply dreaming like Chuangtse..........haply ** is a 'new word' for me! ** Definition of haply: by chance, luck, or accident [thanks, Google! ] ....maybe haply is related to a word i know: perhaps. perhaps it is! ! ! and i believe there is a word happenstance. and of course happen. (continued) ...
Thank you so much for your time and comment, Bri. This is translation from an early Chinese poem and upon re-reading stanza #2 i also feel it could have been more coherent...Will try to improve :)
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
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5/7/2024 11:08:45 AM # 1.0.0.1119
Mortal eyes could not well see/the touching shades of its glee....Fabulous poetic expression! It's a beautiful poem dear Perdita! Loved reading it.....10
Thank you Dillip for reading and commenting this free verse~ :) Perhaps there is something like glee at the instant when a human spirit frees itself from the body? ? ? Who knows...