Du Mu – “Qing Ming” – a free translation

 杜 牧  Du mu (803-852)

Memorial Day

On Memorial Day weekend rain came pouring down.
Travelers, hoping their spirits to rally,
Inquired where some good wine might be found.
The yokel pointed north, toward Napa Valley.

======

Yes, the above is an EXTREMELY free translation of Du Mu’s quatrain, which can be found in its original form below, plus pinyin, word-by-word, and traditional translations.  Here is my justification:

Instead of “Pure Brightness Festival” I chose to substitute “Memorial Day weekend” as being the culturally closest equivalent to the Chinese holiday where everyone takes off from work to honor their ancestors, causing mammoth traffic jams.

Instead of “Apricot Blossom Village” I substitute “Napa Valley”.  According to my NJStar Chinese/English dictionary, 杏花村 【xìng huā cūn】 is a “village in Shaanxi province, famous among poets for its wine.”  So the end line of this quatrain becomes a joke, where the shepherd boy  is poking fun at the traveler.

In the Broadway musical “The Music Man”, when the traveling salesman asked an Iowa local “Where can I find a good hotel?” the local responds “Try the Palmer House in Chicago.” Same joke.

Again, the closest cultural equivalent to the famed Apricot Blossom Village would be, in modern American culture, Napa Valley in California. Hence my substitution to preserve the humor.

Too much liberty taken with this classic?  Or true to the spirit, if not the word, of the original?  Comment if you please…

清明
Pure Brightness

清明时节雨纷纷
Pure Brightness season rain confused, disorderly
路上行人欲断魂
On the road walkers long to change the mood
借问酒家何处有
“May I ask wine shop where place has?”
牧童遥指杏花村。
Shepherd distant point Apricot Blossom Village

Pure Brightness

During the Pure Brightness Festival,  rain came pouring down.
Travelers on the road wanting to lift their spirits
Inquired for the whereabouts of a wine shop
of a shepherd, who pointed toward Apricot Blossom Village