This English version was translated from the Chinese original with AI assistance. The Chinese text is authoritative.
In this age when everyone is learning English, we all seem to have nearly forgotten how beautiful and how powerful our Chinese is!
Here is a short English poem that was translated into Chinese — and the results left everyone stunned! Don’t believe it? Take a look…
[The English original]
You say that you love rain,
but you open your umbrella when it rains…
You say that you love the sun,
but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines…
You say that you love the wind,
But you close your windows when wind blows…
This is why I am afraid;
You say that you love me too…
[Ordinary translation]
你说你喜欢雨，(You say you like the rain,)
但是下雨的时候你却撑开了伞；(but when it rains you open your umbrella;)
你说你喜欢阳光，(you say you like the sunshine,)
但当阳光播撒的时候，(but when the sunshine spreads,)
你却躲在阴凉之地；(you hide in a shady spot;)
你说你喜欢风，(you say you like the wind,)
但清风扑面的时候，(but when a fresh breeze blows in your face,)
你却关上了窗户。(you close the window.)
我害怕你对我也是如此之爱。(I fear your love for me is the same.)
[Literary version]
你说烟雨微芒，兰亭远望；(You spoke of misty rain, faint and dim, gazing afar from the Orchid Pavilion;)
后来轻揽婆娑，深遮霓裳。(later you lightly gathered the swaying parasol, deeply shielding your rainbow robes.)
你说春光烂漫，绿袖红香；(You spoke of spring light in full bloom, green sleeves and red fragrance;)
后来内掩西楼，静立卿旁。(later you shut yourself in the west tower, standing quietly at your side.)
你说软风轻拂，醉卧思量；(You spoke of a soft breeze lightly brushing, lying tipsy and musing;)
后来紧掩门窗，漫帐成殇。(later you shut tight the doors and windows, the drifting curtains turned to grief.)
你说情丝柔肠，如何相忘；(You spoke of threads of love and tender heartstrings — how could we forget each other;)
我却眼波微转，兀自成霜。(yet with a slight turn of my glance, I alone turn to frost.)
[Book of Songs version]
子言慕雨，启伞避之。(You say you long for rain, yet open an umbrella to avoid it.)
子言好阳，寻荫拒之。(You say you love the sun, yet seek shade to refuse it.)
子言喜风，阖户离之。(You say you delight in wind, yet close the door to keep it away.)
子言偕老，吾所畏之。(You say we’ll grow old together — this is what I fear.)
[Lisao version]
君乐雨兮启伞枝，(You delight in rain, ah, yet open your umbrella’s ribs;)
君乐昼兮林蔽日，(you delight in daylight, ah, yet let the woods hide the sun;)
君乐风兮栏帐起，(you delight in wind, ah, yet raise the railing curtains;)
君乐吾兮吾心噬。(you delight in me, ah, and my heart is gnawed.)
[Five-character poem version]
恋雨偏打伞，爱阳却遮凉。(Loving rain, yet you raise an umbrella; loving sun, yet you shield yourself in shade.)
风来掩窗扉，叶公惊龙王。(When the wind comes you close the shutters — Lord Ye frightened by the Dragon King.)
片言只语短，相思缱倦长。(A few words are brief; lovesick longing is long.)
郎君说爱我，不敢细思量。(My love says he loves me — I dare not think it through.)
[Seven-character quatrain version]
微茫烟雨伞轻移，喜日偏来树底栖。(In faint misty rain the umbrella moves lightly; loving the sun, yet you come to rest beneath the trees.)
一任风吹窗紧掩，付君心事总犹疑。(Let the wind blow — the windows are shut tight; the heart I entrust to you is always in doubt.)
[Seven-character regulated verse — the grand finale]
江南三月雨微茫，罗伞轻撑细细香。(In Jiangnan in the third month the rain is faint and misty; a silk umbrella lightly held, a delicate fragrance.)
日送微醺如梦寐，身依浓翠趁荫凉。(The sun sends a light intoxication, as in a dream; the body leans on deep green to enjoy the shade.)
忽闻风籁传朱阁，轻蹙蛾眉锁碧窗。(Suddenly hearing the wind’s music reach the vermilion pavilion, lightly knitting moth-brows, she locks the jade-green window.)
一片相思君莫解，锦池只恐散鸳鸯。(Do not try to fathom this lovesick heart; on the brocade pool I only fear the mandarin ducks will part.)
This is the charm of Chinese. Just how beautiful is Chinese?
How beautiful is Chinese?
From the structure of the characters to the art of calligraphy.
From rhyme and meter to reading aloud and chanting.
From the meanings of single characters to compound words and idioms.
From sayings and prose to poetry, lyrics, songs and rhapsodies.
Its resonance is endless and near; its beauty is more than the eye can take in.
Beautiful in its history, beautiful in its spirit.
01
Even the side components of Chinese characters are beautiful
“A Playful Poem” (《戏题》)
Huang Tingjian
逍遥近边道，憩息慰惫懑。(Roaming free near the roadside path, resting to soothe weariness and gloom.)
晴晖时晦明，谑语谐谠论。(The clear sunlight now dims, now brightens; jesting words blend with upright talk.)
草莱荒蒙茏，室屋壅尘坌。(Weeds grow wild and dense; the rooms are choked with dust.)
僮仆侍逼侧，泾渭清浊混。(Servant boys wait crowded at my side; the clear Jing and muddy Wei are mixed.)
A couplet using the walking radical 辶
First line: 远近通达道 (far and near, all roads lead through)
Second line: 进退返逍遥 (advancing, retreating, returning — free and at ease)
A couplet using the three-dots water radical 氵
First line: 湛江港清波滚滚 (in Zhanjiang Harbor the clear waves roll on and on)
Second line: 渤海湾浊浪滔滔 (in the Bohai Gulf the muddy billows surge and swell)
02
02 The sounds and rhymes of Chinese are also beautiful
Heaven pairs with earth, rain pairs with wind, the land pairs with the open sky.
Mountain flowers pair with sea trees, the red sun pairs with the blue vault.
Thunder rumbling, fog misty; below the sun pairs with mid-heaven.
With the high wind, the autumn moon is white; after the rain clears, the evening glow is red.
The Herdboy and Weaver stars lie left and right of the River; Shen and Shang, the two lights, face west and east across the Dipper.
In the tenth month at the frontier, the rustling cold frost startles the garrison troops;
In deep winter on the river, the boundless northern snow chills the old fisherman.
Mountain pairs with sea, Mount Hua pairs with Mount Song, the Four Peaks pair with the Three Dukes.
Palace flowers pair with forbidden-garden willows, frontier geese pair with river dragons.
The Hall of Clear Summer, the Palace of Vast Cold; gathering kingfisher feathers pairs with writing on red leaves.
Zhuangzi dreamed he became a butterfly; Lü Wang was foretold by a flying bear.
The north window faces the wind, so summer fans are laid aside; the south curtain is warmed by the sun, saving winter’s warming.
Cranes dance atop the tower; a jade flute plays the fairy’s waning moon;
Phoenixes soar over the terrace; a purple flute blows away the beauty’s breeze.
Chinese names are also beautiful
Beautiful personal names
江疏影 (Jiang Shuying), 林风眠 (Lin Fengmian), 关山月 (Guan Shanyue), 丰子恺 (Feng Zikai)
屠呦呦 (Tu Youyou), 宋清如 (Song Qingru), 王嘉尔 (Wang Jiaer), 林语堂 (Lin Yutang)
木婉清 (Mu Wanqing), 程灵素 (Cheng Lingsu), 朱自清 (Zhu Ziqing), 南怀瑾 (Nan Huaijin)
Beautiful place names
敦煌 (Dunhuang), 兰陵 (Lanling), 浔阳 (Xunyang), 扶风 (Fufeng)
长安 (Chang’an), 云梦 (Yunmeng), 扬州 (Yangzhou), 栖霞 (Qixia)
蓬莱 (Penglai), 西凉 (Xiliang), 天水 (Tianshui), 酒泉 (Jiuquan)
春熙路 (Chunxi Road), 莫愁路 (Mochou Road), 白鹿巷 (White Deer Lane), 琴台街 (Qintai Street)
长乐坊 (Changle Ward), 琉璃街 (Glaze Street), 枫林路 (Maple Grove Road), 春晓路 (Spring Dawn Road)
霞飞路 (Xiafei Road), 青云谱 (Qingyunpu), 灵隐路 (Lingyin Road), 晴澜路 (Qinglan Road)
百花深处 (Deep Among a Hundred Flowers), 勒马听风街 (Rein-in-the-Horse-to-Hear-the-Wind Street), 曲水亭街 (Winding Water Pavilion Street)
Even the names of medicines are beautiful
辛夷 (magnolia bud), 丁香 (clove), 杜若 (pollia), 白蔻 (white cardamom), 白薇 (swallowwort)
半夏 (pinellia), 龙葵 (black nightshade), 白芷 (angelica root), 曲莲 (curled lotus), 紫苏 (perilla)
合欢 (silk tree), 繁缕 (chickweed), 蝉衣 (cicada slough), 沉香 (agarwood), 青蒿 (sweet wormwood)
青黛 (indigo), 玳瑁 (hawksbill shell), 菖蒲 (calamus), 忍冬 (honeysuckle), 丹砂 (cinnabar)
雪蚕 (snow silkworm), 厚朴 (magnolia bark), 陈皮 (aged tangerine peel), 杜仲 (eucommia), 青蒿 (sweet wormwood)
雪茶 (snow tea), 紫菀 (aster root), 泽兰 (bugleweed), 佩兰 (eupatorium), 文元 (wenyuan)
女贞子 (privet fruit), 叶上秋 (yeshangqiu), 云轴子 (yunzhouzi), 六月雪 (June snow)
天南星 (arisaema), 半边莲 (lobelia), 淡竹叶 (lophatherum), 西河柳 (tamarisk)
03
Chinese color words are beautiful
桃红 (peach red), 竹青 (bamboo green), 绯红 (crimson), 月白 (moon white), 黛青 (blackish blue)
烟色 (smoke color), 霜色 (frost color), 黛绿 (dark green), 胭脂 (rouge), 湛蓝 (azure)
碧绿 (jade green), 宝蓝 (sapphire blue), 墨绿 (ink green), 玄黑 (deep black), 牙白 (ivory white)
杏黄 (apricot yellow), 靛蓝 (indigo), 明黄 (bright yellow), 朱砂 (cinnabar red), 石绿 (malachite green)
Chinese words for ages are beautiful
襁褓 (in swaddling clothes), 赤子 (newborn), 孩提 (toddler), 垂髫 (with hanging hair — early childhood)
总角 (with hair in tufts — childhood), 幼学 (ten, age of starting study), 豆蔻 (cardamom — a girl of thirteen), 及笄 (fifteen, a girl’s hairpin age)
束发 (fifteen, a boy binding his hair), 金钗 (golden hairpin — a girl of twelve), 破瓜 (sixteen, for a girl), 弱冠 (twenty, a young man capped)
不惑 (forty, free of doubts), 耳顺 (sixty, ears attuned), 古稀 (seventy, rare since antiquity), 知天命 (fifty, knowing the mandate of heaven)
Chinese names for the months are beautiful
First month: 柳月 (willow month), 端月 (opening month), 嘉月 (fine month)
Second month: 杏月 (apricot month), 丽月 (lovely month), 花月 (flower month)
Third month: 桃月 (peach month), 蚕月 (silkworm month), 莺月 (oriole month)
Fourth month: 槐月 (locust-tree month), 孟夏 (early summer), 麦月 (wheat month)
Fifth month: 蒲月 (calamus month), 榴月 (pomegranate month), 仲夏 (midsummer)
Sixth month: 荷月 (lotus month), 季月 (last month of the season), 伏月 (dog-days month)
Seventh month: 巧月 (month of skill), 新秋 (new autumn), 兰月 (orchid month)
Eighth month: 桂月 (osmanthus month), 仲秋 (mid-autumn), 竹春 (bamboo spring)
Ninth month: 暮秋 (late autumn), 菊月 (chrysanthemum month), 青女月 (month of the Frost Maiden)
Tenth month: 阳月 (yang month), 露月 (dew month), 飞阴月 (month of flying yin)
Eleventh month: 冬月 (winter month), 畅月 (full month), 龙潜月 (month the dragon hides)
Twelfth month: 腊月 (la month), 冰月 (ice month), 严月 (severe month)
04
The tune names of Chinese ci lyrics are beautiful
西楼月 (Moon over the West Tower), 忆王孙 (Remembering the Prince), 如梦令 (As in a Dream), 乌夜啼 (Crows Crying at Night)
长相思 (Everlasting Longing), 点绛唇 (Rouged Lips), 浣溪沙 (Washing Silk in the Stream), 诉衷情 (Telling of Heartfelt Love)
忆秦娥 (Remembering the Qin Maiden), 画堂春 (Spring in the Painted Hall), 醉花阴 (Tipsy in the Flowers’ Shade), 浪淘沙 (Waves Washing the Sand)
鹊桥仙 (Immortals at the Magpie Bridge), 虞美人 (The Beautiful Lady Yu), 玉楼春 (Spring in the Jade Tower), 一斛珠 (A Bushel of Pearls)
踏莎行 (Treading on Grass), 小重山 (Layered Hills), 蝶恋花 (Butterflies Love Flowers), 一剪梅 (A Spray of Plum Blossoms)
临江仙 (Immortal by the River), 钗头凤 (Phoenix Hairpin), 苏幕遮 (Su Mu Zhe), 定风波 (Calming the Waves)
青玉案 (Green Jade Table), 离亭燕 (Swallows at the Parting Pavilion), 满江红 (The River All Red), 念奴娇 (Charm of Niannu)
沁园春 (Spring in Qin Garden), 凤求凰 (The Phoenix Seeks His Mate), 雨霖铃 (Bells in the Rain), 莺啼序 (Prelude of the Oriole’s Song)
05
It is beautiful to be Chinese
If you are not Chinese,
you will not know how far “the edge of the sky” (天涯) is,
or what kind of longing “heartbreak” (断肠) is.
You cannot experience a kind of “sorrow”
that can be “just like a river of spring water flowing east”;
you cannot experience a kind of “joy”
that can “roll up the books of poems, wild with joy”;
you cannot experience a kind of grief
called “ten years, the living and the dead, both lost in a boundless haze.”
And you will never understand
that “Jiangnan” is not just a general place name,
that “Yangzhou” is not just a small city,
that at the “Pavilion of Prince Teng,” the “Yellow Crane Tower” and the “Yueyang Tower”
so many heroes once stood, clenching their wrists against the west wind……
