Send Off Northern Visitors, Lonely Again, Send This By Post to My Xuzhou Brothers
江 南 送 北 客 因 凭 寄 徐 州 兄 弟 书
故 园 望 断 欲 何 如？
楚 水 吴 山 万 里 佘。
今 日 因 君 访 兄 弟
数 行 乡 泪 一 封 书。
Jiang Nan Song Bei Ke Yin Ping Ji Xu Zhou Xiong Di Shu
Gu yuan wang duan yu he ru?
Chu shui wu shan wan li she. Jin ri yin jun fang xiong di
Shu xing xiang lei yi feng shu.
From Jiangnan Send Off Northern Visitors, Lonely Again, Send This By Post to My Xuzhou Brothers
What is it like hoping to go back to my hometown in the future?
Chu rivers and Wu mountains more than three thousand miles away.
Because of today’s visit from my brothers
One sealed letter with a number and series of hometown-longing tears.
Notes:
Jiangnan: An area south of the river. In this case the Changjiang as it enters into the Pacific Ocean. The southern part of Zhejiang Province that includes the cities of Suzhou, Hangzhou and Ningbo.
Xuzhou: Major city in Jiangsu Province holding many Han Dynasty relics and artifacts.
Chu: (704-223 BC) Large ancient nation state encompassing most of the provinces of Hubei and Hunan, as well as portions of several other provinces.
Wu: (11th century-473 BC) Ancient nation state east of Chu at the mouth of the Changjiang.