Li Bai (701-December 762), whose name was Taibai, was named Qinglianjushi, also known as “The Immortal”. A great romantic poet in the Tang Dynasty, he was hailed as “The Immortal of Poetry” by future generations, and he was called “The Immortal of Poetry” together with Du Fu.
赠孟浩然
吾爱孟夫子[1]，
风流[2]天下闻。
红颜弃轩冕，
白首卧松云。
醉月频中圣[3]，
迷花不事君[4]。
高山[5]安可仰？
徒此揖清芬。
孟浩然是比李白年长12岁的诗人，这首诗大约是公元739年写的。第一联开门见山，写孟浩然潇洒的风度和不凡的才华。第二联说他年轻时不羡慕车马官服，后来又热爱松风白云，从反面说到正面。第三联却从正面到反面，说他宁可做月下饮酒的圣人，不做侍奉君王的大臣。最后用《诗经》中“高山仰止”的形象，把自己的爱慕具体化。这是一首用飘逸风格来写飘逸诗人，不为格律所拘的五言律诗。
注释：
[1]孟夫子：指孟浩然。夫子，一般的尊称。
[2]风流：古人以风流赞美文人，主要是指有文采，善词章，风度潇洒，不钻营苟且等。
[3]中圣：“中圣人”的简称，即醉酒。中：读去声，动词，“中暑”之“中”，此为饮清酒而醉，故曰中圣。
[4]事君：侍奉皇帝。
[5]高山：形容孟浩然品格高尚，令人敬仰。另有《经·小雅·车舝》：“高山仰止，景行行止”。
To Meng Haoran
Dear Master Meng,I hail you from the heart,
Of your high value all the world is proud.
Red-cheek’d,from cap to cab you kept apart;
White-haired,you lie beneath the pine and cloud.
Drunken with wine as oft as with moonlight,
You love the blooms too much to serve the crown.
Of lofty mountain how to reach the height?
We can but breathe your fragrance the wind brings down.
Meng Haoran was a poet 12 years older than Li Bai. This poem was written around 739 AD. The first couplet gets straight to the point, describing Meng Haoran’s unrestrained demeanor and extraordinary talent. The second couplet says that when he was young, he did not envy carriages, horses, and official uniforms, but later he loved pine wind and white clouds, from the negative to the positive. The third couplet goes from the positive to the negative, saying that he would rather be a saint drinking under the moon than a minister serving the king. Finally, he uses the image of “high mountains to look up to” in the Book of Songs to concretize his admiration. This is a five-character regulated verse that uses an elegant style to write about an elegant poet, and is not bound by the rules of rhythm.
