[updated September 2022]
Tai Lake Rocks
太 湖 石
烟 翠 三 秋 色
波 涛 万 古 痕。
削 成 青 玉 片
截 断 碧 云 根。
风 气 通 岩 穴
苔 文 护 洞 门。
三 峰 具 体 小
应 是 华 山 孙。
Tai Hu Shi
Yan cui san qiu se
Bo tao wan gu hen
Xue cheng qing yu pian
Jie duan bi yun gen.
Feng qi tong yan xue
Tai wen hu dong men
San feng ju ti xiao
Ying shi hua shan sun.
Tai Lake Rocks
Emerald green mists and several autumn colors
Large waves left ten thousand ancient marks
Scraped and whittled to produce flat shards of green jade
If sliced into pieces, they become like the offspring of bluish-green clouds.
Wind erosion leads to their holes and crags
Moss penetrates or covers to guard their openings
Specific younger versions of several mountain peaks
Are like the grandchildren of Mt. Hua.
Notes:
Zhinese people almost irrationally love rocks, especially the unique ones found around Tai Lake, a large freshwater lake between the provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu. Having been shaped by the ancient forces of wind and water, they take on very distinctive features, including holes and circular crevices. Bai Juyi probably found them inside some of the many classical gardens when he lived in the ancient and beautiful city of Suzhou.
Mt. Hua: One of the Five Greatest Mountains of China located in Shaanxi Province east of the city of Xi’an. Site of many Daoist temples.