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spacestationtrustfund's review
2.0
Mm. I've read a lot of poetry, and I've found that erotic poetry (i.e., that which is arousing) differs greatly from erotic poetry (i.e., that which depicts erotic acts). The poems chosen for this anthology are mostly of the latter type, which is fine, but I do feel as though it's a bit of a doomed venture from the beginning, if for no other reason than because much of the eroticism of poetry written in Chinese comes from the multifaceted meanings of each character.* As noted in the introduction,
Apart from the issue of nuance, another issue I had is the proclivity towards rhyming translations. Rhyming translations are one of the many banes of my existence. Not all of the translated poems rhyme, thankfully. Here is a random example:
As loath as I am to praise Waley's translations (he did his best with what he had, bless him), his addition of a note clarifying the parallel between the deer and the woman makes his the only of the three to explain why, in fact, the poem could be considered "erotic." The translations by Hinton and Barnstone both make the text more explicit, with Hinton's devolving outright into porn dialogue at the end and Barnstone's lady putting up a token protest at best, but neither bothers to explain the context. This is what I mean by the difficulties of translating nuance. Barnstone translates 怀春 as "yearn for someone dear" (which, while an amusing deer pun, fails to convey the sexual undertones—perhaps a "horny" pun would work better?), tying back to what I mentioned earlier about 春 (spring)'s association with sexuality. To be fair, Hinton is hardly better with his "a girl feeling spring," which means nothing of substance. In Spring a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of dead deer. I'd almost prefer Sir Mix-a-Lot's line about getting sprung.
But I digress.
Contents include***:
//
*Here's a super simplified example: the character 鸡 [jī], literally meaning "chicken," also serves as a slang term referring to 1) male genitalia, 2) female prostitution, 3) homosexuality, and more. To make matters worse, the character 鸟 [niǎo], one of the radicals in "chicken," literally means "bird" but is also used is a visual and aural euphemism for 屌 [diǎo] (a more vulgar way to refer to sex and/or genitals). The usual suspects such as 入 [rù] ("enter; have sex with") are present, sure, but really, the best way I can personally think of to demonstrate the nuance would be to include two translations of each poem, one euphemistic (i.e., 金瓶梅 as "the plum blossom in the golden vase") and one vulgar (i.e., 金瓶梅 as "the pleasure of entering a vagina").
**"Jade tower" was (and, to an extent, still is) a euphemistic term for the penis.
***Full table of contents:
The Book of Songs (ca. 600 BCE)
In the Wilds is a Dead River-Deer
Portrait of a Bride
The Riverbank
Grasshoppers and Baby Locusts
Zhen and Wei Rivers
Stripping Off Clothes
White Moonrise
There are Tall Weeds in the Fields
Fruit Plummets from the Plum Tree
I Beg You, Zhongzi
Sima Ziangru (179-117 BCE)
The Prose-Poem of the Beautiful Person
Zhang Heng (78-139 CE)
From T'ung-sheng-ko
Anonymous
From Nineteen Ancient Poems (Han Dynasty)
Zi Ye (3rd-4th centuries CE)
From 42 Songs: The Cheating Lover
Night Is Forever
Her Shyness
The Untied Skirt
Undressing
Street Encounter
Tangled Hair
Spring Wind
From 20 Summer Songs: Lotus Flower Girl
After Lovemaking
Flaming Love
Melons and Plum
Sleeping with One Pillow
From 18 Autumn Songs: The Lovers
From 17 Winter Songs: Lust for the Summer Lover
- Late Autumn
Sleeves Lifted
A Charcoal Stove
Two Love Songs
Anonymous (Six Dynasties)
My Lover Will Soon Be Here
This Morning Our Boat Left
Shen Yue (441-513 CE)
From Six Reminiscences
To a Friend I Met Early One Morning While She Was in Her Carriage
For My Neighbor Who Was Waiting for Someone Who Didn't Come
Emperor Wu of Liang (464-549)
The Morning Sun Shines
Emperor Jianwen of Liang (503-551)
A Beautiful Woman
Emperor Hou Zhu of Chen (553-604)
A Jade Tree Blossoms in the Back Garden
Zhang Wencheng (ca. 657-730)
From The Dwelling of Playful Goddesses:
A Poem About His Knife
A Poem About Her Sheath
A Poem About a Broken Copper Flat-Iron
A Poem About Writing Brushes and Inkstones
Her Poem About a Bow
His Reply About the Bow
Zhao Luanluan (8th century)
Cloudlike Hair
Slender Fingers
Creamy Breasts
The Sandalwood Mouth
Xie Wen (Tang dynasty)
To Lady Zheng
Wang Wei (701-761)
A Young Lady's Spring Thoughts
For Someone Far Away
Li Bai (701-762)
Confessional
Sent Far Off
Singing by Green Water in Autumn
An Encounter in the Field
Si Kongshu (740-790?)
I Fall Ill and Have To Marry Off My Singing Girl
Meng Jiao (751-814)
Departure in Ancient Times
Xue Tao (768-831)
Spring Gazing
Bai Juyi (772-846)
From Song of Everlasting Sorrow
Song of Collecting Lotus Seeds
Bai Xingjian (776-826)
The Wedding Night (from the "Rhyme-Prose on the Supreme Joy of Sexual Union of Yin and Yang, Heaven and Earth")
Yuan Zhen (779-831)
The Poem of Xuizhen
Late Autumn
White Dress
Reminiscences (5 Poems)
Missing Her After Separation (Poem Two)
Spring Dawn
Han Shan (ca. late 8th-early 9th centuries)
Behind Pearl Curtains
Full of Girls
Woman in Her Prime
A Flock of Beauties
Du Mu (803-852)
Given in Parting (Two Poems)
Sharing My Feelings
Xue Feng (ca. 806-876)
In the Palace
Wen Tingyun (812-870)
To the Tune of "Beautiful Barbarian"
Du Qiuniang (early 9th century)
The Coat of Gold Brocade
Li Shangyin (813-858)
Secret of the Inner Chamber
From The Jade City Sequence
Untitled
Han Wo (844-923)
Meeting Her by Accident
Wei Zhuang (ca. 836-910)
To the Tune of "Silk-Washing Brook"
To the Tune of "The River City"
To the Tune of "A Lotus Leaf Cup"
Yu Xuanji (ca. 843-868)
A Farewell
Selling Ruined Peonies
Playing Polo
Autumn Complaints
Sent to a Neighboring Woman
Letter to a Friend
Ouyang Jiong (896-971)
To the Tune of "Washing Gauze in a Stream"
Li Yu (936-978)
To the Tune of "A Bushel of Pearls"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
Anonymous female poet (Song dynasty)
Drunk Man
Sun Daoxuan (Song dynasty)
To the Tune of "As in a Dream"
Liu Yong (987-1053)
To the Tune of "New Chrysanthemum Flowers"
To the Tune of "Poluomen Song"
Mei Yaochen (1002-1060)
At Night I Hear My Neighbor Singing
Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072)
To the Tune of "Spring in the Tower of Jade"
Painting Eyebrows, to the Tune of "Pouring Out Deep Emotions"
The Sound of Beating Oars Wafts in Among the Flowers
You Cannot Hold It
Green Jade Plum Trees in Spring
When the Moon is in the River of Heaven
Qin Guan (1049-1100)
To the Tune of "Magpie Bridge Immortal"
To a Courtesan
Madame Wei (f. 1050)
To the Tune of "Attached to Her Skirt"
Zhou Bangyan (1056-1121)
To the Tune of "Rambling Young Man"
To the Tune of "Butterflies Adore Flowers"
Zhu Shuzhen (1063-1106)
To the Tune of "Washing Creek Sands"
Spring Joy
Spring Night to the Tune of "Panning Gold"
Li Qingzhao (1084-ca. 1151)
To the Tune of "Dream Song"
To the Tune of "Intoxicated in the Shade of Flowers"
To the Tune of "One Blossoming Sprig of Plum"
To the Tune of "Spring at Wu Ling"
To the Tune of "Silk Washing Brook"
Yan Rui (fl. ca. 1160)
To the Tune of "Song of Divination"
Wu Wenying (ca. 1200-ca. 1260)
To the Tune of "Washing Creek Sands"
To the Tune of "Prelude to Oriole Song"
Guan Hanjing (ca. 1240-ca. 1320)
To the Tune of "Half and Half," Two Poems
Zheng Yunniang (???)
The Song of Shoes (To Zhang Sheng)
To the Tune of "West River Moon" (To Zhang Sheng)
Guan Daosheng (1262-1319)
Love Poem
Anonymous (Yuan dynasty?)
To the Tune of "Washing Gauze in a Stream"
To the Tune of "Half and Half"
Chen Keming (ca.1300-after 1375)
To the Tune of "Half and Half"
Tang Yin (1470-1523)
From The Happiness of Monks
Inscription for a Portrait
Huang E (1498-1569)
To the Tune of "The Fall of a Little Wild Goose"
To the Tune of "Soaring Clouds"
To the Tune of "Red Embroidered Shoes"
To the Tune of "A Floating Cloud Crosses Enchanted Mountain"
A Farewell to a Southern Melody
Tang Xianzu (1550-1616)
From The Peony Pavilion
Her Erotic Dream
Jade Limbs
Xie Zhaozhe (1567-1624)
Spring Complaints
Yuan Hongdao (1568-1610)
At Hengtang Ferry
Anonymous (Ming dynasty)
From Flower Encampment and Battle Formations
To the Tune of "Like a Dream"
To the Tune of "Boating at Night"
To the Tune of "Watching the Sea Tide"
To the Tune of "The Forest of Writing Brushes Academy"
To the Tune of "Magpie on the Branch"
To the Tune of "Gold Man Holding a Plate for Collecting Dew"
To the Tune of "Spring in the Phoenix Tower"
To the Tune of "One Sprig of Plum"
To the Tune of "Visiting Spring"
To the Tune of "Unhooking Entangled Rings"
To the Tune of "Sand Washed by Waves"
Poetry collected by Feng Menglong (1574-1646)
Untitled
A Dragging Cotton Skirt
Clever
Lantern
Shooting Star
The Bento Box
The Boat
A Boat Trip
We're Only Happy About Tonight
A Nun in Her Orchid Chamber Solitude Feels Lust Like a Monster
Steal a Peep
Impatience
Squeeze
A Good Day
Tryst
Flirting
Flirting
Flirting
Cursing Dukang
Misidentification
Footsteps
A Gift of Watermelon Seed Kernels
Asking About a Bite Mark
A Drunk Returns
Fire in the Eyes
Again
Conversation Between Heart and Mouth
Hooked
Idiot Thoughts
Idiot Thoughts
Account Book
Sobbing and Thinking
The Dream
The Dream
Lovesickness
Receiving a Letter
Divination
Departure
Night Struggle
Revealing Words
The Fear
To Keep Him
Rooster
Imaginary
Moonrise
Midnight
The Girl
The Girl
Too Many
Wind
Ling Mengchu (1580-1644)
Bed Time
Between the Sheets
Wang Wei (ca. 1600-ca. 1647)
To the Tune of "Drunk in the Spring Wind"
Retired scholar "Ailing Crane" of Tung-hai (ca. 1606)
Rousing the Dreaming Lover
Awakening from a Spring Slumber
Wu Weiye (1609-1672)
On Meeting an Old Flame, to the Tune of "Immortal by the River"
Anonymous (ca. 1618)
From The Plum in the Golden Vase
On Infidelity
The Six Inch Thing
The Lotus Thing
A Night of Many Positions
To the Tune of "West River Moon"
To the Tune of "West River Moon"
To the Tune of "Walking on Grass"
A Body Like Snow-White Jade
Water Sex
The Two-Edged Sword
Green Jade and Red Rouge
Butterfly and Flower
Wu Zao (1799-1863)
To the Tune of "Beautiful Lady Yu"
Fan Zengxiang (1846-1931)
Noonday
Wang Guowei (1877-1927)
To the Tune of "Butterfly Loving Flowers": Visiting My Parents After My Wedding Night
Su Manshu (the half-monk) (1884-1918)
From 10 Narrative Poems
To the Zither Player
Anonymous (???)
On a Brothel Wall
Yu Qingzeng (late 19th century)
To the Tune of "Intoxicated with Shadows of Flowers"
Liu Dabai (1880-1932)
Kiss by Mail
Xu Zhimo (1895-1931)
You Deserve It
J.S. Ling (1901-?)
A Morning Shower
Mang Ke (1951-)
Darling
Zhang Zhen (1961-)
The Cat at My Friend's House
A Desire
Chen Dongdong (1961-)
Snow-Covered Sun
Tang Yaping (1962-)
Black Cave
Black Midnight
Black Rock
Cyril Wong (1977-)
I Didn't Expect To Write About Sex
Though Chinese erotic poetry tends towards indirection, there is a much explicit sexuality ensconced within sex manuals and erotic novels, which use the poems as epiphanies and examples. These poems are excluded from the canon of Chinese poetry, especially as translated and anthologized in the West. In this volume, we have attempted to put right this oversight. The poems collected here vary widely, from subtle evocations of an erotic mood to raw illustrations of acrobatic positions to try when making love.But I digress. The introduction provides a brief summary of sexuality in Daoist (and Confucian) ethics, including a confusing decision to keep hanyu pinyin everywhere except for the romanisation of 气 [qì] (Wade-Giles chi); also referenced was one of my favourite books on sexuality in ancient Chinese history, The Culture of Sex in Ancient China (Paul Rakita Goldin). This anthology does not contain the original text of the poems in Chinese, and lacks any meaningful footnotes to clarify any aforementioned "subtle evocations" that might be lost to a non-Chinese audience. Not mentioned, for example, is the fact that 春梦 [chūnmèng], literally "spring dream," could refer not just to an illusion or a fleeting moment of joy but also to a sexual fantasy or wet dream; consequently the character 春 (spring) was associated with sexuality, and its usage in these contexts is at least in part to, as the authors put it, "subtly evoke an erotic mood." Zhang Wencheng's poetry about a woman's "sheath" and a man's "knife" will probably not be difficult to parse the innuendo, but what about Ouyang Xiu's "Spring in the Tower of Jade"?** (Even less obvious, perhaps, is the fact that Jade Tower was a real place in Chang'an during the Han Dynasty.)
Apart from the issue of nuance, another issue I had is the proclivity towards rhyming translations. Rhyming translations are one of the many banes of my existence. Not all of the translated poems rhyme, thankfully. Here is a random example:
In the wilds is a dead river-deer.This poem by an anonymous author is from the Shi Jing, numbered either 63 or 23 (in the Mao chronology). This is the original Chinese text, arranged horizontally:
White rushes wrap her.
A lady yearns for someone dear.
A fine man seduces her.
In the woods are clustered bushes,
and in the wilds a river-deer is dead
and wrapped in white rushes.
There is a lady as fine as jade.
Oh! Slow down, don't be so harsh,
let go of my girdle's sash.
Shhh! You'll make the dog bark.
野有死麇，白茅包之。
有女怀春，吉士诱之。
林有朴樕，野有死鹿。
白茅纯束，有女如玉。
舒而脱脱兮，无感我帨兮，无使尨也吠。
wilderness / is / dead / hornless deer, / white / thatch / wrap / it.The character 茅 (thatch) can specifically refer to Imperata cylindrica, cogongrass, often used as thatching; 怀春 (think of / spring) implies sexual awakening or sexual fantasies; 吉士 (lucky / scholar) is a literary way to refer to an honourable man (and is also a phonetic way of saying "cheese" in modern Mandarin); 脱脱 (carefree) is a duplication of 脱 (to take off); 帨 (handkerchief) refers to a garment worn like a sash about the waist. Other translations include those by Arthur Waley (63rd chronologically):
exist / woman / think of- / -spring, / virtuous- / -person / entice / her.
forest / exist / simple / shrub, / wilderness / exist / dead / deer.
white / thatch / cloth / tie, / exist / woman / like / jade.
easy or to unfold / and / care- / -free / ah, / not / feel / I / handkerchief / ah, / not / cause / shaggy dog / also / bark.
In the wilds there is a dead doe;Waley notes that, "If people find a dead deer in the woods, they cover it piously with rushes. But there are men who 'kill' a girl, in the sense that they seduce her and then fail to 'cover up' the damage by marrying her." This is in stark contrast to the interpretation of the poem by David Hinton, who translates the poem (9th chronologically) thusly:
With white rushes we cover her.
There was a lady longing for the spring;
A fair knight seduced her.
In the wood there is a clump of oaks,
And in the wilds a dead deer
With white rushes well bound;
There was a lady fair as jade.
'Heigh, not so hasty, not so rough;
Heigh, do not touch my handkerchief.
Take care, or the dog will bark.'
In the wilds there’s a dead deerHinton's characters are both consenting and fully willing, with no indication of what Waley calls "damage." Barnstone's translation falls somewhere in the middle of the two.
all wrapped in bleached reeds,
and there’s a girl feeling spring
as her fair love brings her on.
In the woods there’s thicket oak,
in the wilds there’s a dead deer
tangled tight in bleached reeds,
and there’s a girl, skin like jade.
Slowly—oh yes, slip it off slowly,
my skirt, oh yes, don’t muss it,
and don’t start that dog barking.
As loath as I am to praise Waley's translations (he did his best with what he had, bless him), his addition of a note clarifying the parallel between the deer and the woman makes his the only of the three to explain why, in fact, the poem could be considered "erotic." The translations by Hinton and Barnstone both make the text more explicit, with Hinton's devolving outright into porn dialogue at the end and Barnstone's lady putting up a token protest at best, but neither bothers to explain the context. This is what I mean by the difficulties of translating nuance. Barnstone translates 怀春 as "yearn for someone dear" (which, while an amusing deer pun, fails to convey the sexual undertones—perhaps a "horny" pun would work better?), tying back to what I mentioned earlier about 春 (spring)'s association with sexuality. To be fair, Hinton is hardly better with his "a girl feeling spring," which means nothing of substance. In Spring a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of dead deer. I'd almost prefer Sir Mix-a-Lot's line about getting sprung.
But I digress.
Contents include***:
Spoiler
poems collected from the Shi Jing (10), poetry collected by Feng Menglong (50), anonymous poems (32), and selections from Sima Ziangru (1), Zhang Heng (1), Zi Ye (19), Shen Yue (3), Emperor Wu of Liang (1), Emperor Jianwen of Liant (1), Emperor Hou Zhu of Chen (1), Zhong Wencheng (6), Zhao Luanluan (4), Xie Wen (1), Wang Wei (2), Li Bai (4), Si Kongshu (1), Meng Jiao (1), Xue Tao (1), Bai Juyi (2), Bai Xingjian (1), Yuan Zhen (10), Han Shan (4), Du Mu (3), Xue Feng (1), Wen Tingyun (1), Du Qiuniang (1), Li Shangyin (3), Han Wo (1), Wei Zhuang (3), Yu Xuanji (6), Ouyang Jiong (1), Li Yu (4), Sun Daoxuan (1), Liu Yong (2), Mei Yaochen (1), Ouyang Xiu (6), Qin Guan (2), Madame Wei (1), Zhou Bangyan (2), Zhu Shuzhen (3), Li Qingzhao (5), Yan Rui (1), Wu Wenying (2), Guan Hanjing (2), Zheng Yunniang (2), Guan Daosheng (1), Chen Keming (1), Tang Yin (2), Huang E (4), Tang Xianzu (3), Xie Zhaozhe (1), Yuan Hongdao (1), Ling Mengchu (2), Wang Wei (1), the retired scholar "Ailing Crane" of Tung-hai (2), Wu Weiye (1), Wu Zao (1), Fan Zengxiang (1), Wang Guowei (1), Su Manshu (2), Yu Qingzeng (1), Liu Dabai (1), Xu Zhimo (1), J.S. Ling (1), Mang Ke (1), Zhang Zhen (2), Chen Dongdong (1), Tang Yaping (3), and Cyril Wong (1).//
*Here's a super simplified example: the character 鸡 [jī], literally meaning "chicken," also serves as a slang term referring to 1) male genitalia, 2) female prostitution, 3) homosexuality, and more. To make matters worse, the character 鸟 [niǎo], one of the radicals in "chicken," literally means "bird" but is also used is a visual and aural euphemism for 屌 [diǎo] (a more vulgar way to refer to sex and/or genitals). The usual suspects such as 入 [rù] ("enter; have sex with") are present, sure, but really, the best way I can personally think of to demonstrate the nuance would be to include two translations of each poem, one euphemistic (i.e., 金瓶梅 as "the plum blossom in the golden vase") and one vulgar (i.e., 金瓶梅 as "the pleasure of entering a vagina").
**"Jade tower" was (and, to an extent, still is) a euphemistic term for the penis.
***Full table of contents:
Spoiler
The Book of Songs (ca. 600 BCE)
In the Wilds is a Dead River-Deer
Portrait of a Bride
The Riverbank
Grasshoppers and Baby Locusts
Zhen and Wei Rivers
Stripping Off Clothes
White Moonrise
There are Tall Weeds in the Fields
Fruit Plummets from the Plum Tree
I Beg You, Zhongzi
Sima Ziangru (179-117 BCE)
The Prose-Poem of the Beautiful Person
Zhang Heng (78-139 CE)
From T'ung-sheng-ko
Anonymous
From Nineteen Ancient Poems (Han Dynasty)
Zi Ye (3rd-4th centuries CE)
From 42 Songs: The Cheating Lover
Night Is Forever
Her Shyness
The Untied Skirt
Undressing
Street Encounter
Tangled Hair
Spring Wind
From 20 Summer Songs: Lotus Flower Girl
After Lovemaking
Flaming Love
Melons and Plum
Sleeping with One Pillow
From 18 Autumn Songs: The Lovers
From 17 Winter Songs: Lust for the Summer Lover
- Late Autumn
Sleeves Lifted
A Charcoal Stove
Two Love Songs
Anonymous (Six Dynasties)
My Lover Will Soon Be Here
This Morning Our Boat Left
Shen Yue (441-513 CE)
From Six Reminiscences
To a Friend I Met Early One Morning While She Was in Her Carriage
For My Neighbor Who Was Waiting for Someone Who Didn't Come
Emperor Wu of Liang (464-549)
The Morning Sun Shines
Emperor Jianwen of Liang (503-551)
A Beautiful Woman
Emperor Hou Zhu of Chen (553-604)
A Jade Tree Blossoms in the Back Garden
Zhang Wencheng (ca. 657-730)
From The Dwelling of Playful Goddesses:
A Poem About His Knife
A Poem About Her Sheath
A Poem About a Broken Copper Flat-Iron
A Poem About Writing Brushes and Inkstones
Her Poem About a Bow
His Reply About the Bow
Zhao Luanluan (8th century)
Cloudlike Hair
Slender Fingers
Creamy Breasts
The Sandalwood Mouth
Xie Wen (Tang dynasty)
To Lady Zheng
Wang Wei (701-761)
A Young Lady's Spring Thoughts
For Someone Far Away
Li Bai (701-762)
Confessional
Sent Far Off
Singing by Green Water in Autumn
An Encounter in the Field
Si Kongshu (740-790?)
I Fall Ill and Have To Marry Off My Singing Girl
Meng Jiao (751-814)
Departure in Ancient Times
Xue Tao (768-831)
Spring Gazing
Bai Juyi (772-846)
From Song of Everlasting Sorrow
Song of Collecting Lotus Seeds
Bai Xingjian (776-826)
The Wedding Night (from the "Rhyme-Prose on the Supreme Joy of Sexual Union of Yin and Yang, Heaven and Earth")
Yuan Zhen (779-831)
The Poem of Xuizhen
Late Autumn
White Dress
Reminiscences (5 Poems)
Missing Her After Separation (Poem Two)
Spring Dawn
Han Shan (ca. late 8th-early 9th centuries)
Behind Pearl Curtains
Full of Girls
Woman in Her Prime
A Flock of Beauties
Du Mu (803-852)
Given in Parting (Two Poems)
Sharing My Feelings
Xue Feng (ca. 806-876)
In the Palace
Wen Tingyun (812-870)
To the Tune of "Beautiful Barbarian"
Du Qiuniang (early 9th century)
The Coat of Gold Brocade
Li Shangyin (813-858)
Secret of the Inner Chamber
From The Jade City Sequence
Untitled
Han Wo (844-923)
Meeting Her by Accident
Wei Zhuang (ca. 836-910)
To the Tune of "Silk-Washing Brook"
To the Tune of "The River City"
To the Tune of "A Lotus Leaf Cup"
Yu Xuanji (ca. 843-868)
A Farewell
Selling Ruined Peonies
Playing Polo
Autumn Complaints
Sent to a Neighboring Woman
Letter to a Friend
Ouyang Jiong (896-971)
To the Tune of "Washing Gauze in a Stream"
Li Yu (936-978)
To the Tune of "A Bushel of Pearls"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
To the Tune of "Bodhisattva Barbarian"
Anonymous female poet (Song dynasty)
Drunk Man
Sun Daoxuan (Song dynasty)
To the Tune of "As in a Dream"
Liu Yong (987-1053)
To the Tune of "New Chrysanthemum Flowers"
To the Tune of "Poluomen Song"
Mei Yaochen (1002-1060)
At Night I Hear My Neighbor Singing
Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072)
To the Tune of "Spring in the Tower of Jade"
Painting Eyebrows, to the Tune of "Pouring Out Deep Emotions"
The Sound of Beating Oars Wafts in Among the Flowers
You Cannot Hold It
Green Jade Plum Trees in Spring
When the Moon is in the River of Heaven
Qin Guan (1049-1100)
To the Tune of "Magpie Bridge Immortal"
To a Courtesan
Madame Wei (f. 1050)
To the Tune of "Attached to Her Skirt"
Zhou Bangyan (1056-1121)
To the Tune of "Rambling Young Man"
To the Tune of "Butterflies Adore Flowers"
Zhu Shuzhen (1063-1106)
To the Tune of "Washing Creek Sands"
Spring Joy
Spring Night to the Tune of "Panning Gold"
Li Qingzhao (1084-ca. 1151)
To the Tune of "Dream Song"
To the Tune of "Intoxicated in the Shade of Flowers"
To the Tune of "One Blossoming Sprig of Plum"
To the Tune of "Spring at Wu Ling"
To the Tune of "Silk Washing Brook"
Yan Rui (fl. ca. 1160)
To the Tune of "Song of Divination"
Wu Wenying (ca. 1200-ca. 1260)
To the Tune of "Washing Creek Sands"
To the Tune of "Prelude to Oriole Song"
Guan Hanjing (ca. 1240-ca. 1320)
To the Tune of "Half and Half," Two Poems
Zheng Yunniang (???)
The Song of Shoes (To Zhang Sheng)
To the Tune of "West River Moon" (To Zhang Sheng)
Guan Daosheng (1262-1319)
Love Poem
Anonymous (Yuan dynasty?)
To the Tune of "Washing Gauze in a Stream"
To the Tune of "Half and Half"
Chen Keming (ca.1300-after 1375)
To the Tune of "Half and Half"
Tang Yin (1470-1523)
From The Happiness of Monks
Inscription for a Portrait
Huang E (1498-1569)
To the Tune of "The Fall of a Little Wild Goose"
To the Tune of "Soaring Clouds"
To the Tune of "Red Embroidered Shoes"
To the Tune of "A Floating Cloud Crosses Enchanted Mountain"
A Farewell to a Southern Melody
Tang Xianzu (1550-1616)
From The Peony Pavilion
Her Erotic Dream
Jade Limbs
Xie Zhaozhe (1567-1624)
Spring Complaints
Yuan Hongdao (1568-1610)
At Hengtang Ferry
Anonymous (Ming dynasty)
From Flower Encampment and Battle Formations
To the Tune of "Like a Dream"
To the Tune of "Boating at Night"
To the Tune of "Watching the Sea Tide"
To the Tune of "The Forest of Writing Brushes Academy"
To the Tune of "Magpie on the Branch"
To the Tune of "Gold Man Holding a Plate for Collecting Dew"
To the Tune of "Spring in the Phoenix Tower"
To the Tune of "One Sprig of Plum"
To the Tune of "Visiting Spring"
To the Tune of "Unhooking Entangled Rings"
To the Tune of "Sand Washed by Waves"
Poetry collected by Feng Menglong (1574-1646)
Untitled
A Dragging Cotton Skirt
Clever
Lantern
Shooting Star
The Bento Box
The Boat
A Boat Trip
We're Only Happy About Tonight
A Nun in Her Orchid Chamber Solitude Feels Lust Like a Monster
Steal a Peep
Impatience
Squeeze
A Good Day
Tryst
Flirting
Flirting
Flirting
Cursing Dukang
Misidentification
Footsteps
A Gift of Watermelon Seed Kernels
Asking About a Bite Mark
A Drunk Returns
Fire in the Eyes
Again
Conversation Between Heart and Mouth
Hooked
Idiot Thoughts
Idiot Thoughts
Account Book
Sobbing and Thinking
The Dream
The Dream
Lovesickness
Receiving a Letter
Divination
Departure
Night Struggle
Revealing Words
The Fear
To Keep Him
Rooster
Imaginary
Moonrise
Midnight
The Girl
The Girl
Too Many
Wind
Ling Mengchu (1580-1644)
Bed Time
Between the Sheets
Wang Wei (ca. 1600-ca. 1647)
To the Tune of "Drunk in the Spring Wind"
Retired scholar "Ailing Crane" of Tung-hai (ca. 1606)
Rousing the Dreaming Lover
Awakening from a Spring Slumber
Wu Weiye (1609-1672)
On Meeting an Old Flame, to the Tune of "Immortal by the River"
Anonymous (ca. 1618)
From The Plum in the Golden Vase
On Infidelity
The Six Inch Thing
The Lotus Thing
A Night of Many Positions
To the Tune of "West River Moon"
To the Tune of "West River Moon"
To the Tune of "Walking on Grass"
A Body Like Snow-White Jade
Water Sex
The Two-Edged Sword
Green Jade and Red Rouge
Butterfly and Flower
Wu Zao (1799-1863)
To the Tune of "Beautiful Lady Yu"
Fan Zengxiang (1846-1931)
Noonday
Wang Guowei (1877-1927)
To the Tune of "Butterfly Loving Flowers": Visiting My Parents After My Wedding Night
Su Manshu (the half-monk) (1884-1918)
From 10 Narrative Poems
To the Zither Player
Anonymous (???)
On a Brothel Wall
Yu Qingzeng (late 19th century)
To the Tune of "Intoxicated with Shadows of Flowers"
Liu Dabai (1880-1932)
Kiss by Mail
Xu Zhimo (1895-1931)
You Deserve It
J.S. Ling (1901-?)
A Morning Shower
Mang Ke (1951-)
Darling
Zhang Zhen (1961-)
The Cat at My Friend's House
A Desire
Chen Dongdong (1961-)
Snow-Covered Sun
Tang Yaping (1962-)
Black Cave
Black Midnight
Black Rock
Cyril Wong (1977-)
I Didn't Expect To Write About Sex
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