Tune: Treading on Grass II (Yan Shu)
Text
English translation
Original Chinese text
小径红稀，芳郊绿遍，高台树色阴阴见。春风不解禁杨花，濛濛乱扑行人面。
English translation
Red blossoms have thinned along the path, while green covers the fragrant fields. From the terrace, trees appear in a dim line. The spring wind cannot restrain the willow fluff; it scatters in a haze and strikes passersby in the face.
Original Chinese text
翠叶藏莺，朱帘隔燕，炉香静逐游丝转。一场愁梦酒醒时，斜阳却照深深院。
English translation
Orioles hide among green leaves; a red curtain separates the swallows. Incense smoke turns quietly with the drifting threads in the air. When the wine wears off, a sorrowful dream still lingers, and the setting sun shines into the deep courtyard.
词句注释 · Notes
上片 · First stanza
上片从花少、草绿写春末景象。柳絮本是风中之物，“春风不解禁”把风拟人化，也让纷飞的杨花带上恼人的动态。
The sparse blossoms and widespread green suggest late spring. Willow fluff belongs to the wind, and the personification “the wind does not know how to restrain it” gives the drifting scene a teasing, bothersome motion.
下片 · Second stanza
下片由庭外鸟声转入帘内香烟与梦醒时分。燕莺虽近，仍被树叶与帘幕遮隔；结尾的深院和斜阳留下幽静而难排遣的愁意。
The stanza moves indoors, from birds outside to incense and waking from a dream. Orioles and swallows are near but screened by leaves and curtains; the deep courtyard and slanting sun leave a quiet, unresolved sadness.