Translations

I've had some ideas for translations for a couple of things, which I'll put here because I have nowhere else to put them.


「塞下曲」 唐 盧綸 (Chinese to English)

"Rampart Tune" Lu Lun (Tang)

The original poem reads:

月黑雁飛高
單于夜遁逃
欲將輕騎逐
大雪滿弓刀

My (non-strict) translation, maintaining a 七绝-like rhythm per line, reads:

The moon is black and the geese fly high
the Great Khan flees his camp at night
would that light steeds hence make chase
sword and bow in snow-filled flight


Thus conscience does make cowards of us all (English to Chinese)

This excerpt is a quote from Shakespeare's Hamlet (part of the famous 2bornot2b). It sounds very motivational until you remember he's talking about killing himself.

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.

My attempt at translating this into classical Chinese:

蓋方寸則使萬夫懦,乃故絕決之本色受病於方寸之摧煞也。而驚天地之大業,念此,如湍流入歧途,輒失向來之義名矣。


「漁家傲」 宋 范仲淹 (partial Chinese to English)

"A Fisherman's Pride" Fan Zhongyan (Song)

I only have a good (vibe-wise) translation for the first two lines. I will complete this if I ever get a better idea. The original lines read:

塞下秋來風景異
衡陽雁去無留意
四面邊聲連角起
千嶂裏
長煙落日孤城閉

濁酒一杯家萬里
燕然未勒歸無計
羌管悠悠霜滿地
人不寐
將軍白髮征夫淚

My idea for some lines (again roughly in the same rhythm):

'Neath the ramparts, fall arrives;
fleeing goose flocks bring strange sights.
...
No one sleeps;
The general grows old and the footman weeps.