POEM
晓出净慈寺送林子方Xiǎo Chū Jìng Cí Sì Sòng Lín ZǐfāngAt Dawn, Leaving Jingci Temple to See Lin Zifang Off
- Dynasty
- Song
- Author
- 杨万里 Yáng Wànlǐ (Yang Wanli)
- Genre
- 七言绝句
- Lines
- 4
- Era
- c. 12th century
THE POEM — LINE BY LINE
Tap a line for word-by-word gloss.
#1毕竟西湖六月中Bì jìng xī hú liù yuè zhōngAfter all, it is mid-June on West Lake —word by word
毕bìin the end (毕竟: after all)竟jìngfinally (毕竟: after all)西xīwest (西湖: West Lake)湖húlake六liùsix月yuèmonth中zhōngmiddle; mid-#2风光不与四时同Fēng guāng bù yǔ sì shí tóngthe scenery is unlike that of any other season.word by word
#3接天莲叶无穷碧Jiē tiān lián yè wú qióng bìLotus leaves stretching to the sky — a boundless green;word by word
接jiējoin; reach (接天: reach the sky)天tiānsky莲liánlotus (莲叶: lotus leaf)叶yèleaf无wúwithout穷qióngend (无穷: boundless)碧bìgreen; emerald#4映日荷花别样红Yìng rì hé huā bié yàng hóngand lotus blossoms, catching the sun, a red all their own.word by word
映yìngreflect; catch日rìsun荷hélotus (荷花: lotus blossom)花huāflower; blossom别biéanother (别样: of a different kind)样yàngkind; way红hóngred
POEM IN PLAIN ENGLISH
A plain-English guide, not a literary translationAfter all, it is mid-June on West Lake — the scenery is unlike that of any other season: lotus leaves stretching to the sky, a boundless green, and lotus blossoms catching the sun, a red all their own. The poem is a farewell that never gets around to saying goodbye; instead it gives the departing friend the lake at its best — all green and red, the whole sky on the water. This is a plain-English guide, not a literary translation.
BACKGROUND & IMAGERY
Yang Wanli (1127-1206), a leading Song poet, wrote this at dawn outside Jingci Temple in Hangzhou while seeing off his friend Lin Zifang. The scene is West Lake at midsummer, when the lotus covers the water. The title in the collected works runs 晓出浄慈送林子方二首 ('Two Poems Leaving Jingci Temple at Dawn...'); this is the second piece, the one every schoolchild knows.
TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-15
Sources
- 《宋诗鉴赏辞典》（上海辞书出版社）通行文本；部编版语文教材同文
- 本站飞花令语料 feihualing.db（poem 68072） — 文本以通行本为准，库本仅行级参考（库本与通行本一致）；库题作'晓出浄慈送林子方二首·其二'，'浄'为'净'之异体
- Original English paraphrase & gloss — 本站原创学习释义，非文学译本（plain-English guide, not a literary translation）
publishedReport an error