No one was seen in the empty mountain, only a burst of human voices was heard.
The afterglow of the sun returned to the deep forest and shone on the moss in the forest.
Lu Chai
Tang Dynasty: Wang Wei
No one can be seen in the empty mountain, but people can hear their voices.
Returning to the deep forest, the light shines on the moss again.
Notes
Lu Chai (zhài): "Chai" is the same as "zhai", fence. This is a place name.
But: only. Smell: hear.
Returning scene: the light of the setting sun. "Scene" was the same as "shadow" in ancient times.
Zhao: shine (with).
Extended information:
Appreciation
This poem creates a deep and bright symbolic realm, showing the author's meditation process in the deep. The sudden enlightenment. Although there is a Zen feeling in the poem, it does not resort to arguments and reasoning, but is fully immersed in the vivid description of natural scenery.
Wang Wei is a poet, painter and musician. This poem reflects the combination of poetry, painting and music. He uses a musician's perception of sound, a painter's grasp of light, and a poet's refinement of language to depict the unique silence and tranquility of the moment when people are talking in the empty valley and the slanting light shines back, which is thought-provoking.
Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Lu Chai