A Farewell on the Ninth Day
九日送別
Jiǔ rì sòngbié
A Double Ninth gathering shares chrysanthemum wine before tomorrow’s separation in Wang Zhihuan’s autumn farewell.
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About the text and pronunciation
The simplified view changes character forms, not the edition. Notes and sources retain the cited text.
The Chinese source is shown in traditional characters by default, with a simplified view available. Pinyin is modern standard Mandarin, a reading aid, not Tang or Song pronunciation.
Word by word, in the order of the line. A gloss is a crib. It is not the translation.
Word meanings — Line 1
- 薊 jì Ji
- 庭 tíng region
- 蕭 xiāo bleak
- 瑟 sè rustling
- 故 gù old
- 人 rén friends
- 稀 xī few
Word meanings — Line 2
- 何 hé what
- 處 chù place
- 登 dēng climb
- 高 gāo height
- 且 qiě and
- 送 sòng see off
- 歸 guī returning
Word meanings — Line 3
- 今 jīn this
- 日 rì day
- 暫 zàn briefly
- 同 tóng share
- 芳 fāng fragrant
- 菊 jú chrysanthemum
- 酒 jiǔ wine
Word meanings — Line 4
- 明 míng next
- 朝 zhāo morning
- 應 yīng must
- 作 zuò become
- 斷 duàn broken
- 蓬 péng tumbleweed
- 飛 fēi fly
English translation by PoemWell.
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Original
薊庭蕭瑟故人稀，
何處登高且送歸。
今日暫同芳菊酒，
明朝應作斷蓬飛。
Translation
Bleak autumn in Ji, with old friends scarce—
where can we climb a height and see you home?
Today, for a little while, we share chrysanthemum wine;
tomorrow you will fly like a plant torn from its root.
Try it from memory
After reading, recall the underlined word or phrase in each line. Say its meaning before opening the answer. These prompts use the text edition printed above.
-
Line 1 · What does the marked word mean?
薊庭蕭瑟故人稀，
Pronunciation hint
sè
Reveal meaning and translation
瑟 — rustling
Bleak autumn in Ji, with old friends scarce—
-
Line 3 · What does the marked word mean?
今日暫同芳菊酒，
Pronunciation hint
tóng
Reveal meaning and translation
同 — share
Today, for a little while, we share chrysanthemum wine;
-
Line 4 · What does the marked word mean?
明朝應作斷蓬飛。
Pronunciation hint
zuò
Reveal meaning and translation
作 — become
tomorrow you will fly like a plant torn from its root.
One more question: what changes?
Compare the opening and closing lines. What changes in the scene, the speaker’s attention, or the feeling? Choose a Chinese word as evidence, then compare your reading with the notes. More than one answer may be reasonable.
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Line-by-line notes
Lines 1–2 · A festival with few friends present
The title's 九日 is the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, the Double Ninth. 登高 and 菊酒 name two things associated with the occasion, climbing a height and drinking chrysanthemum wine. The first line gives the gathering its circumstances. 薊庭 locates it in Ji, 蕭瑟 makes the autumn scene bleak, and 稀 makes old friends scarce. The question 何處 asks where the climb can take place. 且 lets it be the place to see the friend off as well.
Lines 3–4 · Together for an afternoon
今日 and 明朝 measure the short interval between the two scenes. 暫 gives “for a little while” to the cup shared today. The final image is 斷蓬, a plant torn loose from its root and carried away. The English makes the implicit comparison explicit with “like,” applying it to the friend who is about to depart. The assurance of a familiar festival gives way to a picture of travel that is hard to direct. How long the separation will last remains open.
Form and tone
A seven-character jueju, the poem sets 今日 against 明朝. 稀, 歸, and 飛 rhyme, so the last word turns both the festival and its gathering toward dispersal. Mandarin pinyin reads 朝 as zhāo for morning. A historical tone table is omitted.
Historical context
Wang Zhihuan makes a festival intensify parting rather than suspend it. Visiting an Old Friend's Farm anticipates returning for chrysanthemums; here the festival has arrived and departure follows it. A Question for Liu Nineteen uses a cup to invite company instead of marking its end.
Sources
《全唐詩》, juan 253, Wang Zhihuan section, checked in the Wikisource transcription. The printed main reading is followed; 爲 is normalized to 為. Punctuation is editorial.
English translation, gloss, and notes by PoemWell. The translation is original to this site.
The Chinese source is shown in traditional characters by default, with a simplified view available. Pinyin is modern standard Mandarin, a reading aid, not Tang or Song pronunciation.
Updated .
Cite this reading
Wang Zhihuan. “A Farewell on the Ninth Day” (九日送別). PoemWell. English translation by PoemWell. Updated .
https://poemwell.org/poems/ninth-day-farewell-wang-zhihuan
Credit the poet for the Chinese original and PoemWell for this translation and commentary. Use the permanent page link above; source editions are listed separately.