孟郊诗
Poems of Meng Jiao
Index
送清远上人归楚山旧寺
Escorting Pure Seclusion monks returning to an old temple in the Chu mountains
（一作国清上人游苏送溪上人）
(Written of the Pure Land monks traveling to Jiangsu, escorting the Mountain Stream monks)
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波中出吴境 霞际登楚岑 山寺一别来 云萝三改阴 |
Upon the waves, we leave Wu's border. Break of dawn, we climb Chu's peaks. Mountain temple, since last I saw you, the Cloud shadows have written upon you constantly. |
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诗夸碧云句 道证青莲心 应笑泛萍者 不知松隐深 |
My poem praises these blue clouds' phrases. But the Way tests the pure lotus heart. You should smile on this wandering duckweed Who doesn't know the hidden depths of your pines. |
-- 孟郊
废话
In the title, Jiangsu could be Suzhou or any other place name abbreviated 苏. "Seclusion" is in the sense of "withdrawing from the world," purely withdrawn monks. Wu and Chu are both states of the Warring Kingdom period. I imagine that a "pure lotus heart" means something specific but I can't tell what.
It also seems to me that Meng Jiao is serving as a guide in this poem. In the last poem, I talked about the use of the character 送 in the titles. For Meng Jiao, who was accustomed to and loved the wilderness, the character may actually mean "guiding."