Genius and Destiny
Original Poem: The Tale of Kieu, lines 1 - 38
Author: Nguyễn Du
Translated by VuongThanh
(Taken from book: "A Garden of Vietnamese Lyrics & Verse, Volume 1")
Within a hundred-year lifespan in this earthly world
Genius and Destiny have a tendency to oppose each other
A turbulent mulberry-field-covered-by-sea period had passed
The things that we saw still deeply pain our hearts
‘Tis not strange that beauty may beget misery
The jealous gods tend to heap spites on rosy-cheeked beauties
Turning a scented page of an old tome under an oil lamp
History books still record the bygone sagas of Love and Romance
It was during the Gia-Tinh’s rule of the Ming dynasty
The two capitals are stable; peace reigns in the country.
There was a respectable towsnman of the Vuong family,
Of modest wealth, he belongs to the middle class in society.
He has a son, the youngest, named Vuong Quan,
who will carry on the family line of Confucian scholars.
The first-borns were two beautiful daughters
Thúy-Kiều the eldest, Thúy Vân the younger
Apricot slender in frame, snow pure in spirit
Each to her own charms, but both girls are perfect.
Vân’s beauty’s very remarkable
Her eyebrows – full crescent arcs, her moonlit face – oval
Jades tingles in her voice; flowers bloom from her smile
Her speech: educated, chaste and refined
Clouds yield to her hair’s lustrous shine and flow
Snow cedes to the silken whiteness of her skin’s glow
Kiều, the eldest, is especially witty and charming
Her talents and beauty even surpass her sibling
Her eyes: soul-deep liquid pools of autumn lake water
Her eyebrows: silhouettes of mount’n crests in spring
Flowers envy her captivating looks
Willows grieve at her youthful freshness
One smile can rock a fortress, two smiles: a nation
Other girls may have comparable talents,
But none can compare to her beauty’s perfection.
Endowed with God-gifted intelligence
Music, painting, poetry, singing are her accomplishments
Well versed in music theory and the art of the moon lute
She composed a long music piece
about the life of an ill-fated beauty
that would move the hearts of her listeners to pity.
Innately elegant and multi-talented are the two sisters
Even though they’re approaching the age of marriage,
they stay at home quietly behind closed curtains and drapes,
not heeding the comings and goings
of the bees and butterflies
from the eastern wall nearby.
_____________________________________________________
Kim Trọng's First Appearance
Original Poem: Truyện Kiều, lines: 133-170
Author: Nguyễn Du
Translated by VuongThanh
While half-wanting to stay, half-wanting to leave,
A sweet melody from somewhere approaches near
Seems to be a young scholar riding on a horse,
at a leisurely pace with hand loosened on the reins.
Half a pocket of dreamer’s moon and poet’s wind
With a couple of pageboys following him
His coat has a light scent of fresh grass
its hue is that of the blue sky
His horse is the color of snow-white
From afar, he had seen their faces
He dismounted and walks towards them.
As the scholar’s shoes move over the grass meadow,
The whole area seems to be jade branches with gems’ glow.
Quan knows him and comes forward to greet
The two Kieu, from maidenly shyness, take shelter behind the
flowers
Actually, he’s not really a stranger
He’s Kim Trong, a descendant of a noble line
His family’s wealthy, his genius well-recognized
Famed for his literary skill, endowed with God-given
intelligence
He’s blessedly gifted and extraordinarily handsome
When at home, he’s kind and courteous
When going out, he’s winsome and generous.
In fact, he lives in the same vicinity
and was a schoolmate of Vuong Quan
Having long heard that his neighbor
has two beautiful daughters,
like the two Kieu of olden times,
locked up in the Đồng Tước tower.
Only a few houses apart, but mountains and rivers lie in between
For quite some time, his heart’s filled with Love and Dreams
A fortunate day to finally meet these angels
His heart’s satisfied to see the heavenly fragrant flowers
From afar, he had seen their figures
Spring orchid and autumn daisy,
Both are heart-captivating beauties.
A meeting between a national beauty and a genius
Inwardly, they have fallen in love with each other,
But outwardly, still showing shyness and reserve
His mind hazy as if half-awake, half in a dream
Staying long not suitable, but leaving so difficult
The evening light seems to hasten the parting’s sadness
The scholar already on the horse and moving away,
The beauty’s still gazing for a long while afterward
Under the bridge, the streamlet’s crystal clear water flows
By the bridge, the willow branches sway gracefully
in the evening shadows…
________________________________________________________
Kim Trọng's Lovesick
Original Poem: Truyện Kiều, lines: 133-170
Author: Nguyễn Du
Translated by VuongThanh
(Taken from book: "A Garden of Vietnamese Lyrics & Verse, Volume 1")
It’s well known that for those who are romantics,
Who can unravel the threads of love in their hearts?
Since he returned home from the chance meeting
She’s constantly in his thoughts and his feelings
His lovesickness grows and grows
Each day seems drearily slow,
Like three years compressed into a day.
Heavy drapes shroud her window like a wall of clouds
Each night, he dreams of a glimpse of her at her house
A month has already passed by
He longs to see her face,
yet nervous how to ask her for a date
His room feels cold like copper
Ink brush tips dried, lute strings out of tune
A light wind blows through the blinds, creating a nostalgic melody
Fragrance induces longing, tea induces her sweet voice
If it’s not predestined love for three lives,
Why such fortress-shaking beauty to tease one’s heart?
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