Spring View at Lingling - Liu Zongyuan
/零陵春望 - 柳宗元/
A Contemplative Glimpse of Renewal amid Exiled Yearnings
Note on Authenticity: “零陵春望” (Spring View at Lingling) does not appear in the most authoritative collections of Liu Zongyuan’s (773–819) poetry. What follows is a reconstructed or attributed text circulated in certain local anthologies or modern compilations. Scholars generally do not list this poem among his confirmed works.
Reconstructed Text (Chinese)
江城三月柳丝长，
日暖溪山处处芳。
客思未随春色尽，
零陵犹带旧愁伤。
风烟南极遮乡路，
郡县东回失故乡。
独对晴川千里目，
闲凭孤榭数归鸯。
English Rendering (Reconstructed)
At the riverside city in the third month, willow branches stretch long;
Sunlit streams and hills abound in fragrant blooms.
Yet a wanderer’s thoughts do not fade with the season’s glow—
In Lingling, sorrow still clings to old regrets.
Mists and southern winds obscure the way home;
Bound for another county to the east, I lose sight of all I once knew.
Facing the bright river, I gaze a thousand miles in vain,
Leaning idly against a lone pavilion, counting pairs of returning ducks.
Although presented here under the name “零陵春望” (Spring View at Lingling) and attributed to Liu Zongyuan, no official Tang anthology or Liu Zongyuan collection includes a poem by this title. The piece fits the general spirit of Tang exile poetry: references to Lingling (a historical region where certain officials served or were exiled), the evocative imagery of willows, and an undercurrent of longing for home.
In many of Liu Zongyuan’s verified works, exile or displacement fosters a keen sensitivity to nature: blooming willows, lush riverbanks, distant hills half-veiled in mist. The traveler stands apart from the spring’s abundant beauty, unable to fully join in its renewal. Here, the final lines gesture toward a hallmark of farewell and distance: the inability to trace one’s path back home and the ache of seeing other creatures (like ducks or geese) freely finding their way.
If this were truly Liu Zongyuan’s composition, it would echo his known themes of loneliness, introspection, and nature’s subtle transformations. Yet we must emphasize that “零陵春望” does not appear in authoritative sources. As with similar apocryphal or reconstructed poems, it is best read as either a creative homage to Liu Zongyuan’s style or a later literary piece that drew on well-known tropes of exile literature. Regardless of authorship, it captures the timeless Tang motif of a poet observing spring’s vitality while feeling the persistent weight of longing and separation.
Key points
1. **Uncertain Authorship**: This poem is not part of Liu Zongyuan’s standard, verified corpus.
2. **Exile and Distance**: References to Lingling, homeward longing, and obstructed vistas reflect Tang themes of displacement.
3. **Nature as Mirror**: Willows, rivers, and migrating birds underscore the emotional tension between seasonal renewal and personal regret.
4. **Literary Legacy**: Whether authentic or not, the poem embodies the archetypal Tang-style poignancy—balancing natural beauty with the sorrow of separation.
