Drinking Alone
Li T'ai-po
[Image: "Li Po Drinking Under the Moon"]

I take my wine jug out among the flowers
to drink alone, without friends.

I raise my cup to entice the moon.
That, and my shadow, makes us three.

But the moon doesn't drink,
and my shadow silently follows.

I will travel with moon and shadow,
happy to the end of spring.

When I sing, the moon dances.
When I dance, my shadow dances, too.

We share life's joys when sober.
Drunk, each goes a separate way.

Constant friends, although we wander,
we'll meet again in the River of Stars.

Li Po (701-762) was a Chinese poet who lived during the Tang Dynasty. Known as the Poet Immortal, Li Po is revered along with Du Fu, as one of the two greatest poets in China's literary history. Over 1,100 of his poems remain today. Like Du Fu, he spent much of his life travelling, although in his case it was because his wealth allowed him to, rather than because his poverty forced him. Li Po is best known for his creative imagination and powerful Taoist imagery, as well as for his great love for liquor. Tradition says that, while sailing the Yangtze River, he drunkenly tried to embrace the reflection of the moon and drowned.

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