谭嗣同·《甘肃布政使署憩园秋日七绝》英译

小楼人影倚高空，目尽疏林夕照中。

为问西风竟何著，轻轻吹上雁来红。

Written on an Autumn Day at the Garden of the Official Residence of the Governor of Kansu

T’an Ssu-T’ung

On a small balcony, the shadow of someone leaning against the tall sky;

In the distance, the sparse forest in twilight’s glow.

Let me ask what the west wind is really doing:

To blow so gently, reddening the aramanth blossoms.1

1. Yen-lai hung: literally, “wild geese come red,” or Amaranthus tricolor, with showy red flowers resembling the cockscomb. Because its flowering season is in late fall, it is also called lao shao-nien (youthful-looking old man) in the eastern part of China.