《独自莫凭栏》Do Not Stay alone on the Rail

《独自莫凭栏》

夜深时分，赌城
那些扑克桌上往往厮杀激烈，
好似尘土飞扬。

看看，又来了！多好的一副牌，
结果输在最后那张
被称之为“江河”的牌上。

堆集如山的筹码，
刚刚推过来，现又被推到
赌桌的另一方。

一手提啤酒，一手夹烟头，
刚在这桌上输得精光的玩客
在扑克室外独自凭栏。

“独自莫凭栏，无限江山。”
看到此，我脑海里刹那间
闪过李后主的名句。

不自觉，嘴里喃喃：
“故国不堪回首
月明中。”


注：李后主本是南唐皇帝，在位十五年。公元974年，
南唐为宋兵南下攻破，他被俘到汴京。三年后，李后
主四十二岁生日，宋太宗命人将他毒死，只因他写有
“故国不堪回首月明中”一词。


Do Not Stay alone on the Rail

Deep into the night,
poker games often get out of the dirt
And are full of action.

Here goes again, another good hand
Gets beat on the river. Mountains of chips
Are being shoveled around the table.

A beer in one hand and a cigarette in another,
Outside the poker room, the player just busted out
Of this lively game stands alone on the rail.

"Do not stay alone on the rail,
There are endless rivers
And countless mountains
Of the lost country. "

Instantaneously I recall this poem
By Li Houzhu and spontaneously
Murmur another famous one of his:

"How can one stand
To look back at the lost country
In moonlight."


Poet's Note: Li Houzhu, the emperor of Southern
Tang Dynasty, who lost his dynasty after 15 years
of ruling in 974 AD to the conquering Song Dynasty
and was taken as a prisoner of war. Three years later,
at his 42nd birthday, he died of poison by the order
of the ruling Song Dynasty emperor simply because he
wrote: "How can one stand to look back at the lost
country in moonlight."


================
From Poetry Sky Poetry Quarterly, Seventh Issue - August 15, 2006
http://www.poetrysky.com/quarterly/quarterly-7-laoha.html