Changsha

Alone I stand in the autumn cold
On the tip of Orange Island,
The Xiang flowing northward;
I see a thousand hills crimsoned¹ through
By their serried² woods deep-dyed,
And a hundred barges³ vying
Over crystal blue waters.
Eagles cleave⁴ the air,
Fish glide⁵ under the shallow water;
Under freezing skies a million creatures contend in freedom.
Brooding over this immensity,
I ask, on this bondless land
Who rules over man's destiny?

I was here with a throng⁶ of companions,
Vivid yet those crowded months and years.
Young we were, schoolmates,
At life's full flowering;
Filled with student enthusiasm
Boldly we cast all restraints aside.
Pointing to our mountains and rivers,
Setting people afire with our words,
We counted the mighty⁷ no more than muck.
Remember still
How, venturing midstream, we struck the waters
And the waves stayed the speeding boats?

　
 沁园春《长沙》 一九二五年
 
独立寒秋，
湘江北去，
橘子洲头。
看万山红遍，
层林尽染；
漫江碧透，
百舸争流。
鹰击长空，
鱼翔浅底，
万物霜天竞自由。
怅寥廓，
问苍茫大地，
谁主沉浮？ 

携来百侣曾游。
忆往昔峥嵘岁月稠。
恰同学少年，
风华正茂；
书生意气，
挥斥方遒。
指点江山，
激扬文字，
粪土当年万户侯。
曾记否，
到中流击水，
浪遏飞舟？