《出塞》   ——王昌龄

秦时明月汉时关，
万里长征人未还。
但使龙城飞将在，
不教胡马度阴山。

To the Tune of Frontier

by Wang Changling (Tang Dynasty)

tr Rhapsodia_晚枫

The same moon on th’ same pass from Qin to Han, ①

From all expeditions returned no man.

Were Long City General Flying ‘live, ②

No Huns’ steeds could have crossed Mt Yin ‘n survive. ③ ④

Version 2

The same moon on th’ same pass from Qin to Han,①
From all expeditions returned no man.
Were generals of Long Cheng battles 'live, ②
No Huns’ steeds could have crossed Mt Yin ‘n survive.③④

Note:

①  Qin refers to the Qin Dynasty which was the first imperial dynasty of China. It started in 221 BC and ended in 206 BC.

Han refers to the Han Dynasty which started in 206 BC and ended in 220 AD. It was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty.

②  Long City, or Long Cheng, Dragon City, Long Cheng City, and possibly Lu Long Cheng (City), is said to be a Hun city lying at the order. The Huns were defeated several times there by General Wei Qing. General Li was a famous general in the Han Dynastry, and the Huns were all scared of him for his braveness and flash actions, thus gave him an epithet of General Flying. However, a debate has been going on as for whether the general mentioned in the poem was General Li or General Wei.

③  Huns refer to a group of nomadic people, also called Xiongnu, who were said migrated from Mongolia region to Europe. De Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China. They kept raiding along the northern border of China from early Qin Dynasty all the way to Han Dynasty, which is a span of over 400 years. Military campaigns had been continuously launched against them and numerous soldiers died.

④  Mt Yin, or Mt Yin Shan, refers to the Yin Mountian range, located in current Inner Mongolia Province. It starts from the bend of Yellow River and ends at Chahar and northern Hebei Province. It is a natural barrier protecting the northern China at the time.

第二版修改了第三句， 因据一些资料查证，龙城几次击败胡人的将军不是李广，而是卫青和霍去病，甚至是蒙恬。所以改特制为泛指。