Poems of Mao

1. At Changsha [1925]

At Changsha

[A tsu, to the melody Spring in Chin Garden, Chinyuan Chun.]

[Translated by Nancy Lin]

Against the chill of autumn

I stand alone

At the tip of Mandarin Isle

Where the Hsiang bends north.

Look! The hills are crimson

With tiers of deep-dyed woods:

The river one translucent green,

And hundreds of barges busily plying.

Eagles cleave through the skies,

Fish glide over clear depths:

How on this frosty day Life strives for freedom!

Ah, boundless space,

Great earth in twilight’s gray,

Who, I ask, is the lord of destinies?

I used to bring along

Companions a hundred strong.

Vivid yet those bygone days –

Rugged all and event-packed.

Schoolmates we were,

In the flower of strength and youth.

Impelled by resolve of intellect

We launched out full blast,

Fingers pointing at scenes unfolding,

Trenchant words lauding and decrying:

Potentates of the day – mere scum in our eyes!

And then, remember?

We breast-stroked in midstream –

How against the scudding boats

The waves splashed!

Notes [by Nancy Lin]

Changsha: the municipal capital of Hunan Province, its first founding dating back to the Period of Warring States (475-221 BC). It has been known through the centuries for its political and strategic importance as well as for its literary lore connected with the ancient poet Chu Yuan and the Han essayist Chia Yi.

The Hsiang River: largest river in Hunan, on which Changsha is situated.

Mandarin Isle: an islet in the Hsaing river just west of Changsha, so-called because of its famous mandarin oranges.

Mao Tse-tung’s association with Changsha was particularly close. He came there in 1911 to stay for 8 consecutive years, a student in the provincial normal school and activist in anti-feudal and anti-warlord struggles. He founded the New Citizens Society, with a membership of up to 80 by the time of the May 4^th Movement, 1919. After an interval of stay at Peking University (1918-19), he was back again to Changsha, editor of the Hsiang River Critic. He joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1921 as one of 12 original members, followed by years of intense activity in organizing labor strikes and peasant associations in Changsha and other parts of Hunan.

This poem was written just before his departure from Changsha in October 1925 to take charge of the Training Center for Peasant Movement in Canton – a significant point in the revolutionary career of the poet.

Various conjectures have been made as to the implications of the query on destinies in the last line of the first stanza. Presumably the poet has here in mind, more than anything else, the question of leadership of the proletariat or of the bourgeoisie – a crucial question much discussed then among the Chinese communists.

About the line ‘We breast-stroked in midstream’, the poet noted in December 1958:

“This refers to swimming. I was a beginner then. In the flooding torrents of high summer, I was near-drowned on several occassions. A group of us persisted, staying dipped in the river even on severe winter days.”

[next - 2. Golden Crane Tower]