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蜀道难
李白
噫吁，危乎高哉！
蜀道之难，难于上青天！
蚕丛及鱼凫[1]，开国何茫然。
尔来四万八千岁，不与秦塞通人烟。
西当太白[2]有鸟道，可以横绝峨眉巅。
地崩山摧[3]壮士死，然后天梯石栈相钩连。
上有六龙[4]回日之高标[5]，下有冲波逆折之回川。
黄鹤之飞尚不得过，猿猱欲度愁攀援。
青泥[6]何盘盘，百步九折萦岩峦。
扪参历井[7]仰胁息，以手抚膺坐长叹。
问君西游何时还。畏途巉岩不可攀。
但见悲鸟号古木，雄飞雌从绕林间。
又闻子规[8]啼夜月，愁空山，
蜀道之难，难于上青天，使人听此凋朱颜。
连峰去天不盈尺，枯松倒挂倚绝壁。
飞湍瀑流争喧豗，砯崖转石万壑雷。
其险也如此，嗟尔远道之人，
胡为乎来哉！剑阁[9]峥嵘而崔嵬，
一夫当关，万夫莫开。
所守或匪亲，
化为狼与豺。
朝避猛虎，夕避长蛇，
磨牙吮血，杀人如麻。
锦城虽云乐，不如早还家。
蜀道之难，难于上青天，侧身西望长咨嗟！
注释：
[1] 蚕丛、鱼凫：古蜀国王。
[2] 太白：太乙，秦岭峰名。
[3] 摧：崩塌。
[4] 六龙：神话中替太阳驾车的羲和，每天赶着六条龙在天空从东行到西。
[5] 高标：最高峰。
[6] 青泥：岭名，为唐入蜀要道。在今陕西略阳县。《元和郡县志》：“悬崖万仞，山多云雨，行者屡逢泥淖，故号青泥岭。”
[7] 扪参历井：形容山势高峻，道路险阻。参、井，皆星宿名。参是蜀的分野，井是秦的分野（古人认为地上某地区与天上某星宿相应，分成若干界域，叫分野）。
[8] 子规：杜鹃鸟。据《华阳国志·蜀志》，古有蜀王杜宇，号望帝，后禅位出奔，其时子规鸟鸣。蜀人因思念杜宇，故觉此鸟鸣悲切。
[9] 剑阁：四川剑阁县北七里大、小剑山间的一座雄关，即剑门关。西晋张载《剑阁铭》：“一夫荷戟，万夫趑趄。形胜之地，非亲勿居。”
Hard is the Road to Shu
Li Bai
Oho! Behold! How Steep! How high!
The road to Shu is harder than to climb the sky.
Since the two pioneers
Put the kingdom in order,
Have passed forty-eight thousand years,
And few have tried to pass its border.
There’s a bird track o’er Great White Mountain to the west,
Which cuts through Mountain Eyebrows by the crest.
The crest crumbled, five serpent-killing heroes slain,
Along the cliffs a rocky path was hacked then.
Above stand peaks too high for the sun to pass o’er;
Below the torrents run back and forth, churn and roar.
Even the Golden Crane can’t fly across;
How to climb over, gibbons are at a loss.
What tortuous mountain path Green Mud Ridge faces!
Around the top we turn nine turns each hundred paces.
Looking up breathless, I can touch the stars nearby;
Beating my breast, I sink aground with long, long sigh.
When will you come back from this journey to the west?
How can you climb up dangerous path and mountain crest,
Where you can hear on ancient trees but sad birds wail
And see the female birds fly, followed by the male?
And hear home-going cuckoos weep
Beneath the moon in mountains deep?
The road to Shu is harder than to climb the sky,
On hearing this, your cheeks would lose their rosy dye.
Between the sky and peaks them is not a foot’s space,
And ancient pines hang, head down, from the cliff’s surface.
And cataracts and torrents dash on boulders under,
Roaring like thousands of echoes of thunder.
So dangerous these places are,
Alas! Why should you come here from afar?
Rugged is the path between the cliffs so steep and high,
Guarded by one
And forced by none.
Disloyal guards
Would turn wolves and pards,
Man-eating tigers at day-break
And at dusk blood-sucking long snake.
One may make merry in the Town of Silk, I know,
But I would rather homeward go.
The mad to Shu is harder than to climb the sky,
I’d turn and westward look with long, long sigh.
This poem shows not only the hard way to Shu, present-day Sichuan Province, but also the hard way to rising above in society.
