drinking alone under the moon

月下独酌 (Yuè xià dúzhuó), “Drinking Alone Under the Moon” is a poem by Lĭ Bái - the Táng poet from yesterday - here in a beautiful translation by John Derbyshire. Read aloud to get the rhythm right!

Among the flowers with wine beneath the sky
Alone I drink — no friend or kin, just me
I raise my cup to toast the moon on high
That's two of us; my shadow makes it three

Alas, the poor moon knows not wine's delight
My shadow follows like a living thing
At last with moon and shadow I unite
In joyful bond, to seize the last of spring

I sing: it sets the moon to rock in time
I dance: my shadow cannot hold its place
Sober, we share companionship sublime;
Drunk at last, we drift apart in space --

Lost to worldly things, until some day
We'll meet again, beyond the Milky Way​

Cheers! British Museum