Top 10 Most Beautiful Poems by the Poet Tan Da

Land and water, a solemn oath

Water flows away, never to return, leaving the land behind

Remembering the oath to land and water

Water keeps flowing, the land remains steadfast

Tall mountains steadfastly gaze into the distance

A stream of tears awaits day and night

With each passing day, bones grow thin

Cloud-like hair now adorned with dewy snow

The western sky casts its shadow

Revealing the golden hues of beauty

The land remains youthful, never aging

Through the ages, it remembers the water, forgetting none

Even if rivers dry up and rocks erode

The land and water endure, honoring ancient oaths

Has the verdant land understood?

Water flows to the sea, only to return as rain to its source

The land and water forever reunite

Protect the land, let there be no sorrow

Even if the water continues to flow

A thousand green meadows make the land rejoice

A thousand years of vows bind them together

Land and water, an eternal oath.

In the mundane world, poverty is hardship
A life of struggle through each passing day
Year-round, rice on credit
Husband and wife worry about today and tomorrow
Worn-out clothes patched and mended
A cramped rented house, tight and narrow
Temporarily content, just warm enough and full
The profound sadness, the extreme worry
Children go to school, carried and led
Not yet grown, still naive and innocent
Day by day, children play and frolic
But should also find joy to dispel sorrow
Thinking of others sending children to school
Luxurious lifestyle, abundant wealth, what's the use?
For those in poverty, worry and yet, if there's joy, then rejoice
After school, mother sits by the door
Eyes watching as children gradually return
From afar, children draw nearer
They gather at home for a meal
Rice and pickles, simple fare indeed
Not delicious, but in a poor home, it tastes good
During happy times, stories become more lively
Husband and wife, children, all under one roof
Eat, study, from evening till morning
With little money, days and months pass by peacefully
Evenings, nights, mornings, all the same
As long as there's enough to eat, what else matters in life?
For children of poor families, hardship often comes
Aside from school, where else is there to find solace?
During planting and watering time
The market disperses, carrying burdens, the elderly follow
Paper and pen, still about going to school
Is there any family in hardship that doesn't give way to others?
Even if one has the will and talent
When the time comes, heaven also favors those who strive
Throughout society, there are those in poverty
Mother loves her child, tirelessly nurtures
Oh children of poor households
Remember to cherish your parents in times of educational joy!
Regardless of fame and fortune in the future
Heaven has blessed each step to be better
To be poor and still learn like this
Is a joy difficult to match with worldly splendor
In the mundane world, many places are rich
Each sorrow is as unique as each person
Displaying scenes as if from heaven
Joy and sorrow are all within individuals in this world.

Autumn night, so melancholy! Oh Sister Hằng
The earthly realm now feels half-hearted to me
Has anyone sat beneath the cassia tree?
The banyan branches plead for your playful return
With a lover, with a friend, why feel desolate?
Together with the wind, with the clouds, that's true joy
And every full moon of the eighth month
We lean together, gazing upon the world, and laugh.

Drunken thoughts, life seems surreal,
Time floats in a haze, drunk in its own sway.
The earth spins drunkenly on its axis,
The sky blushes inebriated, who laughs?
In this drunken stupor, what hour is it?
Gazing at the verdant hills, yet still inebriated.
Strange! Why remain perpetually intoxicated?
Drunkenness pervades day and night like a trance.
Words of reason, wine-soaked feet, all futile
Falling into the abyss of sorrow, embracing freedom
Whose business is it, who's awake, who worries
Drunken revelry, both small and grand, all inconsequential.
Heaven and earth, isn't drunkenness bliss?
Wives nagging, who'd easily relent?
Wishing to be drunk, just let it be!

People ponder, how strange it may seem
A hundred years are short, yet a day seems endless!
Who remains sober, who's lost in a reverie
Where do those ancient souls wander to?

Is life tedious or not?
Raising a toast, asking the wise
In the grandest palace, the most silent laughter
Eyes of jade mistaken for mundane guests
Rivers and lakes, day and night, ever-changing
Welcoming the wind, the leaves, the birds on branches
Such is the human world, mundane as ever
Endlessly ensnared in its mundanity
The libertine becomes even more extravagant
A pink handkerchief holds precious pearls
Historical tales, a few lines, sometimes erroneous
The South Sea Pearl, a sunken ship at Thuy Ai River
The waves of Tien Duong, the grassy banks of O River
Contemplate the ancient past: who's talented, who's virtuous, who's adorned
All within the same cosmic dream
To recognize life's tedium is enough
Embrace the weariness, cherish the wisdom
Perhaps it's time to rethink before it's too late.

My name is Cherry Blossom Tree
With beautiful, bright flowers, and sweet, green fruit
Tender leaves grace my branches
My young branches sway gracefully, like a maiden's figure
Since I was a sapling until now
Digging deep, nurturing my roots, all thanks to someone's hand
I watch over daughters of others
Wisdom already bestowed upon them by the heavens
Yet if not careful, beware
Before you know it, you may lose to the cherry blossom tree.

Longing for home after playing for so long,
Faraway roads, absent people, shadows in the late afternoon,
A row of tall reeds swaying in the wind,
Few sparse trees with leaves tinged in gold,
Far out lies a mound of red earth,
A cave dug up, covered in chicken grass.
Someone rests beneath the tomb, who could it be?
Is this their homeland or a distant land?
Or perhaps in former times, a warrior wielding swords?
Brave in battle, determined at the blade's edge.
Home doors far away, obscured from wife and child,
Horse hides left untouched for days,
Or perhaps in former times, a man of letters?
Lost amidst fame and fortune, forgetting one's roots.
High talent, low fate, stubborn spirit,
Lost in the world's allure, forgetting homeland.
Or perhaps in former times, a fair guest?
Beauty and wisdom, envy of heaven and earth.
Destined to wander, encountering exile,
A green head following a withering spring.
Or perhaps in former times, a libertine?
Wife and children left behind, wandering with the lute.
Distant officials in unfamiliar paths,
Sacred demons, solitary amidst abundant fog.
Or perhaps in former times, a person of renown?
Couple by couple, pair by pair, all entangled.
Angry at fate, pitiful in love and hatred,
Foreign soil burying a mass of affection!
A deep, golden stream knows who?
An old tomb, no one lingers,
Enduring days and months, desolate there,
Rain or shine, moon dimly shines!
Indeed, the homeland of humanity
Warns travelers with this saying:
The sound of wailing echoes through the ages
In a hundred years, who knows who?

January has passed, January is here,
The year of Binh Ty nears its end,
Streets bustling, markets crowded,
The scene draws nearer to Tet,
Mr. Cong and Ms. Ca ascend to the heavens,
Lower realms celebrate Tet together!
Some rejoice abundantly in Tet,
For the poor, Tet brings struggles!
For ages, Tet has been known,
Spring joy resembling every year,
Feasts, fireworks celebrate aging,
One step up in life, one step higher.
Nearing Tet, many scenes emerge,
Some happily prepare, some worry,
The worldly libertine seems scarce,
But worldly Tet worries are never lacking!
All year long, worries and concerns,
Tet adds more tricks,
Ceremonies want to stop, but debts twist around!
Year's end, worries quickly cease,
Why bother chasing whose heart's burden?
But year-long worries never end,
Worrying all year, life becomes dull.
Nearing Tet, worries multiply,
Worries come hundredfold,
Hoping the end of the year arrives soon,
So these days pass peacefully!
Bidding farewell to the year, a few verses,
Year's end, worries end for some,
Preparing for Tet, welcoming spring,
Let's see what the new year brings!

9. Meeting Spring

Encountering spring, we embrace its joy,
Verse and wine, our path home,
Spring ends, the cup empties, spring returns,
A thousand autumns, the essence of spring remains!
O spring, dear spring!
Absent for long, yet we wait, anticipate, yearn,
Through countless days, summers, autumns, winters,
Endless longing, does spring know?
Years come, spring's departure, sorrow's farewell,
Golden ages, spring's return, reunions,
Encountering me now, spring, not strange,
Hair may gray, yet in my heart, unchanged,
Since the days of knowing spring four nine years ago,
Wine, poetry, youth's delight,
Arriving at this spring, I'm fifty years old,
Counting a hundred, a half of a life,
What lies ahead, how many more springs,
Whatever the heavens bestow, I inquire not,
Ready the peach blossom wine, drink with me,
In familiar places, what tales, whose guests?
Ancient poets, wise and lyrical,
One reign, two dynasties, esteemed generals,
Even a hundred years, meeting a hundred times,
Verse, wine, and spring, I remain,
Beyond a hundred, absent from the world,
Will spring remember me? Hard to say, hard to find!
Together now, let's drink some more!

10. Autumn Wind

An autumn wind gusts, golden leaves fall,

Neighboring leaves drift, crossing the air,

How many aged golden leaves take flight,

Casually, who entices the damsel to join?

An autumn wind gusts, pink petals descend,

Leaves fly to the north wall, others to the east,

Pink petals, how many years have flown,

In reverie, why does someone remain still?