The titular 虞姬 Lady Yu is the beloved wife of 项羽 Xiang Yu, known as the 西楚霸王 / despot-king of Western Chu, a noble and warlord of the state of Chu who led the Chu armies to victory against the Qin towards the end of the Qin dynasty. They met when Xiang Yu fled to 吴中 Wuzhong with his uncle 项梁 Xiang Liang after the latter killed someone, since Lady Yu hailed from a very distinguished family there. After the two of them gathered an army of eight thousand from 江东 Jiangdong, Lady Yu, who greatly admired Xiang Yu’s heroic reputation, was married to him as his wife and kept him company often, including on his campaigns and battles. After Xiang Yu took the title “despot-king of Western Chu”, he conferred the title of 美人 / beauty upon Lady Yu.
This song describes the final moments of Xiang Yu’s life. During this time, he was warring with 刘邦 Liu Bang, the founding emperor of the Han dynasty, in the 楚汉相争 Chu-Han contention, which culminated in Xiang Yu’s eventual defeat at the 垓下之战 / battle of Gaixia and his suicide. The battle of Gaixia is famous for its ending, in which Liu Bang trapped Xiang Yu and his army in Gaixia and had those under his command who could sing Chu folk songs to do so. At this point, Xiang Yu had tried and failed numerous times to break out of the Han encirclement, and his troops were isolated and their rations exhausted. Upon being besieged on all four sides by the songs of Chu at night, he believed the land of Chu to be entirely lost. His troops too lost all morale upon hearing the songs of their hometowns, and fled one after another.
When Xiang Yu realised that the war was as good as lost, he cared for nothing but Lady Yu. As the two of them drank wine in their tent, Xiang Yu couldn’t help but sing the 《垓下歌》 / Song of Gaixia in sorrow, to which Lady Yu responded with a mournful dance and her own verse 《和垓下歌》 / With the Song of Gaixia. After her song came to an end, she drew a sword and slit her own neck so that Xiang Yu would no longer have any attachments.
Xiang Yu deeply grieved her loss, yet could only bury her beneath the grass of Gaixia in his haste. He then led six hundred troops to break through the encirclement and was chased to the side of the Wu River, whereupon the resident official attempted to convince Xiang Yu to cross the river with the only boat there so he could marshal more troops to his command. Yet Xiang Yu simply laughed and said: 天之亡我，我何渡为！ / The heavens wish for me to be destroyed—for what purpose would I cross the river? After saying this, he spotted his old friend and Han soldier 吕马童 Lü Matong, and told him that, for the sake of their old friendship, he would do him a favour and let him claim the bounty the Han king set on Xiang Yu’s head. So saying, he slit his throat by the side of the Wu River and gave his head to Lü Matong to do with as he wished.
楚河流沙 几聚散 日月沧桑 尽变换 乱世多少红颜 换一声长叹 谁曾巨鹿踏破了秦关 千里兵戈血染 终究也不过是 风轻云淡
长枪策马 平天下 此番诀别却为难 一声虞兮虞兮 泪眼已潸然 与君共饮 这杯中冷暖 西风彻夜 回忆吹不断 醉里挑灯看剑 妾舞阑珊
垓下一曲离乱 楚歌声四方 含悲 辞君 饮剑 血落凝寒霜 难舍一段过往 缘尽 又何妨 与你魂归之处 便是苍茫
长枪策马 平天下 此番诀别却为难 一声虞兮虞兮 泪眼已潸然 与君共饮 这杯中冷暖 西风彻夜 回忆吹不断 醉里挑灯看剑 妾舞阑珊
垓下一曲离乱 楚歌声四方 含悲 辞君 饮剑 血落凝寒霜 难舍一段过往 缘尽又何妨 与你魂归之处 便是苍茫
汉兵刀剑纷乱 折断了月光 江畔 只身 孤舟 余生不思量 难舍一段过往 缘尽又何妨 与你来生共寄 山高水长
In the drifting silt of the Chu river How many meetings and partings are there? The sun and the moon, the cerulean seas and mulberry fields$^1$ Each and every inch will be changed and transformed In troubled times, how many women flush with beauty$^2$ Have traded the lamenting cry of a long sigh? Who once, at Julu, broke through the Qin pass? A thousand miles of weapons of war dyed with blood In the end, they too are no more than The winds gentling and the clouds lightening$^3$
Wielding long spears, spurring horses forth Pacifying all under the heavens$^4$ Yet this parting of ours for good causes us difficulty With a despairing cry of “O, Lady Yu! O, Lady Yu!”$^5$ Tearful eyes have already spilled over With thee$^6$, I drink together Of the cold and warmth within this cup The west wind$^7$ sweeps throughout the night Yet it cannot blow apart the memories In a drunken stupor, a lantern is lit, a sword appraised$^8$ This wife of yours dances in the waning lantern-light
At Gaixia, a single melody holds the turmoil of war The songs of Chu resound from all four sides$^9$ Harbouring sorrow—farewelling thee—nursing a sword$^{10}$ Blood splatters and congeals on wintry frost Loath we are to part from a stretch of the past Even if our fated affinity$^{11}$ comes to an end What harm is there to it? The place to which my soul returns with yours Is thus boundless and hazed
Wielding long spears, spurring horses forth Pacifying all under the heavens Yet this parting of ours for good causes us difficulty With a despairing cry of “O, Lady Yu! O, Lady Yu!” Tearful eyes have already spilled over With thee, I drink together Of the cold and warmth within this cup The west wind sweeps throughout the night Yet it cannot blow apart the memories In a drunken stupor, a lantern is lit, a sword appraised This wife of yours dances in the waning lantern-light
At Gaixia, a single melody holds the turmoil of war The songs of Chu resound from all four sides Harbouring sorrow—farewelling thee—nursing a sword Blood splatters and congeals on wintry frost Loath we are to part from a stretch of the past Even if our fated affinity comes to an end, what harm is there to it? The place to which my soul returns with yours Is thus boundless and hazed
The maelstrom of daggers and swords amidst the Han armies Tears the moonlight asunder At the riverbank—a single person—a lone skiff Refusing to contemplate the rest of his life Loath we are to part from a stretch of the past Even if our fated affinity comes to an end, what harm is there to it? With you, I entrust ourselves to the coming life Where the mountains tower and the waters roam far$^{12}$
“Cerulean seas and mulberry fields”—沧桑, shortened from the idiom 沧海桑田 / [to change from] cerulean seas to mulberry fields [and back again], referring to the great changes and vicissitudes of time.
“Women flush with beauty”—红颜. 红颜 literally translates to rosy face, and is often used to refer to beautiful women. It’s used in phrases such as 红颜薄命 / beautiful women are born unlucky, alluding to the tendency of beautiful women in history to lead often tragic lives.
“The winds gentling and the clouds lightening”—风轻云淡, which refers to fine and sunny weather.
“All under the heavens”—天下. Appearing in classics such as the 《诗经》 / Classic of Poetry, this is perhaps the first term used to conceptualise the ancient Chinese understanding of the entire world—either in terms of geography or in terms of the metaphysical mortal realm. It later took on an association with political sovereignty related to how the emperor of China is also called the 天子 / son of the heavens.
Furthermore, the opening chapter of the Confucian classic 《大学》 / Great Learning defines the centre of all under the heavens as being the individual’s consciousness, which expands it beyond being the framework of the Chinese empire. As a concept, 天下 relies on unification and humane authority, and implies a goal of ensuring harmony and peace in the world.
“O, Lady Yu! O, Lady Yu!”—虞兮虞兮, which comes from the last line of Xiang Yu’s 《垓下歌》 / Song of Gaixia: 虞兮虞兮奈若何！ / O, Lady Yu! O, Lady Yu! What am I to do with you?, so I’ve added in the descriptor despairing to convey the implied meaning. 兮 is an exclamatory particle used in classical literature, often to ease the flow of a line.
“Thee”—君, a literary second-person pronoun and heavily used in poetry, as well as by women to address their husbands. I’ve chosen to translate 君 as thee to differentiate it from 你 / you.
“West wind”—西风, which is also considered the autumn wind, and is connected to dreams and enlightenment.
“Lighting a lantern and appraising a sword in a drunken stupor”—醉里挑灯看剑, which comes from the poem 《破阵子·为陈同甫赋壮词以寄之》 / Broken formation: Composing grand lyrics to send to Chen Tongfu by Song poet 辛弃疾 Xin Qiji. The full line is 醉里挑灯看剑，梦回吹角连营 / In a drunken stupor, a lantern is lit, a sword appraised; in the depths of a dream, the call of the bugle resounds across the encampment. This poem is about slaying enemies in defence of one’s country, and about recovering lost territory, yet there’s also a sense of loss and grief that the defending heroes are now past their prime.
“The songs of Chu resound from all four sides”—楚歌声四方. The phrasing here is intended to evoke the idiom 四面楚歌 / from all four sides come the songs of Chu, a metaphor for being isolated from aid and besieged on all sides.
“Nursing a sword”—饮剑, which refers to Lady Yu slitting her throat with a sword.
“Fated affinity”—缘. 缘 specifically refers to fated relationships that leave a deep, long-lasting imprint on the people involved, so that even when they part, they will always be marked by the other. It’s said to be the result of long and hard cultivation in one’s previous lives.
“The mountains tower and the waters roam far”—山高水长, which originates from Tang writer 刘禹锡 Liu Yuxi’s essay 《望赋》 / Rhapsody on Looking: 龙门不见兮，云雾苍苍。乔木何许兮，山高水长。/ O, the dragon gate cannot be glimpsed—the clouds and fog are vast and hazy. O! where are the tall trees? Time towers as high as the mountains and roams as far as the waters. This idiom is a metaphor for the nobility and purity of one’s character, or of the depth and profundity of friendship and/or benevolence.