Cats are part of our history. Or should I go as far as to say that humans and cats write history together? Ha! No doubt cats conquered the ancient world with their dexterity with hunting mice, intelligence and enigmatic nature. You will find the most renowned cat person in ancient China—Lu You (1125-1210) writing about his love for his feline companions. He was a prolific writer who wrote about ten thousand poems in his lifetime, twenty were on cats. Not many, you might say. But the number already set a record.
Keeping cats as pets was prevalent in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Before that, it was mainly a privilege enjoyed by the aristocracy. In the capital cities Bianjing (now Kaifend) nd Lin’an (now Hangzhou), there were pet markets selling cats and dogs and pet food, as well as pet grooming services. People even signed contracts with cats (!), hoping they would abide by the new house rules.
A few more words on the form and my translations. Due to the huge difference between the Chinese and English languages, it is impossible to keep to the number of words and tonal meter of the original but I have done my best to retain the rhyme schemes of classical Chinese quatrain and the eight-line regulated verse form. During the translation process I came to know more about the poet and cats in Chinese culture. I am grateful to Moo Moo and Elly Nobbs for their insightful comments on the drafts of these translations.
Roll on your back like a cat and enjoy!
Florence Ng
Hong Kong
Four poems on cats by Lu You (陸游) (1125-1210)
贈貓‧其二 For my cat (II)
裹鹽迎得小狸奴，盡護山房萬卷書。
慚愧家貧策勛薄，寒無氈坐食無魚。
A bundle of salt from me invited a kitten.
The ten thousand books in my mountain house she now guards.
Being impecunious with meagre earnings, I am sorry
Neither a felt rug to sit on in winter nor a fish to eat can I grant.
十一月四日風雨大作‧其一 Rainstorm on the fourth of the eleventh month (I)
風卷江湖雨暗村，四山聲作海濤翻。
溪柴火軟蠻氈暖，我與狸奴不出門。
Winds are sweeping the world and rain has darkened the village.
Mountains on all sides are rumbling like waves rolling.
The firewood collected from the nearby creek has kindled a fire softly
and the rug from the barbarians is giving warmth.
My cat and I aren’t going for an outing.
Painting by Emperor Huizong of Song
題畫薄荷扇二首‧其一 Two poems for the catnip painting on a fan (I)
薄荷花開蝶翅翻，風枝露葉弄秋妍。
自憐不及狸奴點，爛醉籬邊不用錢。
Blooming catnip flowers and flying butterflies.
Swaying twigs and dewy leaves showing their beauty in autumn-time.
How pitiful I am when my cat has a better life.
She drinks like a fish without having to spend a dime.
Painting by Li Di (before 1125-after 1197)
得貓於近村以雪兒名之戲為作詩A playful poem for a cat named Snowy whom I got from a nearby village
似虎能緣木，如駒不伏轅。但知空鼠穴，無意為魚餐。薄荷時時醉，氍毹夜夜溫。前生舊童子，伴我老山村。
As a tiger who can climb trees,
Like a pony but spared the toil of pulling carts.
Emptying rat holes is the only thing she cares about,
For a fish meal she never asks.
Day in, day out she gets drunk off catnip,
Night after night she warms the carpet.
A boy attendant she must have been in my previous life,
Now reincarnated to grow old with me in this mountain village.
by Li Di