Book of Songs
河广
佚名
Shuí wèi Sòng yuǎn? Qì yú wàng zhī.
Shuí wèi Sòng yuǎn? Céng bù chóng zhāo.
Translation
Who says the river is wide? With a bundle of reeds, one could cross it. Who says Song is far away? I stand on tiptoe and can see it. Who says the river is wide? It could hardly hold a small boat. Who says Song is far away? It would not take even a morning to reach.
Analysis
“Wide River” is a very short poem, but it carries intense emotional tension. The repeated questions — “Who says the river is wide?” and “Who says Song is far?” — appear to deny distance. In fact, they reveal how deeply distance is felt. The river is wide, and Song is far; yet longing compresses the world. “A bundle of reeds could cross it” is not a practical statement. It is the imagination of someone who longs to return. Standing on tiptoe, the speaker feels that the distant land might be seen. The second stanza deepens the exaggeration: the river can hardly hold a small boat, and the journey would take less than a morning. Longing has altered the scale of reality. The poem gives no detailed story, but its emotional shape is clear. Someone remains on one shore while the heart has already crossed to the other. Its power lies in brevity, repetition, and the way desire makes distance seem both unbearable and almost conquerable.
About the Author
“Wide River” is an anonymous poem from the Airs of Wey. Traditional readings connect it with the state of Song, perhaps as a woman’s longing to return there, though the poem can also be read more broadly as a song of separation. The Wey poems often use rivers, roads, and distance to express longing. This poem is one of the most concise and memorable examples.