Du Fu's Eight Immortals Indulged in Wine

The “Eight Immortals Indulged in Wine” is a poem attributed to the Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu (712–770) which paints a satirical picture of his fellow literati scholars and was a popular subject for Chinese and Japanese artists and calligraphers. 知章騎馬似乘船　眼花落井水底眠　汝阳三斗始朝 / 天　道逢麴車口流涎　恨不移封向酒泉　左相日興費萬錢　飲如長 / 鯨吸百川　銜杯樂聖稱避賢。宗之瀟灑美少年　舉觴白眼望 / 青天　皎如玉樹臨風前　蘇晉長齋繡佛前　醉中往往愛逃禪 / 李白一斗詩百篇　長安市上酒家眠　天子呼來不上船　自 / 稱臣是酒中仙　張旭三杯草聖傳　脫帽露頂王公前　揮毫落紙 / 如雲煙　焦遂五斗方卓然　高談雄辯驚四筵 He Zhizhang rides his horse as though he were on a swaying ship; / If bleary-eyed he should tumble down a well, he would lie at the bottom fast asleep. / Prince Ruyang drinks three measures before going to court; / If he passes a brewer’s cart along the way, his mouth waters— / He regrets only that he is not the Prince of Wine Springs. / The Minister of the Left spends ten thousand coins daily, / And drinks like a whale, imbibing one hundred rivers; holding his wine cup he insists, “I drink as a sage and avoid virtue.” / Songzhi, a handsome youth, is exceedingly refined; / Turning his gaze to the heavens and grasping his beloved cup, / He stands like a tree of jade, swaying lightly in the breeze. / The ascetic Su Jin meditates before an embroidered image of the Buddha, / But he enjoys his lapses when he goes off on a spree. / As for Li Bai, one measure will inspire a hundred poems; / He sleeps in the wineshops of the capital, Chang-an. / When summoned by the Emperor, he will not board the Imperial barge; / He calls himself “The official who is the god of wine.” / Give three cupfuls to the calligrapher Zhang Xu and his writing becomes inspired— / He throws off his cap before the officials and his brush produces cloud and mist. / After five measures Jiao Sui is so eloquent, he startles everyone in the feasting hall. (Adapted trans. Stephen Addiss)