For the Courtesan Ch'ing Lin

Wu-Tsao, born 1780, was a Chinese poetess who, even though married, yearned for deeper friendships with other women. She wrote blatant lesbian themed poems to courtesans. Her poems and songs were very popular, and sung throughout China.

From 'For the Courtesan Chi'ing Lin':

On your slender body

Your jade and coral girdle ornaments chime

Like those of a celestial companion

Come from the Green Jade City of Heaven.

One smile from you when we meet,

And I become speechless and forget every word.

For too long you have gathered flowers,

And leaned against the bamboos,

Your green sleeves growing cold,

In your deserted valley:

I can visualize you all alone,

A girl harboring her cryptic thoughts.

You glow like a perfumed lamp

In the gathering shadows.

We play wine games

And recite each other's poems.

Then you sing 'Remembering South of the River'

With its heart breaking verses.

Then we paint each other's beautiful eyebrows.
I want to possess you completely -
Your jade body
And your promised heart.

It is spring.

Vast mists cover the Five Lakes.

My dear, let me buy a red painted boat

And carry you away.

~  Translated by Kenneth Rexroth and Ling Chung

Other poems include 'Bitter Rain in my Courtyard' and 'I have Closed the Double Doors'. Later in life she became a Taoist priestess and lived in monastic seclusion.

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