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A classical Chinese line for “I miss my mother”

These matches come from a curated corpus of real Chinese poetry and philosophy. The source line is fixed; the English wording is provided to make its meaning accessible.

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6 source-verified results
✓ Verified sourceBilingual

谁言寸草心，报得三春晖。

Shuí yán cùn cǎo xīn, bào dé sān chūn huī.

Close English reading

Who says the inch-long grass can repay the radiance of three spring months?

Plain meaningA child's gratitude can never fully repay a mother's care.

Source
Meng Jiao· Tang dynasty · Song of the Traveling Son
Complete Tang Poems
Why it fitsThe small grass and spring sunlight turn unequal scale into an image of a child's debt to maternal love.
Original context and translation note
慈母手中线，游子身上衣。临行密密缝，意恐迟迟归。谁言寸草心，报得三春晖。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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✓ Verified sourceBilingual

独在异乡为异客，每逢佳节倍思亲。

Dú zài yì xiāng wéi yì kè, měi féng jiā jié bèi sī qīn.

Close English reading

Alone in a foreign place, I am a stranger; at every festival, I miss my family all the more.

Plain meaningBeing far from home makes special days feel even lonelier.

Source
Wang Wei· Tang dynasty · Thinking of My Brothers East of the Mountains on the Ninth Day of the Ninth Month
Complete Tang Poems
Why it fitsIt directly connects distance, festival time, loneliness, and longing for family.
Original context and translation note
遥知兄弟登高处，遍插茱萸少一人。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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玲珑骰子安红豆，入骨相思知不知。

Líng lóng tóu zǐ ān hóng dòu, rù gǔ xiāng sī zhī bù zhī.

Close English reading

A red bean is set inside the delicate die; do you know this longing has entered my bones?

Plain meaningI miss you so deeply it feels carved into me.

Source
Wen Tingyun· Tang dynasty · Newly Added Song of Willow Branches
Complete Tang Poems
Why it fitsThe red bean is a traditional emblem of longing, while the image of it entering the bones intensifies the feeling.
Original context and translation note
井底点灯深烛伊，共郎长行莫围棋。玲珑骰子安红豆，入骨相思知不知。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

Dàn yuàn rén cháng jiǔ, qiān lǐ gòng chán juān.

Close English reading

May we both live long; though a thousand miles apart, we share the beauty of the moon.

Plain meaningEven far apart, may we be safe and connected under the same moon.

Source
Su Shi· Northern Song dynasty · Prelude to Water Melody: When Will the Moon Be Clear and Bright?
Dongpo Yuefu
Why it fitsThe shared moon becomes a bond between people who cannot physically reunite.
Original context and translation note
但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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哀哀父母，生我劬劳。

Āi āi fù mǔ, shēng wǒ qú láo.

Close English reading

How sorrowful for my parents, who bore and raised me through such toil.

Plain meaningI remember how much my parents endured to raise me.

Source
Anonymous· Pre-Qin China · Liao E
The Book of Songs
Why it fitsThis is a grieving and retrospective poem, so it suits remembrance and gratitude more than a light celebratory caption.
Original context and translation note
蓼蓼者莪，匪莪伊蒿。哀哀父母，生我劬劳。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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青青子衿，悠悠我心。

Qīng qīng zǐ jīn, yōu yōu wǒ xīn.

Close English reading

Green, green is your collar; long, long is the yearning in my heart.

Plain meaningYou stay on my mind, and my longing does not fade.

Source
Anonymous· Pre-Qin China · Zi Jin (The Blue Collar)
The Book of Songs
Why it fitsA compact expression of sustained longing for someone who is absent or silent.
Original context and translation note
纵我不往，子宁不嗣音？

The collar identifies the person being longed for; the repeated words make the feeling linger.

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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Translation note: The English readings are original explanatory translations for this product. They are designed for clarity and source verification, not presented as definitive literary translations.

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Related themes

ParentsSource-verified Chinese lines about a mother's care, parents' labor, gratitude, responsibility, distance, and looking after oneself for family.Missing someoneClassical Chinese lines for longing, absence, and someone who remains on your mind.

Original Chinese line, pinyin, a readable English explanation, and a traceable source—without inventing an ancient quotation.

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A Classical Chinese Line for “I miss my mother” | Gu Ren Said