Meng​ Jiao​ (751–814), and whose name, especially in older English transliteration, appears as "Meng Chiao", was a poet

Tang poetry

Tang poetry refers to poetry written in or around the time of and in the characteristic style of China's Tang dynasty, and/or follows a certain style, often considered as the Golden Age of Chinese poetry...

 of the Late Tang Dynasty

Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...

, and two of whose poems were collected in the popular anthology Three Hundred Tang Poems

Three Hundred Tang Poems

The Three Hundred Tang Poems is an anthology of poems from the Chinese Tang Dynasty first compiled around 1763 by Sun Zhu , the Qing scholar also known as Hengtang Tuishi . Various later editions also exist...

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Biography

As a result of failing to pass even the first stage of the examination system, Meng Jiao was doomed to a life of poverty and adversity. However, this did not prevent his success as a poet. He was part of the circle centering on Han Yu

Han Yu

Han Yu , born in Nanyang, Henan, China, was a precursor of Neo-Confucianism as well as an essayist and poet, during the Tang dynasty. The Indiana Companion calls him "comparable in stature to Dante, Shakespeare or Goethe" for his influence on the Chinese literary tradition . He stood for strong...

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Poetry

His poetry, often upon the themes of poverty and cold, is typified by the strong—and sometimes shocking—imagery advocated by Han Yu. Two of his poems are included in the Three Hundred Tang Poems. One of which, "遊子吟" -- translated by Witter Bynner

Witter Bynner

Harold Witter Bynner was an American poet, writer and scholar, known for his long residence in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at what is now the Inn of the Turquoise Bear.-Early life:...

 as "A Traveller's Song", by A. C. Graham as "Wanderer's Song", and by John C. H. Wu as "The Song of a Wandering Son" -- is one of the most famous Classical Chinese poems.