ARK
One stormy night I will open by myself
The lonely locked room beside me
I may find a candle-stub, a box of matches
A bolt of spiritual lightning to set me shivering
A stone sinks in the ocean five hundred metres off shore
The soul of a bird nesting in the cliffs is fervent and imperilled
Yes, the ocean is nearby, one stormy night
I will listen to the pounding of the waves and light the candle
Write life’s sun on the land
And the death-date of all things
But I am a young man walking towards the sea
After experiencing hardships I will be fully fledged
Three knocks on the door reverberate in my heart
The tide leaps onto the sandy shore like a great host of turtles
This night’s dagger, this flotsam from a seaborne ship
I pat the ancient ark, the bright moon hangs high
One stormy night I will open by myself
The lonely locked room beside me
© Xi Chuan © Translation: 2006, Tao Naikan and Tony Prince
Poem of the week ~ Xi Chuan page
One stormy night I will open by myself
The lonely locked room beside me
I may find a candle-stub, a box of matches
A bolt of spiritual lightning to set me shivering
A stone sinks in the ocean five hundred metres off shore
The soul of a bird nesting in the cliffs is fervent and imperilled
Yes, the ocean is nearby, one stormy night
I will listen to the pounding of the waves and light the candle
Write life’s sun on the land
And the death-date of all things
But I am a young man walking towards the sea
After experiencing hardships I will be fully fledged
Three knocks on the door reverberate in my heart
The tide leaps onto the sandy shore like a great host of turtles
This night’s dagger, this flotsam from a seaborne ship
I pat the ancient ark, the bright moon hangs high
One stormy night I will open by myself
The lonely locked room beside me
© Xi Chuan © Translation: 2006, Tao Naikan and Tony Prince
Poem of the week ~ Xi Chuan page
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