“Waiting for the Unicorn” | Open Indiana

Living here and dressed in hemp and vines.

The glow of the new moon is soon extinguished;

Sadly gazing, I halt and rest on my staff.

(HPHSC, 1:1b-2a)

(Tr. Daniel Bryant)

Dark jade clouds over cliffs and canyons coil in distant shapes;

A setting sun on hazel woods glows in evening calm.

The valley tiger is about to come, a breeze fills the glens,

And on the surrounding hills the autumn leaves in unison resound.

(HPHSC, 7:4b)

(Tr. Daniel Bryant)

Thirty years ago I climbed to the top of this pavilion,

Hand in hand with glossy temples, writing poems on Ts’ang-chou Isle.¹

Varied trees on the surrounding hills enter through extended eaves;

A clear river, ten thousand leagues long, flows encircling the district.

Through clouds and mist before my eyes I peer beyond the world;

As I lean on the railing, blossoms and birds appear on the twigs once more.

Still there remains the setting sunlight white on storeyed verandas;

And again I face the bright glow of sunset, gazing at departing gulls.

(HPHSC, 8:6a)

(Tr. Daniel Bryant)

NOTE

1. Ts’ang-chou Isle was a legendary paradise located in the Eastern Sea.