When I was young I learnt fencing
And was better at it than Crooked Castle.[24]
My spirit was high as the rolling clouds
And my fame resounded beyond the World.
I took my sword to the desert sands,
I drank my horse at the Nine Moors.
My flags and banners flapped in the wind,
And nothing was heard but the song of my drums.
War and its travels have made me sad,
And a fierce anger burns within me:
It’s thinking of how I’ve wasted my time
That makes this fury tear my heart.
[24] A famous general.
TAOIST SONG
By Chi K’ang (A.D. 223-262)
I will cast out Wisdom and reject Learning.
My thoughts shall wander in the Great Void (bis).
Always repenting of wrongs done
Will never bring my heart to rest.
I cast my hook in a single stream;
But my joy is as though I possessed a Kingdom.
I loose my hair and go singing;
To the four frontiers men join in my refrain.
This is the purport of my song:
“My thoughts shall wander in the Great Void.”
A GENTLE WIND
By Fu Hsüan (died A.D. 278)