Time & Brevity
The Inlaid Harp
Translated by Witter Bynner and Kiang Kang-hu (1929) · From The Jade Mountain (1929)
I wonder why my inlaid harp has fifty strings,
Each with its flower-like fret an interval of youth.
. . . The sage Chuang-tzü is day-dreaming, bewitched by butterflies,
The spring-heart of Emperor Wang is crying in a cuckoo,
Mermen weep their pearly tears down a moon-green sea,
Blue fields are breathing their jade to the sun. . .
And a moment that ought to have lasted for ever
Has come and gone before I knew.
Cite this poem
MLA
Shang-yin, Li. “The Inlaid Harp.” Translated by Witter Bynner and Kiang Kang-hu. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/li-shang-yin/16/.
Chicago
Shang-yin, Li. “The Inlaid Harp.” Translated by Witter Bynner and Kiang Kang-hu. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/li-shang-yin/16/.
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