Living
Seek not to be a Man before thy Time
Translated by William Jennings (1891) · From The Shi King (Jennings, 1891), Part I, Book viii
Living
Broad fields plant not,
Where thrive most the weeds;
Man's years want not,
To heartaches it leads.
Broad fields plant not,
Or weeds will prevail;
Man's years want not,
For grief 'twill entail.
Sweet, ay, and pretty,
The twin tufts of hair!
Soon, ah the pity,
The cap will be there!
Cite this poem
MLA
Shi Jing (The Book of Songs). “Seek not to be a Man before thy Time.” Translated by William Jennings. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/shi-jing/369/.
Chicago
Shi Jing (The Book of Songs). “Seek not to be a Man before thy Time.” Translated by William Jennings. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/shi-jing/369/.
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