POETRY IS LIKE TAKING A DEEP BREATH

Thursday 19 August 2010

MOUNTAIN TEMPLE



Bhuddist Temple in the Mountains
11th century
Ink on Silk


I have locked the gate on a thousand peaks
To live here with clouds and birds.
All day I watch the hills
As clear winds fill the bamboo door,
A supper of pine flowers,
Monk's robes of chestnut dye -
What dream does the world hold
To lure me from these dark slopes?

Zekkai

translated from the Chinese by Burton Watson