Home > Work > The Collected Songs of Cold Mountain
1 " Spring water is pure in an emerald streammoonlight is white on Cold Mountainsilence thoughts and the spirit becomes clearfocus on emptiness and the world grows still "
― Hanshan , The Collected Songs of Cold Mountain
2 " Some seek pleasure in loveblind to the trials of a mortal bodyothers see a bubble or mirageand realize impermanence undoes us alla real man's will is straight like ironin an uncrooked heart the Way is truedense and tall bamboos in the snowshow you the mind not used in vain "
3 " I labored in vain reciting the Three HistoriesI wasted my time reading the Five ClassicsI've grown old checking yellow scrollsrecording the usual everyday namesContinued Hardship was my fortuneEmptiness and Danger govern my lifeI can't match riverside treesevery year with a season of green "
4 " So many kinds of people existhundreds of plans for profit and famehearts intent on gloryalways trying to get richminds that never restrushing about like smokedependents gather aroundone yell and a hundred heads nodbut less than seventy years from nowice becomes water and roof tiles breakdead at last all cares ceasewho will be their heirdrop a ball of mud in waterand behold the thoughtless mind "
5 " For an image of life and deathconsider ice and waterwater freezes into iceice melts back into waterwhat dies must live againwhat lives is bound to dieice and water don't harm each otherboth life and death are fine.. "
6 " No need to attack the faults of othersno need to flaunt your own virtuesact when you're acknowledgedretire when you're ignoredrich rewards mean great trialsdeep words meet superficial mindsthink about what you hearchildren must see for themselves.. "
7 " The mountains are so coldnot just now but every yearcrowded ridges breathe in snowsunless forests breathe out mistnothing grows until Grain Earsleaves fall before Autumn Beginsa lost traveler herelooks in vain for the sky "
8 " The Yellow River is boundlessflowing east without ceaseon and on never clearingwhile everyone's lifespan endsand ifyou would ride the cloudshow will you grow wingsunless while your hair is blackyou make an effort moving or still "
9 " Give me a hidden eddya residence free from dust and noisepaths of newly trampled grassclouds above for neighborsbirds to help me singno one asking for sermonsspringtime for this Saha treenowadays lasts how many years "
10 " Inside Jade Hall is a curtain of pearlsbehind it lives a graceful girlher beauty transcends the immortalsher skin is like that of a peachspring mists rise in the eastautumn winds stir in the westthirty years from nowshe’ll look like chewed sugarcane "
11 " People laugh about my poems my poems are elegant enough they don’t need Cheng Hsuan’s comments much less Mao Heng’s explanations I don’t mind few understand me those who know one’s voice are rare if we had no fa or sol my disease would surely spread one day I’ll meet someone with eyes then my poems will plague the world "