Shi Ji Zhuan :: :: University of Virginia Library

In the first month [of summer] the hoar-frost abounds ,
And my heart is wounded with sorrow .
The false calumnies of the people ,
Also wax greater and greater .
I think how I stand alone ,
And the sorrow of my heart grows intense .
Alas ! through my anxious cares ,
My hidden sorrow goes on to make me ill .

Ye parents who gave me birth !
Was it to make me suffer this pain ?
[Why was this time] not before me ?
Or [why was it] not after me ?
Their good words are [only] from the mouth ;
Their bad words are [only] from the mouth .
The sorrow of my heart becomes greater ,
And because of this I incur contempt .

My sorrow heart is very sad ;
I think of my unfortunate position .
The innocent people ,
Will all be reduced to servitude with me .
Alas for me !
From whom shall I henceforth get support ?
I see a crow which will rest ,
—But on whose house ?

Look into the middle of the forest ;
There are [only] large faggots and small branches in it .
The people now amidst their perils ,
Look to Heaven , all dark .
But let its determination be fixed ,
And there is none whom it will not overcome .
There is the great God ,—
Does He hate any one ?

If one say of a hill that it is low ,
There are its ridges , and its large masses .
The false calumnies of the people ,—
How is it that you do not repress them ?
You call those experienced ancients ;
You consult the diviner of dreams :
They all say , ' We are wise ;
But who can distinguish the male and female crow ? '

We say of the heavens that they are high ,
But I dare not but stoop under them .
We say of the earth that it is thick ,
But I dare not but walk daintily on it .
For my freely expressing myself thus ,
I have reason , I have good ground .
Alas for the men of this time !
Why are they such cobras and efts ?

Look at that rugged and stony field ;—
Luxuriantly rises in it the springing grain !
[But] Heaven moves and shakes me ,
As if it could not overcome me .
They sought me [at first] to be a pattern [to them] ,
[Eagerly] as if they could not get me .
[Now] they regard me with great animosity ,
And will not use my strength .

My heart with its sorrow ,
Feels as if it were tied and bound by something .
This government of the present time ,—
How oppressive it is !
The flames , when they are blazing ,
May still perhaps be extinguished ;
But the majestic honoured capital of Zhou ,
Is being destroyed by Si of Bao .

This issue is ever my anxious thought .
Moreover , you have the embarrassment of soaking rain .
Your carriage is loaded ,
And if you throw away your wheel-aids ,
Your load will be overturned ,
And you will be crying , ' O sir , help me ! '

If you do throw away your wheel-aids ,
Which give asistance to the spokes ;
And if you constantly look after the driver ,
You will not overturn your load ,
And in the end will get over the most difficult places ;
But you have not thought of this .

The fish are in the pond ,
But they cannot enjoy themselves .
Although they dive to the bottom ,
They are very clearly seen .
My sorrow heart is deeply pained ,
When I think of the oppression in the kingdom .

They have their good spirits ,
And their fine viands along with them .
They assemble their neighbours ,
And their relatives are full of their praise .
When I think of my solitariness ,
My sorrowing heart is full of distress .

Mean-like , those have their houses ;
Abjects , they will have their emoluments .
But the people now have no maintenance .
For Heaven is pounding them with its calamities ,
The rich may get through ,
But alas for the helpless and solitary !