And a moment that ought to have lasted for ever
Has come and gone before I knew.
translated by Witter Bynner & Kiang Kang-hu
Tang dynasty poetry
Thoughts In Night Quiet by Li Bai
Seeing moonlight here at my bed,
and thinking it’s frost on the ground.
I look up, gaze at the mountain moon,
then back, dreaming of my old home.
translated by David Hinton