Paulownia and Tones - Zhang Xiaoxue / 张晓雪

Zhang Xiaoxue / 张晓雪





Paulownia and Tones

To break the silence,
The paulownia divided himself among pipa, guzheng
And konghou. Not for anyone’s ears,

Half a cycle, I slid the notes
Between my fingers selflessly——

Some tones are mild and serene,
Referring to the lower realms of human existence.
Some are messy,

Not yet fade away, still hanging on to a climax with no applause.
Fading in and out,
The sound of clapping made the sky dim and narrow immediately,

Clearing the slight complaints and hostility.
I love this infinite sound,
Through standing tall and immersing myself,

Style is a matter of avoidance, melody a slight bitterness,
Wholeheartedly devoted, I still maintain
The stubborn simplicity and indifference.

(Translated by Zhou Wenbiao)




桐木与音色

为了打破沉默，
桐木把自己分给了琵琶、古筝
和箜篌。不为谁的耳朵，

半个轮回，忘我地滑动指间的
音符——

有的音色淡泊，
说的是人间低处。有的漶漫，
未及退去，坚持着无掌声的高潮。

若有若无的，
令天空即刻变暗、变窄，
疏通了低低的怨言与敌对。

我喜欢这无限的声息，
经由挺拔投身，

风格避让，曲调微苦，
因物我两忘，而保持着顽固的
单纯和不在意。


*


A Raw Jade Stone Says

I don’t want to be a lion, for no danger of valleys,
rocks or torrents is inlaid between my ribs.

Nor do I want to become a Buddha statue.
Rather than sit still in the face of recluses,
I prefer to draw close
to cloud shadows, wild flowers, mountain springs.

When the setting sun slants on the river and the hillside,
it’s more comfortable to be a useless stone.

Allow my inner self to practice whatever it likes—
improving intelligence, or feeling languid,
or melting time, staying fresh over the years.

Allow the north wind to blow and push me.
My shape of eternity makes the earthly world small.
My immortal image never touches life or death.

But my inward disquiet, so faint.
With you close by, I’m not afraid of being hammered.

So let me be a useless stone
as if leaving the pain and knife cuts to you—
a jade craftsman

who simply opens his bosom, hands in line
with the mind, starting to respect, attentively,
the thirst of a raw jade stone.

(English Translation: Liang Yujing)




璞石说

不做狮子。因为没有河谷、
巨石、激流之险嵌进肋骨。

也不想做一尊佛像。
比起与遁世者对望，愈加的寂然，
我更迫切于
接近云影、野花和山涧泉溪。

当长河落日堆满斜阳坡，
还是做无用的石头舒服些吧。

允许所有的内心用其所用---
可益智、可倦怠，
可消融时间，经年如新。

允许北风阵阵吹来，吹动我。
永恒的样子令世俗窄小，
穷生死的样子，并不触动生死。

而心头的不安，那么虚无，
离你最近时，也不怕敲打了。

还是做一块无用的石头吧，
如同将疼痛和刀痕留给了你
——琢玉人，

如同你心手合一时，索性
敞开了胸襟，额外地尊重起
一块璞石的渴求。




A Raw Jade Stone Says

I don’t want to be a lion, for no danger of valleys,
rocks or torrents is inlaid between my ribs.

Nor do I want to become a Buddha statue.
Rather than sit still in the face of recluses,
I prefer to draw close
to cloud shadows, wild flowers, mountain springs.

When the setting sun slants on the river and the hillside,
it’s more comfortable to be a useless stone.

Allow my inner self to practice whatever it likes—
improving intelligence, or feeling languid,
or melting time, staying fresh over the years.

Allow the north wind to blow and push me.
My shape of eternity makes the earthly world small.
My immortal image never touches life or death.

But my inward disquiet, so faint.
With you close by, I’m not afraid of being hammered.

So let me be a useless stone
as if leaving the pain and knife cuts to you—
a jade craftsman

who simply opens his bosom, hands in line
with the mind, starting to respect, attentively,
the thirst of a raw jade stone.

(English Translation: Liang Yujing)
英译：梁余晶



***



Zhang Xiaoxue, poet and essayist, has authored quite a few poetry and essay collections. Her poems, essays and reviews, numbering in the hundreds, have been published in renowned literary journals such as People’s Literature, October, Zhongshan and Flower City. She has received several prestigious awards, including October Poetry Award, Zhongshan Literary Award and Yangtze River Poetics Award. Currently she serves as member of Chinese Writers Association Presidium, Vice Chairman of Henan Writers Association and Director of Henan Academy of Lierature.


张晓雪，诗人、散文家。著有诗集、评论集多部。曾在《人 民文学》《十月》《钟山》《花城》等杂志发表诗歌、随笔，评论数百首（篇）。获《十月》诗歌奖、《钟山》文学奖，《扬 子江》诗学奖等若干奖项。现任中国作家协会全委会委员、河南省作家协会副主席，河南省文学院院长。