Your Voice Strikes My Heart like a Piano Key - Zhao Lihong / 赵丽宏

Zhao Lihong / 赵丽宏




Your Voice Strikes My Heart
like a Piano Key

—In memory of my departed mother

The world is accessible in fact
Roads and paths leading in all directions
A free mind can cross
Any physical and artificial estrangements
Reach the other side, reach the desert
Reach a glacier, and reach a foreign land
Time and space welcome and send off the ever-shuttling winds
Intertwining and sewing the sky and the earth together
In the perspective of the soul
The vast world is an infinite whole
My heart’s residence, my home
May be a microcosm of the entire world
Which road are you walking on at this moment
And will you look back and see
The farewell children are standing on the roadside
Waving goodbye to you with reluctance
In your final gaze, a hundred years
Have turned into a fleeting blink

Every piece of earth reflects
Different colors in the sunlight
Every stream flows out with different trajectories
On its way to the ocean
Each mountain peak displays
A different height on the vast horizon
Each forest accommodates
Different flowers and trees and animals and birds
The myriad creatures between heaven and earth
Emit different songs, mournful cries, and sighs
Different colors, different sounds
Different looks, different smells
Like seawater dissolving salt particles and
Transforming into a deep blue to illuminate the sky
Like sunlight melting ice and snow and
Gathering crystal clear flowing water to nourish the earth
All this is just a fluttering strand of your white hair
In my longing for you

On a stormy night, sudden lightning strikes
Created glaring cracks in the sky
The ensuing thunder shook the sky and earth
As if about to collapse the sky
It was an instant howl, seemingly announcing that
The sky has been torn apart ever since
However, lightning and thunder are always like
Fleeting dreams that come and go without a trace
The absurd attempt to tear apart the sky
Has never succeeded since ancient times
How many times after wind and rain
I stroll by the lake with swaying flowers and plants
The calm lake surface like a mirror
Reflecting the brilliant and gentle sky light
The light blends the danger and chaos of the world
Into a harmonious color
Which is the rainbow of seven colors
And your god-like smile overlooking man’s world

I like your smile, your gentle smile
Resolves the ice, snow, wind, and frost
I like your voice, your simple language
Strikes my heart like a piano key
Being with you, I won’t
Worry about losing my way
Nor will I give up the pursuit of truth
Due to loneliness and melancholy
You told me not to hold on to
Other people’s shortcomings
Face the light and move forward
And there will be no shadow in front of you
Different beliefs can become
The blood light of hatred in sword fights, or
The flowers and grasses of various shapes and colors
Blooming in the fields
Bringing forth a colorful garden
That makes all seasons feel like spring

You accidentally planted
The seeds of the future into my heart
Every step I take, I find out
A view no one else can see
Everyone in the world is
A unique and rich gold mine
But most people cannot discover
The treasure they have in their hearts
Do not need to live in the eyes of others
Nor need to live in the mouth of others
It is the world that chose me
And I, who chose this world
I live in my own world
But by no means am I isolated
My world will always be
A part of the vast world
A unique and beautiful speck
Between heaven and earth

The process of life
Gathers many experiences of love and affection
Including unwavering companionship until death
And helpless partings
You have depicted to me how many
Joys and sorrows, partings and reunions
And tears and laughter there are under heaven
To weave together a winding path of the heart
You said that passionate lovers
May not always grow old together
After parting, the posture perhaps can be
A measure of the authenticity and depth of love
After parting, the lovers can turn against each other
Or can live very close, but rarely seen
After parting, they can preserve true feelings
In the bottle of memory, and then
Brew fine wine, and drink alone under the moon
Sing to the wine, and drink together in dreams

In the nectar of true love
There must be elements of independence and freedom
What is freedom
Is it having no taboos and doing whatever you want
Altering arbitrarily
The various naturally formed rules
Ordering the cloud to cut a graceful dress
For you to attend the ball
Or directing rivers to flow towards higher places
And towards deserts far away from the sea
Freedom is that no one can force me
To do what I don’t want to do
Freedom is the intercourse of
Fear and courage over a long journey
With a gentle voice
You have repeatedly told me
That one can still bravely move forward in the face of fear
And at the end of darkness lies light
Let’s sing and dance
Silence and dullness are a waste of life
If you can embrace the world with ease
There is no need to care about the posture you do it
If you can choose your path at will
Don’t be afraid of the roughness of the road
Life is like a perpetual mechanical pendulum
Swinging between departure and arrival
Swinging between sadness and joy
Swinging between clarity and dreams
Swinging between pain and sweetness
Swinging between tranquility and noise
Time does not linger for anyone
It is a fair judge
Even if all the clock springs in the world
Have rusted and stopped
Your voice will still be like a piano key
Tapping my heart with each sound

November 2024, at my Four-Pace Study

(Translated by Zhou Wenbiao)





你的声音如琴键叩击心灵

——纪念我远去的母亲

（代序）

世界其实是通透的
大道小径四通八达
自由的思绪可以穿越
任何物理和人为的隔阂
抵达彼岸，抵达荒原
抵达冰川，抵达异国他乡
时空迎送往来不绝的风
连缀缝合着苍穹和大地
在心灵视野中，浩瀚天地
是一个无边无际的整体
我的心居，我的家园
也许就是整个世界的缩影
此刻，你正在哪条路上
行走，你会不会回头看看
送别的儿女们站在路边
正依依不舍地向你挥手
在你最后的目光里
一百年岁月化成了忽忽一瞬

地球上的每一块土地
都在阳光下反射不同的色彩
每一条江河都在奔向海洋的路上
流出不同的轨迹
每一座山峰都在辽阔的地平线上
展示不同的高度
每一片森林都容纳着
不同的花草树木和走兽飞禽
天地间的万类生灵
发出不同的歌唱、悲鸣和叹息
不同的颜色，不同的声音
不同的表情，不同的气味
如同海水溶解盐粒
化成深邃的蓝色映照天空
如同阳光融化冰雪
汇作晶莹的流水滋润大地
这一切，在我的思念中
只是你一缕飘动的白发

风雨之夜，突现的闪电
在天幕划出刺目的裂痕
随之而来的雷霆惊天动地
仿佛要震塌苍穹
那是瞬时的怒号
似在宣告天幕从此就被撕裂
然而闪电和惊雷
总是如来去无踪的梦幻稍纵即逝
撕裂天幕的荒诞企图
从古到今没有一次得逞
多少次风雨之后
我漫步在花草摇曳的湖畔
平静的湖面如镜子
反照着辉煌而柔和的天光
天光把世界的凶险和芜杂
融合成和谐的色泽
那是七色的彩虹
是你俯瞰人间的神祗般的笑容

我欣赏你的微笑
你的莞尔一笑化解了冰雪风霜
我喜欢你的声音
你单纯的语言如琴键叩击心灵
和你在一起，我不会
担心迷失方向
不会因孤独和凄惘
放弃对真理的追寻
你告诉我，不要把目光
盯着别人的短处
面对着光明往前走
你的眼前不会有阴影
不同的信仰，可以成为刀剑
厮杀出仇恨的血光
也可以成为形色各异的花和草
在田野竞相绽放
绽放成一片千红万紫的花园
让四季如春

你是在无意中
把未来的种子播进我的心里
每走一步，我都会发现
别人无法看见的风景
每个人都是一座
与众不同蕴蓄丰富的金矿
只是大多数人无法发现
自己心中拥有的宝藏
不必活在别人的眼里
也不必活在别人的嘴里
是世界选择了我
也是我选择了这个世界
我活在自己的天地中
却决不是与世隔绝
我的世界，永远是
浩瀚世界的一部分
是茫茫天地间
一粒与众不同的美丽微尘

生命的过程
汇集着多少相亲相爱的经历
有至死不渝的相守
也有无可奈何的分手
你向我描绘过多少
人世间的悲欢离合
眼泪和欢笑
共织成曲折蜿蜒的心灵之径
你说，热恋的情人
未必都能白头偕老
分离后的姿态
也许可以衡量爱的真伪和深度
分离后可以反目成仇
可以咫尺天涯
分离后也可以把真情
保存在记忆之瓶
酿成美酒，月下独酌
对酒放歌，梦中共饮

真爱的琼浆中
一定饱含着独立自由的元素
自由是什么？
是百无禁忌，为所欲为？
是随意改变
自然形成的各种各样的规则？
是命令云彩为自己
裁剪出席舞会的翩翩衣裙？
是指使江河流向高处
流向远离大海的荒漠？
自由是没有人能强迫我
做我不愿意做的事情
自由是恐惧和勇气
在漫漫长途中相互交合
你用温柔的声音
一次又一次告诉我
面对恐惧依然可以勇敢前行
黑暗尽头是光明
歌唱吧，起舞吧
沉默和呆滞是对生命的辜负
如果能率性地拥抱世界
不必在乎拥抱的姿态
如果能自由地选择道路
不要害怕道路的崎岖
人生如永动的机械钟摆
在出发和到达之间摆动
在悲伤和喜乐之间摆动
在清醒和梦幻之间摆动
在苦痛和甜蜜之间摆动
在宁静和喧闹之间摆动
时间不会为任何人停留
它是公正的裁判
即便世界上
所有的钟表发条都已生锈停摆
你的声音，依然如琴键
一声声叩击我的心灵

2024 年11 月于四步斋




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Zhao Lihong is a Chinese poet, essayist and novelist. Born in Shanghai in 1952, he is currently the chairperson of the Shanghai International Poetry Festival. He has authored over a hundred books including poetry collections, essays and novels. His representative works include poetry collections such as The Boat in the Sky, Pains and Metamorphosis. His works have won awards such as the New Era Excellent Essay Collection Award, China Good Book Award and Wenjin Book Award. In 2013, he was awarded the Smederevo Golden Key International Poetry Award in Serbia. In 2014, he received the Shanghai Literature and Art Outstanding Contribution Award and was appointed as an honorary academician of the Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University United International College (UIC). In 2019, he won the Mihai Eminescu International Poetry Award in Romania and was elected as an academician of the French Academy of Sciences, Arts and Humanities. In 2024, he received the International Bing Xin Literature Award Gold Prize. In 2025, he won the Montale Literature Award in Italy and the KS International Poetry Award in South Korea. His works have been translated into English, French, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Serbian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Persian and many other languages and published overseas.


赵丽宏，中国诗人、散文家、小说家。1952年生于上海。现为上海国际诗歌节主席。著有诗集、散文集、小说等各种专著共一百余部。代表作有诗集《天上的船》《疼痛》《变形》等。作品曾获新时期优秀散文集奖、中国好书奖、文津图书奖。2013年荣获塞尔维亚斯梅德雷沃金钥匙国际诗歌奖。2014年获上海市文学艺术杰出贡献奖，同年被授予北京师范大学-香港浸会大学联合国际学院（UIC）荣誉院士。2019年获罗马尼亚“米哈伊·爱明内斯库国际诗歌大奖”，同年被选为法国科学、艺术人文学院院士。2024年获国际冰心文学奖金奖。2025年获意大利蒙塔莱文学奖、韩国KS国际诗歌奖。作品被翻译成英、法、俄、意、西班牙、保加利亚、乌克兰、塞尔维亚、罗马尼亚、波兰、匈牙利、日、韩、阿拉伯、波斯等多种文字在海外出版。