Page:A history of Chinese literature - Giles.djvu/199

 Sharing the nature of TAO,

// shuns the limits of mortality.

It is in the piled-up hills, in tall trees^

In dark mosses, in sunlight rays. . ..

Croon over it, think upon it;

Its faint sound eludes the ear"

xxii. ABSTRACTION. " Without friends, longing to be there^ Alone, away from the common herd, Like the crane on Mount Hou, Like the cloud at the peak of Mount Ifua. In the portrait of the hero The old fire still lingers; The leaf carried by the wind Floats on the boundless sea. It would seem as though not to be grasped, But always on the point of being disclosed. Those who recognise this have already attained; Those who hope, drift daily farther away"

xxiii. ILLUMINED. " Life stretches to one hundred years, And yet how brief a span; Its joys so fleeting, Its griefs so many ! What has it like a goblet of wine, And daily visits to the wistaria arbour, Where flowers cluster around the eaves, And light showers pass overhead! Then when the wine-cup is drained, To stroll about with staff of thorn ; For who of us but will some day be an ancient 1 . . . Ah, there is the South Mountain in its grandeur l n *

xxiv. MOTION. " Like a whirling water-wheel, Like rolling pearls, Yet how are these worthy to be named? They are but illustrations for fools.

��This remains, while all other things pass away.

�� �