The Map

By Bai Hua

From Buddhism at dusk to Christianity at
the break of dawn, Suzhou to Shanghai
not all early birds marked with loneliness,
I got up early, and got caught up in the busyness.

And only a Lebanese cedar catches sight of
the crack of dawn and the end of the world?
Everything in the world is so indissoluble,
But the life alone is temporary at all.

Everyone has his own fate, and his course left.
An age-old lie always better than a new actuality.
The son of a traitor remains faithful and unyielding,
he'd rather shoot his sperm on the ground.

Is it really the white tree be good, black tree evil,
green tree fruitful, and mangrove bleeding?
a water heating rod helps out with recollections,
of the very winter in 1988, of our Nanjing!

Dec. 18, 2018/translated by Chen Zihong

诗人简介：柏桦（1956-）中国当代著名诗人，西南交通大学艺术与传播学院教授。代表作《表达》、《往事》、《水绘仙侣》、《一点墨》

本诗英文译文及所附中文原诗已获作者授权，未经原作者和译者许可，谢绝任何转载及用于任何商业用途。

地图

从佛教暮晚到基督教
黎明，从苏州到上海
并非早起的人都孤独，
我一早起来就忙得很。

唯黎巴嫩雪松可看到
世界的曙光和末日吗？
人间样样都是永久的，
唯独生命才是暂时的。

人各有命，各往下活——
老谎言总胜过新真理；
叛徒的儿子依然坚贞，
宁肯把精子射在地上。

真的是白树善黑树恶
绿树多产，红树流血？
烧水的热水棒帮我记忆，
1988年冬我们的南京！

           2018年12月18日