Guge

By Cheng Lie

A fortress that never fades, as the emptiness of a rock
it presents a scene of desolation and the world.
Giant elbows protruding from ranks of fate
The slope is as chilling as standing on dangrous edge
This lost dynasty sits in inaccessible void,
without feathers and light
Architecture of the harp era，here
only the tears and seeds of the earth are left:
rivers and stones.
Hundred thousand sentient beings forsook the world
just like another shadow of the soul,
to our naked eyes, the dust invisible
has exceeded the sum of earthly soil
The folklore of the dust
is the brightest lighthouse standing in this land,
the forgotten names, posterity can no longer read
but your outstretched hand can touch the bone.
Starry night, fireflies flying, streams overflowing
I see a constellation in the sky
a dark face balks at the treasures in deep labyrinth,
leaves on both sides of the road beat in the wind
like a crowd of rapidly spinning black birds,
churning up and down
the two lives are one and the same.

2016/ translated by Chen Zihong

Guge, was an ancient kingdom in Western Tibet. The kingdom was centered in present-day Zanda County, Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region. At various points in history after the 10th century AD, the kingdom held sway over a vast area including south-eastern Zanskar, Upper Kinnaur district, and Spiti Valley, either by conquest or as tributaries. The ruins of the former capital of the Guge kingdom are located at Tsaparang in the Sutlej valley, not far from Mount Kailash and 1,200 miles (1,900 km) westwards from Lhasa.  (from Wikipedia)  -Tr.

古格王朝

程烈

永不凋落的堡垒，一如岩石的空旷
呈现世界的荒凉。
巨擘臂肘从命运队列伸出
临渊而立的坡度
失落的王朝端坐于不可接近的太虚，
没有羽毛，也没有光
竖琴时代的建筑
只余下大地的泪与种子：
河流和石头。
出离尘世的十万众生
仿佛灵魂的另一道叠影，
肉眼看不见的尘埃
已超过凡间泥土的总和
尘埃里的传说
是这片土地上最亮的灯塔，
被遗忘的名字，后人已无法识读
但一伸手却能触碰到骨头。
星夜流萤纷飞，溪水四溢
我看见天上的星斗
黝黑的面孔逡巡在深藏迷宫的珍宝之间，
道路两旁的树叶在风中打着拍子
像一众急速旋转的黑鸟，
上下翻飞中
一个生命也是另外一个。

2016年