廬山記 4.57

4.57

I am by nature the madman of Chu, / whose phoenix song mocked Confucius. / In hand I hold a green jade staff, / bidding morning farewell to Yellow Crane Tower. / Seeking immortals across the Five Marchmounts, I begrudge no distance; / all my life I have loved wandering into famed mountains. / Lushan emerges in sublime beauty beside the Southern Dipper, / its Screen of Nine Folds unfurling like cloud-brocade, / its shadow falling upon the clear lake with an azure gleam. / Before the Golden Portal open two lofty peaks; / the Silver River hangs upside down across the Three Stone Bridges. / Incense Burner Peak and the waterfall gaze at each other from afar; / winding cliffs and apricot crags tower into the azure void. / Emerald shadows and vermilion clouds reflect the morning sun; / birds cannot fly so far through the expansive Wu sky. / Climbing high, I behold a magnificent sight between heaven and earth: / the Great River flows boundlessly away, never to return. / Yellow clouds stretch ten thousand li, stirring the wind’s hues; / white waves in nine streams rush down like mountains of snow. / Well pleased, I make this ballad of Lushan; / my inspiration is aroused for Lushan. / At leisure I gaze into the Stone Mirror to cleanse my heart, / where Duke Xie walked, overgrown with green moss. / (One version has: Where green vines open, the bright moon hangs.) / Having early ingested the Cyclical Elixir, I am free of worldly passions; / the lute-heart folded three times, the Dao is first accomplished. / Far off I behold an immortal amidst iridescent clouds, / holding a lotus in hand to pay homage at the Jade Capital. / Having previously appointed a meeting beyond the nine heavens, / I wish to join Lu Ao in roaming the Great Purity.