Poetry Explorer


Classic and Contemporary Poetry


THE POEMS OF COLD MOUNTAIN: 230 by HAN SHAN

First Line: ALL I SEE ARE FOOLS
Last Line: READ THIS OVER ONCE OR TWICE
Subject(s): BUDDHISM; CHINESE LITERATURE; FOOLS; IGNORANCE; BUDDHA; BUDDHISTS; IDIOTS; DULLNESS; STUPDITY;

All I see are fools
piling higher gold and grain
getting drunk and eating creatures
imagining they're well-to-do
unaware of Hell's abyss
seeking only Heaven's bliss
but with karma like Vipula
how can they escape disaster
suddenly the rich man dies
people crowd around in tears
then they hire some monks to chant
though such ghostly pay is void
and provides no future blessings
why support the hairless bunch
better to wake up in time
don't create a hell of darkness
be a tree that fears no wind
steadfast and unmoved by fate
tell the blockheads you might meet
read this over once or twice



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