Nine Monks

Library / Nine Monks / Shi Xizhou

01 · Shi Xizhou

寄題武當郡守史隱亭

Composed for the Wudang Governor’s Recluse-Official Pavilion

釋希晝

Chinese

郡亭傳吏隱，間自使君心。
卷幕知來客，懸燈見宿禽。
茶煙逢石斷，棋響入花深。
會逐南帆使，乘秋寄此吟。

English

At the county pavilion, the presence of the recluse official lingers.

In the silent gaps, glimpses of the governor’s heart.

Rolling up the curtain, one perceives a guest arriving;

hanging the lamp, one sees roosting birds.

The tea steam drifts, meets the rock, and ceases;

The clicks of Go stones fade among deep blossoms.

When the time comes, I'll follow the southbound sail,

and riding the autumn winds, I'll relinquish this poem to them.

English translation © 2026 Alex Barrera. Classical Chinese text is in the public domain / not claimed under this copyright.

Responses

A quiet note of appreciation, or a short remark.

  • No comments yet.

Translation history

Each edit creates a new version. Diffs show what changed from the previous one.

  1. Version 2 · current

    Oct 3, 2026

    Revised closing verb: “release” → “relinquish” (Keynote/PDF reading).

  2. Version 1

    Oct 3, 2026

    Initial draft from working notes.

Diff · v1 → v2

At the county pavilion, the presence of the recluse official lingers.
In the silent gaps, glimpses of the governor’s heart.
Rolling up the curtain, one perceives a guest arriving;
hanging the lamp, one sees roosting birds.
The tea steam drifts, meets the rock, and ceases;
The clicks of Go stones fade among deep blossoms.
When the time comes, I'll follow the southbound sail,
and riding the autumn winds, I'll releaserelinquish this poem to them.