Gauze stocking stoned poem

A translated poem is not the responsibility of the original poet but the translator. It stands and falls, as it much, as a poem in the language translated.

The Jewel Stairs’ Grievance

Li Po

The jewelled steps are already quite white with dew,
It is so late that the dew soaks my gauze stockings,
And I let down the crystal curtain
And watch the moon through the clear autumn.

Translated by Ezra Pound

Which is why the best translators are themselves poets.

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