This is a stale title, demanding from the night

The bones of time, the scream of flesh…

Gu Pin, whose real name is Li Guoping, lives in Zhoushan City, Zhejiang Province

Gu Pin, whose real name is Li Guoping, currently lives in Zhoushan City, Zhejiang Province. He is a member of the China Writers Association and editor-in-chief of Islands Literature. He has published 4 collections of poems and essays, and his poems have been included in many annual poetry anthologies. He has won annual poetry awards from Anhui Literature and Petrel among others.

谷频，本名李国平，现居浙江舟山市，中国作家协会会员，《群岛文学》主编。著有诗文集4部，诗作被选入多部年度诗歌选本等。曾获《安徽文学》《海燕》等年度诗歌奖。

(Translated by Ma Yongbo)

Between Black and White

This is a stale title, demanding from the night

The bones of time, the scream of flesh

Yet it has destroyed the last remaining embers of life

Tombstones, hibiscuses; and the woman drawing water in dreams

Such stares are illusory even in daylight

But that never stops the sun from plucking away your bright eyes

 

The white I describe is buried deep within the sun and moon

Its root thorns have gathered enough oxygen for deep sleep

When the sky dims, the running footprints and heartbeats

Are all damp. And the childhood barn lantern

At the height of clouds slowly turns into the ink color of flowing water

Like ten-mile-long River carrying the nostalgia of the lowlands

***

在黑白之间

这是个陈旧的标题，向黑夜索取

时光的骨头，肉体的尖叫

却毁灭了生活仅存的一点火烬

墓碑，木槿；还有梦里汲水的女人

这样的凝望在白天都是虚拟的

但从不妨碍阳光摘走你们明亮的眼睛

 

我所形容的白埋在日月的深层

它的根剌为熟睡采集了足够的氧气

当天色暗淡下来，奔跑的脚印和心跳

都是湿漉漉的。而童年的马灯

在云朵的高度慢慢变成流水的墨色

如同十里长河流动低处的眷恋

***

In the evening, a few scattered drizzles fell on the island

I guess it’s the sky letting go of some distractions,

This short poem is like wild dancing needles and threads,

Stitched into the earth of different eras.

The peak bottom hiding the setting sun draws water in the rocks,

How the illegally entering do swallows, from behind the mountains,

Bring the warmth of surging lights? The island

Is a huge and impregnable castle,

Yet the scales of dead fish reveal to dark clouds

Their secret cracks.

This drizzle merges with the blood of the ocean,

Making us unable to avoid the violent tendencies of innocence,

Strange faces

Will surely be startled by lightning.

***

傍晚，岛上下了点零星细雨

我猜想是天空放弃掉某些杂念

这首短诗像狂舞的针线

缝在不同年代的大地

深藏落日的峰底在岩石里汲水

非法入境的燕子如何从山后

带来灯火涌动的温情。岛屿

是巨大而坚不可摧的城堡

而死鱼的鳞片，却向乌云

亮出了它秘密的裂痕

这场细雨和海洋的血液融合一起

让我们无法回避童贞的暴力倾向

陌生的面孔

必将会受到闪电的惊吓

***

The Bay

This is the sacred forehead of the sea, her visage

Shimmers with the luster of the moon. This is a

Source where the blue sky and green sea converge, her glory

Is the lighthouse chased in the hearts of those who come after.

This is a highland marked by time, only she

Can bestow upon us the character of rocks and stones.

At this moment, I stand in the sketch that belongs to them

Watching the last trace of birdsong splash into the sea

I cannot tell how many glories and shames of life

Are stored in the towering tower rising in my heart,

Like a reef I once loved

Walking amid the waves, it too carries a soul,

If it were a net that drove desire out of the bay

My courage could only come from the keel I worship.

Who is it, amid the truncated sound of the waves,

That makes the schools of fish inscribe the traces of things?

just as we copy with verses and warm blood

A pair of truly authentic wings

No altitude can alter the gaze of the ship

***

海湾

这是大海圣洁的前额，她的容貌

散发月亮的光泽，这是一个

苍天碧海之源，她的荣耀

便是后来者心中追逐的灯塔

这是时间标注的高地，只有她

才会馈赠我们山石的性格

此刻，我站在属于它们的素描里

看着最后一点鸟鸣溅入海中

说不清心里耸起的高塔

到底贮存着多少生命荣与辱

就像我爱过的一块礁岩

在浪花中行走也会携带灵魂

如果是一张网把欲望赶出了海湾

我的勇气只能来自膜拜的龙骨

是谁在截断的涛声中

让鱼群镌刻上事物的痕迹

就像我们用诗句和热血临摹

一对真正的翅膀

每一个海拔都不会改变船舶的眺望

_______________

Read: Rain Water – Poetry from China