ChineseStudy

225. Seeing a Monk Off | Liu Changqing

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English translation

A lone cloud with a wild crane — how could such a traveler remain in the ordinary world?

Lone cloud and wild crane figure the monk's unfixed path and freedom from social ties. The rhetorical question says that he cannot be expected to stay long amid worldly life.

Do not buy yourself a retreat on Mount Wozhou; people already know where it is.

Wozhou was famous as a place where eminent monks withdrew. Once everyone knows it, it is no longer secluded. The line is lightly humorous, advising the monk to seek quieter ground elsewhere.

赏析 · Commentary

前两句高远，后两句忽然落地 · From Lofty Images to a Practical Joke

孤云、野鹤把僧人写得高远脱俗，后两句却谈起“买山”和地址是否出名。语气从赞叹转为朋友间的打趣，人物也因此不再只是抽象的隐士。诗人理解他要走，又提醒他：真正的清静不在已经成名的隐居胜地。

Lone cloud and wild crane lift the monk into an elevated, otherworldly image; the next lines suddenly discuss buying a mountain and whether its location is too well known. Admiration turns into friendly teasing, and the monk becomes more than an abstract recluse. The poet understands why he must leave, while reminding him that true seclusion is unlikely to be found at a celebrated retreat.

出名的隐居地还是隐居地吗 · Can a Famous Retreat Still Be Secluded?

沃洲山因支遁等高僧的故事而有名，后来也就成了文人想象中的隐居地。诗抓住一个矛盾：越是公认的清幽之地，越容易吸引访客和追随者。末句不作严肃议论，只说“时人已知处”，一句常识便拆穿了名山的清静招牌。

Mount Wozhou became famous through stories of eminent monks such as Zhi Dun and then entered literary imagination as a natural retreat. The poem catches a contradiction: the more widely a place is recognized for seclusion, the more visitors it attracts. The final line offers no solemn argument. Everyone already knows it — one piece of common sense punctures the mountain's reputation for privacy.

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