1月26日

石灰詠
明 于謙 ( 1398~1457 )

千錘百鍊出深山，烈火焚燒莫等閒；
粉身碎骨都無怨，留得清白在人間。

──選自《御選明詩》

January 26th

The Lime Aria
Yu Qian (1398 - 1457, Ming Dynasty)
English translation: Miao Guang

After endless hammering and refinement,
    it is ready to depart the deep mountains;

Having gone through the furnace of raging fire,
    it is no longer an equivalent of the ordinary.

Though its body is shattered and bones crushed,
    it harbors no resentments.

All that is left behind in this world,
    are the white colors of purity.

── from Yuxuan Mingshi (Imperial Selection of Ming Dynasty Poems)