A Taste of the Human World

“I envy only the bustling world of men. No one is willing to step away and watch my family fall into ruin. Alone, I chop down the tree, waiting to see its monkeys scatter when it falls. Now I sail alone along the edge of the vast sea, gazing at the faint clouds and chatting with young warriors, and I find I am not even particularly grieved. Ah! The rivers and lakes ahead stretch far away. The old Daoist recites poetry, while the hermit wipes his sword. In the end, I alone became a persuader in this world. Though I ferried tens of thousands across, I never managed to ferry myself.”