Never attuned to worldly affairs
My inborn nature longing for mountain air
Being caught up in an earthly web, however
30 years have vanished into thin air
A caged bird lingers about familiar woods
Small pond fish never swim far from the hook
Plowing a patch of wasteland on the southern nook
I finally retreat to nature for a garden-field outlook
A few thatched huts are put up on acres of flat
Elms and willows shading the back
Peaches and plums greeting at the front
A village afar coming into view
Wisps of chimney smoke rising above the field
Dog barks are heard from deep alleys, rooster crows in mulberry trees
My patio is clear of clutter
The mind free for fond dreams
Being in a cage for too long
Now I am back to nature loving it
~ Translated from Tao Yuanming’s “Back to Nature (Part One),” a series of ‘Field and Garden’ poems written in the Six Dynasties period
少无适俗韵，性本爱丘山。误入尘网中，一去三十年。
羁鸟恋旧林，池鱼思故渊。开荒南野际，守拙归园田。
方宅十余亩，草屋八九间。榆柳荫后檐，桃李罗堂前。
暧暧远人村，依依墟里烟。狗吠深巷中，鸡鸣桑树颠。
户庭无尘杂，虚室有余闲。久在樊笼里，复得返自然。
~ 陶淵明 (東晉末至南北朝) 《歸園田居 其一》
