房子曾经无声而世界曾经安宁

The house was quiet and the world was calm.

读者曾经成为书；而夏夜

The reader became the book; and summer night

曾经像书的有意识的存在。

Was like the conscious being of the book.

房子曾经无声而世界曾经安宁。

The house was quiet and the world was calm.

词语曾经被说出仿佛没有书，

The words were spoken as if there was no book,

除了读者俯身在书页上，

Except that the reader leaned above the page,

想要俯身，一心想要成为

Wanted to lean, wanted much most to be

学者，他的书对于他是真的，对于他

The scholar to whom his book is true, to whom

夏夜就像一种思想的完美。

The summer night is like a perfection of thought.

房子曾经无声因为它必须如此。

The house was quiet because it had to be.

无声的曾经是意义的一部分，心的一部分：

The quiet was part of the meaning, part of the mind:

完成通向书页之道。

The access of perfection to the page.

而世界曾经安宁。一个安宁世界的真理，

And the world was calm. The truth in a calm world,

在那里没有别的意义，它自身

In which there is no other meaning, itself

安宁，它自身是夏天和夜，它自身

Is calm, itself is summer and night, itself

是读者俯身到晚并在那里阅读。

Is the reader leaning late and reading there.