The poem of the mind in the act of finding

心智之诗在行动，在找

What will suffice. It has not always had

满足的东西。它一度没去

To find: the scene was set; it repeated what

找：舞台早搭就，它只需背诵

Was in the script.

脚本上的台词。

                               Then the theatre was changed

                       而舞台随后

To something else. Its past was a souvenir.

变了样，它的过去成了纪念品。

It has to be living, to learn the speech of the place.

它得是鲜活的，会讲当地话。

It has to face the men of the time and to meet

它得面对当时的男人并与

The women of the time. It has to think about war

当时的女人接上头。它得想想战争

And it has to find what will suffice. It has

并找到满足的东西。它得

To construct a new stage. It has to be on that stage

搭造一个新舞台。它得出场

And, like an insatiable actor, slowly and

并像一个不知足的演员，缓慢地，

With meditation, speak words that in the ear,

沉思地，将词语吐露进那耳朵里，使其在

In the delicatest ear of the mind, repeat,

这心智的最微妙的耳朵里回荡，一字不差地

Exactly, that which it wants to hear, at the sound

重复它爱听的，回荡声中，一群

Of which, an invisible audience listens,

隐身的观众凝神聆听，聆听的是

Not to the play, but to itself, expressed

In an emotion as of two people, as of two

其自身，而不是剧本，聆听那

Emotions becoming one. The actor is

两个人的激情，那两股似乎

A metaphysician in the dark, twanging

An instrument, twanging a wiry string that gives

合而为一的激情。那演员

Sounds passing through sudden rightnesses, wholly

是黑暗中的玄学家，拨弄着

Containing the mind, below which it cannot descend,

乐器，拨弄着琴弦，发出

Beyond which it has no will to rise.

突然穿透精确的声响，饱含着

                                                         It must

心智，不多不少，既不屈尊向下，

Be the finding of a satisfaction, and may

也不愿无限高攀。

Be of a man skating, a woman dancing, a woman

                          那正是

Combing. The poem of the act of the mind.

所谓满足的景象：可以是

一个男人在滑冰，一个女人在跳舞，或

梳头。诗歌：心智在行动。