放言 白居易

放言      白居易(772-846)
贈君一法決狐疑，不用鑽龜與祝蓍，
試玉要燒三日滿，辨材須待七年期，
周公恐懼留言日，玉莽謙恭未篡時，
向使當初身便死，一生真偽有誰知？

My Contemptuous Remarks        Bai Juyi (772-846)

To solve your doubts try my elixir,

With that you can dispose of both the turtle and the diviner,
To test a piece of jade you need to burn it for three days entire,
To tell the timber you have to wait at least seven full years,
When the Duke of Zhou was vexed by aspersions and slanders,
And Wang Mang of Han feigned humility when his ambitions to usurp the throne were still undiscovered,
If they died right then and there,
Who will ever know if they were genuinely men of integrity thereafter.