半世異鄉過客，

平生人境為廬。

頻來歸夢總如初。

萬水千山飛度。

莫道有情浮世，

煙霞自在江湖。

偶然何事感躊躇。

隱約白雲深處。

Tune: Xi Jiang Yue(1) (Moon Over the West River)

Wandering through foreign lands

Half of my lifetime has passed

Wherever I go

In this human world

I build another cottage as I cultivate myself

My dream of returning

Always revisiting

As strong as in the beginning

Carrying me over thousands of rivers and mountains.

Don't tell me how wonderful and colorful this world is!

I only care about traveling freely

To rivers and lakes

Amidst mist and evening glow

Yet alas! For what reasons do I sometimes hesitate?

A faint sadness swells in my chest

As I vaguely remember

My real home in the heavens

Hidden beyond the white clouds.

1. Xi Jiang Yue is A qupai, the generic term for a fixed melody used in traditional Chinese music. A qupai (Chinese: 曲牌; pinyin: qǔpái; also called Chinese: 牌子; pinyin: paizi) is the generic term for a fixed melody used in traditional Chinese music. The literal meaning is "named tune," "labeled melody," "titled tune," or "titled song".)

Translated by Jennifer Zeng and Gerard Traub