Do you still sleep in this valley, at rest under thriving grass?
Where have those rosy cheeks gone, do your bleached bones remember?
I brought good wine for us to share—here, I’ll pour it on the grass.
Notes
On his way north to Pyongyang, where he had been assigned an administrative post by King Sonjo, Im Che stopped in Kaesung to pay tribute at the grave of the noted kisaeng Whang Chin-i. On that spot, he is said to have composed this sijo extemporaneously.
Poem Origin: Korea, 16th century
Poem translation © 2000 by Dr. Larry Gross
This translation is not in the public domain.
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