Lonely and longing to travel;
   All alone and lacking a tribe.
 Like the crane up on the mountain,
   Or the cloud that enshrouds its peak.
 Like the portraits painted by past
   Masters, of souls you couldn't have known.
 Like a leaf drifting on swift winds,
   Bounding through the boundless spaces.
 You'll never be able to hold it,
   But can hear the song it dances to,
 Those who accept this can tune in,
   And the signal will only get stronger. 

NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a translation of the twenty-second of the twenty-four poems. This poem has been alternately titled “Abstraction,” “Elegance,” and “Drifting Aloof” by varied translators, but its original title is 飘逸.